Focusing Distances

The Holga's focal length is 60mm, which is roughly the equivalent of focal length of 30mm on a 35mm camera. This is quite a wide angle, which means you usually get more in your image than you were expecting. As a result you will always want to get in a little closer than normal. Some good advice is to stand where you think you should be, then take a couple of steps toward your subject. Now focus as normal and take your picture. To focus, you'll need to use the following focus icons:

Focus Icon	Focus Distance
	The single person is your first focusing point. He'll focus approximately 3ft (0.91m) in font of your camera. For me, that's the length of my arms plus 1ft.
	These three cheeky chaps will focus approximately 4-6ft (1.83m). That's about the size of your average 6ft person.
	These septuplets focus approximately 8-10ft (2.74m) away. That's roughly the distance from floor to ceiling in the places I visit.
	The mountain focuses at infinity, so if your object is further away than 18ft then spin your lens round to this.

Want proof?

I recently conducted a super-scientific test comprising of light meters, tape measures and marker pens. You can find my results on Flickr. One rule of thumb that many forget is that depth of field is one third in front of the focus point and two thirds behind. So when guesstimating the focus, always error in front of the subject. (thanks Tony!)

Estimating Distances

Estimating distances can be quite hard at first, but with experience it becomes second nature. If you need a little extra help estimating, there is an excellent reference card you can use, called the Human Rangefinder. You start by putting in a few details; such as your arm length, the distance between your eyes, and the focus distances (3, 5, and 9 feet). It will then generate a card for you to print out. To use the card you simply follow these steps:

Hold the card in your hand at arm's length. With your left eye, line up the '0' marking with a vertical element of the object you wish to measure the distance to. Now look through your right eye. The distance measurement that lines up while looking through your right eye is the one you want.

I'll be recording a video explaining the process soon, but in the meantime, check out the video on Figital Revolution.