166mm camera infinity in MF?

[Filmarik]

On my new M3P when I set the MF to infinity on 166mm camera the image is blurry. When I tap focus in AF on a distant subject more than 100m away and then swith to MF I can see the focus mark on the scale being about 5 bars below the infinity mark. Is this normal? I was used to set the focus to infinity on my M3 for both cameras and the image was always sharp. On M3P this method seems to work correctly on 24mm and 70mm but not so on the 166mm camera. The AF can be sometimes unreliable so I now use the focus peaking set to low to acquire correct focus with the 166mm camera to overcome this anomaly.

 

[Meta4]

The AF can be sometimes unreliable so I now use the focus peaking set to low to acquire correct focus with the 166mm camera to overcome this anomaly.

Autofocus always gives perfect results for me on all 3 cameras.

 

[Filmarik]

Autofocus always gives perfect results for me on all 3 cameras.

Good to know. Thanks

 

[GadgetGuy]

On my new M3P when I set the MF to infinity on 166mm camera the image is blurry. When I tap focus in AF on a distant subject more than 100m away and then swith to MF I can see the focus mark on the scale being about 5 bars below the infinity mark. Is this normal? I was used to set the focus to infinity on my M3 for both cameras and the image was always sharp. On M3P this method seems to work correctly on 24mm and 70mm but not so on the 166mm camera. The AF can be sometimes unreliable so I now use the focus peaking set to low to acquire correct focus with the 166mm camera to overcome this anomaly.

In hazy, low contrast situations, in low light, the compression of the 166mm camera lens magnifies both haze and heat waves, and is a challenge for any AF, which can then hunt, or focus on the wrong subject. For critical focus on a specific subject, use the focus peaking as you have been, or use the digital zoom at 28x and set the focus manually, and then back out to 7x. The calibration of your 7x lens when set to infinity may also be slightly off. Under the similar adverse conditions, the 7x AF performance of my Mavic 3 is the same as my Mavic 3 Pro.

 

[Filmarik]

In hazy, low contrast situations, in low light, the compression of the 166mm camera lens magnifies both haze and heat waves, and is a challenge for any AF, which can then hunt, or focus on the wrong subject. For critical focus on a specific subject, use the focus peaking as you have been, or use the digital zoom at 28x and set the focus manually, and then back out to 7x. The calibration of your 7x lens when set to infinity may also be slightly off. Under the similar adverse conditions, the 7x AF performance of my Mavic 3 is the same as my Mavic 3 Pro.

Thank you. Can the 7x camera or its lens to be more specific be calibrated by user via FlyApp or is it a job for DJI service?

 

[GadgetGuy]

Thank you. Can the 7x camera or its lens to be more specific be calibrated by user via FlyApp or is it a job for DJI service?

I am not aware of a recalibration capability. I see it as more of a manufacturing tolerance. None are perfect. Some will be closer to accurate than others. However, your awareness of the issue and the workarounds to still get perfectly sharp images is more important than a perfect calibration. Even professional lenses vary from lens to lens during manufacture. Some back-focus and others front-focus when using AF.

 

[Filmarik]

I am not aware of a recalibration capability. I see it as more of a manufacturing tolerance. None are perfect. Some will be closer to accurate than others. However, your awareness of the issue and the workarounds to still get perfectly sharp images is more important than a perfect calibration. Even professional lenses vary from lens to lens during manufacture. Some back-focus and others front-focus when using AF.

Agree. Even on some auto and manual focus DSLR lenses the focusing ring can be rotated past infinity mark. This 7x lens seems to be focusing past infinity when the MF bar is set all the way towards the mountains symbol. More than anyhing I wanted to ask the M3P community here if their 7x cameras do the same. AF has been working pretty reliably for me most of the time with 7x camera and focus peaking is good to have when in doubt. Most important for me is to be aware of this anomaly and deal with it accordingly.

 

[Filmarik]

Agree. Even on some auto and manual focus DSLR lenses the focusing ring can be rotated past infinity mark. This 7x lens seems to be focusing past infinity when the MF bar is set all the way towards the mountains symbol. More than anyhing I wanted to ask the M3P community here if their 7x cameras do the same. AF has been working pretty reliably for me most of the time with 7x camera and focus peaking is good to have when in doubt. Most important for me is to be aware of this anomaly and deal with it accordingly.

More testing has revealed that the 7x camera infinity is actually 3 to 4 bars below the infinity and the 1x camera infinity in MF is also about 3 bars below. The 3x camera seems to be ok, more testing to do.
I wonder if resetting the drone back factory defaults would fix this focusing issue. Or perhaps reinstalling the FlyApp?
Any thoughts?

 

[jphoto]

Remember the actual lenses you're dealing with are not 166mm or 24mm, they are MUCH shorter. That means the focus adjustments are micro-tiny. These could easily be manufacturing tolerance issues, and while you absolutely should ping DJI (and let us know), this could be a 'range of normal' issue. I'd open a ticket with them before doing any resets.

 

[jephoto]

I know this was some 7 months ago, but wondering if you fixed or found out more about this.
Just got an M3P and need to some critical testing.

 

[Filmarik]

I know this was some 7 months ago, but wondering if you fixed or found out more about this.
Just got an M3P and need to some critical testing.

 

[GadgetGuy]

I know this was some 7 months ago, but wondering if you fixed or found out more about this.
Just got an M3P and need to some critical testing.

Test away. Your results will be unique to your cameras, and therefore different from anyone else's. Each one is slightly different.

 

[Filmarik]

I have simply implemented these findings and anytime I need to do MF I set the focus accordingly.
Just to repeat what my M3P cameras need to focus accurately on infinity.
1x camera: 3 bars below the mountain mark
3x camera: on the last bar- the mountain mark
7x camera: 4 bars below the mountain mark

 

[jephoto]

Test away. Your results will be unique to your cameras, and therefore different from anyone else's. Each one is slightly different.

Well, I appreciate your thoughtful input, I was asking the OP what HE found out for his issue, for his drone.

 

[GadgetGuy]

Well, I appreciate your thoughtful input, I was asking the OP what HE found out for his issue, for his drone.

Let us know how yours does at his settings, during your testing. My experience is that each one will be slightly different because of variations in manufacturing tolerance, which is why the critical testing you indicated you were about to do would reveal the best settings for your specific unit. Auto Focus for stills is usually best, but can occasionally hunt at 7x during video.

 

[jephoto]

Never said I wasn’t going to test. Only that I was interested in his findings. Not sure why you feel you needed to get in the middle of that…

 

[GadgetGuy]

Never said I wasn’t going to test. Only that I was interested in his findings. Not sure why you feel you needed to get in the middle of that…

I am also interested in what your findings are, and how they compare to his.

 

[jephoto]

I am also interested in what your findings are, and how they compare to his.

I’ll post results when I’ve a moment to do that.
Did film a school for ther website today and had first chance to play with the 3x.
It’s AWSOME.
Love the compression and how it pulled in the downtown skyline in my POI’s.
Fun stuff