Focus Hocus Pocus

Photography Lesson #2
Here is the assignment: Find a chain link fence and practice focusing on the links and then behind the links. Find other situations where you have a forefront object and practice focusing on the forefront object and behind it.

It has been pretty cold outside and I didn't want to drag all three kids. I compromised and used inside objects. All of these shots are SOOC and you can tell because I didn't nail the exposure. Apparently I can't multi-task in photography (yet, I'm gonna get better). :)

These were the fist few shots. The paper is supposed to be somewhat centered and in-focus.

Here I tried to still focus on the paper but move it from the center of the shot.



Same angle but this time the toy is in focus. And the paper is still in the forground but nearly unrecognizeable.



Using the same toy, location, I focused on the toy (again off-centered is intentional)



Same shot, now focus is on the floor in the background.

This is my compromise to the chain-link fence:

Focus is on CJ in these first three.

Now the focus is on the foreground (the shutters).

I probably should have tried to focus on the doorknob. I definitely got better at this with time. Some of the problems I encountered:

I switched my settings to Cont. Servo -AF and that seemed to help tremendously but sometimes I would press the shutter button half-way and try to recompose and the AF would change my focus object. Other times, it acted as if my settings were so far off it wouldn't even allow me to continue to press down and take the picture. I definitely noticed that it got easier with time and I think practice is certainly the key.

I used my 18-200 lens with all of these. I have found that it is most useful inside and/or outside as long as I have sufficient lighting. I love my 50 mm f/1.4 but it seems it is most useful when shooting ONE person - more of a portrait lens or for very low-light situations. Is this correct?

When shooting a family with several kids, it is probably best to use my 18-200mm so my depth of field is not too shallow, right?