SpyderLensCal

The US/Swiss colour management giant, Datacolor have just started shipping their latest product, the SpyderLensCal. It's an interesting product, not just for what it does, but it shows that Datacolor are looking beyond colour management into other useful goodies for the photographer.

The SpyderLensCal is essentially a precision plastic target and graduated scale that measures the focus performance of your camera/lens combination. If your autofocus is slightly wrong, you can then make adjustments using the autofocus correction facility found on some modern DSLR cameras.


Supported cameras include:

• Canon (50D, 7D, 5DMkII, 1DMkIII, 1DMkIV, 1DsMkIII, 1DIV)
• Nikon (D300, D300s, D700, D3, D3s, D3x)
• Sony (A900, A850)
• Olympus (E-30, E-620)
• Pentax (K20D, K7D)

Here's what Datacolor have to say...

SpyderLensCal™ provides a fast, reliable method of measuring the focus performance on your camera and lens combinations. It allows photographers to obtain razor-sharp focusing or check to see that their lenses are working at their peak performance. This device is compact, lightweight and durable, with integrated level and tri-pod mount.

The problem:

Photographers have enjoyed the benefit of autofocus for 25 years now, but many still struggle with its accuracy and repeatability. Auto-focus is a great convenience, especially in fast shooting situations. But typically the first step in reviewing files from a shoot is tossing all the images where the focus isn’t quite right. This can be motion blur or other issues, but one of the most frequent causes is auto-focus error. We tend to blame this on the camera choosing the wrong object, or the wrong point on the object as the focal point, but there is another possibility, one we hate to consider, given the price of the hi-end lenses we use: the auto-focus of our lens may simply be off. When you take a simple shot of a flat object perpendicular to the camera, and it still isn’t quite as sharp as it should be, you have to accept that this may be the cause.

The solution:

Many newer DSLR cameras now offer a method to correct this issue: they allow you to store auto-focus correction data for several of your most important lenses. This feature is likely to become more common, and appear in other camera types.

SpyderLensCal was designed to aid in correcting the auto-focus on your camera and lens combinations and storing them in your camera’s custom settings.

Features

• Fast, easy solution for your interchangeable lenses and recent DSLR bodies provides razor-sharp auto-focusing, using modern DSLR autofocus micro-adjustment technologyCompact, lightweight and durable, with integrated level and tri-pod mount, making this the most convenient way to adjust your own camera gear
• Save time and hassle of sending your equipment in for service. Now you can check or calibrate your own lenses
• Accurate and repeatable Calibration of your lenses and recent DSLR bodies
• Worthwhile investment to ensure your camera is focusing your lenses as precisely as possible

You can buy the SpyderLensCal online at Native Digital.