Canon R7 Canon R7 AF issues - The latest Update

ctitanic

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Well, here is a video explaining the latest updates on this topic with an input from Canon.


This video probably explains why I never had the issue.

I only use burst in H with mechanical shutter, I'm from the old guard that feels that to get 1 shot from 100s in a burst is like in some way cheating. I feel more satisfaction when I get a perfect shot pulling trigger just one time. :D
 
Nobody should keep a camera that does not fulfill the expectations.

I came back home today with this shot so my R7 made my day!

202309_CR7_2296-CR3 -1.jpg
  • Canon EOS R7
  • EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM
  • 400.0 mm
  • ƒ/6.3
  • 1/2000 sec
  • ISO 320


That was a burst of around 10 shots, 2 of them totally out of focus. I'm happy with this performance.
 
OK here goes nothing. I have had my R7 sent back for a full investigation, firstly by the best acknowledged repair centre for Canon in the UK. They looked carefully at it and then decided to pass it on to Canon UK. They have "examined the camera thoroughly" and can find nothing wrong with it. They say it is "working as per the specifications of the camera". HAHAHA.....it isnt though is it! I have written to them at length with a full description of the problems it has had, and pointed out that across the world there are people who are encountering the same problems, backed up with research via this forum and other users elsewhere. They dont give a DAMN!!! Its a pity I dont live in the US as I bet I would have been treated better. Canon UK always tries to dodge an issue, its part of the general culture here of really CRAP customer service. """ You pays your money, you takes your choice""". My R7 is going to be traded as soon as I get the chance as its RUBBISH and I can get no help from Canon. Maybe its time to rack in all my Canon gear for something else????
 
OK here goes nothing. I have had my R7 sent back for a full investigation, firstly by the best acknowledged repair centre for Canon in the UK. They looked carefully at it and then decided to pass it on to Canon UK. They have "examined the camera thoroughly" and can find nothing wrong with it. They say it is "working as per the specifications of the camera". HAHAHA.....it isnt though is it! I have written to them at length with a full description of the problems it has had, and pointed out that across the world there are people who are encountering the same problems, backed up with research via this forum and other users elsewhere. They dont give a DAMN!!! Its a pity I dont live in the US as I bet I would have been treated better. Canon UK always tries to dodge an issue, its part of the general culture here of really CRAP customer service. """ You pays your money, you takes your choice""". My R7 is going to be traded as soon as I get the chance as its RUBBISH and I can get no help from Canon. Maybe its time to rack in all my Canon gear for something else????
I had the same problem in the US and feel for you. Canon kept telling me everything was within specs. Ultimately, it was my local store where I purchased the gear taking them back and giving me two new kits. Canon is not what it used to be in terms of equipment quality and top-level customer service. The article I wrote about my experience still gets 25-30 views a day.
 
I had the same problem in the US and feel for you. Canon kept telling me everything was within specs. Ultimately, it was my local store where I purchased the gear taking them back and giving me two new kits. Canon is not what it used to be in terms of equipment quality and top-level customer service. The article I wrote about my experience still gets 25-30 views a day.
It's lucky you got that response. My retailer cannot do that as the camera was sent by them to Canon UK for repair. Canon won't accept it back so the retailer cannot do anything about it either under UK rules. They are good guys and will do whatever they can regarding trading it. Problem is I wanted a replacement for the 7Dmk2 and the R7 was supposed to be that replacement. However, it failed miserably. Where I go from here is up for thought. Do I trust a newer batch of R7s or write off the idea and stick with the 7Dmk2. Need to think about that!!!
 
Duade has a good reputation and is respected but on another site they say his assessment is not accurate. Canon never made a formal announcement so anyone could have told him that.

I would prefer to use EFCS but I can't stand how loud the R7's shutter is and how much it vibrates in my hand. It's just a personal thing. I've been on H since day one because I don't feel like culling after shooting in H+.

I did try H+ a few times. I will say that based how the buffer fills and stalls the camera at H+ it would not surprise me that it struggles with that fps rate.

I have no complaints but I have no demands. I never come home without something to post. If I didn't have something - oh well. I've been pretty happy with the performance overall. The first day I really used it (not practising and setting up in the condo) I was surprised how quickly it focused in on flying birds. Even as small bird far away on a pond that obstacles it found the head.

Too bad this was not ready for the R7. We may never see it as stacked sensor tech gets better and cheaper. Get the read out speed down to stop rolling shutter. ES is 12 bit but I've read articles where you don't really see the difference.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBaxtfjbFqI

This is a screen shot from one of Duade's videos.
 

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Thanks for the video. My exact assessment of the R7. I thought the AF was awesome from day one. Like he said the smallest birds get picked out and I noticed that right away. Good for picking out eyes on foliage. Once it locked on the it tracked. For BIF the box continually changes in size as it adjusts for the conditions.

I guess for the R7 to really manage 30 fps in all conditions the sensor should have been stacked. I've always shot in ES in H so I would have not noticed any of the mentioned concerns as much. My main slight disappointment with Canon putting in that loud mechanical shutter. I dislike it more than the slow readout speed. That I can work around. I can't tape little rubber bumpers to the shutter :)
 
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Just came across this and I concur. I shoot in ES at H, not H+ just because I don't feel like culling hundreds of files.

 
I think the problem is that with many other cameras you don't need work rounds. What is claimed and what you paid for works out of the box. On the other hand there are few direct competitors to the R7 in terms of price, resolution and features so maybe comparisons aren't fair.
 
Just came across this and I concur. I shoot in ES at H, not H+ just because I don't feel like culling hundreds of files.

Thanks for posting this. Very clearly and accurately stated.
 
Thanks for posting this. Very clearly and accurately stated.
Well, but he is a very picky guy. The eye with an oval shape is something that he may notice and nobody else. I shoot all time in electronic and I do not notice the rollover effect unless I play a lot of attention to all pictures. When I'm panning to take BIF I switch to Mechanical and I get sharp pictures as well, or at least sharp enough to make me happy.

Here is one of my pictures but you can check 1000s of them in Flickr.:

 
Well, but he is a very picky guy. The eye with an oval shape is something that he may notice and nobody else. I shoot all time in electronic and I do not notice the rollover effect unless I play a lot of attention to all pictures. When I'm panning to take BIF I switch to Mechanical and I get sharp pictures as well, or at least sharp enough to make me happy.

Here is one of my pictures but you can check 1000s of them in Flickr.:

I don't think he is picky actually. We can get sharp shots out of the camera in most cases and some people like ultra sharp shots using PP software. It is all about personal taste i guess. But It has been frequent enough for me in Kingfisher flight shots and some owls and garden birds with fast flapping wing beats. I know how to get round it with noisy shutter settings but I think we are saying in the future we would like to see it cured with a faster reading sensor.
 
I don't think he is picky actually. We can get sharp shots out of the camera in most cases and some people like ultra sharp shots using PP software. It is all about personal taste i guess. But It has been frequent enough for me in Kingfisher flight shots and some owls and garden birds with fast flapping wing beats. I know how to get round it with noisy shutter settings but I think we are saying in the future we would like to see it cured with a faster reading sensor.
Keep in mind that the rollover effect is not something that affects just Canon cameras. I came from using Sony cameras and they had the same issues. A faster reading sensor means a higher price. So everything is a compromise.
 
Keep in mind that the rollover effect is not something that affects just Canon cameras. I came from using Sony cameras and they had the same issues. A faster reading sensor means a higher price. So everything is a compromise.
This is true but it is well documented that the R7 is one of the worst for rolling shutter. It won't affect everybody but it will affect serious bird photographers with many bird in flight shots even in the slower burst rate. If you use pre burst to get a bird taking off you have to use ES. I agree it may well put the price up a bit and the R7 is great value even as it is but depending on how much faster readout and the better AF tracking of the R7, R6ii and R8 would cost it would justify paying a bit more in my view.
 
This is true but it is well documented that the R7 is one of the worst for rolling shutter. It won't affect everybody but it will affect serious bird photographers with many bird in flight shots even in the slower burst rate. If you use pre burst to get a bird taking off you have to use ES. I agree it may well put the price up a bit and the R7 is great value even as it is but depending on how much faster readout and the better AF tracking of the R7, R6ii and R8 would cost it would justify paying a bit more in my view.
If the rollover is so bad then why you don’t use mechanical shutter. It works well for me in BIF. Again, there is nothing wrong with wanting something better but I’m tired of seeing people bashing this camera. Go to my Flickr page and look at 1000s pictures taken with this camera. In 99% of them you will not see any rollover effect. I owned a Sony a7r3 and believe me, that one had a good rollover. So I really don’t see or feel that the R7 is worse at all. The R7 is being sold with a price tag hard to match by any competitor in a camera with same features. There are better cameras, yes, with a higher price. There are rumors about an R7 M2, I doubt it will match the R7 price when it was released. And I don’t see me buying it. For me the R7 does everything I need and with the quality that fits my needs.

 
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I can't stand the sound of the MS but that is a personal thing. Fire time I tried it I thought my camera was broken and went on the net to get sone info. The vibration I feel in my hand can't be a good thing I don't think but I have not tested it enough to say for sure. I've always shot in ES and H. H+ produces too many files to cull. When I use my R6II it's in EFCS and H+.

I'm not thrilled with the MS on the R7 but it does not stop me. AF is spectacular IMO. I get rolling shutter effects now and then but not too bad over all. I will see it in a chopper blade which I posted a while ago. The files that show it are typically like this. The duck is a little elongated but most non photographers will never know about it unless I point it out.

_G7A3309-2.jpg
  • Canon EOS R7
  • RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM + EXTENDER RF1.4x
  • 700.0 mm
  • ƒ/10
  • 1/3200 sec
  • ISO 1600
 
The only thing I wish my R7 offered. To be able top map Subject to Detect to a button. My R6II has that and it's the cat's meow. Again not too bad because it's on animals most of the time. I use that feature more often with my R6II. It would just help as I try too keep programming and mapping as consistent as I can between the two bodies.
 
I was hoping Canon would introduce this bit the next set of bodies but with the way tech is going these days I don't think we'll see it. Faster and cheaper processors. I think all companies eventually want to get rid of high speed mechanical shutters. Reduce production costs and less moving parts to warranty. That is what I'd do if I ran the show.

 
If the rollover is so bad then why you don’t use mechanical shutter. It works well for me in BIF. Again, there is nothing wrong with wanting something better but I’m tired of seeing people bashing this camera. Go to my Flickr page and look at 1000s pictures taken with this camera. In 99% of them you will not see any rollover effect. I owned a Sony a7r3 and believe me, that one had a good rollover. So I really don’t see or feel that the R7 is worse at all. The R7 is being sold with a price tag hard to match by any competitor in a camera with same features. There are better cameras, yes, with a higher price. There are rumors about an R7 M2, I doubt it will match the R7 price when it was released. And I don’t see me buying it. For me the R7 does everything I need and with the quality that fits my needs.

I think you are not reading what I am saying. I am not and haven't "bashed" the R7. As I said in the last post and many others on here it is a fantastic camera for the money. But I don't have my head in the sand.Rolling shutter is "a thing" at times as is the unreliable AF. Whether you have been lucky and the QC is patchy for this camera I don't know. But you go into any R7 forum and you will find pages and pages on this. Like I said - you can't use mechanical shutter in pre-burst mode anyway and you can't use it in a hide it is so loud. I don't publish images with rolling shutter either but here is my flickr !
 
Everything is about knowing well your camera. Know the limitations and you will enjoy it.
 
Yes all the enthusiasts and pros already know all this. It is just a comparative thing in those difficult conditions and in the early days before user experiences, the hype from reviewers and from Canon in its advertising (not the small print in the manual that we didn't yet have! ) led early adopters to believe it would be similar to the other Canon mirrorless cameras and class leading. It isn't. Experience has proven that not to be the case. It's as simple as that. We all know what not to do to get around it and the only reason it is mentioned is so that new users don't think they have the wrong settings or need to send their camera back to Canon as some clearly have. I don't recall Canon mentioning either that there is above average shutter shock in mechanical and the sound is so loud I would be thrown out of my local Kingfisher hide if I dared use it! :rolleyes::)
 

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