How well does Autofocus work in the HVX?

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dahon man

Member
I shall be shooting a lot of handheld tracking for an outdoor docu that I am gonna do, as per my experience, AF has been my default mode as long as I stay away from the long end of the lens. This has worked well with the dvx. My question is - where in the frame does the AF lock on? Usually its the middle of course but is there a mode in the hvx that forces it to favor either side (like some dSLRs)?
 
As with most of the cameras in this class, the autofocus on the HVX is not very good and in 24P, I would call it unusable. If you are using the shorter end of the lens you may be able to get away with using the LCD to manually focus but be ready for some mishaps..


ash =o)
 
Unless your shooting objects/talent that is moving towards (or away) from you at a pretty fast rate (like NASCAR events) you should be able to hold your shot--while focusing manually. If you're not used to operating a camera in manual mode there is a natural tendancy towords resistance (of shooting in manual settings) but if you're ever going to approach getting all it has to offer you're going to have to go there anyway.

Turn those automatic setting off and shoot some practice shots before you get into your production. "Practice makes perfect"??? Nah! Practice, practice, practice, and more practice makes for professional results.
 
Yeah, I wish the HVX had multiple focus zones like my Nikon's but it's pretty much like any other video camera.

I use autofocus all the time.

I came up from the still photography ranks where I learned to take pictures with a fully manual camera. Had to adjust shutter speed, aperture and focus to get a good picture.

When autofocus came out in the Nikon F4, It was a tool that allowed me to concentrate on other things and let the camera handle the focusing.

I do the same with my HVX. I know allot of people scoff at using autofocus. Some will even tell you that it's not considered professional to use autofocus.

To me, it's just a tool like multiple framerates etc.

Like any camera there are some situations where autofocus doesn't work or isn't a good situation to use.

I shoot allot of wildlife at 60fps at 24p. I haven't heard to many complaints about my work and a large portion of it is autofocus. I want to concentrate on composition and exposure. Checking focus is just one more thing to keep track of.

My advice is to go out and use the autofocus until you really understand its strengths and limitations.

Maybe the 200b will have selectable focus zones. :) I know I'd be using them. :)
 
I think it is not professional to have OOF shots... dont care how you do get focus but you need to get it. Like I said, on wide shots, it can work but tighter shots with cinematic framing it is slow and very hit and miss... same is true of others cameras.


ash =o)
 
I've been wondering the same thing. In the DVX days, I could generally avoid autofocus even when i was shooting event stuff. With the HVX200, focusing just takes too muchtime. I can't use the LCD since it's so low rez and this is a HD image we are talking about. Focus Assist is an absolute neccesity and even with that you really need to be more careful and check the focus since, with HD, you have a much smaller margin of error. Not to mention the HVX is heavier which makes focusing that much more combersome in handheld.
 
I shall be doing a lot of improvised steadicam tracking and probably will compose favoring the center, unless you guys know of a way to set AF to favor the sides. I also come from a stills background and am not afraid of using AF. Will be keeping DOF around f8 and lens mostly wide to be safe also.
 
It always depends on your DOF, but in my experience, the auto-focus is completely unusable. On wide shots even at open iris it doesn't really matter but in HD I always open the lens, zoom in all the way, and focus assist before every shot. I just shot a run 'n gun documentary in HD 24p with an open apature at all times for shallowest DOF, and when I accidentaly hit autofocus once it moved my correct focus mark by nearly 10 on the focus scale, making the subject comepletely blurry. THAT is unprofessional; using an automated device has no shame to it but using an incompetent one does. That is why people have labeled it as unprofessional - in nearly all HD circumstances it doesn't provide even close focus, and will ruin your footage. This whole documentary piece was shot handheld with many moving subjects but if you always keep a hand on the focus ring and practice with hitting focus assist when you can the results will be 'professional'. After viewing my shots, over 75% was in perfect focus just from using the viewfinder and LCD, a very good shooting ratio for handheld run 'n gun. Had I used the autofocus I am confident barely 25% of it would have been. But as has been mentioned, just get used to doing it and get some practice. Find a pet and try to follow it in perfect focus. But keep the autofocus off unless you're shooting in SD 60i with an f8, or if it will never be seen on any high resolution screen, where it becomes doubly evident.
 
I've never shot in Auto Focus in 30 years of Broadcast. (Partly due to Cameras not having it). :D

HOWEVER...Last weekend I was shooting a run & gun event as a favor and being a little new to shooting 1080i with no monitor, I decided to try auto focus.
I gotta say, it worked pretty darned good. Obviously you gotta be aware of the focus zone and know when to turn it off. But after looking at the footage I felt that there are times I "might" let myself trust auto focus.
Fortunately we don't normally have to shoot without a monitor.
Just an observation from last weekend.
 
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