Canon R7 BIF with the R7

[Archibald]

I have never been that good of a BIF shooter, but I'm getting some frustrating behavior with the R7. I'm curious what you folks use as settings on the R7 and how well it works for you. Is this a useful thing to discuss here, or has it already been covered in the forum?

Below is a successful shot taken this morning, of a Canada Goose hybrid.

• Canon EOS R7
• RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
• 500.0 mm
• ƒ/7.1
• 1/1600 sec
• ISO 400

 

[Stompthestroller]

Capturing the eye on birds with dark head pigmentation does present problems. Even in what I take to be reasonable light some of my photos are a bit disappointing.

• Canon EOS R7
• RF100-400mm F5.6-8 IS USM + EXTENDER RF1.4x
• 560.0 mm
• ƒ/11
• 1/1000 sec
• ISO 25600

 

[AntonLargiader]

I think you're just asking too much there, between the poor light and the extreme magnification.

 

[Only RF]

I came across this last night. He shoots the way I do expect for the AF mode he chooses before it goes into Eye Detect. Eh uses Expansion AF but you could use Single, Spot or even Zone AF. I start with Full Area AF.

I thought about this and re-mapped my bodies to try it. My start point was Single Point AF. After testing on Owen the test owl who does not fly I decided to go back to what I was doing. Reason being is for BIF I'd have to have that AF point, be it Expansion, Single or Spot on the bird for the camera to focus on. Using Whole Area the entire array of AF points in the EVF is looking for the bird.

Let's Set Up the Canon EOS R7 for Triple Button Autofocus and Dual Back Button Autofocus

In this video, which is geared for bird photography, I will show you how to set up the Canon EOS R7 for triple button autofocus, as well as a dual back butt...

www.youtube.com

 

[Stompthestroller]

My R7 is set up according to the author of let’s go birding on you tube as per his 30 minute video, he has another video setting up back button focusing . It works well for me however I am satisfied quite easily as an enthusiastic amateur.

 

[Only RF]

The 3 point AF is inserting. I was using it but never really broke down that way. That video gave me some ideas for a revamp of my BBF layout. I'm still using the shutter button for both AF and Metering.

I've assign the * button to toggle through the three AF modes. Single, Spot and Whole Area AF. As I did before I will always start with Whole Area AF because the entire array of AF points is in use. Great for BIF and for static objects as well. Let AI do its job first and find the eye. That is what I paid the big dollars for.

If Whole Area is struggling I can toggle to Single or Spot AF. I prefer Single point AF because it is larger so more contrast but use Spot when needed. For example Spot AF for small birds in thick foliage. That was the issue with my R7. You can't map the magnify button for an AF mode but you can map the R6II AF point selection button for AF mode. For the R7 I mapped Spot to the DOF which I did not like. That problem is now solved.

The white broken pre-focus square will be is active in all AF modes. Always looking for an eye.

Previously I assigned the AF-ON to Single Point AF for Eye Detect override. The * button for Zone AF but that button now has a different job. AF-ON now engages Zone AF for the Eye Detect override. Let's say the camera is struggling with a bird flying. I don't need precision. I just need to get it into some type of reasonable focus. Toggle the AF-ON as many times as need to achieve that and let AI do the rest when back in Whole Area. Even works great on static objects.

I can hardly wait to try this out.

 

[Stompthestroller]

Hope you are sorted now

 

[RickyRed]

Feel free to discuss settings. But the "frustrating behavior" may not be as much setting related as it is the camera itself, and that we've spoken about quite a bit here. I shoot with both the R5 and the R7, and if I could get a camera with the R5's IQ and focus stickiness with the R7's focus system, and not pay as much as the R3, I'd get rid of both of them and buy two.

The R7 grabs the desired focus point better than any of my Canon R-series cameras, but it doesn't always grab or hold focus on that point. This has been discussed elsewhere here. Long story short - great focus system tied to an underpowered processor. This can be overcome by shooting fewer FPS, but the FPS is why we got the camera.

I did not buy the R7 for the 30FPS. The R7 does a nice job of replacing the 90D, but does not replace my 7DII. I would be more than happy to pay the price of a R6II for a powerhouse apsc That finally replaces the 7D series. Another thought. The R5 is a powerhouse that chews thru battery's

• Canon EOS R5
• RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
• 500.0 mm
• ƒ/8
• 1/500 sec
• ISO 3200

three times as fast as the R7.

 

[Only RF]

I did not buy the R7 for the 30FPS. The R7 does a nice job of replacing the 90D, but does not replace my 7DII. I would be more than happy to pay the price of a R6II for a powerhouse apsc That finally replaces the 7D series. Another thought. The R5 is a powerhouse that chews thru battery'sView attachment 23302 three times as fast as the R7.

Why does it not replace the 7DII for you?

 

[Snappy St Loes]

A couple of recent BIF captures with my trusty R7/RF800 combo...

• Canon EOS R7
• RF800mm F11 IS STM
• 800.0 mm
• ƒ/11
• 1/4000 sec
• ISO 3200

• Canon EOS R7
• RF800mm F11 IS STM
• 800.0 mm
• ƒ/11
• 1/4000 sec
• ISO 1600