A common technique for compact digital camera users is to lock focus on an area in a scene and then recompose. This is particularly useful when you photograph a scene with a subject that is off center. You want the main subject to be in sharp focus but also want to capture a good deal of the scene to the right or left of it.
When a user of a compact digital camera moves to a digital single lens reflex camera, they sometimes find the old familiar technique of focusing and recomposing doesn’t work. When they focus and recompose, an area they expected to be in sharp focus isn’t.
DSLR Compose and Focus
For some photos taken with a DSLR, a more useful technique is Compose and Focus.
The technique is particularly useful when taking shots holding your camera in the vertical position.
The photographer manually selects and activates a focus point and then aims the point exactly on an area they want to appear sharpest. The DSLR user also needs to watch the aperture size to obtain the maximum depth of field desired.
Both focus techniques valid
So both Focus and Recompose and Compose and Focus methods are valid for DSLR users.
However, like so much in photography, the key is to determine which method to use and when. Deciding which often depends on other factors such as focal length of the lens used and aperture settings.
It’s best to experiment with each technique until you find the one that works best for a particular scene.