Hyperfocal Distance

They removed the Hyperfocal Distance scale from most primes and almost all AF zoom lenses. Some Canon cameras have an A-DEP function, but I used it with spotty results. The best thing to do I guess would be to turn the AF off and try to figure out the best Hyperfocal Distance by trial and error. After a while it sort of comes naturally. There are charts and formulas on the web that teach you how to figure the best HD for a scene, but many of those are overly complicated.

http://www.dofmaster.com/custom.html

It seems like it's a bit of a challenge. I have Barnack loaded on my computer, but I won't have that information in the field. I've also heard of focusing one-third into the scene, but one of the websites said not to do that either. I wonder if there's an iPhone or iTouch app?

"I wonder if there's an iPhone or iTouch app?"

There is !

most canons have a depth of field mode -- focus on one subject, then the next, then press shutter button again, lens focuses so that each object is sharp, then trip shutter.

If your lens has a distance scale on it, you can focus on the near and far points that you want in focus, and then set the lens manually so that these 2 distances are equally spaced at either side of the focus index. This doesn't tell you what aperture you need to use, though ... use the smallest you can get away with, or bracket them.

Despite what many people might think, hyperfocal distance is first of all dependent on print magnification as well as sensor resolution (on digital sensors), and so the correct numbers might be different for different users dependent on what kind of print size is their finished product.

There is no such thing as everything in focus - focus is just in a plane, no matter what focal length a lens is, but there is such a thing as everything being acceptably sharp, or sharp enough that you cannot distinguish whether it is in focus or not, and so the best thing to do is to try out different focus points yourself and compare - not just pixel peeping, but actually print at least small test swatches in your usual maximum print size.

"What's your technique for setting the hyperfocal distance for landscape photography?"

I rarely resort to using the hyperfocal distance in landscapes, but rather follow the advice given in Depth of Field Revisited : focus at infinity and pick an appropriate aperture value.
I would sacrifice sharpness at infinity only if there is a dominating, very close foreground with interesting detail.

There are several iPhone apps. The one I have tried is called "field tools depth of field guide." It's very simple, and when I compared the results to DOFmaster, they matched. The price is $0.00. One thing I don't understand about it is that it asks you to set the lens you will be using as well as the camera. It does not seem to use the lens information, nor should it, as far as I know. I assumed it would just limit motion of the sliders, but it seems not to.

I agree with the remarks by Hakon, above, even though it is impractical to print a photo before deciding.

Although traditionally the theme is to focus on the hyperfocal point, that often isn't the best plan. One aspect worth remembering is that sharpness is much more important in some areas of the photo than in others. For a portrait, it would usually be the eyes, but for a landscape it might be the distant horizon. Therefore you need to decide where in your photo you want things to be critically sharp. That's usually somewhere between the hyperfocal point and the distant horizon. Trial and error may be the best plan.