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  4. What does focus breathing mean?

What does focus breathing mean?


4 years 6 months ago #661299 by J Photo Man
What's funny is that I would have thought a term called "focus breathing" would imply how your physical breathing was while taking a photo.  Kind of like what snipers do when firing a rifle.   But then I was reading an article about a camera and there was no explanation behind the term being used.  I jumped on YouTube and found a video from Tony Northrup and he talks about it being the reduction in focal length the further you get away from infinity focus.  Something that he refers only is affected with zoom lenses.   

Then I watched another video where they referred to focus breathing as when a contrast detect auto focus vibrates back and forth as it struggles to capture focus.   

Both of these, 3 including my assumption of the definition are kind of scattered all over.  What exactly does focus breathing mean? 
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4 years 6 months ago #661300 by Nikon Shooter


Light is free… capturing it is not!
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4 years 6 months ago #661305 by J Photo Man
Going to watch in a few minutes, thank you
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4 years 6 months ago #661316 by icepics
I think what you found just shows that there's a lot of misinformation online (to put it mildly! lol). I always thought it was about controlled, even breathing when focusing, framing, etc. to help you be as steady as possible.

I don't think lenses 'breathe' because, you know, they're made of glass and metal and plastic, and have no lungs! lol I don't get that term at all.

I'm less than impressed with information in Northrup videos I've seen (so I don't watch them anymore). I thought at first the boxhead guy was talking about zooms, I've never noticed what he's talking about.

Just tried it with the prime lens I have on my digital camera and I don't see what he showed in the video at all with my lens. Beats me, depends on the lens I guess.
Sharon
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4 years 6 months ago - 4 years 6 months ago #661321 by effron
A lens compresses or expands air when focusing. Its a lame term but that air needs to go or come from somewhere.....So it exhales or inhales. No lens is vacuum sealed.
Why so serious?
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4 years 6 months ago #661336 by Nikon Shooter

effron wrote: A lens compresses or expands air when focusing. Its a lame term but that air needs to go or come from somewhere.....So it exhales or inhales. No lens is vacuum sealed.


This statement would make my heavy investments in "IF" lenses
over the years completely nonsensical?

With IF lenses, what ever displacement of elements for focus ac-
quisition or even zooming are done inside the lens which does not
need to be vacuum sealed… just weather / dust resistant since no
air exchange with the outside world is observed.
Light is free… capturing it is not!
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4 years 6 months ago #661484 by effron
Even an IF lens breathes, They'll all get dust particulates inside over time, wouldn't be possible with a vacuum sealed lens.
Why so serious?
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4 years 6 months ago #661487 by Nikon Shooter
Sorry Ernesto but my experience is other with
even my very old IF lenses… no dust.

Sorry again, in IF lenses, the air displacement
is totally contained though the lens is not sea-
led. It has to do with small breathing openings
around the groups.
Light is free… capturing it is not!
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4 years 6 months ago #661489 by effron
petapixel.com/2015/06/10/we-found-a-fly-...weather-sealed-lens/
Why so serious?
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4 years 6 months ago #661492 by Nikon Shooter
I don't know much about Canon gear but no-
thing like that ever happened with my Nikkors.

… and, at this point, this thread is occupied by
Nikon users… :P
Light is free… capturing it is not!
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4 years 6 months ago #661498 by effron
Try Nikon then.... photographylife.com/what-to-do-with-dust-inside-lens
Why so serious?
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4 years 6 months ago #661499 by Nikon Shooter

effron wrote: Try Nikon then.... photographylife.com/what-to-do-with-dust-inside-lens


But… but… but, that lenses not an IF!
Light is free… capturing it is not!
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4 years 6 months ago #661500 by effron
If a lens focuses, it pulls air from the out side. Maybe you have the only glass on Earth that doesn't, if so that's great. Inside focusing or not.
If you want to disregard the physics of a photographic lens, by all means, do so.....
Why so serious?
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4 years 6 months ago #661508 by Nikon Shooter
… /
Light is free… capturing it is not!
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4 years 6 months ago - 4 years 6 months ago #661515 by Ozzie_Traveller

J Photo Man wrote: What's funny is that I would have thought a term called "focus breathing" would imply how your physical breathing was while taking a photo.  Kind of like what snipers do when firing a rifle.   But then I was reading an article about a camera and there was no explanation behind the term being used.  I jumped on YouTube and found a video from Tony Northrup and he talks about it being the reduction in focal length the further you get away from infinity focus.  Something that he refers only is affected with zoom lenses.   Then I watched another video where they referred to focus breathing as when a contrast detect auto focus vibrates back and forth as it struggles to capture focus.   
Both of these, 3 including my assumption of the definition are kind of scattered all over.  What exactly does focus breathing mean? 


G'day mate

In my many years flitting around the photography world, I have never heard the term used - and have never experienced it in reference to "contrast detect auto focus vibrates back and forth as it struggles to capture focus"

As all 15 yrs of my digital camera use has been with superzoom & mirrorless cameras using contrast detect auto-focussing, all I can add is ... what a load of waffle and "fertiliser"

Phil from the great land Downunder
www.flickr.com/photos/ozzie_traveller/sets/
Phil from the great land Downunder
www.flickr.com/photos/ozzie_traveller/sets/
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