Here’s a tool that applies sophisticated technology to remove atmospheric haze from your landscapes and bring out details in images that are severely back-lit. RawTherapee is a free editor found here . RawTherapee is an editor meant for raw-format photos. If your camera raw format isn’t supported (it uses the LibRaw library), then use the free Adobe DNG Converter to make a DNG file that it can use. A hazy valley Retinex in RawTherapee is an advanced image processing tool based on the Retinex theory  (short for Retina + Cortex). It models how the human visual system perceives color and lightness under varying lighting conditions, such as poor light, colored surroundings, or atmospheric haze/fog. What It Does The human eye adapts well to uneven lighting and haze, but cameras often produce flat, veiled, or low-contrast results. Retinex tries to mimic this biological adaptation by analyzing the image at multiple spatial scales (MultiScale Retinex or MSR algorithm). It estimates the "illumination" component of the scene and removes or reduces its uneven effects. This leads to better local contrast, restored details in shadows and highlights, reduced haze/veil, and more natural-looking colors without globally shifting the overall tone. In practice, it acts like a sophisticated local tone mapper  or dehaze tool . It can: Cut through atmospheric haze or fog. Reveal hidden details in backlit or high-dynamic-range scenes. Improve perceived depth and separation in flat-looking images. Preserve original colors better than some other contrast-boosting tools (unless you deliberately adjust chroma). It is not a simple brightness/contrast slider — it works by comparing each pixel to its neighbors across different scales (similar in concept to a Difference of Gaussians). Where to Find Retinex in RawTherapee Main pipeline  — Advanced tab → Retinex (appears early in the processing chain, right after demosaicing). Local Adjustments (Selective Editing / RT-spots) — Available as Dehaze & Retinex or Soft Light & Original Retinex (with simplified controls in some modes). There is also a version integrated with Wavelets (in older branches or specific panels) for more complex control. Common Uses Dehazing — Especially effective on landscape photos with atmospheric veil (e.g., distant mountains, foggy scenes). Recovering details in high-contrast or backlit scenes without creating an artificial "HDR look" (when used moderately). Local contrast enhancement that feels more natural than global curves or simple clarity sliders. Astronomy or medical-style enhancement (revealing faint structures), though most users apply it to everyday photography. Key Controls (in the main Retinex tool) Strength / Gain / Offset — Controls the overall intensity. Variance / Threshold  — Affects how aggressively local differences are enhanced. Transmission map  — Central to the algorithm (represents the estimated haze/illumination layer); you can adjust its curve for finer control. Chroma slider (in some RawTherapee versions) — Lets you decide whether to affect color saturation along with luminance. Method options (e.g., normal vs. inverse). There is also a Local Retinex  in selective editing with fewer sliders but applied later in the pipeline. Tips for Best Results Start with low-to-moderate strength to avoid halo artifacts or unnatural looks. Combine with Haze Removal (Detail tab) for stronger dehaze effects. Use alongside Wavelets (for multi-scale contrast) or Local Adjustments for targeted application. It works best on RAW files but can be used on JPEG/TIFF too. Watch for noise amplification in shadows — pair it with good noise reduction. Retinex vs. Similar Tools in RawTherapee Haze Removal  — Simpler dedicated dehaze. Tone Equalizer / Log Encoding — More modern tone-mapping approaches. Wavelets / Local Contrast — Good for detail-level contrast but less "perceptual" than Retinex. Dynamic Range Compression  — More global. Processed with Retinex. looks washed-out but less haze. Add Retinex to rid haze Add saturation, lighten shadows, increase color temperature In the same ‘Advanced’ tab, you might want to try out “Color Appearance & Lighting”. Adjusting Chroma and Temperature can really enhance and/or recover what Retinex does to the photo. Hazy mountains Mountains with just adding Retinex defaults Just activating Retinex really clears up much of the haze. Retinex control settings for mountain shot above There are several other settings that you can play with here, but I generally just adjust the “Strength” slider. Note that there is “Process: Settings” that can be expanded in Retinex for even more control. Retinex after increasing Strength from 21 to 40 You might have noticed that there are a few undesired artifacts that have been added to the sky in the shot above, which look like faint squares. To fix this, I’d rather send the shot to another editor that has a healing brush. RawTherapee  does have a ‘Spot Removal’ feature in the Detail  tab, but fixing the sky using that tool would be very tedious. Occasionally, Retinex adds wierd artifacts that are only noticeable in blank skies. Hazy waterfall Haze Removal tool with defaults (Detail tab) For comparison purposes, the “Detail” tab offers “Haze Removal”. Haze removed using ‘Haze Removal’ tool using defaults Haze Removal using Strength 75, Depth 69, Saturation 74 'Retinex' tool instead of 'Haze Removal' tool, plus increasing color temperature Given the right kind of shot that has a lot of haze, Retinex can do a truly amazing job that looks like no other editor “dehaze” tool that I’ve used. I’m willing to put up with having to fix up some shots to get the ‘sky defect’ corrected. The Retinex tool definitely falls into the category of “niche”, but I think you’ll find that sometimes it can be golden. Using Topaz Photo AI ( or another editor )  via RawTherapee When it becomes necessary to do some extra operations in another editor outside of  RawTherapee , there’s a way to make that job easier. To process the edited photo using Topaz Photo AI , you will first need to configure the use of Topaz: Click on the ‘Equalizer’ icon to get at ‘Preferences’. Scroll down the ‘General’ tab to locate ‘External Editor’ Click Change Executable Browse to TopazPhotoAI.exe, usually located here: C:\Program Files\TopazLabsLLC\TopazPhotoAI\TopazPhotoAI.exe Assign a name, such “Topaz”. If you select Native command , then you can return back to RawTherapee after editing in Topaz. Click OK to save the assigned external editor. Finish all desired edits in RawTherapee. Click the ‘down arrow’ (bottom-left, near the ‘Save current image’ icon for ‘Edit current image in external editor’ and then select the “Topaz” or whatever you named the external editor when ‘Change Executable’ was set up. When ready, click the icon just to the left of the down-arrow, which should now be assigned to ‘Topaz’ Photo AI editor. You can also use the Ctrl+e shortcut. It should then execute Topaz and send the edited file to that editor. Export the finished photo, and then exit Topaz. Return to RawTherapee , if you want to do further editing. You can use a similar procedure to send a photo from  RawTherapee  to any other editor. To save an edited photo as a jpeg from RawTherapee , do this: Quick Single-Image Save (Recommended for one photo) Finish editing your image in the Editor  tab. Click the hard disk / Save icon  at the bottom-left of the preview area (just below the image). Or press the keyboard shortcut: Ctrl + S  (Cmd + S on macOS). In the Save current image  window that appears: Choose the folder  where you want to save the file. Enter a file name  (RawTherapee will automatically add .jpg). Under File format , select JPEG . Set the Quality  slider — default is usually 92 (very good). Use 95–100  for maximum quality (larger file size). Use 85–90  for smaller files with still-good quality. Subsampling : Leave at Balanced  (or try 4:4:4 for best quality if needed). Optional: Check Automatically add a suffix if the file already exists (so it becomes photo-1.jpg, etc.). You can also choose to save the processing profile (.pp3) alongside the JPEG. Click Save immediately  (or OK ). The JPEG will be created right away in the chosen folder. Your original RAW file is never changed.

I came across a very irritating bug when I was editing some shots that were saved in the 16-bit TIF format. For photos that had saturated, shiny surfaces in them, the Capture One editor (I tried both the 22 and 23 versions) ruined them. I'm actually a big fan of Capture One, but here's a case where it does an absolutely terrible job. I generally avoid using the TIF format, mostly because of its large file size. Using LZW compression certainly helps, but the files still tend to be big. In some cases, editors force you to make files with this format to retain the best image quality that they can export. Black edges that aren’t really there on the red flowers More black edges that aren’t really there Look at the obvious black edges on the bright, shiny plastic flower above. This looks like something a really cheap digital camera from the 90s might do. This is a crop from a Capture One23 editor. The photo was loaded from a 16-bit TIF file that was using LZW compression. I tried various editor adjustments to get rid of the false black borders between shades of red-orange, but nothing really worked to eliminate it besides resorting to using the ‘healing brush’. Lightroom : no ugly black black edges on TIF ON1 editor: no ugly black edges on TIF Zoner Photo Studio editor: no ugly black edges NXStudio editor: no ugly black edges I don’t normally edit TIF images, since I deal in raw-format whenever possible. I was using some shots that were exported from my DaVinci Resolve video editor, which can’t save frames in a raw format. I saved the frames in 16-bit TIF format with LZW compression, which should still yield great quality. My Capture One editor consistently makes the shots look awful when there were are bright, saturated, shiny surfaces in them. At first, I was blaming the DaVinci Resolve program for exporting garbage. I just couldn’t find what I was doing wrong in DaVinci . Out of desperation, I tried editing the exported TIF shots in Lightroom . No problems found. I then tried various other photo editors, which all succeeded without any issues at all. Only Capture One fails. I actually have 3 versions of Capture One , and every version failed. After doing some internet searches, I found out that other photographers have noted this same problem with the Capture One editor. This is just another excellent reason to try using raw-format files whenever possible. It’s always good to have a backup editor available, too.

People have been complaining since day one that Nikons can’t do Raw format stills at high frame rates in FX mode, but only jpeg instead. If you have a Z9, Z8, or Z6III, you’re in luck. I came up with a way that you can use 12-bit N-RAW format up to 8.3K resolution at 60 frames per second to capture those stills. If you’re willing to stick with 4.1K resolution, you can go all the way up to 120 frames per second  shooting Raw format in FX mode! This is true RAW format, at 8256 X 4644 resolution in FX mode. The secret to getting this capability is using the special lossless compression format and extracting the stills out of a video. You can achieve this feat by using a video editor called DaVinci Resolve , which understands this 12-bit N-RAW format. Nikon NEF still-picture raw files are 14-bit, but in almost all conditions 12 bits are plenty. You will now have the capability of getting higher quality photos with larger dynamic range than jpegs, and be able to use nearly all of the same shooting capabilities that Nikon provides when shooting stills. You will still be able to focus using AF-C, AF-S, MF, and AF-F (full-time autofocus) modes. You still get subject detection options, such as ‘bird’, ‘people’, ‘airplane’, and ‘auto-detect’. All of these settings can be configured independently from your still-photography settings. A frame from an N-RAW (NEV) video using 60 fps via Nikon Z8 I’d recommend that you leave the camera in M (manual mode) and set Auto-ISO active when capturing video. This way, you still get auto-exposure while being able to adjust the shutter and aperture to taste. High frame rates to capture high-speed action implies that you’ll want to have full control over the shutter speed while still being able to set the desired aperture. Using this mode to capture frames makes pre-capture unnecessary, since you can capture as many images as you want, any time you want. Just be aware that this high-quality N-RAW 60p 8.3K video mode will fill up a 512GB CF-express B memory card in about 12 minutes. These “NEV” video files tend to be huge, and you may need to delete them later from your computer after extracting the still frames you want. When you find the right situation where you want to do high-speed capture, you just flip the switch from stills to movie-mode, and press the red record button instead of the shutter button. The AF-ON button will work exactly like when you’re shooting stills. Just flip the switch back to ‘stills’ mode when you don’t need high-speed capture. Your camera keeps all of your ‘still photography’ settings entirely separate from the video settings. Simple. Compared to shooting hundreds or thousands of still photos while hoping that you captured that peak-action shot, you can capture it inside a single video. If the desired shot didn’t get captured, you only have a single (video) file to delete instead of tediously deleting scores of single photos one-at-a-time. Try manually timing a shot like this. Good luck. Select the precise peak action frame out of the video After you capture the desired action somewhere inside a video, you can process this file using the free DaVinci Resolve video editor, which has the ability to extract single frames as a high-quality 16-bit TIFF with LZW compression format from the original N-RAW video. You will need to get the “paid” version of DaVinci Resolve Studio to get the full 8K resolution from the video. You can still grab 4K-resolution shots with the free version (3840 X 2160). Use the ‘Edit’ page to locate suitable frames As shown above, you can use the mouse wheel to move frame-by-frame through the video to find the ‘just right’ shot. If you place the pointer inside the video frame, then the mouse wheel allows you to zoom in to verify critical focus. DaVinci Resolve ‘Color’ page: grade the image Adjusting the lighting, contrast, saturation, etc. inside DaVinci is an experience. This isn’t going to look like other editors you’re familiar with. Capture the desired frame In DaVinci Resolve , you can do pretty extensive edits in their Color Panel to take advantage of the wide dynamic range in the video, adjusting things such as shadows and highlights. After making the adjustments, you can then extract and export the desired frames in various image formats, including TIF. This is where you get to take advantage of the video raw-format wide dynamic range, even if you use the free version that only lets you save up to 4K resolution. For some weird reason, adjusting the light, colors, and contrast in video editors is called “grading”. As an aside, you can capture more conventional video in formats such as MOV up to 120 fps and extract 4K jpeg photos in FX format using the free Nikon NX Studio . This program doesn’t know how to process N-RAW video, unfortunately. Only DaVinci Resolve is able to edit the .NEV files. After exporting the photo from DaVinci Resolve , you can always import the shot into another editor to make further adjustments. I typically send the TIF exported photos to Topaz Photo AI to perform noise reduction and sharpening. A note of caution about using the Capture One editor: imported TIF-format files can cause some unwanted dark/black borders to appear in highly-saturated and shiny surface colors, such as plastics. Other editors don’t exhibit this effect. The overall N-RAW video image quality in most circumstances is as good as conventional Nikon raw (NEF). I’m going to blame my lack of finesse with color grading for any drop-off of quality. The main caveat is when using the exported TIF files inside Capture One, some saturated, smooth surfaces look unusual. Editors such as Lightroom, ON1, and Zoner don’t have this problem. Frame capture inside DaVinci Resolve after ‘grading’ DaVinci Procedures Project Manager | New Project, enter project name Click Create Double-click the new project to open it (lands on the ‘Edit’ page) Project Settings: Timeline format: pick an 8K near 8256X4644 60p Timeline frame rate: try 60 Audio Sample Rate 48 kHz In Color Management tab: Set Color Science to DaVinci YRGB Color Managed (or ACES if preferred). Under Output Color Space , choose a wide gamut like DaVinci Wide Gamut or Rec.2020. Import Media: Edit, Media Pool (top left) File |Import|Media (select .NEV files) Create Timeline: Media Pool: Select All Clips, RMB→Create new timeline Name Timeline: ‘Main Edit’ Use Project Settings (checked) Empty TimeLine (unchecked) to auto-select clips Click ‘Create’ Save Project: File | Save Project When trying to find key frames to capture, you’ll probably want to click on the “Detail Zoom” in the Edit page to more easily analyze small time slices while moving along the timeline. You can also hover over the “Jog Wheel” icon, which looks like   “ < . > ” with the pointer and then use the mouse wheel to enable frame-by-frame scrolling. To zoom in on a frame to check for critical focus, move the mouse pointer inside the video frame and then scroll the mouse wheel. Method : Grab Still → Export from Gallery (Best for Color-Graded Frames) Position the playhead on your desired frame. Switch to the Color page (recommended for accurate grading preview). Right-click in the viewer (on the image) and select Grab Still (shortcut: Option + G  on Mac or Alt + G on Windows). This captures the frame and adds it to the Gallery (stills album) on the left side. In the Gallery panel: Right-click the new still thumbnail. Choose Export (or Export with Display LUT if you want grading baked in). In the export dialog: Pick your format (JPEG, PNG, TIF , etc.). Set location and name. Export. Alternative Method : Export Current Frame as Still (Available on Cut, Edit , or Color Pages) Load your video clip into the timeline (or open it in the viewer). Scrub the playhead to the exact frame you want to capture . Go to the menu bar: File > Export > Current Frame as Still (or sometimes listed as Export Current Frame as Still ). In the save dialog: Choose your save location and filename. Select the format from the dropdown (e.g., JPEG for photos, PNG for transparency/lossless, TIFF for high quality). Click Export or Save . This exports the frame directly with your current color grading, LUTs, and viewer settings applied (great if you're on the Color page). Notes Exported frames match your timeline resolution (e.g. 4K video → 4K still) unless you change project settings. For highest quality, use PNG or TIFF (lossless). Summary These techniques aren’t something you’d use every day. But when you’re trying to photograph something that’s fleeting and needs a little automation help, this can be just the ticket. Nikon doesn’t advertise this possibility, but if you’re willing to put up with these complications, you can in fact shoot raw-format all the way up to 120fps for your “stills”.

Camera lenses don’t all focus the same way. Manufacturers make many trade-offs when designing a focus system, including speed, accuracy, and cost. I’m going to show a couple of different lens investigations here. One lens focuses fast, but has some focus accuracy and directional problems. Another lens is slow, but much more accurate and repeatable focus. The ‘fast-focus’ lens uses a linear stepping motor (the Meike STM motor). The ‘slow-focus’ lens uses a Nikon SWM (silent wave motor) that rotates. A ‘focus position’ chart analysis result, Meike 85mm f/1.8 lens The screen shot above shows a close-up of a ‘focus position’ chart after analysis using the MTFMapper program. The lens was focused on the chart center (the chart was rotated 45 degrees relative to the camera sensor), indicated by the set of orange arrows. The actual sharpest focus found by the software is indicated by a vertical blue line (-7.5mm here). The MTFMapper program was configured to only use the green sensor pixels here for its analysis, since each sensor pixel color can have the focus at a different distance if the lens has any longitudinal chromatic aberration. The lens focused at a distance of “-7.5mm” beyond the chart center, although the camera focus point was targeting the chart center. Most cameras allow the user to “fine-tune” the focus and force the focus to be closer or further from the camera. Sometimes that can work for a lens that consistently misses focus, but as you’ll see, that doesn’t always fix the problem. A spreadsheet showing focus position measurements The spreadsheet shown above contains the results of analyzing two different 85mm lenses. The left-hand portion of the spreadsheet shows the results from the Meike 85mm f/1.8 Z-mount lens. The top group of numbers was obtained when the lens was manually set to infinity focus before initiating auto-focus on the chart center. The bottom group of numbers resulted from manually setting the lens at minimum focus prior to auto-focusing the lens. The top group averaged an error of about -6mm (focused too far from the chart center). The bottom group averaged an error of about +6.5mm (focused too near from the chart center). This kind of lens defect causes the lens to stop focus before it gets to the target. The lens considers the focus to be “close enough”, and stops. No focus fine-tune setting can fully correct for this type of problem. The best you can do is to configure the lens to center the two groups of focus problems. The right-hand portion of the spreadsheet shows the measurement results from a Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 AF-S G lens, set to the very same f/1.8 aperture. Nikon chose to design this lens to auto-focus at a fairly slow pace, preferring focus accuracy over raw speed. A ‘focus position’ chart result, Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 lens at f/1.8 Just like the Meike 85mm, the lens had the focus manually set to infinity-focus in the top group of measurements, and then minimum-focus in the bottom group. Notice that this lens also fairly consistently stops focusing prior to reaching the target. It just gets a lot closer to the target before it considers that it’s “close enough”. The Nikkor 85mm results indicate that a slight auto-focus fine-tune adjustment might be useful, to push the focus slightly further from the camera sensor and balance the near and far error groups. Focus error for Meike 85mm Focus error for Nikkor 85mm The error plots shown above give a better visualization of how the focus distance error is grouped according to which direction the lens had to move to focus on the target. So, what can be done to ‘fix’ the focus problem here? First of all, note in the shot at the top of this article that the chart center still looks pretty sharp, even though it isn’t in perfect focus. The first step to fix focus is to use focus fine-tune on the lens to at least balance the pair of missed-focus groups to be equally wrong on either side of the correct focus distance. The second step would unfortunately be to override auto-focus and manually adjust focus to get it perfect. Unless you use a tripod, this is easier said than done. My Nikon Z8 and Z9 cameras let me zoom in using the viewfinder to more accurately see how to manually adjust the focus. I also use focus-peaking indicators, although this feature is generally too coarse to perfectly focus the lens. A third option is to stop-down the aperture, to hide the focus error inside deeper focus. Not a great option. A fourth option would be if Meike were to make a lens firmware update that moves focus a little further before stopping, but this is probably wishful thinking.

This article is a comparison of the new Meike 85mm f/1.8 and my old Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 AF-S lens. Before I started this evaluation, I was thinking that my Nikkor would be the clear winner. I was wrong. It’s hard to evaluate how good a lens is unless you have something to compare it to. Something that made this assessment difficult to do is the fact that these lenses aren’t the same focal length… The Meike seems to be about 88mm, compared to the Nikkor 85mm. When I would adjust distances to get equivalent image magnification, the depth of focus wouldn’t be the same. Keep in mind that this Meike lens is made for cameras with Z-mount (Nikon), L-mount (Leica), E-mount (Sony), and EF-mount that can be adapted to Canon cameras. I tested these lenses on my Nikon Z8 and Z9 cameras, which have the same sensor specifications. Resolution Although the Nikkor has a more even distribution of sharpness across its field of view, the clear winner here is the Meike. Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 AF-S vs Meike 85mm f/1.8 At the “ lenstip.com ” website , their review of the Nikkor 85mm f/1.8 ‘S’ lens (NOT my 85mm f/1.4 Nikkor shown above) shows f/1.8 center sharpness as 55 lp/mm, which is quite a bit lower than the Meike. Their f/2.0 center got 58 lp/mm, which is again significantly lower. After that, the lenses get comparable measurements. This Nikkor 'S' lens costs about $800 US, or 3.5X more than the Meike. Meike 85mm MTF50 resolution f/1.8, 2.0, 2.8 Meike 85mm MTF50 resolution f/4.0, 5.6, 8.0 Nikkor 85mm MTF50 resolution f/1.8, 2.0, 2.8 Nikkor 85mm MTF50 resolution f/4.0, 5.6, 8.0 LoCA (Longitudinal Chromatic Aberration) This one is no contest. The Meike has essentially no visible LoCA. Meike (left) vs Nikkor (right) LoCA (f/1.8) The Meike looks totally neutral, but the Nikkor has the reddish foreground and green background. CA (Lateral Chromatic Aberration) Another clear win for Meike. It has a CA span of about 2 microns, while the Nikkor has a CA span of about 4.5 microns. Meike lateral chromatic aberration f/1.8, 2.0, 2.8 Nikkor lateral chromatic aberration f/1.4, 1.8, 2.0 Bokeh The out-of-focus quality is a complicated issue. Since the image magnifications and the minimum focus distances aren’t equal, it’s easy to fudge the contest. By getting slightly closer to the subject, it’s easy to get the background using the Meike lens at f/1.8 look about the same as the Nikkor lens at f/1.4. I found the virtual absence of LoCA with the Meike makes background highlights look nicer than the Nikkor in most cases. I also think the Meike wins with the shape of highlights near the frame edge. Meike f/1.8 left, and Nikkor f/1.4 Weight and Size Meike is 379 grams. Length: 100.2mm, Diameter: 76mm Nikkor is 595 grams. Length: 84mm, Diameter: 86mm Meike wins here, being almost half of the weight. When mounted using the FTZii adapter and using the lens hood, the Nikkor is actually about 20mm longer than the Meike. Weather sealing Nikon claims the 85mm Nikkor is “weather resistant”, which means that you get $0.00 refund if you’re in heavy rain and ruin the lens. Both lenses have a rear rubber gasket for sealing. Be careful out there. Diaphragm Nikkor 85mm has 9 blades. Meike 85mm has 11 blades. Meike wins here. More is better. Filter Meike is 62mm, while Nikkor is 77mm. 62mm is cheaper. Distortion Neither lens has any visible distortion. Build Quality The Nikkor wins here for overall sealing and overall better materials. Focus Scale The Nikkor wins again, since it has a focus scale and the Meike doesn’t. Vignetting The lenses look about the same for vignetting, with a slight win for the Meike. I tend to actually add vignetting to my pictures, and photo editors make it trivial to get rid of it. Meike f/1.8 left, Nikkor f/1.4 Focus Speed I timed focus, and it took 0.416 seconds to focus from 0.8m (33in) to infinity. The Meike is m uch faster than my Nikkor 85mm lens, which took 0.575 seconds over the same focus range. This is in bright light. Minimum Focus Minimum focus on the Meike is specified to be 0.65meters, or 26 inches. I physically measured minimum focus to have the lens front at 0.56m (22 inches) from the subject. The Nikkor is a bit irritating here, with a miminum focus of 0.85 meters (33 inches). Just not close enough. A clear win for the Meike. Focus Consistency and Accuracy I noticed that the Meike autofocus is slightly inaccurate, and it depends upon which direction focus is changing from. You may never notice this inaccuracy, especially if you stop down from maximum aperture. My focus measurement software is really picky, and it consistently shows tiny focus errors that correlate to which direction the lens is focusing from. Manual focus on the Meike is going to cause people to either love it or hate it. It takes multiple rotations of the focus ring to focus throughout its entire range. This means that you can really fine-tune focus. For speed, stick with autofocus. You'll probably want to start with autofocus, and then touch-up the focus manually to get there quicker. The Nikkor wins here. Autofocus is slow, but a bit more accurate. It’s almost impossible to tell the difference from the Meike most of the time. Manual focus is better than the Meike, with a lot less focus ring rotation required. Spherical Aberration Meike focus position f/1.8 (left), f/2.0, f/2.8 Meike focus position f/4.0 (left), f/5.6, f/8.0 Nikkor focus position f/1.8 (left), f/2.0, f/2.8 Nikkor focus position f/4.0 (left), f/5.6, f/8.0 Spherical aberration causes a focus shift by merely changing the aperture. This happens with nearly every high-speed lens. Meike focus shift between f/1.8 and f/8.0 is 19.1mm Nikkor focus shift between f/1.8 and f/8.0 is 18.6mm This is just about a tie, given measurement uncertainties. The chart size and focus distance go into these focus measurements, so it’s only the relative measurements that have meaning. It’s critical that your camera be able to focus at the shooting aperture to compensate for this focus shift. Nikon mirrorless cameras do focus at the shooting aperture (through f/5.6), so you never see this focus error unless the focus shifts beyond f/5.6. Beyond f/5.6, the narrow apertures will hide any focus shift problems. Cost The 85mm Nikkor cost me $1,200 US when I got it, and it was $2,200 at introduction. The Meike cost just $230 US. No contest. You could buy the Meike and also 4 backup lenses. Summary Just get the Meike. I’m sure it’s not as robust as the Nikkor, but you could always buy a replacement if something happens. Technology gets better and better as time goes by. Old lenses really start to show their age.

Here’s a lens review that I’m excited to present.  I have found a lens that really over-performs, given its price. This version of the lens is for the Nikon Z-mount, but Meike also makes it for E (Sony), Leica L, and EF (Canon with RF adapter) mount cameras. I have read that all of these mounts have the same optical design. This is a full-frame lens. Meike 85mm f/1.8 AF SEII lens with hood   Minimum focus 0.65m (2.1ft) (22 inches from lens front, measured) STM stepping motor autofocus   Aperture range: f/1.8 to f/16   11-blade diaphragm   62mm filter thread   11 elements, 7 groups   Length: 100.2mm, Diameter: 76mm   Weight: 379 g ( super  light)   AF/MF focus switch   USB-C plug for firmware upgrades   Plastic bayonet lens hood, reversible for storage.   Weather sealing: only a rubber seal on the lens rear.   No lens case included, just a lens cap for the front and rear.   Vibration reduction: none. (My mirrorless cameras have IBIS, which means this lens omission is a “don’t care”.) Meike 85mm without bayonet lens hood on Nikon Z8 11-blade diaphragm for great bokeh Lens rear: USB-C plug, rear gold contacts, red weather seal     I have had my Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 AF-S G lens for about 13 years, which cost $1800 US (the introduction price was $2,200). This Meike lens beats it in nearly every way, and it costs about $230 US. Almost 10X cheaper than the Nikkor at introduction!!   I have found that my Meike 85mm seems closer to 88mm in focal length. My Nikkor 85mm is definitely a bit wider than this Meike lens.   This lens feels almost like you don’t even have a lens mounted, because it’s so light. Carry it all day long, and hardly even notice it. It’s probably unwise to use this lens out in the rain. I think that the only weather sealing is at the rear mount of the lens. 85mm f/1.8 1/20,000s ISO 250     Transmission   The actual light transmission of a lens is usually different from the stated speed of a lens. For example, my Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 lens is actually a “T1.6” lens, or 1/3 stop dimmer than advertised. Using this Nikkor lens as a reference, I found that in the photograph shown above, the Meike lens shutter was 1/20,000s, while my Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 lens shot at f/1.8 needed a shutter speed of 1/16,000s for the same shot at the same ISO. This would indicate that the Meike 85mm lens transmits about 1/3-stop more  light than the Nikkor did, making the Meike close to a true “T1.8” lens. Bokeh   In the past, I avoided considering f/1.8 lenses if the f/1.4 equivalent lens was available. After doing comparison tests, I have found that it’s nearly impossible to tell the difference between f/1.4 shots and f/1.8 shots in most conditions. Bokeh looks nearly the same, and the depth of focus is extremely similar. I’m no longer quite so smug about the f/1.4 lenses.   The bokeh seems a bit nicer than my Nikkor 85mm lens at equivalent apertures. Due to the extremely small loCA aberration, there’s no purple/green coloration on out-of-focus highlights (especially compared to the Nikkor lens). 85mm f/1.8 1/5,000s ISO 100 (cropped image)   Even at f/1.8, this lens is sharp. Stop the lens down for focus depth adjustment, but don’t worry about sharpness at any aperture.   Freezing a humming bird’s wings isn’t easy, but f/1.8 helps with being able to use fast shutter speeds. 85mm f/1.8 1/400s ISO 560 Minimum focus 0.65m (26in) f/1.8 Focus   Minimum focus is specified to be 0.65meters, or 26 inches. I physically measured minimum focus to have the lens front at 0.56m (22 inches) from the subject.   I timed focus, and it took 0.416 seconds to focus from 0.8m (33in) to infinity. Much  faster than my Nikkor 85mm lens, which took 0.575 seconds over the same focus range. This is in bright light.   I noticed that the Meike autofocus is slightly  inaccurate, and it depends upon which direction focus is changing from. You may never notice this inaccuracy, especially if you stop down from maximum aperture. My focus measurement software is really  picky, and it consistently shows tiny focus errors that correlate to which direction the lens is focusing from.   Manual focus is going to cause people to either love it or hate it. It takes multiple rotations of the focus ring to focus throughout its entire range. This means that you can really  fine-tune focus. For speed, stick with autofocus.     Vignetting Uncorrected vignetting: noticeable   The shot above was done at f/1.8, and you can definitely see vignetting.  It’s super easy to fix it using an editor, if it bothers you. The little blue numbers in the chart above are the MTF50 resolution measurements at each black trapezoid edge, measured in line pairs per millimeter.   Distortion I look at the edges of my resolution chart for any distortion. I didn’t notice any.     Resolution Here’s where this lens really shines. Incredible numbers, given what this lens cost. It smokes my Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 AF-S G lens for sharpness. MTF 50 resolution at f/1.8 (left), f/2.0, f/2.8 (right)   Peak center resolution at f/1.8 was 64.8  lp/mm. Best edge was 50.3  lp/mm, and best corner was 36.8  lp/mm.   Peak center resolution at f/2.0 was 69.3  lp/mm.   Peak center resolution at f/2.8 was 73.8  lp/mm. MTF 50 resolution at f/4.0 (left), f/5.6, f/8.0 (right)   Peak center resolution at f/4.0 was 78.2  lp/mm.   Peak center resolution at f/5.6 was 75.9  lp/mm.   Peak center resolution at f/8.0 was 67.3  lp/mm. MTF 50 resolution at f/11.0 (left), f/16.0 (right)   Peak center resolution at f/11.0 was 56.8  lp/mm.   Peak center resolution at f/16.0 was 44.5  lp/mm.   These numbers are crazy good. I’ll never know if Meike has consistent manufacturing control, or did I just get an amazing anomaly?   Lateral Chromatic Aberration (CA) Lateral chromatic aberration (CA) f/1.8, f/2.0, f/2.8 Lateral chromatic aberration (CA) f/4.0, f/5.6, f/8.0 Lateral chromatic aberration (CA) f/11.0, f/16.0   These are some of the lowest amounts of lateral chromatic aberration that I’ve seen in a lens. The camera used here (Nikon Z8) has 4.35 micron pixels, and you basically cannot see CA unless the measurements exceed a pixel in size.   This kind of lens defect shows up most clearly as a purple color around tree branches against the sky in the photograph corners. Longitudinal Chromatic Aberration (LoCA) LoCA for Red (left), Green, and Blue (right), f/1.8   The focus-shift along the lens axis for the red, green, and blue light rays is called “longitudinal chromatic aberration” (LoCA). If the focus shift is the same for each color, then there is no LoCA. The red distance from the chart center is 1.2mm nearer. The green distance is 4.8mm nearer. The blue measurement is 4.0mm in nearer. The measurements here are quite astounding for a fast lens. Usually, I see measurement differences in the tens of millimeters between the R,G,B channels. This means you don’t see the green fringe behind and the red/purple fringe in front of a neutral-colored subject.   Most photo editors don’t handle LoCA correction very well, if at all.   Infrared It depends; there’s a slight hot-spot in the middle of the frame with long-wave IR. Not terrible, but definitely there. It gets worse as you stop down. I tested it with an 850nm filter. 850nm infrared, f/1.8 1.3 seconds ISO 8000 (in wind)   Note the light circle in the sky behind the palm. In a pinch, you can use an editor to make it look acceptable.  Smaller apertures make the problem much worse. 720nm IR filter works okay. f/5.6 1/30s ISO 8000   For shorter-wavelength IR, the lens seems to work just fine, at any aperture.   Flare The lens coatings are pretty good. No fluorine coating, but that would probably drive up the lens cost. 85mm f/16 1/1000s ISO 250   Resistance to lens flare is pretty decent. Leave the lens hood on anyway; it protects the lens front.     Spherical Aberration   Tons. Every high-speed lens I have ever tested shows this same defect. Focus definitely shifts as you change the aperture on this lens. My Nikon mirrorless cameras (Z8, Z9) focus at the shooting  aperture. This then eliminates any missed focus problems due to spherical aberration. Many cameras only focus with the lens aperture wide-open, which is a huge problem when using lenses with spherical aberration.   I test this lens issue by only setting focus once at the widest aperture. I then take pictures of my focus chart at each aperture without re-focusing. The MTFMapper  program lets me analyze the focus chart choosing either the red, green, or blue sensor pixels. The shots below are measured using the green pixels. Focus position at f/1.8, f/2.0, f/2.8 Focus position at f/4.0, f/5.6, f/8.0   The focus position at the various apertures tested shifted between +6.2mm to -12.9mm, just by changing the aperture. The camera was 1.16m (46 inches) from the focus chart.   Lens Firmware Updates The USB-C plug in the back of the lens is used to update the lens firmware, via the Meike website . This is a lot nicer than having to purchase a separate docking station for lens updates. Meike 85mm at f/4.0 1/2500s, ISO 250     Summary Get this lens. I don’t think you can find a better price/performance ratio than this. I don’t get any money from Meike, so I don’t get any kickbacks if you buy their lenses or not. In the future, I'm going to pay a lot more attention to Meike lens offerings.

Photoartfromscience.com The following is a list of all  articles published at this website since its beginning. This list should make it easier to locate articles of interest. The “search” widget provided by my website provider is pretty lame, in my opinion. I think that a simple list of all article titles and their links will make it much easier to locate website content of interest. Most browsers should let you use “Control-F” within this article to find specific text. The article list below is sorted by oldest first. The bottom of this website’s home page has a horizontal list of numbers to let you step through the article links sorted from newest to oldest. Options are good.     9-3-2015 Sigma 150-600 f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM C Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2015-9-3-sigma-150600-f563-dg-os-hsm-c-review   9-4-2015 Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 AF-S Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2015-9-4-nikkor-85mm-f14-afs   9-4-2015 MTF Mapper  Cliffs Notes https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2015-9-5-mtf-mapper-cliffs-notes    9-5-2015 Sigma Optimization Pro  Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2015/09/05/sigma-optimization-pro-review   9-5-2015 Using the Exif Tool  Program https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2015/09/05/using-the-exiftool-program   9-5-2015 Use “FP” Mode with your Nikon Flash https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2015/09/05/use-fp-mode-with-your-nikon-flash   12-11-2015 Camera Upgrade Resolution Expectations https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2015/12/12/camera-upgrade-resolution-expectations   12-13-2015 Micro Nikkor 60mm AF-D Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2015/12/13/micro-nikkor-60mm-afd-review   12-18-2015 Turn off VR with high shutter speeds? https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2015/12/19/turn-off-vr-with-high-shutter-speeds   12-27-2015 Use your phone for a camera remote https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2015/12/28/use-your-phone-for-a-camera-remote   12-31-2015 Manual Exposure with External Flash https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2015/12/31/manual-exposure-with-external-flash   1-9-2016 Nikkor 18-140 f/3.5-5.6 ED VR Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016-1-9-nikkor-18140-f3556g-ed-vr-review   1-13-2016 Nikkor AF-S Micro 105mm f/2.8G Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016-1-13-nikkor-afs-micro-105-mm-f28g-review   1-23-2016 Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 AF-S G DX Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016-1-23-nikkor-35mm-f18-afs-g-dx-review   1-28-2016  Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 AT-X116 Pro DX Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016-1-28-tokina-1116mm-f28-atx116-pro-dx   2-6-2016 Rokinon Aspherical IF MC 8mm f/3.5 Fisheye Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/02/06/rokinon-aspherical-if-mc-8mm-f35-fisheye   2-29-2016 Nikkor 50mm f/1.8 AF-D FX Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/02/29/nikkor-50mm-f18-afd-fx-review   3-9-2016 Does Focus Calibration Make a Difference? https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/03/09/does-focus-calibration-make-a-difference   3-26-2016 Nikkor 55-200 f/4.0-5.6G ED IF AF-S DX VR Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/03/26/nikkor-55200-f4056g-ed-if-afs-dx-vr-review   3-29-2016 Nikkor 18-55 f/3.5-5.6G AF-S VR DX Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/03/29/nikkor-1855-f3556g-afs-vr-dx-review   4-5-2015 Micro-Nikkor 55mm f/3.5 Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/04/05/micronikkor-55mm-f35-review   4-6-2016 Nikkor-PC 105mm f/2.5 Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/04/06/nikkorp-c-105mm-f25-review   4-22-2016 Why is My Full-Frame Worse Than My APS-C MTF50 Measurement? https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/04/22/why-is-my-fullframe-worse-than-my-apsc-mtf50-measurement   4-24-2016 Lens Centering Tests https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/04/24/lens-centering-tests   5-21-2016 Use the Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 AF-S DX Lens on FX? https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/05/21/use-nikkor-35mm-f18-afs-dx-lens-on-fx   5-24-2016 Using the Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 DX Lens on an FX Camera https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/05/24/using-the-tokina-1116mm-f28-dx-lens-on-an-fx-camera   6-12-2016 When is Manual Mode Not Manual? https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/06/12/when-is-manual-mode-not-manual   6-26-2016 D610 VS D7100 VS D7000 Infrared Comparisons https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/06/26/d610-vs-d7100-vs-d7000-infrared-comparisons   7-12-2016 Nikkor 24-70 f/2.8 AF-S E ED VR Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/07/12/nikkor-2470mm-f28-afs-e-ed-vr-review   7-22-2016 Nikkor 20mm f/4.0 AI Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/07/22/nikkor-20mm-f40-ai-review   8-9-2016  Measure Axial Chromatic Aberration: MTF Mapper  Part Deux https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/08/09/measure-axial-chromatic-aberration-mtf-mapper-part-deux   8-21-2016 Sigma 150-600mm Contemporary Lens Firmware Updates https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/08/21/sigma-150-600mm-contemporary-lens-firmware-updates   9-3-2016  Sigma 150-600 Contemporary OS Anti-Vibration Algorithm Comparison https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/09/03/sigma-150-600-contemporary-os-anti-vibration-algorithm-comparison   9-25-2016 The Fallacy of Spray and Pray https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/09/25/the-fallacy-of-spray-and-pray   10-12-2016   MTF Mapper  Version 0.5.8 Updates Discussion https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/10/12/mtf-mapper-version-058   11-19-2016  MTF Curves: Theoretical Versus Actual https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/11/19/mtf-curves-theoretical-versus-actual   11-21-2016 Focus Stacking With Combine ZM https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/11/21/focus-stacking-with-combine-zm   12-19-2016 Clean Your Camera Image Sensor Video https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2016/12/19/clean-your-camera-image-sensor   1-21-2017 The Orton Effect https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/01/21/the-orton-effect   2-12-2017  White Balance Calibration When Colors Go Haywire https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/02/12/white-balance-calibration-when-colors-go-haywire   2-17-2017 Lens Focus Repeatability and Calibration https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/02/17/lens-focus-repeatablity-and-calibration   3-6-2017 “Safe” Storage of Camera Gear https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/03/06/-safe-storage-of-camera-gear   3-16-2017 Test Your Secure Digital Card: Lame and Lamer https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/03/16/test-your-secure-digital-card-lame-and-lamer   3-26-2017 Photo Noise Reduction: Nik Define 2.0 https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/03/26/photo-noise-reduction-nik-dfine-20   4-8-2017  SnapBridge and D500 Remote Control https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/04/08/snapbridge-and-d500-remote-control   4-13-2017 How Bright Is Your Camera Viewfinder? https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/04/13/how-bright-is-your-camera-viewfinder   4-21-2017  Infrared Photography and the Nikon D500 https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/04/21/infrared-photography-and-the-nikon-d500   4-29-2017  Does the D500 Automatic Focus Fine-Tune Calibration Work? https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/04/29/does-the-d500-automatic-focus-fine-tune-calibration-work   5-11-2017 Do Long Lenses Not Like Filters? https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/05/11/do-long-lenses-not-like-filters   5-24-2017 Focus-Stacking: Camera Hardware Suggestions https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/05/24/focus-stacking-camera-hardware-suggestions   6-10-2017 Convert Your Fisheye Lens into a Regular Superwide https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/06/10/convert-your-fisheye-lens-into-a-regular-superwide   6-20-2017 Keep Using Capture NX2  with Raw Format https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/06/20/keep-using-capture-nx2-with-raw-format   7-5-2017 Make Manual Exposure Automatic https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/07/05/make-manual-exposure-automatic   7-15-2017  Using MTF Mapper  0.6.3 New Features https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/07/15/using-mtf-mapper-063-new-features   7-27-2017  A Better Way to Test Fisheye Lens Resolution https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/07/27/a-better-way-to-test-fisheye-lens-resolution   8-7-2017 Yet Another MTF Explanation Article https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/08/07/yet-another-mtf-explanation-article   8-18-2017  Nikon D500 Focus Bug https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/08/18/nikon-d500-focus-bug   8-25-2017  UniWB and ETTR: the Whole Recipe https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/08/25/uniwb-and-ettr-the-whole-recipe   8-31-2017  How to Make a Crowd Disappear in Broad Daylight https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/08/31/how-to-make-a-crowd-disappear-in-broad-daylight   9-9-2017 How to Correct an LED “White” Light Source https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/09/09/how-to-correct-an-led-white-light-source   9-21-2017  White Balance for Infrared  Photography https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/09/21/white-balance-for-infrared-photography   10-2-2017  Nikon D500 Focus Point Map Decoded https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/10/02/nikon-d500-focus-point-map-decoded   10-16-2017 MTF Contrast Plots: How Useful are They? https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/10/16/mtf-contrast-plots-how-useful-are-they   10-22-2017  D500 Electronic Front-Curtain Shutter Analysis https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/10/22/d500-electronic-front-curtain-shutter-analysis   11-5-2017 Sharper Moon Shots with AutoStakkert https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/11/05/sharper-moon-shots-with-autostakkert   11-16-2017  Stack Star Shots with CombineZP https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/11/16/stack-star-shots-with-combinezp   11-24-2017  Nikkor 300mm f/4.5 pre-AI Review: A Blast From the Past https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/11/24/nikkor-300mm-f45-pre-ai-review-a-blast-from-the-past   12-16-2017 Reverse that Lens for Extreme Close-ups https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/12/16/reverse-that-lens-for-extreme-close-ups   12-26-2017  Panoramas Using Raw Format with Lightroom  and HDR Efex Pro 2 https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2017/12/26/panoramas-using-raw-format-with-lightroom-and-hdr-efex-pro-2   1-15-2018 The Brenzier Method: Thin Depth of Focus https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/01/15/the-brenzier-method-thin-depth-of-focus   2-3-2018  Create Your Own Planet https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/02/03/create-your-own-planet   2-17-2018 Nikon D500: Multiple Buttons, Multiple Focus Modes https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/02/17/nikon-d500-multiple-buttons-multiple-focus-modes   3-2-2018  High-speed Lens Focus Shift Explained https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/03/02/high-speed-lens-focus-shift-explained   3-16-2018 Coolpix B500 40X Super-Zoom Camera and Lens Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/03/16/coolpix-b500-40x-super-zoom-camera-and-lens-review   3-29-2018 Remote Camera Control Using digiCamControl https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/03/29/remote-camera-control-using-digicamcontrol   4-13-2018  How to Measure Lens Vignetting https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/04/13/how-to-measure-lens-vignetting   4-28-2018  Keeping up with  MTFMapper: any MTF you Want https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/04/28/keeping-up-with-mtfmapper-any-mtf-you-want   5-11-2018  Portrait Retouching Using Maks https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/05/11/portrait-retouching-using-masks   5-29-2018 The History of MTF50 Resolution Measurment https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/05/29/the-history-of-mtf50-resolution-measurement   6-15-2018  Fake Focus Peak on Select Nikon Cameras https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/06/15/fake-focus-peak-on-select-nikon-cameras   6-29-2018 Reflex-Nikkor C 500mm f/8   Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/06/29/reflex-nikkor-c-500mm-f8-review   7-14-2018  Longer Wavelength Infrared Photography Using 850mn Filters https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/07/14/longer-wavelength-infrared-photography-using-850nm-filters   7-27-2018  Simulate an Expensive Big Telephoto https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/07/27/simulate-an-expensive-big-telephoto   8-10-2018  Camera Infrared Filter Resolution and Focus Shift Testing https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/08/10/camera-infrared-filter-resolution-and-focus-shift-testing   8-18-2017 Infrared Filter Comparisons: Hoya, BCI, Neewer, Zomei https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/08/18/infrared-filter-comparisons-hoya-bci-neewer-zomei   9-3-2018 Tamron AF 24-70 f/3.3-5.6 Aspherical Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/09/03/tamron-af-24-70mm-f33-56-aspherical-review   9-15-2018 The Darktable Photo Editor, Part 1: Overview https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/09/15/the-darktable-photo-editor-part-1-overview   9-28-2018  The Darktable  Photo Editor, Part 2: Image Masking https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/09/28/the-darktable-photo-editor-part-2-image-masking   10-11-2018  The Darktable Photo Editor, Part 3: Tethered Shooting in Windows 10 https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/10/11/the-darktable-photo-editor-part-3-tethered-shooting-in-windows-10   10-26-2018 Lightroom Masking https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/10/26/lightroom-masking   11-8-2018  Test Lens Coma Yourself https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/11/08/test-lens-coma-yourself   11-14-2018  Nikon Z Camera Lens DesignBrilliance https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/11/14/nikon-z-camera-lens-design-brilliance   11-18-2018 Sigma 150-600 Firmware Update 1.02 for Nikon D500 https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/11/18/sigma-150-600-firmware-update-102-for-nikon-d500   11-28-2018 Fixing the D500 “Live View” AF-ON Button Failure https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/11/28/fixing-the-d500-live-view-dead-af-on-button   12-9-2018 Find the Maximum Shutter Speed for Vibration Reduction https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/12/09/find-the-maximum-shutter-speed-for-vibration-reduction   12-21-2018 Using and LCD Viewfinder on your DSLR https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2018/12/21/using-an-lcd-viewfinder-on-your-dslr   1-2-2019 Sigma 14-24mm f/2.8 DG HSM Art Review 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https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2019/04/02/free-dehaze-for-lightroom-61-or-newer   4-17-2019 DSLR Focus Calibration in Record Time https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2019/04/17/dslr-focus-calibration-in-record-time   4-30-2019  Make a Flash Diffuser for Free https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2019/04/30/make-a-flash-diffuser-for-free   5-19-2019  Sigma Lens Focus Algorithm Comparison https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2019/05/19/sigma-lens-focus-algorithm-comparison   6-4-2019   Lightroom  Radial Filter: The Spotlight https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2019/06/04/lightroom-radial-filter-the-spotlight   6-18-2019  How Lens Optical Stabilization Works https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2019/06/18/how-lens-optical-stabilization-works   7-10-2019  F-stop Fun Facts https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2019/07/10/f-stop-fun-facts   7-27-2019  Nikon Custom Settings Banks versus Photo Shooting Banks 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Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2019/10/20/flashpoint-wave-commander-remote-shutter-intervalometer-review   11-3-2019  Fix that Lens Infrared Hotspot with Lightroom https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2019/11/03/fix-that-lens-infrared-hotspot-with-lightroom   11-16-2019  Should You Turn Off Vibration Reduction When Using a Tripod? https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2019/11/16/should-you-turn-off-vibration-reduction-when-using-a-tripod   11-30-2019 Lens Resolution Measurement: Avoid Sharpened Jpeg Like the Plague https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2019/11/30/lens-resolution-measurement-avoid-sharpened-jpeg-like-the-plague   12-14-2019 Measure Lens Focus Speed with Nikon D850 Video https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2019/12/14/measure-lens-focus-speed-with-nikon-d850-video   12-31-2019 Hoya Pro ND1000 Filter Review https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/2019/12/31/hoya-pro-nd1000-filter-review   1-15-2020 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https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/using-the-nikon-pb-4-bellows-and-micro-nikkor-60mm-f-2-8-af-d   7-25-2020 Perfect White Balance Preset Creation and Verification https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/perfect-white-balance-preset-creation-and-verification   8-7-2020   MTFMapper 7.29  Adds Chromatic Aberration Measurement https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/mtfmapper-7-29-adds-chromatic-aberration-measurement   8-21-2020 Nikon Coolpix A Review: 7 Years Later https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/nikon-coolpix-a-review-7-years-later 9-5-2020 How Lateral Chromatic Aberration Changes With Aperture https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/how-lateral-chromatic-aberration-changes-with-aperture   9-19-2020  Image Resolution versus Increased ISO https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/image-resolution-versus-increased-iso   10-9-2020 The Single Focus Calibration  Penalty https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/the-single-focus-calibration-penalty   10-24-2020 Multi-shot HDR with Nikon DSLRs, Lightroom,  and HDR Efex Pro 2 https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/multi-shot-hdr-with-nikon-dslrs-lightroom-and-hdr-efex-pro-2   11-6-2020  Vello Battery Grips: Good, Bad, and Ugly https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/vello-battery-grips-good-bad-and-ugly   11-21-2020  Telephotos: Length Matters https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/telephotos-length-matters   12-4-2020 Lens Focus Fine-Tune: Things Can Change https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/lens-focus-fine-tune-things-can-change   12-18-2020 Sigma TC-1401 Teleconverter and 105mm f/2.8 Micro Nikkor https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/sigma-tc-1401-teleconverter-and-105mm-f-2-8-micro-nikkor   1-1-2021 Hand-held Focus Stacking with the Nikon D850 https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/hand-held-focus-stacking-with-the-nikon-d850   1-15-2021 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Your Lens Resolution Tutorial https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/measure-your-lens-resolution-tutorial   9-4-2025 Should You Use A Tele-converter or Not? https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/should-you-use-a-tele-converter-or-not   9-12-2025 Nikon Z8 400% Zoom Manual Focus vs. Autofocus Accuracy https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/nikon-z8-400-zoom-manual-focus-vs-autofocus-accuracy   9-26-2025 Diffraction-Limited Lenses and the Sharpest Possible Photo https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/diffraction-limited-lenses-and-the-sharpest-possible-photo     10-10-2025 Starscapes using Topaz Photo Studio and Capture One https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/starscapes-using-topaz-photo-studio-and-capture-one   10-24-2025  Using Topaz Photo Studio to Remove Unwanted Objects https://www.photoartfromscience.com/single-post/using-topaz-photo-studio-to-remove-unwanted-objects   11-7-2025 Measure and Compensate for Lens Spherical Aberration 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Information about how camera lenses perform when photographing in the infrared is quite scarce. Lens designers usually ignore light outside of the visible spectrum in their designs.   I have been analyzing a lens that is well-corrected in visible light to see what happens in a couple of different wavelength regions of infrared. I already looked at what happens with longitudinal chromatic aberration, and next I’m looking at lateral  chromatic aberration (CA).   I had a camera converted to infrared by Kolari Vision, which includes an infrared anti-reflection coating on their sensor cover ( very helpful for controlling hotspots). This modification passes wavelengths above 590nm, which then includes red/orange plus infrared. This light range lets me create “color infrared” or pure black-and-white images.   I used a separate camera (a Nikon Z8) to take photos in regular visible light using the same lens that I used on the infrared camera. Lateral CA when using visible-spectrum light   As you can see above, the colors in white light that we perceive can get bent going through a lens by different amounts when CA is present. Infrared (all IR frequencies lumped together) may or may not get similarly split up by the lens. CA typically doesn’t happen in the center of the camera sensor, but it gets progressively worse toward the edge of the sensor.   I frequently put an 850nm infrared filter on my lenses when shooting infrared with my IR camera, so I thought it would be prudent to include an analysis using that portion of the spectrum, too. This filter only passes long-wavelength IR, so the photographs look like black-and-white.   I use the MTFMapper  program to look at CA. The author Frans van den Bergh provides a couple of different files that can be printed out for analyzing CA. The standard resolution test charts can be used for also measuring CA.   I printed the resolution test chart using a laser printer. If I had tried using an inkjet printer, then the printout would have been invisible when shooting infrared. The carbon black toner used in laser printers is opaque to infrared, while the ink in inkjet printers is mostly transparent to infrared.   I chose my Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 Sport zoom for the testing. This lens has a pretty low level of CA, but that ‘low level’ is only advertised for visible light.   A lens with zero CA would have the red, green, and blue light get bent identically, and therefore all light from a subject focuses at the same spot. I focused the lens on the chart center. Resolution chart corner, no CA correction, 200mm f/2.8     The shot above shows a piece of a resolution chart without any correction for lateral CA. There’s a small amount of visible CA (meridional direction), which gets worse away from the lens center. This shot was done in visible light. CA range for visible light   The CA measurements for the lens in visible light range from about +2 to +8 microns in red-green sensor pixel shift, and -2.5 to +1.5 microns in blue-green pixel shift. 590nm Infrared 200mm f/2.8     In the test shot above, I switched to 590nm infrared, where ‘color’ doesn’t really have a specific meaning. This camera lets in orange, red, and infrared light. The shot above has been color-balanced to make the target background white; if left alone, the shot would look like it had a deep orange filter over the lens.   For measuring CA, I give the MTFMapper  program the raw shot as-is and don’t do any kind of color balancing. CA range for 590nm infrared   The CA for the 590nm infrared shot drops quite a bit, where now the red-green pixel shift is about 0 to -1.5 microns. The blue-green pixel shift is about 0 to +2 microns.     Next, I put the 850nm infrared filter over the lens… 850nm Infrared 200mm f/2.8     I didn’t need to perform a white balance with this type of deep infrared, since it normally looks like pure black-and-white. CA range for 850nm infrared   The CA for the 850nm infrared shot drops to near-zero for both red-green and blue-green shift. This is the lowest level of CA I have ever seen.   Summary   Lens behavior in normal light doesn’t guarantee anything when it’s used to shoot in infrared. You’ll have to do that sort of testing yourself. It's interesting that this lens looks better-corrected in infrared than it does in visible light for lateral chromatic aberration.

There’s very little information about how camera lenses perform when photographing in the infrared. There’s even less information about what lens designers consider in their design and analysis accommodating light outside of the visible spectrum.   I decided to take a lens that is well-corrected in visible light and see what happens in a couple of different wavelength regions of infrared. Most lenses have trouble focusing with infrared light; camera companies used to even put a little mark on their lenses to show you how much to compensate focus for IR.   In this study, I’m going to concentrate on analyzing longitudinal chromatic aberration (LoCA).  I had a camera converted to infrared by Kolari Vision, which includes an infrared anti-reflection coating on their sensor cover ( very helpful for eliminating hotspots). This modification passes wavelengths above 590nm, which then includes red/orange plus infrared.   LoCA when using visible-spectrum light   As you can see above, the light that we perceive can get focused at different distances along the lens axis when LoCA is present. Infrared (all IR frequencies lumped together) may or may not get similarly split up by the lens.   I frequently put an 850nm infrared filter on my lenses when shooting infrared with my IR camera, so I thought it would be prudent to include an analysis using that portion of the light spectrum, too. This filter only passes long-wavelength IR, so the photographs look like black-and-white.   I use the MTFMapper  program to look at LoCA. The author Frans van den Bergh provides a couple of different files that can be printed out for analyzing LoCA. In his program, you configure it to look at focus shift using red or green or blue Bayer sensor  information from photographs of a focus chart. The chart is rotated about the vertical axis to be 45 degrees from the camera sensor, with the shorter vertical bars nearer to the camera. The chart rotation is what allows the program to note where the peak focus is.   I printed the focus chart using a laser printer. If I had tried using an inkjet printer, then the printout would have been invisible when shooting infrared. The carbon black toner used in laser printers is opaque to infrared, while the ink in inkjet printers is mostly transparent to infrared.   I chose my Nikkor 24-70 f/2.8 AF-S VR zoom for the testing. This lens has a pretty low level of LoCA, but that ‘low level’ is only advertised for visible light.   A lens with zero LoCA would have the red, green, and blue channels overlap perfectly and therefore all light from a subject focuses at the same distance. I focus the lens on the chart center, but that’s rarely where best focus ends up. Focus chart detail, red channel, visible light     The shot above shows a piece of a focus chart after analysis. In this case, focus was close to perfect (2.6mm closer to the camera than the chart center) and the center of focus (blue line) is close to the chart center (orange arrows). The green plot shows the highest resolution (best focus) at different distances from the camera, measured in cycles per pixel of contrast. The peak focus shows 0.125 cycles/pixel of contrast here, at 2.6mm from the chart centerline.   The black circles in the plot are called ‘fiducials’, which let the MTFMapper program know where things are in the plot, and how to evaluate and measure what it sees. Visible light R,G,B focus at 70mm f/2.8     The triplet of pictures above show the chart analysis in red (left), green (center), and blue (right). The red focus +2.6 millimeters from the chart center. The green focus is +15.1mm nearer to the camera than the chart centerline. The blue focus is +9.2mm nearer to the camera, or in between the red and green focus. The whole range of focus with visible light is therefore 12.5mm using this chart. The red, green, and blue measurements are all made from a single chart photograph (no lens focus change), separately analyzing the red, green, and blue sensor pixels.   The chart was photographed with a regular-spectrum camera (Nikon Z9) using the same Nikkor 24-70 f/2.8 lens. The LoCA is fairly low, and probably wouldn’t be noticed in normal photography.   There are two styles of focus charts that are provided with the MTFMapper program. I chose the plot style shown above, because it’s much easier to see the overlaid results against a mostly-white background. The accuracy of the results is no different, if the different charts are printed to the exact same size on the exact same paper. You’ll note that all of the little round fiducials are the same in both styles of charts. 590nm Infrared R,G,B focus at 70mm f/2.8     Switching to 590nm infrared, the results are very, very different. The red focus (left chart) is at +6.8mm, or shifted toward the camera relative to the chart centerline. The green focus (middle) is -6.2mm. The blue focus (right) is -56.6mm (away from the camera), and quite dim. The whole range of focus with 590nm infrared is therefore 63.4mm using this chart (compared to 12.5mm in the visible spectrum).   This makes the lens look horrendous for longitudinal chromatic aberration, and the blue camera sensor pixels are starved for light.   Next, I put the 850nm infrared filter over the lens… 850nm Infrared R,G,B focus at 70mm f/2.8     The red focus (left) is at +11.5mm, with the green focus (center) at +10.5mm, and the blue (right) focus is at +11.6mm.   The whole range of focus with 850nm infrared is therefore only 1.1mm using this chart. That’s an amazingly consistent focus between the three color channels.   Not all infrared is the same! Using just the very long-wavelength 850nm infrared, the lens looks nearly perfect for LoCA. Lens performance can be very misleading, depending upon the light spectrum being tested.   The MTFMapper  program has many features for testing your lenses. You’re unlikely to find any information at all about your particular lenses when shooting infrared from the manufacturer. This program enables you to find out those optical characteristics yourself.

Portrait photographers are always looking for ways to get editing done quicker, and most of them follow a standard recipe of what edits need to be done. Almost nobody wants to see their portrait that hasn’t been touched up to make themselves look a little bit better.   The ON1  editor has a special panel that’s dedicated to portraits. Using artificial intelligence, ON1 automatically recognizes the parts of face. The most tedious part of portrait editing is typically drawing the masks on the different parts of the face to make local adjustments, and this task is now automated.   ON1  lets you quickly move through the steps of almost everything that needs to be done to edit a portrait. In this article, I’ll show you how a typical editing session is carried out. I’m presently using the 2023 version of ON1 . The ‘Portrait AI’ panel with default settings   As you can see in the panel above, there are several editing options for the different parts of the face. But that’s not all… Additional skin retouching options   When you expand the ‘Details’ option, there are controls to further refine how the face skin gets altered. Portrait before editing (cropped) Skin ‘Retouching’ set to 50 (left), 90 (right)   Most of the controls let you go beyond  what you should set. The skin Retouching  control seems about right at a setting of 50, but the setting of 90 starts looking artificial. Face ‘Brightness’ 38 (left), 100 (right) ‘Slim Face’ 0 (left), 70 (right) Slimming a face also alters the neck and above the shoulders, so that it's really hard to tell the portrait was altered. Eye ‘Brightness’ 0 (left), 100 (right) Eye ‘Whitening’ 0 (left), 60 (right)   The ‘Whitening’ control will let you reduce redness of the eyes. Eye ‘Detail’ 0 (left), 40 (right)   Use this ‘Detail’ control to sharpen eye lashes and the iris. This feature doesn’t work as well as my Topaz Photo Studio  or DeNoise , but you can’t beat how easy it is to use. Eye ‘Dark Circles’ 0 (left), 100 (right) Eye ‘Brow Enhance’ 0 (left), 60 (right)   Those brows start to look scary if they’re enhanced very much. Teeth Whitening 0 (left), 60 (right)   Moderate teeth whitening is almost always a good thing. It’s usually unrealistic to totally remove all yellowing. In extreme cases, you might need to switch to the “Develop” panel and use the masking brush for the teeth to alter their color temperature toward blue. Lip Vibrance 0 (left), 100 (right)       Additional Edits   You still might find a few things that need to be done outside of the Portrait panel, such as using the ‘Retouch Brush’ to rid strands of hair (inside the ‘Develop’ panel). Finished portrait Final settings in Portrait panel Save the settings as a new ‘Style’     The ‘Style’ drop-down menu lets you save (or update) the settings as a new, named style. In this way, you can automatically apply these settings to other portraits. In the future, you could edit other portraits at lightning speed by simply selecting a saved portrait style.     Summary   If you’re looking for an editor that will let you retouch portraits with maximum convenience, the ON1  editor is hard to beat. Please keep in mind that a properly edited portrait shouldn’t look like it has been edited!

Unsharpened eye detail from image crop, 85mm f/1.4   The Topaz Photo Studio  program can work quite well for sharpening photos, but it’s easy to go overboard with it. The shot shown above sorely needs help with sharpening.   For portraits, sharpening often fails miserably when considering the skin. For that reason, the Photo Studio  masking feature is basically mandatory.   This program (and Topaz Photo AI ) also offers “Super Focus” for sharpening. This feature, in either program, crashes my computer every single time. Every version that Topaz offers still manages to crash my computer. My Windows computer has 64GB RAM and 10GB memory for the GPU, which should be overkill. I’m presently using Photo Studio  version 1.0.2 and Photo AI  version 4.0.4.   In this article, I’m going to concentrate on what works (and doesn’t) for portraits. Mainly, you want to have sharp eyes. Sharpened skin is a bad idea.   In my examples, I used a high-speed lens that has poor resolution when shot wide-open. I want to show how Photo Studio  can help make the lens performance appear somewhat better. Note that the lens has longitudinal chromatic aberration (LoCA), and it makes a slight red border on some of the eye lashes. The shots are all at f/1.4. When viewed at normal magnifications, the red coloration around the lashes is basically invisible.   The photograph used was shot in raw format, so any sharpening is purely due to Photo Studio . The eye is cropped from a shot where the face fills the frame, and at 100% magnification. Start by selecting a Custom mask   Select the ‘Custom’ option to create a mask for the eyes. Draw a mask over the eyes and lashes   Adjust the brush to have a diameter suitable for just selecting eye detail, and then paint over the eyes and lashes. Include the eye brows, too, if you wish. I typically don’t sharpen anything else in portraits, but sometimes I’ll include the mouth. Select a sharpening style, and then adjust its strength   I find that Photo Studio  default settings generally sharpen too aggressively. The strength is determined by its internal artificial intelligence. There’s a slider to adjust the strength. The photos below are all using the default strength setting, as determined by the program’s ‘artificial intelligence’, unless otherwise noted. “Natural” sharpening option, with  mask used “Lens Blur” sharpening option, no masking “Lens Blur v2” sharpening option, no masking “Motion Blur” sharpening option, no masking “Refocus” sharpening option, no masking “Standard” sharpening option, no masking ‘Wildlife’ sharpening, no masking “Strong” sharpening option, no masking     The slight red cast on the lashes, due to the lens LoCA, is difficult to see at normal magnification. It’s due to the lens, and not  the fault of the program.     Adding the ‘Recover Faces’ filter ‘Strong’ sharpening, no masking (without 'Recover Faces') ‘Strong’ sharpening, no masking, Recover Faces v1 ‘Strong’ sharpening, no masking, Recover Faces v2   A subtle, but sometimes useful step is to add a ‘Recover Faces’ filter after sharpening. It’s quick and requires no masking. The skin gets softened slightly, but it also slightly affects the eye detail.   Summary   The Sharpen algorithms that leave white edges along the black lashes seem unsuitable for portrait shooting. When using an under-performing lens like this one, something like the ‘Strong’ sharpening works pretty well.   Differences among many of the sharpening filters are very subtle, but it depends upon the subject being sharpened.   In all cases, sharpening of the skin is undesirable. Masking can be a bit tedious, but using it to avoid skin sharpening is nearly always preferable. It’s worth trying the ‘Recover Faces’ filter first, since it’s quick to add, but I don’t think it works as well as masking does.     Topaz Photo Studio  should be used before doing other editing, and it can be invoked from inside most other photo editors. If you edit a raw photo before sending it to Photo Studio , those edits are ignored. If you send it raw-format photos (you should), then it will return raw output, in the DNG format.   Topaz Photo Studio  doesn’t have the tools to perform all of the edit steps necessary for something like portraits. I prefer to call this program from within editors like Capture One or ON1 , giving it the raw photo. After the sharpened, DNG-format photo gets returned to my editor, I finish the rest of the editing. Using this program is a cheap way (compared to buying high-end optics) to make a low-performing lens look much better than it actually is. Since skin usually looks pretty bad at high resolution, a cheaper lens can in some ways be an advantage when shooting portraits.

The majority of large-aperture camera lenses suffer from an optical defect known as ‘spherical aberration’. This phenomenon causes the lens to shift its focus merely by changing the aperture.   If you’re unaware that your lens has this problem, it can be very mysterious and frustrating. If you have a mirrorless camera, you may  be able to easily compensate for it. If you are using a DSLR camera, you’re basically out of luck. A large-aperture lens with spherical aberration Spherical aberration causing focus shift   As shown above, lenses with spherical aberration cause focus shift by cutting off light rays when you stop down the aperture. The majority of light rays focus nearer to the lens front at a wide aperture (the ‘circle of least confusion’). When you stop down the aperture and block the outer-perimeter light rays, the majority of the remaining light rays are focused farther from the lens rear.   Going from f/1.4 to f/2.0, the area of light rays decreases by 50 percent. If you stop down to f/5.6, the area of light remaining is just 6.25 percent. The circle of least confusion is therefore much  smaller at f/5.6, and also much  sharper.   To know how much spherical aberration a lens has, I use the free MTFMapper program , written by Frans van den Bergh. He provides a “Focus distance” chart file that can then be printed and mounted. This chart can be used for both focus distance tests and also for evaluating longitudinal chromatic aberration.   The test chart is photographed while rotated by 45 degrees about the vertical. The left side of the chart is farther away from the camera. The chart needs to fill the frame for best results.   If you’re using a DSLR camera, it is going to auto-focus with the lens aperture wide open. The aperture closes down just before taking the shot, but focus doesn’t get adjusted at this point. If your lens has spherical aberration and you stop down the lens, the best focus gets ‘automatically’ missed.   Fully-manual lenses aren’t a problem, because they remain at whatever aperture you set while you manually focus. Any spherical aberration is always being compensated for. Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 (left) and f/2.0 (right)   In the shots above, I show a close-up of the chart at f/1.4 on the left, and f/2.0 on the right. I focused the camera using f/1.4, and then stopped down the lens for the shot at f/2.0 without  re-focusing the f/2.0 shot. The f/2.0 photo shows a distance shift of 5.1 mm away from the chart center where it is in the sharpest focus. That’s the effect of spherical aberration.   I chose my Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 AF-S G lens for this demonstration, but all of my fast lenses exhibit this optical defect. Some fast lenses handle the problem better than others.   The chart center is indicated in orange above. The green curve shows the area of best focus, with its peak at optimal focus (also shown via a vertical blue line). Peak focus is also indicated with a “cycles per pixel”, or “c/p”  MTF50 value. This number can be converted into other units, such as lines per millimeter, if you know the camera sensor pixel dimensions.   By the way, I chose to have the MTFMapper  program use the green pixels on the sensor for these measurements. I could have chosen red or blue pixels instead. The differences between measurements of red, green, and blue are the essence of measuring “longitudinal chromatic aberration”, also known as LoCA.   If the camera is always focusing while using the f/1.4 aperture, then a shot at f/2.0 would miss the sharpest focus by 5.1 millimeters at this particular distance (1.3 meters away). Nikkor 85mm f/2.8 (left) and f/4.0 (right)   In the shots above, I show the chart at f/2.8 on the left, and f/4.0 on the right. I focused the camera using f/1.4, and then stopped down the lens for the shots at f/2.8 and f/4.0 without  re-focusing the f/2.8 or f/4.0 shots. The f/2.8 photo shows a distance shift of 12.2 mm away from the chart center, where it is in the sharpest focus. The f/4.0 shot shows a distance shift of 16.1 mm from the chart center at this apertures’ best focus.   If the camera is always focusing while using the f/1.4 aperture, then a shot at f/2.8 would miss the sharpest focus by 12.2 millimeters at this particular distance (1.3 meters away), and the f/4.0 shot would have missed by 16.1 millimeters. Nikkor 85mm f/5.6   Similarly, the f/5.6 shot has its best focus at 18.8 millimeters away from the chart center. If the camera focused using the f/1.4 aperture, it just missed best focus by 18.8 millimeters.   By f/5.6, the focus shift is largely masked by the depth of focus. The MTFMapper software is very sensitive, though, and can still note that the center of focus is shifted. Different lens, same focus-shift problem   Shown above, I marked where the focus plane moved for a Rokinon AF f/1.4 lens. I tried to focus on the chart center, but this lens focused a bit far at f/1.4. I took more shots (without re-focusing) at different apertures, and the arrows indicate where the sharpest focus landed. This lens has less severe spherical aberration than my Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 lens.     How to avoid this ‘missed focus’ problem   If you’re using a Nikon or a Sony mirrorless camera, then you have a remedy for this focus-shift problem. These cameras allow you to auto-focus at the shooting aperture , instead of having to focus at the widest aperture. This slows down the focusing speed a tiny fraction, but you gain sharper photos by doing so when you have a lens that has spherical aberration. On Nikons, the camera won’t stop down any further than f/5.6 while auto-focusing; it stops the aperture down the rest of the way just before taking the shot. Camera focus starts to get much more sluggish at apertures narrower than f/5.6.   If you’re using a Canon mirrorless camera, then you’re presently out of luck. They don’t allow you the option of auto-focusing at the selected aperture, but instead always use the maximum aperture to focus. Maybe a future firmware update will allow this option.   As previously mentioned for all DSLR cameras, they focus at the maximum aperture. They are pretty much forced to do this because they need as much light as they can get in order to focus quickly. The only way to avoid the focus-shift problem would be to focus-calibrate the camera at the selected aperture. When you change apertures, you’d need to re-calibrate focus.   If you never use high-speed lenses, then this discussion is basically a “don’t care”. Spherical aberration focus-shift was always a source of major frustration when I only had DSLRs for my fast lenses. Thank goodness for mirrorless cameras.