There are innumerable ways that photographers choose to capture nature on camera. The one thing they all have in common is a very deliberate and sharp focus on at least one element of the photo.

The choice isn't always clear: manual and automatic focus choices

Most mid- to high-quality cameras will give you the option of choosing between auto or manual focus. While there are usually several different presets that allow you to change the priority of the auto-focus program, it is also very handy to have manual focus options that allow for artistic expression and emergency compensation.

When Audri Lanford of 7PhotographyQuestions.com interviewed prominent nature photographer Lewis Kemper, it was revealed that many of the pros rely upon automatic focusing, too. It is often faster and can be just as accurate.

Fast focusing tricks

Kemper shared a trick that he felt was revolutionary when taught to him several years before: setting the auto focus and releasing the shutter in separate steps. This can be accomplished with two buttons on many of the most popular professional models, though the default setting is to have both operations controlled with one button action. This makes it difficult to focus on subjects that are not the center of the image.

However, you may also assign a single button to set the focus only, allowing you to take a focus reading from anywhere in the frame. Then, you are free to use the other button to release the shutter and automatically set either the shutter or aperture control according to light conditions, depending upon what program setting you choose.

For nature images that involve tracking animals through a path of motion, servo focus is a good choice. This allows the camera to follow a chosen subject and adjust the automatic focus on the fly.

Handy software to sharpen your focus

Many professionals will increase the clarity and focus of their images by taking multiple images and blending them together as separate computer manipulated layers. This can be done in Photoshop, but there are other programs that do this exclusively with somewhat better results, in Kemper's opinion.

Nature photography can include anything from a macro shot of a flower to wide, sweeping landscapes. As you might expect, there are different types of software geared towards different types of photography. Macro photography, for instance, may rely upon as many as 20 different focus points and just as many composite images. Typically, wide angle shots use fewer points, but can still benefit from having the focus sharpened in shadow and on the edges of the frame, where some lenses can show varying degrees of distortion.

Read the manual

To get the best results from your camera, Kemper suggests reading (or re-reading) your camera's manual. Here, you'll get the information you need to make sure you're adjusting focus as finely as you possibly can. It may come as a surprise to many that even photographers who've worked many years as professionals can still benefit by doing some product research.

Nature photography can go from very nice pictures to truly iconic images with good and controlled focus, thanks to just a few changes in your shooting technique.

To find more digital photography tips from master photographer Lewis Kemper, check out his 7PhotographyQuestions.com interview on nature photography here.