Know Your LENS! How to Find that SWEET SPOT
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ก.พ. 2025
- I think we can all agree that when purchasing a new lens, the overall sharpness is an incredibly important detail. Every lens has an aperture range where it performs the best, also know as the "Sweet Spot". In this episode, I go over the process that I used to determine the sweet spot of my 70-200mm lens. The entire process only takes about 15 minutes per lens and the best part is that once you do it for each one of your lenses, you'll never have to do it again. An exercise that's well worth the time, because at the end of the day who doesn't want to shoot sharper photos?
If you enjoyed this video, please consider giving it a thumbs up and let me know what you think in the comments below - I guarantee I'll get back to ya.
Cheers!
-Mark D.
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Hello I have been subscribed to you for a few months now I would just like to say I have learnt more from your channel than I have from studying photography and years of working as a photographer. Thank you 👍
Your channel rocks Ive never seen a channel that explains exactly without the showmanship and BS ,your detail attention your simple but detailed lesson is amazing and you what ??? ITS FREE I
I thank you so much for sharing this knowledge on all of your videos ..mate you rock thank you
I've been watching TH-cam videos on photography since about 2004 and I have to say in my time of doing photography since back then I have never come to appreciate appreciate a TH-cam channel more than yours. there's always no BS and straight to the point. You are super relatable down-to-earth and easily understood. Aside from my gaming addiction your channel is definitely my new favorite TH-cam channel. My upcoming trip to Costa Rica and landscape pictures I will do there are going to be awesome because of you thanks man.
AL B. Really appreciate this - thank you and glad to hear you’re enjoying the videos!
Just watching in 2020. I definitely need to do this for my lenses! Cheers for posting...
Thanks Mark. I just tried this with my Fujinon 18-55mm 1:2.8-4 and my ideal aperture was between f4.0 and f10.0!
Always a practical tutorial. Will do this tomorrow with all my lenses.
Mark I just watched several of your videos starting with your 6 month anniversary. You have a great thing started, just keep at it! Being a small biz owner, j know those gut wretching times. It will be worth it!! Think I might get one or two of your tutorials, sure they are great.😉
I’m not a landscape photographer, but I still enjoy you videos.
I never heard of this exercise before. Thank you for a better understanding of my equipment!
Another brilliant video, one I can try out today 👍
Superb. Very useful exercise
Hi Mark - Just found your youtube stuff. Like the videos, keep up the good work.
Comments on this video - there's a whistle (from a bird a couple of times in the video) I thought it was here but actually on the soundtrack. Not a complaint was funny! Second (and more serious) comment - not sure if you mentioned that you need to ensure you're not on auto ISO, you need to keep the ISO constant (and everything else apart from shutter speed of course). Final one - I saw some of the smaller f stop pictures (e.g. F/22) had long exposure times so you should do these on a tripod and also probably either use a remote to activate the shutter release or use the camera self timer.
Great video and I'll definitely be doing this with all my lenses too!
Wow, I found this video very encouraging as I just received my new Sony a7iii and want to use my old vintage manual Nikkor lenses from the late 70's but have been quite discouraged thinking that the smaller the f-stop the sharper the image, which HAS NOT been the case at all. Now after seeing this vid I am going to test out all three of my old lenses to find their "sweet spots" as well!
David Noyes Glad to hear you enjoyed the video David👍
great info Mark. I definitely need to do this on all my lenses as I do see softness on many of my shots I wanted sharper. Also note if using a DSLR you need to first calibrate your lens to make sure its not front/back focusing using one of those calibration targets. Mirrorless cameras dont need to be calibrated but DSLRs do.
Thanks for that Mark,really helped me out before I do the same type of exercise on my newly acquired Tamron 24-70 f2.8 G2 and the 70-200(same specs).
Have you tested it for front or back focus issues? I bought the same lens and its recommended to do so, WHAT A PAIN!!!
Its so true, we spend all this money on lenses but don't make the effort to find the sweet spot on each lens. I just assume F8 for all my lenses. I think you've just given me a mission.
phynx2006 Yep, I assumed the same as well. Appreciate ya watching👍
"Sweet", no pun intended😁👍 I was always led to believe the higher the f-stop the sharper the image. Looks like I've got some sperimentin to do this weeken😁👍 Thanks Mark.
Excellent practical video on sweet spot discovery! Thank you.
edwin barreto Glad to do it!
Thanks Mark, always interesting
Great tutorial - thanks for making this - Like others, I've never taken the time to do this, and I will definitely run through the exercise for all my lens. Thanks for showing me how!
Glad to do it, Greg! And, thanks for watching. Pretty interesting exercise once you determine the results for your lenses.
A very valuable lesson indeed. Having now done the exercise with each of three lenses at every stop from f1.8 to f16 and above, I now have a proper fix on all of their sweet spots. If I were to apply the same method to my wife, I wonder if it would pinpoint her absolute sweet spot. ;-)
Maarten Roes-Francken Hahah!! Glad the video was helpful, Maarten!
If you don´t own your lens yet but want to know which is the sweet spot, there´s this webpage which I found quite useful for comparison and reviews: www.imaging-resource.com/lenses/sony/fe-70-200mm-f4-g-oss-sel70200g/review/
Great video, very helpful and informative. Thanks for sharing!!
Glad to do it! And, glad you enjoyed it!
Great info. This will be my project tomorrow. Thanks.
Very informative video, thank you very much. I knew about the so called sweet spot, however i was using the 2/3 rule. You clearly demonstrated that it isn't good enough. Would you happened to know whether in P mode the manufacturers take this into confuliguration in the algorythms ? Probably not.
learned something new today, great information and a must do test, Thank You!
Glad to do it! Thanks for watching.
Hi. Great video. Why do you have to refocus each time you change your apeture? Thanks
Thx Mark. Very Helpful - i will now check it out for each of my lenses. Besides can you give me the sweet spot(s) for the 16-35 gm maybe perhaps the new one, you tested? thx in advance for answering. Peter from Germany
Every time my mind goes down the "I need a new lens" I always start with this question: Do I really need it? - Then I can go like you, how much will it be! :-D. For me, usually with the first one I'm done haha
For the video, again....nice and simple exercise and well explained! Thanks for sharing it :)
Lol! Yes, you're right! The "do I really need a new lens" is probably the very first question. Glad you enjoyed the video and thanks for watching.
Valuable lesson!Thank you Mark justa quick question. Did you take that exercise using tripod or from hand? I will appreciate for a your response.
great video Mark ! i think i'll do this test to my lenses
Many thanks - appreciate it👍
Me, I've been shooting with my Nifty Fifty at f/8 and I'm absolutely amazed at the sharpness. That's the Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II. Apparently the cheapest lens Canon made. Certainly put my expectations to shame. I love the shallow depth of field and shot at f/1.8 for the first year, but then recently started using other apertures, and I'm so impressed with the lens.
I noticed that at F-22 that your shutter was at .4 and at F-6.3 it was at 1/40. Both ISOs were at 50. Would it have made a difference if you altered your ISO rather than your shutter? FYI, you are my go-to guy on TH-cam. I am in my infancy on my photo learning curve.
It is great that photographers help other photographers. One thing I've noticed is that the ENTIRE information is missing. First when looking for the sweet spot, explain the other 2 parts of the exposure triangle. Tell us why you are using ISO 50 and the Shutter speed is changing just as the f/stop changes (why are both changing if you are finding the sweet spot) and explain the conditions to shoot in. Should you find it inside or outside and why. Thanks for this video, its the best I've found so far - I am going to start teaching soon
Hi, 4 years too late but the SS changes for each f/stop to keep the exposure value at zero? Otherwise the exposure would be different each time he took a shot. That's my take anyway! I've just tried this myself and had to adjust the SS each time.
Great video Mark and i will definitely do this for all my lenses wish i'd thought of it before to be honest keep it up.
Scott Morrison Appreciate it Scott! Same here - wish I would have done this years ago.
Another great video! Do you think the sharpest aperture value also depends on the distance to your subject? In other words, if f/6.3 was the sharpest, would f/6.3 also be the sharpest if your subject (the old camera) was e.g. ten times further away?
excellemt! love your scientific approach
falsup09 Thanks so much!
Great video - as always! Will do this with my lenses. Is the sweet spot for all the lenses of one type the same (for example the one you testet in your video - if someone has the same lens: would it be the same sweet spot)?
Fantastic video Mark, I must do this with my lenses, just so that I know.
Phil McNamara Appreciate it Phil! Glad you enjoyed it.
Mark, is there a rule of thumb for the distance you are from the subject when performing this for different lenses?
So what is hyper focal distance? Isn’t that something to do with another setting that is best for your lens?
Great stuff !!!
Thanks Peter! Appreciate it man!
Mark, great tutorial. Once the sweet spot is determined, will it change based on day or night photography?
great job
I wonder if it is worth putting a sticker with the sweet spot number on the barrel somewhere...
Hey Mark. Firstly I am enjoying these videos you've been sharing. Just came across them in the last week or two. I like how simplified they are. My question or questions to you is can you do this test if you don't have Lightroom? I'm still learning my Canon t5i. I have a 50mm fixed and a 24-105mm lens. So if I understand what you shared you start at the lowest ISO and take a picture at every stop. Then you go to the next ISO? Is that the same approach pretty much with the fixed 50mm lens?
Thank you for this video. It was very helpful
J'adore le Décor My pleasure! Glad it was helpful!
Bought a used D750 a few weeks back and your channel has quickly become my main source for information on how to be a better photographer. Awesome content. Going thru all your videos and looking forward to each new one.
Great video
Hi Mark, I have a quick question, how did you compensate for exposure using different F stops so that it didn't mess with the results of your test? Naturally a smaller aperture would result in a darker picture? Can anyone answer this
He adjusted the SS to keep the EV at zero?!
Good vid, but not sure what's the purpose of the cactus when you're wearing green and remove the bag on the bench as well.
read color Theory by Jesef Albers. some people have an innate sense to compliment colors some dont, ultimately if help you familize colors better/.
thank you so much this has just opened my mind some more
Awesome! Glad you liked it Andrew!
I have a quick question for you and it's probably a silly question. How can I get a split screen like in your example of the camera?
How did it compare in the corners for each?
I know this is an old video, but I'm a new subscriber. I just saw this video a couple of days ago, so hopefully you will see this comment. Having just bought a new (used) Nikon D5600 and Tokina 11-16mm, Nikkor 18-140mm and Nikkor 55-300mm lenses I went outside to do this test to find the sweet spots for each lens at a handful of focal lengths. I was very disappointed in my results. What should be the distance between the subject and camera for a successful test. Quite frankly a lot of my test images were not even in focus, so there was no sharpness evaluation to be done even though the pictures I have been taking have been pretty good IMO. I was on a very sturdy SLIK tripod, using spot metering, spot focus, 2s timer shutter release and exposure delay mode so the mirror is swung out of the way before shutter release. I shot in Manual mode with auto-ISO, selected the desired aperture and then adjusted shutter speed to achieve ISO 100, which is the lowest ISO on the D5600. Any tips or advice on how best to conduct the lens tests?
(Edit: I also had VR turned OFF for the Nikkor 18-140mm since I had seen other videos saying that when on a tripod it should always be turned off. I didn't get around to testing the 55-300mm. The Tokina has no VR)
Great information - thanks so much! I've been shooting a macro on my DSLR a lot lately and it finally occurred to me to research finding the sweet spot and want to run these tests. For macro photography, will the distance from the subject matter for sharpness or is all this simply all related to aperture as you explained and showed? Thanks again!
Hey Mark. Loving your videos. Finding them really helpful. I know you covered it briefly in this video but I was just wondering - will the sweet spot differ depending on what focal length you’re at for each lens? For example, the lens you’re using in this video, would the sweet spot at 70mm be a different sweet spot at 200mm? Thanks! 😊
Th3MightyFist Thanks so much - glad to hear it! That’s a great question and yes the sweet spot could be different at different focal lengths. For this lens I tested 70, 135 and 200mm.
Mark Denney thanks dude! I’ll give it a go!
Does the distance of the camera effect the sweet spot as well?
Was the sweet spot same for all the focal lengths between 70-200 mm or changing the focal length made any difference?
Thank you!! Great topic. Will you pleaase do more luminosity mask tutorials?
Hello Mark, came across your channel yesterday and I'm finding it full of useful and easy to understand information. You mentioned in a previous vid how important it is to KNOW your camera and where and how the elements of the Exposure Triangle all fit together. This particular exercise - Sweet Spot - I did last year on my Lumix FZ1000 bridge camera but I didn't write/log the results, so I'm going to repeat it. I plan to run further ISO/DoF tests and record/jot down the results for future reference and an easier -in-the-field-workflow..Great job 👍👏
Timely video as I'm just about to do this with my 14-140 Panasonic 4/3 lens. I've neglected doing this thus far because a) I'm still a novice and not sure I'll do a proper assessment of this, and b) I'd already found a review my lens that had done this test and identified the sharpest apertures at a variety of focal lengths. My question is, are tests like that reliable across a single lens model or is there enough variation between different lenses of the same type and model that you should always just do this anyway? I guess I'll find out this weekend but curious what the common assumption is on that?
I’m actually not 100% sure on that. I bet there could be subtle differences, but I doubt it would be easily noticeable.
Thanks for the video!
I’d also take care to ensure Lightroom isn’t applying any sharpness during import or use Rawdigger.
Interesting that you found the need to refocus after each aperture adjustment as this violates the scientific principle of changing just one variable at a time - unless first confirming that changes in aperture in-fact affect focus, which I suspect is not true for most modern lenses.
My pleasure, Roland! I've heard so many differing opinions on whether or not focus shift occurs on modern lenses, that I figured might as well just refocus to rule it out. Doing this though. increases the likelihood of a focus miss between frames, but if you're using a tripod and your focus point remains unchanged and your subject never moves, it should be pretty spot on. Definitely, not scientific, but it'll provide enough directional information to help determine the sweet spot. I appreciate ya watching!
What is the sweet spot on the 16-35mm f2.8 GM...Got it a few days ago and don't want to do the test. Have you measured it?
what is the correct focal length to do this test. How far was your subject?
Yashwant Garud You can perform this test with any lens of any focal length and the distance to your subject doesn’t matter. It can be whatever you’d like👍
Is there a website with a list of lenses that have been tested?
Your photography gear link is out of date. Page not found
I guess that this level of curiosity is what separates the men from the boys in terms of professionalism/dedication. (PC errors & omissions accepted!)
Would lighting or ISO affect the outcome of this type of test at all? Would the “sweet spot” be effected by it being too dark or too light
Thanks for this video. Question: If you refocused after each F-stop change, might that have has some effect on the final images ? Were you using autofocus or manual ? Live view zoom ? Just curious....
Douglas Mulcahy My pleasure! It’s possible, but since the subject wasn’t moving and I was shooting from a tripod I didn’t need to move my focus point, which should alleviate any missed focus. I was using auto focus and live view zoom👍
Question: Do lenses have a sweet _focal distance_ as well as a sweet aperture spot?
iComplainer Good question - I’ve heard a bit about if before, but haven’t seen a general consensus on that topic really. I’m sure there are lenses out there though that perform better at certain focal lengths.
@@MarkDenneyPhoto they do. but it has to do more with lines distortion, vignetting, and sharpness around the edges of the image. its probably way too late for this comment but here it is anyway.
Check the DxO site for all the tech specs on lens performnace tests and sweet sports for all things.
Yes. More of a thing from third party zooms but some older first party as well.
My homework this weekend, AND I have an old camera with lettering around the lens.
What I think after seeing this is that we end up having like a prime fixed lens, cause we have a lens with a zoom function but it does not perform good :(
Nice video - good information! Also want to give a shout out to Jonathan Sachs 'DoF' App for Windows and Android. Very useful for finding sharpest settings and should be used with knowledge of lens from this type of experiment. If there is an MFT chart for the lens you should take a look at that too. It would have been an interesting addition to the video - compare your results with the MFT chart and DoF app results.
I mean, cost is less a thing with one lens, but having so many for one camera.
If you want ultimate sharpness , sharpest possible and you dont want to pay 100 000$ for it , here is an advice , get 3 simple lenses , cheap ones , any will do , really it will . And then get 3 cameras identical ones , and then take a shutter release remote , hack it so that it controls all 3 cameras , and then take RGB filters , one filter for each lens . And then when you shoot one picture , you will get 3 , one R , one G one B. And then you combine them in post as layers . Why do this , well because , biggest problem for a lens is to focus all the light at the same spot due to Wave length and difference in diffraction that is impossible .
But here comes your RGB filters , now each lens needs to focus only one Wave length , and even cheap lens can do that perfectly , and you will get your Sharpest possible image , for well about 2000$ depends what you get , can be even 500$
So if to stick around f8 you wont go far wrong