GH1 Pulling focus with manual lenses

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pmk396

Well-known member
Hi all,
I didn't know where to begin with this as to where to post this query so being a GH1 user, I thought I'd ask here. I have recently finished shooting a short film which I shot entirely using two Canon FD lenses; the 50mm 1.4 and the 28mm 2.8. I have to say that some of the footage looks great. There is one thing that I found difficult using these manual focus lenses; the concept of pulling focus to keep the subject in focus while either he or she are moving towards or away from the camera. It's so difficult! Pulling focus from one fixed subject to another fixed subject isn't a problem at all. The difficulty is trying to keep a subject in focus while they are moving towards the camera or away from the camera. Any suggestions on how this is achieved or made any easier?
 
pmk396 said:
Hi all,
I didn't know where to begin with this as to where to post this query so being a GH1 user, I thought I'd ask here. I have recently finished shooting a short film which I shot entirely using two Canon FD lenses; the 50mm 1.4 and the 28mm 2.8. I have to say that some of the footage looks great. There is one thing that I found difficult using these manual focus lenses; the concept of pulling focus to keep the subject in focus while either he or she are moving towards or away from the camera. It's so difficult! Pulling focus from one fixed subject to another fixed subject isn't a problem at all. The difficulty is trying to keep a subject in focus while they are moving towards the camera or away from the camera. Any suggestions on how this is achieved or made any easier?
Click to expand...

...it's called practice.

Now you understand why big budget productions opt for an independent AC / focus puller and why many cameras offer auto focus. If you're shooting anywhere close to wide open on a f/1.4 lens, your depth of field is ludicrously small. Try a higher aperture, if possible, and you might have better luck keeping your subjects in focus.
 
yes, practice! Before you shoot the scene, have them do a run through (and film it anyway) and practice your focus pulling... if you switch between Nikon and Canon lenses, it can get confusing as their pulls are in opposite directions, but with practice, you can get it jsut right. Just feel the focus, as your subject moves...

I agree too with the stopping down if your DOF is too narrow... will help greatly. F2.8 is a good compromise for lowlight and easier manual focusing...

.02
 
Thank yourself you didn't have to shoot on a Canon 5D MkII.... Depth of Field's so shallow you'd fall off the edge
 
Thanks for the replies guys.I knew that practice was the big thing that does it. When I was shooting my short film, there was one shot where the subject answers his phone while walking towards the camera. It was a night time shot so I had to use the 50mm 1.4. The 28mm 2.8 wouldn't have worked coz lighting was so low. Even though it was a matter of 6ft that the subject walks, the change in focus was drastic on the 50mm. It took nearly eight takes for such a a short shot to even make it look even half useable. I had use the power of editing to make the loss of focus less noticeable. What made it more difficult was that I made the silly mistake of using a shoulder rig instead of a tripod for this shot. Ah well, we all learn from our mistakes.I have often used the trick of putting little stickers as markers on the focus ring to help when pulling focus from one subject to another. I just thought that someone might know of some other little trick when pulling focus on a moving subject. The more I think back, I should have used the concept of marking the two points on the ground where the subject is going to to walk from and to. At the same time, mark where these correspond on the focus ring. At least I can see the area of play that I have on the focus ring. This combined with practice might help.
 
Nothing beats practicing for the whole sequence of the shot. For myself, I find the reach to focus around to the lens ring very awkward.
Short of spending hundreds on a full follow focus rig, there are two things I've tried with a fair amount of success:

the overpriced but functional panasonic zoom/focus lever and the trudeau jar opener.

You can read about them in this thread.:
http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthrea...c-zoom-lever&p=2394707&highlight=#post2394707

Obviously, practicing to get the feel for this is needed. But they do work and make the whole process of pulling focus
more ergonomical and smoother.
 
We sometimes do "camera rehearsal" if it's a tricky shot. The actors walk through it and hit their marks so the operator can practice the pan, follow, focus pull, whatever.
Helpful if you don't want to burn the actors out or cause the dialogue to get stale from too many takes.
 
If you're in a controlled shooting environment (e.g. a narrative), then there are a few things you can do to assist in racking focus:
  • Put defined marks on the ground for the talent so that their start/end (or 1,2,3,4,5,etc.) positions will be consistent
  • Find your focus at each mark prior to shooting by having the talent stand at each mark
  • Put a strip of gaffers tape on the lens and draw a line for the focus point at each mark. Indicating mark number (1,2,3,etc.) will simplify this further.
You now have repeatable focus points and the primary variable is for the talent to make sure they hit their marks.
 
Jive said:
If you're in a controlled shooting environment (e.g. a narrative), then there are a few things you can do to assist in racking focus:
  • Put defined marks on the ground for the talent so that their start/end (or 1,2,3,4,5,etc.) positions will be consistent
  • Find your focus at each mark prior to shooting by having the talent stand at each mark
  • Put a strip of gaffers tape on the lens and draw a line for the focus point at each mark. Indicating mark number (1,2,3,etc.) will simplify this further.
You now have repeatable focus points and the primary variable is for the talent to make sure they hit their marks.
Click to expand...

THIS WINS as the best zero-cost solution!
Brains over dollars!

But if you've got the Rupees - a good Follow-Focus rig can be a real treat.
 
pmk396 said:
Hi all,
I didn't know where to begin with this as to where to post this query so being a GH1 user, I thought I'd ask here. I have recently finished shooting a short film which I shot entirely using two Canon FD lenses; the 50mm 1.4 and the 28mm 2.8. I have to say that some of the footage looks great. There is one thing that I found difficult using these manual focus lenses; the concept of pulling focus to keep the subject in focus while either he or she are moving towards or away from the camera. It's so difficult! Pulling focus from one fixed subject to another fixed subject isn't a problem at all. The difficulty is trying to keep a subject in focus while they are moving towards the camera or away from the camera. Any suggestions on how this is achieved or made any easier?
2.jpg
Click to expand...

also try zooming in first, and then focusing, then then start recording
 
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