FOCUSING IN LOW LIGHT When you are taking photos in low-light situations, you will find that the camera’s autofocus doesn’t always work. But before you can properly and consistently find focus in these instances, you need to understand how your camera’s focusing system operates. First, you should know that when you are trying to focus on your subject, the camera utilizes contrast in the viewfinder in order to establish a focus point. If you were to point your camera at a clean, blank wall and try to focus it right in the center, the lens would hunt around and probably not find focus (Figure 7.6). By moving the focus point to an area where there is contrast, the camera will be able to set focus much more quickly (Figure 7.7).
FIGURE 7.6
FIGURE 7.7
The camera wasn’t able to autofocus on this image, because the focus point was set to the center, where there wasn’t enough contrast for it to work properly.
By changing the focus point to an area where there was contrast, I was able to properly focus this shot.
If your subject doesn’t have enough contrast for the camera to read, you can always use the “focus and recompose” method of shooting if you find an area of contrast that is at the same distance as your subject. To do this, press the Shutter button halfway to set focus, and then—with the button still pressed halfway—recompose your shot in the viewfinder. When you have it composed how you like it, press the Shutter button fully. The focus should stay where you originally set it.
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C A N O N E O S 6 0 D : F R O M S N A P S H O T S T O G R E AT S H O T S