What a stupid question, you’re probably thinking. Would we have a trillion words written a day on the latest camera autofocus tech if we didn’t need it? The thing is, it all depends on who you ask – and whether you’re talking about vlogging or filmmaking. Because there’s a difference.
You don’t see autofocus being used in feature films, commercials, TV dramas or practically any other kind of TV content. That’s because precise focus control is a key characteristic of this kind of filmmaking. And, in fact, most types of filmmaking. You might see a ‘focus pull’ where the focus shifts from one character to another, but this will be done manually as part of a scripted cinematic effect.
The point is that there is no way any filmmaker working in this genre would let the camera make up its own mind what to focus on. Many scenes or clips look best when shot with a single point of focus – this is why talent (presenters, actors) have ‘marks’. And if there is a good reason to change the focus while filming, you’ll have a focus puller whose job it is to do it – or, with a smaller crew, the camera operator may have a motorised focus puller they can work themselves.
So all this is fine if you have a whole production crew, but what if you’re a solo shooter? What if there’s only you to do everything?
Even here, manual focus can work perfectly well and, if you do have to use focus pulls, there are gimbals and pull focus gadgets to help you do it. This is not a workaround for not having autofocus. This is a style of filmmaking that’s been chosen and honed for decades.
But there’s a broader reason why video autofocus has gained such importance. It’s because many creators are also the stars. They can’t be behind the camera because they have to be in front of it.
So if there’s not a problem here either, why do we need autofocus for video? It’s because of the new shooting styles being developed by content creators and the growing importance of the creator economy. Some filmmakers prefer a fast-moving journalistic documentary style where camera movements are as much part of the style as the subject itself. It’s hard to work a focus puller when you’re chasing a skateboarder with a camera on a gimbal.
But there’s a broader reason why video autofocus has gained such importance. It’s because many creators are also the stars. They can’t be behind the camera because they have to be in front of it. Even here manual focus can work fine if you don’t mind pre-focusing and standing on a mark, but with the fashion for big sensors and fast lenses with little depth of field, there’s too little margin for error, so fast and responsive AF that can recognise people and features and track them reliably in real time has become the holy grail.
That’s fine. If you’re a solo shooter who’s also the presenter and you like an animated always-moving presenting style, then the constant evolution of ever-better AF technologies will be a burning interest.
But this is not all filmmaking. It’s a genre. You can be a filmmaker without autofocus and potentially a better filmmaker into the bargain. Don’t imagine that the camera you have is no good for filmmaking just because there are a dozen others with newer, better autofocus. Very often, fixed manual focus is all you need and may even be the key to your filmmaking style.