Videoing Autofocus

Caitlyn598

I have been doing a little bit of videoing of stable subjects on my camera. Does the D3200 have an auto focus setting, where if I pointed at a subject close to me and focused on that, then pointed at another subject while recording, it will focus on them?

bruto

The manual may not be very informative on this.

In live view or video mode, you can switch between AFS and AFF aut focusing. In AFS, the camera will refocus only when you press the shutter button half way down, but will stay on a setting otherwise. In AFF, the focus will continue to adjust as it records, refocusing on whatever appears in the focus area selected, either when you move the camera or the subject moves. To change the mode, you must first enter Live View, and then change the focus mode with the [i] button or the menu.

It may take some experimenting here. AFF is not as quick to track as the viewfinder AFC. Depending on the lens you're using and whether you use the built in mike, the noise of autofocusing may show up in your audio.

bruto

For some reason my computer keeps crashing when I try to finish the post, so I'm adding a post instead. I have not done much video recording, and have not tried every possibility here. If AF noise is an issue, you might try switching to back button focus and staying on AFS. This would allow you to refocus using the back (AE/AF lock) button rather than the shutter button. BBF does not work at all in AFF mode in Live View. However, it should work in AFS, and might be a bit more convenient than the shutter button. If you accidentally push the shutter button all the way, the recording stops.

The manual is not very informative on AF issues at times. Make sure at least that you are using the complete PDF version that comes on the CD or off the Nikon web site, as the printed manual is condensed and omits large amounts of information.

To actuate back button focusing, go to the setup menu, "buttons" and "assign AE/AF lock button, and set that to "AF ON" The shutter button will no longer run the AF - only the back button will. Many people prefer this as a still shooting setup also, but even if you don't, I suspect it might make manual refocusing easier in video.