How to focus 600 SE + 127mm when eyes are not center-framed (portraits)?

moodlover · Dec 15, 2016

I shoot only portraits, and my subjects' eyes are almost always at the top 1/3 of the frame. Unfortunately, this makes it very difficult to focus as whats in the center sometimes has absolutely no sharp lines and/or is at a different focus plane than the eyes due to the angle im shooting from. Does anyone have any tips for shooting portraits using the Polaroid 600 SE with the 127mm f/4.7 lens? I really don't want to stop down since usually I shoot low-light and fp-100c is iso100 to begin with...

Thanks!

P.S. does anyone know how the lens has a built-in timer??? I don't see any battery compartment in the lens so I am baffled as to how it fires it's shutter speed so accurately whether 1/500s or 1s?

frank · Dec 15, 2016

Focus with the RF patch on the eye, then recompose.

Self timer, like the shutter, is spring-powered.

moodlover · Dec 15, 2016

frank said:
Focus with the RF patch on the eye, then recompose.

I thought about this but with all cameras, focus and recompose would cause the eye to be out of focus if you are at an angle at all, no?

darkroommike · Dec 15, 2016

Draw a line with a Sharpie on your subjects forehead? Seriously I usually just focus and then recompose, RF cameras are not at their best for formal portraiture though I know guys using the Graflex XL and Rapid Omegas with the 180 that would disagree. But most of those guys used studio lighting not existing light.

The shutter timing is mechanical, much like a mechanical egg timer or a watch, no battery needed. The shutter is most likely a Copal, maybe a Prontor, you can probably find a Youtube video on how these shutter work.

frank · Dec 15, 2016

Close enough in my experience. If you think it makes a difference then raise the entire camera without tipping it upwards, until the RF patch is on the eye.

darkroommike · Dec 15, 2016

moodlover said:
I thought about this but with all cameras, focus and recompose would cause the eye to be out of focus if you are at an angle at all, no?

Relative to camera position it's not that big a change in distance to the subject.

wiltw · Dec 15, 2016

moodlover said:
I thought about this but with all cameras, focus and recompose would cause the eye to be out of focus if you are at an angle at all, no?

Focus recompose is primarily an issue when using a relatively WA lens for the format, where the long dimension angle of view of the lens extends 15 degrees or more from center. Less than recompose angle of 15 degress is generally masked by the fundamental DOF zone.

For 135 format, shooting with 50mm or shorter WA presents the possibility of focus-recompose error. Depending upon angle, the focus error computes to about 3-6", so after focusing and recomposing, simply SUBTRACT 3-6" from the apparent distance to refocus correctly...and you only need to do this when recomposing 15-20 degrees. Trying to adjust focus per the distance scale by only 3-6" can be problematic.

AgX · Dec 16, 2016

wiltw said:
Focus recompose is primarily an issue when using a relatively WA lens for the format, where the long dimension angle of view of the lens extends 15 degrees or more from center.

But that 15° off center is already exceeded by a standard lens. I guess you got a typo.

wiltw · Dec 16, 2016

AgX said:
But that 15° off center is already exceeded by a standard lens. I guess you got a typo.

Nope, you can get focus error with a 50mm lens on 135 format!

GarageBoy · Jan 2, 2017

If you really wanna be precise, use a ground glass back on it - otherwise, deal with it, it's a part of the RF disadvantage

wiltw · Jan 3, 2017

GarageBoy said:
If you really wanna be precise, use a ground glass back on it - otherwise, deal with it, it's a part of the RF disadvantage

The general ground glass area of the focusing screen in a reflex camera is imprecise enough to allow focus error itself. OTOH, the central focusing aid on most 135 and many rollfilm SLRs can cause focus recompose error. However, if you run numbers, you see that focus recompose error can be hidden as an issue until you recompose by 15-20 degrees (which is about half the horizontal dimension angle of view of the normal lens!)

Here is a chart for a viewer with 20/20 vision, showing multiformats with normal and short tele lens at wide open and stopped down about -2EV, at various subject distances and angles of recompose.
Yellow boxes indicate where DOF fails to mask the focus-recompose error.

AgX · Jan 3, 2017

Interesting chart.

(But now I have to find a catchy name for it before filing.)

How to focus 600 SE + 127mm when eyes are not center-framed (portraits)?

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