Luminous Landscape Forum

Equipment & Techniques => Cameras, Lenses and Shooting gear => Topic started by: marvpelkey on October 29, 2018, 08:51:19 pm

Title: Tamron Tap in Console
Post by: marvpelkey on October 29, 2018, 08:51:19 pm
Recently purchased the latest Tamron 70-200 G2 lens. It appears the autofocus is out a bit, so am considering picking up the Tap in Console. As I was visiting a local camera store for some lens cleaning equipment, I asked the salesman a few questions about it's use, but it turns out he knows very little. Anyway, wondering if anyone has any experience with this device. Checked the internet as well as the Tamron site and couldn't find the info I am seeking.

I understand the general set up and use but am confused on the following:

After using a focus chart or similar device to determine whether the lens is front, or back, focusing (let's say, for sake of discussion the lens focuses an inch in front of where it should), how does the incorrect focus difference (front focus an inch in this example), translate to the (+ or -) number that one enters in the software program?? Is this just a hit or miss, multiple attempt type process, until the lens is zeroed in? If so, for a zoom lens where the software will allow 24 (3 x 8) different entries, the process could take a heck of a long time taking the lens back and forth between the camera and console. Or am I missing something obvious?

Thanks,

Marv
Title: Re: Tamron Tap in Console
Post by: E.J. Peiker on November 03, 2018, 08:35:22 pm
I assume it's just like Sigma's dock which I have a lot of experience with.  Basically a positive number indicates moving the focus farther away from the camera and a negative number moves it closer to the camera correcting for front-focus and back-focus respectively.  For a zoom lens, yes, you have to do it for all of the points in the table and there is a slight influence of one setting on another so after you get the matrix done the first time, it is usually a good idea to do it again and make the minor corrections that are needed for that "crosstalk".  It is a lot of work, in my business we charge $150 for this kind of focus calibration due to the amount of time it takes and even that only ends up being about $30 an hour including the paperwork.
Title: Re: Tamron Tap in Console
Post by: Osprey on November 03, 2018, 09:21:33 pm
It'll be nice when mirrorless comes clost to making this a thing of the past. 
Title: Re: Tamron Tap in Console
Post by: marvpelkey on November 03, 2018, 09:41:49 pm
E.J.(funny, your last name is only one letter off of mine....),

Thanks for the reply.

Still a bit confused, though, on the + or - correction in the software. As in my initial example, if I use auto focus on an object, and it actually focuses an inch in front of the object, how does that inch (or whatever distance it happens to be) relate to the positive number I would enter in the software. Do I need to enter an arbitrary number to begin with, then recheck the auto-focus and if it's still out a bit, enter a different number and so on and so on until the focus is bang on? Then do this for all the points in the table (then, as you further indicate, do it again for minor corrections).

By the way, just noticed my number "eight" in my initial post resulted in a smiling sunglasses emoji. Not sure how that happened.

Marv
Title: Re: Tamron Tap in Console
Post by: Telecaster on November 03, 2018, 09:54:01 pm
8 followed immediately by ) gets interpreted by the forum editor as 8)

-Dave-
Title: Re: Tamron Tap in Console
Post by: E.J. Peiker on November 04, 2018, 08:21:16 am
E.J.(funny, your last name is only one letter off of mine....),

Thanks for the reply.

Still a bit confused, though, on the + or - correction in the software. As in my initial example, if I use auto focus on an object, and it actually focuses an inch in front of the object, how does that inch (or whatever distance it happens to be) relate to the positive number I would enter in the software. Do I need to enter an arbitrary number to begin with, then recheck the auto-focus and if it's still out a bit, enter a different number and so on and so on until the focus is bang on? Then do this for all the points in the table (then, as you further indicate, do it again for minor corrections).

By the way, just noticed my number "eight" in my initial post resulted in a smiling sunglasses emoji. Not sure how that happened.

Marv

2 letters off ;)

There is no direct translation which is why using something like a Lens Align diagonal ruler , where you focus on a target and the diagonal ruler then shows you where the actual focus is, makes this a lot easier.  Basically what you can do is use the in camera calibration function to come up with a number, then you reset the camera to zero and enter that number into the table in the lens dock software.  i have found that an in camera integer and an integer in the software are pretty close in an adjustment step.  So what I do is I draw the matrix on a piece of paper.  Then do all of the distance and focal length combos filling in the table based on the values that you need to enter into the camera to get the diagonal ruler to be focused in the correct place.  I then enter all of those number into the software and reset the in-camera calibration value to zero.  Then you do it all again to fine tune it.
Title: Re: Tamron Tap in Console
Post by: marvpelkey on November 04, 2018, 08:38:13 pm
oops, thought it was an L instead of an I.

And thanks for the further clarification. I'll likely be getting the Tamron device and see how it performs.