"Jumping"?

[Tosie]

I have a Nikon DSLR. Lately, when I auto focus on something, it "jumps" a little and makes a noise before settling down to focus. Does anyone know what causes this and what I need to do to fix it? The battery has been fully charged - I don't think it's a battery dying issue.

TIA!

 

[GrillMouster]

Sorry, but I'm not really sure what you're describing. The only normal behavior that I can of related to AF (auto focus) that might be related is hunting. This is when the camera's AF system has difficulty getting focus and it "hunts", or goes back and forth trying to find focus. This is normal behavior in dim lighting and when the area you're trying to focus on has low contrast. Does the problem do this outside in bright light? What model camera and lens are you using?

 

[Tosie]

Sorry, but I'm not really sure what you're describing. The only normal behavior that I can of related to AF (auto focus) that might be related is hunting. This is when the camera's AF system has difficulty getting focus and it "hunts", or goes back and forth trying to find focus. This is normal behavior in dim lighting and when the area you're trying to focus on has low contrast. Does the problem do this outside in bright light? What model camera and lens are you using?

Maybe it's hunting - when hunting, does the image go in and out of focus, or does the image hop up and down in the viewfinder? Mine hops. When I get home today I will try some photos outside and see if it happens then too. I will check the model and camera lens too - can't remember offhand.

Thanks so much!

 

[zackiedawg]

Is it a stabilized (VR) lens? If the image is jumping up and down, that sounds to me more like something likely to occur from some element moving within the lens. Hunting will do the 'in and out' focus movement, so jumping would typically be something different. If it is a VR lens, sometimes problems with the stabilization system could cause this. Other possibilities might be the focus motor somehow sticking in the camera - where it might 'jump' a bit to get it moving or unsticking itself. One way to isolate the problem with the lens is to try out another lens, if you have one...see if the problem is there too.

 

[GrillMouster]

The image going in & out is hunting. Hopping could be vibration reduction kicking in. When you focus, are you half-pressing the shutter release button, waiting for focus to grab on, and then pressing the button the rest of the way down, or are you just waiting until the moment you want to take the image and pressing the button all the way down?

Also, are you looking through the optical viewvinder, or at the LCD/electronic viewfinder?

 

[Wcoaster]

Mine does the same thing but is always in focus so I haven' t worried about it.

 

[mom2rtk]

My Tamron Canon 18-270 has always done the same thing. I think it's the IS.

 

[TC09]

Is it a stabilized (VR) lens?......

I would like to know this as well. Sounds like something a VR, VC, OS or IS lens would do.

 

[GrillMouster]

The elements in an VR (vibration reduction) lens move around to compensate for slight motion of the the camera. It's recommended that you hold down the shutter release button halfway for a second or two to allow the VR to do its thing before pressing the shutter button all the way down to take the picture. This is another reason that I like moving AF from teh shutter release to

It's recommended that you turn off VR when the camera is mounted on a tripod, because since there is no motion in the body, the motion of the lens elements can actually cause blur in the image. Other manufacturers may have different names for the same thing, like IS (Image Stabilization -- Canon), or VC (Vibration Compensation).