Why Your AUTOFOCUS Always FAILS (And How to Finally FIX IT!)

[@codebunnies]

I have a number one tip for improving every single lens AF speed, turn on the limiter switch. The amount of people I see with full AF enabled when they can limit it to where the subject is far more likely to be. This reduces the time it takes to focus lock by half usually.

[@SkylarkFields]

This is a good tip and one I used a lot with my Fuji camera and lenses which had limiter switches. However, I can't find how to limit with my new setup, R6mk2 and 100-400 lens. The lens doesn't have that switch? Any suggestions would be gratefully received! Thanks in advance.

[@TuomoTanskanen]

@@SkylarkFieldsnot all lenses have them unfortunately

[@SkylarkFields]

@@TuomoTanskanen Thank you for replying. Trust me to choose one that hasn't! Never mind, will learn to do without it! 🙂

[@TuomoTanskanen]

@ I think only 2 of my L series telephoto lenses have it, while shorter/prime L series or non-L lenses don’t have it.

[@cathco9]

Unfortunately, the RF 200-800 doesn't have the focus limiter switch. I wish it did.

[@shlomoeshet8525]

This is by far one of the best videos on bird photography I found on YT. Thanks a lot!

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@chinawells]

This could be your best and most useful video. Thanks so much. I shoot with a Fujifilm X-T5 and it has an amazing feature that I use all the time. There is a setting called "Recall Custom 1 Settings" which toggles between current settings and Custom 1 settings. I have assigned this to AE-L button on the back of the camera. Custom 1 settings are set up for perched birds (single point focus, et al). Custom 2 settings are set up for birds in flight (zone focus, et al). When I walk around, I keep the camera in C2, so I am ready for action. When I see a perched bird, I press AE-L to recall the proper settings, and then press AE-L again when I want to be ready for action. Here is the key: If I am in C2 having difficulty locking focus on a moving target, I press hit AE-L, grab focus, then AE-L again to get back to action.

[@paulrossibirds]

Excellent demonstration of many points I have emphasized. But, I have photographed Belted Kingfishers taking off hundreds of times with a Canon R5, with a 600 mm f4 IS lens, under circumstances where the background is at least 6 meters from the bird and perch, and the bird is on a perch that could not possibly confuse the autofocus system, and I maintained autofocus the whole time. I have NEVER had the autofocus jump onto anything or get off focus, no matter how long I waited. I have had many clients with the same Canon equipment photographing the kingfishers in the same way and they had the same results. But I had 2 clients with Sony equipment and their cameras did jump on the background rarely. Then, a quick reach to manually put the plane of focus near the perch was enough to successfully use autofocus to refocus. Using your method of on/off focus is best with lots of vegetation that could confuse the autofocus system but greatly increases the chances of not being able to take advantage of pre-capture. Basically, when you are not on the autofocus button (or half press) and the bird takes off, you miss the opportunity. Your point about not autofocusing on a flying bird too early, or basically when it is too small in the frame, because the camera will often lock onto the background, is very good. That is why I instruct clients to learn to estimate the distance at which a bird is about 1/4 frame wing tip to wing tip across the width of the frame, pre-focus there, and wait until the bird flies into approximately that range before attempting to gain focus. Then focus locks on and is maintained well as the bird gets bigger in the frame. The focus bump works well, under circumstances where you have a bird coming at you from a long distance away but is completely unnecessary once the photographer has gained mastery over what you nicely went over, regarding pointing your lens at a subject and knowing that it is centered when you bring your eye to the viewfinder.

[@renestaempfli1071]

In the analog day, we always used pre-focusing. So I am used to in today's digital world. Most of the time, I also do my own subject detection, using smaller to medium sized focus area. In sports and concert photography, I am just as fast and have hardly any misses. I am using A1 and A9III.

[@SteveSSBB]

An excellent video, Jan. I would like to add a word about a feature on the R5II that I am finding extremely helpful. When shooting with zoom lenses what I often found lacking was the pre-focus feature that we find on big primes. This became even more missed when I moved to mirrorless. Being able to snap your camera back to a pre-specified distance is invaluable in situations like BIF where there are not a lot of other items to focus on to get your camera back ‘into the zone’ as you say. This is doubly important because as you correctly state the camera focuses much better moving forward than being pulled back. Custom buttons on the R5II (and I assume the R1) can be programmed to set and recall a specific focus distance giving you the functionality we previously only had on the ‘big white’ primes. A nice enhancement to the overall AF flexibility. Thanks for the video and happy shooting!

[@oli8200]

Fantastic tips Jan, learning to prefocus has been so important for my progress and (inadvertently but happily) forced me to learn more about my subjects' behaviour so I can anticipate where they'll show up in a scene. I now know more about my subjects and I take better photos of them, a win win!

[@CamillaI]

Pre focus is the biggest tip, focus on something near the subject on the ground or Tree branch higher up. On Sony I use Zone with Eye autofocus . If the Subject is static I have a button set to Spot Auto focus and f5.6 at 1/1000 sec. Great video Jan it is a shame to miss a shot. But even taking the best advice we all still miss 🤔Dam ! So I would add try not to beat yourself up too much, in my experience

[@jan_wegener]

Depends on the shot we miss 😂

[@CamillaI]

@@jan_wegener Too true 🙂

[@abrahamtomahawk]

Thanks for the tips. I do a bit of dolphin photography in the Highlands of Scotland. Anticipation of where they are coming up and pointing my camera in the right direction while looking at the sea rather than through the viewfinder is definitely a skill I'm still trying to develop!

[@jan_wegener]

Yes that will help a lot

[@isotechimages.9130]

Definitely the most useful bird photography video put out. No have not heard of tilting the camera but makes perfect sense because we know autofocus has trouble with horizontals.

[@jan_wegener]

That was my goal, glad it helped you!

[@roland-heine]

Thank you Jan for your fantastic tips. I never heard about turn the camera to the left an right to get better focus results. I will try it. Best wishes Roland

[@jan_wegener]

Glad it was helpful!

[@kevinpritchard7754]

Brilliantly clear explanations! This video is highly useful even to those of us using DSLRs. "Tracking" seems to be used in two different ways which I find quite confusing. (a) "Tracking" focus while focus spot remains on subject, meaning front-to-back, a.k.a., Z axis focusing which is relevant to SLRs and Mirrorless ; (b) moving the focus zone around viewfinder automatically (X/Y axes focusing) which it seems only Mirrorless can do.

[@Simon_R]

Thanks Jan! I'm learning a lot from your videos and Duade Paton's. Great to have Aussie photographers who are making such amazing content.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you're enjoying both of our content!

[@HeinrichWagner]

Perhaps the video one can learn the most! It's so generous of you to share these essential secrets with us!

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you think so!

[@TheXone7]

Jan, watching your videos actually saved me a lot of hassle. I've set up everything before going to Ecuador in June, was well prepared how to save as many shots as possible in many scenarios and I couldn't be happier. My R5 & 200-400mm f4 worked amazingly well for such an old lens. What I love the most about R5 is precisely the customization of buttons. Thank you truly very much for this type of content 🙏🏻

[@jan_wegener]

Awesome! Glad to hear that

[@Twobarpsi]

Really good advice Jan! Much appreciated!

[@jan_wegener]

Glad it was helpful!

[@cristirenault]

Thank you Jan for another great video! You are one of the best.

[@jan_wegener]

Thank you

[@kushalmehta3634]

Never heard about turning the camera to an angle tip. That was wow will definitely try this next time in the field.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad it was helpful!

[@adamrubinstein1479]

Some great tips Jan, and you are appearing much better these days. Hopefully, you’re staying healthy.

[@jan_wegener]

Thank you! It’s a bit more stable atm

[@deanhelmeci5003]

Great advice as usual! There was one small clip around the 1:40 Mark where it looks like it was Still CLOG before color correction

[@jan_wegener]

Oh no hehe

[@davepastern]

I've heard of all of these tips before, and use all of them except for the rotate camera tip (I keep forgetting it LOL!). I'm still not 100% with raising camera to my eye and getting the bird in the EVF, but have greatly improved over the past year. I've been partly hampered by an old mark 1 EF 500mm f4 prime, which is slow to grab initial AF acquisition (once it's found the target, AF tracking is pretty good). Have just bought a RF200-800 (it's not in your recommended list Jan, is that an oversight?) and I am currently testing it (has been hit and miss and I'm still working out why). I think a lot of it comes down to getting out into the field and spending a lot of hours in said field. Never underestimate bird behaviour either. One tip I learned from someone on KZbin and I apply to raptors is approach said bird with the camera already up to the eye. Birds don't see your face in that scenario, and it seems that birds get triggered by the human face and react/flight to that. Hide the face and et voila!

[@siebevranken581]

Can you do a challenge to use an old DSLR to do wildlife photography. It would make a interesting video

[@minusinfinity6974]

Good tips Jan. The main reason the turning the camera on an angle works or is even needed is because most mirrorless cameras are stillin the dark ages on AF and don't offer x-type AF points. Olympus has had them for years but the big three have been hopelessly out of touch. IIRC the R1 has some x-type AF points. Ultimately, we need them at 45 degree angle rather than horizontal=vertical layout.

[@robertfrowenfeld5866]

Wow, lots of great information here! -- thanks so much! I too have noticed that focusing too long on something is asking for trouble -- I often back off the subject after a few seconds and then move back onto it to "keep" focused on the subject. Thanks again for all the great tips and observations.

[@jan_wegener]

It’s a good technique

[@jeffgaboury3157]

These are awesome Jan! I've experienced all of these challenges!

[@jan_wegener]

Thanks for watching!

[@geoffn8963]

Excellent video Jan. All great tips. I think your penultimate tip about giving AF a break is one of the best tips that I don't see anyone else mentioning. I've found myself doing this for the past many years for both perched and flight shots just like what you show in the video. It helps a lot. I'm primarily a Sony shooter these days but have owned the Z9 and R5. A couple extra tips for Sony cameras. Pre-AI chip cameras have a preference for whatever is centred in the frame (I've noticed this for years and Mark Galer has confirmed this in some of his videos). So getting your bird centered in the Wide or Zone before engaging AF will increase the reliability of the AF grabbing the bird right away. I've found with the AI chip cameras this isn't working anymore (something I actually find as a downgrade for the newer Sony cameras). Also I find for BIF the Sony cameras are best shot in just non-tracking Wide or Zone. Those are more reliable not jumping off the subject and getting stuck on some distracting background like waves or trees. Tracking modes can work well for BIF but if they happen to grab a distraction they rarely recover to the bird in time where as non-tracking often will.

[@briancox053]

Great video covering a very important topic. Thank you! I had not heard of the “turn the camera on an angle” trick but I have trouble with birds on water, so I will give it a try.

[@cathco9]

Me too!

[@jan_wegener]

Let me know if it helps!

[@mikede2464]

Great tips on getting reliable AF...thanks for sharing your expertiese! In my experience, if Canon's eye control AF works reliably well (admittedly a big if for many people), AF techniques that utilize "whole area AF" are not really needed. I typically just leave it on spot or area AF and 1) look in the general area the subject i want in focus is in so the AF spot/area moves close to the subject (need not be exactly on the subject) and the camera will instantly recognizes the subject I want, 2) I start AF, and the camera will lock and track the subject until AF is turned off. On my R1 it is typically so seamless it seems like everything I look at is automatically tracked. I find myself forgetting about focus while shooting like this...like the camera is reading my mind. Don't think I could go back to a AF system that didn't use eye control.

[@thomaschamberlin2485]

One handy tip is to set your memory recall button on the lens to the closest distance you expect for a subject and then between subjects get in the habit of pushing it to reset your focus in front of your next subject, not behind it. That will also help if you can't get a bird flying against the sky in focus, a quick press of the button and your focus is in front of the bird and more likely to lock onto it. Thanks for the tip about tilting the camera. I can't wait to try it.

[@jan_wegener]

Great tip!

[@narutodayo]

Man, those were some awesome tips! I definitely had not heard of some of those thanks for sharing!

[@jan_wegener]

Glad to help!

[@ammadoux]

you are so right about the last tip, i realize that i am doing it without knowing, it just happened to me once and now i know why it worked. thanks so much Jan for all these tips and this very unique video. can you believe i do bird photography since 2005 and until now my eye and hand coordination is so poor if the bird is in bush or busy branches, way better if its inflight. will try to practice.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you found it helpful!

[@terrydonofrio8103]

Good review of many of the auto focus methods the one about turning your camera at an angle is new to me. Never heard it before. I’ll be giving it a try thanks.

[@jibantik00]

I know you focus (no pun intended) on birds, but these tips work great for what I do. Dancers are very similar. My biggest issue has been autofocus shifting to someone in the background. Definitely have some things to try now. Great video.

[@jan_wegener]

I actually said that at the start of the video but then cut it out Glad it helps

[@gregsellentin6842]

thanks Jan, always a great wealth of knowledge.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@Met.Photography]

Waiting for your comparison between the Canon R1 vs Sony A1ii or R5ii. Thanks for the Af tips.

[@georgequittner4570]

jan, another great video with awesome tips. i will try the side to side tilt when i next shoot water scenes. after shooting thousands of swallows, i figured out about prefocusing. since most of the birds fly over water hawking bugs. i pick out a spot, focus the water at that spot and try to anticipate the birds movements. although i still have lot of blurry shots i amaze myself by the number of full winged keepers i get of the swallows both soaring and chasing bugs with a prefocus selected. i agree with your observation that canon r5ii will focus easier from the prefocus going away than coming forward. thanks again.

[@jan_wegener]

Sounds like you’ve figured out a great workflow!

[@TheSmithgl]

Will try some turning camera for horizontals. Thanks for the tips. I use most of them but always good to hear. Be Well.

[@domenicomancini6299]

Great video Jan and really helpful tips. I didn't know the trick of tilting the camera, I am curious to try it as soon as possible. Thank you very much

[@jan_wegener]

Glad it was helpful!

[@russellthorstrom6084]

Thanks Jan, great info on Autofocus!

[@jan_wegener]

Glad it was helpful!

[@larryumthun7902]

The last tip is new to me. Can’t wait to try it.

[@tonyblake8841]

Hi Jan, great video. Some good refresher comments and definitely I hadn’t heard of the horizontal/ vertical thing. With my OM-1 for stationary subjects I will occasionally use the 2x digital teleconverter function. It can help with acquiring focus by zooming in with no change in f stop. Ok, you get a cropped jpeg but you also get the normal raw file to edit if you wish. Sometimes the superfine jpeg is all you need. To you and your family have a good Christmas and I look forward to more of your videos next year. Cheers.

[@jan_wegener]

Merry Christmas to you and your family too!

[@deniskeith4796]

once again a great video... in which I found technics I already mostly use - save the "weird" camera turning, although if you think about it, it makes perfect sense

[@jan_wegener]

Thanks for sharing!

[@avibongo]

Excellent advice that I will use on my R5 2. Thank you for delivering quality content.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad to help!

[@cathco9]

Thanks, Jan! All great tips. I always have issues re-locating my subject. I'll try your techniques. I've never heard of tipping the camera a bit vertical to help. I'll try this too.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you found it helpful!

[@Jonathantuba]

I almost did not watch this video thinking I know all about auto focus, but did learn from it so thank you for an interest video, I did not know about turning the camera at an angle.

[@jan_wegener]

keep that in mind for the next videos, too :D Glad I could show you something new

[@dm51964]

Superb tips and advice. Also it is good to get to know the species very well that you are trying to photograph and a good pair of light 8x32 binoculars will fit in most camera bags or around the neck and best to keep the straps short so they dont get in the way. I am often amazed by some who go out and buy very expensive camera kit but have no idea about the species they are trying to photograph or the birds behaviour and that is part of the key of knowing what the bird will do and for them to get excellent photos

[@ethosveritas]

so weird that this video pops up on my homepage today. was struggling to get this bird of prey in focus and in flight and whilst my canon M50 doesn't have subject tracking I was sure that there's something technique wise I'm not doing right. This video was so helpful and I'll be eager to try out all the tips you gave

[@jan_wegener]

Awesome! Sometimes the algorithm knows exactly what we need 😆

[@thehoundGOT]

Great tips, especially not to try and hold to the subject in focus for too long at one time. I'd never that one before. Thank you!

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you found it helpful!

[@Millevanille]

Super, dass deine Videos jetzt auch mit deutschem Audio sind!

[@jan_wegener]

hoffe ich klinge nicht zu schlimm :D

[@terrydonofrio8103]

Good review of many of the auto focus methods the one about turning your camera at an angle is new to me. Never heard it before. I’ll be giving it a try thanks. R

[@BIGNatureBoy]

Gotta try the angle trick, thanks Jan.

[@jan_wegener]

Good luck!

[@stjepanjina]

Please test Z50II and 180-600 for birding!

[@maheshkumarvk5597]

Very good tip - tilting the camera to focus on swimming birds..

[@Stevelarge1]

Hi Jan! Another great video! The bump technique is an old carry over from the DSLR days as that seemed a major thing that we did to keep our birds in flight in focus. Funny how some of the old techniques are still a staple even with new technology. What about DMF? I found using DMF when shooting American Kestrels with busy backgrounds was an essential part of keeping them in focus. It takes a bit of practice but if you loose focus during a sequence you can bring it back pretty close to your subject quickly with just a little bit of a turn on the focus ring and then immediately return to auto for the rest of the sequence once the system has re-acquired the bird. Steve (The Owl Man) Nanaimo B.C.

[@jan_wegener]

Yes I use that a lot. It’s often the fastest way to bring it back

[@nealschneider6554]

Great tips! Thanks, Jan.

[@kingghidorah8106]

incredible video, it is funny that i have done this ever since I had to start focusing manually on Alpha 200 when the focus sensor got dirty beyond being cleanable and then with A77II and a Tamron 150-600 G2 that I believed it was my fault (though sharp it ended up having some issues such as suddenly disconnecting from the mount) and now back to manual focus because none but one of my 7 lenses is native and i've gotten away quite handily with slow autofocus, although 99 percent of my photos were taken in manual focus being so much time on the doodoo side of lens performance taught me doing this. Lesson number zero: start with a borked camera lens!

[@Lightsmith_UK]

Some of those were new tips for me. Thank you 🙂

[@jan_wegener]

Glad it was helpful!

[@PhilippeDHooghe]

Kudos, Jan, great tips! I knew the H/V thing with mirrorless, The R1 should no longer need it, right? What I did not know is that AF likes to move away and not back. And that focusing too long is making the camera move off subject. The R7 is terrible at AF, what are your tips / settings for this little disaster? I put an APS-C lens on my FF R8 that crops to 9 Mpix and the pictures are way sharper than the R7s because they are actually in focus. My tip is expensive: use an f/2.8 lens. The R7 works like a charm with bright enough apertures.

[@anthonyhershko]

Amazing as always!! I wish you could show how to change things inside of the camera (such as case or so..). Thanks!!

[@user-nf7cr6wn6o]

4:51 I went from a cheap Pana bridge camera to Sony a6700 and I realllly miss the pixel spot focus of that inferior camera. In Sony I can apply focus mag in AFS but in AFC, that small spot is just way to big for between-branch photos. I'm going manual or AFS but it's really not ideal, particularly for Goldcrests etc. Do you have an advice for this issue? I really like to photograph songbirds in forests (in bad northern EU weather) so this really drives me nuts. In line with the video, I really hope I'm missing something and it's my ignorance or technique, but I've been thinking about going Z6III for this matter as Nikon has a single focus point pin focus. Thanks a bunch if you find the time for a reply!

[@BijuJohn-l8g]

Great tips ❤

[@_lbk755]

What I found out to be very useful (at least for me) is to configure the AF a little bit more sticky. In my Canon R6 it's "AF Case 2" which is described as "Continue to Track Subjects, Ignoring Possible Obstacles". For my Event-, Sports- and Motorsports-Photography it just works great, even in very dark conditions. I also shot a lot of birds in spring with the same settings and it worked better than with the default configuration of the more current AF (Tracking and detection) of my R50.

[@TheBlakerunner]

Thank you for this very focused (pun intended) video. I appreciate the shortness of this idea filled tutorial. You are a talented instructor.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@InfiniteBlue_]

Great video and the last tipp was really helpful!

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you think so!

[@nickhoward3621]

I've always used the "Give the AF a rest" technique as a workaround for what I thought was a bug in my R7... interesting to know that the Big Guns suffer from it to!

[@randyschwager84]

Thanks for more awesome information! Some new ideas!❤

[@jan_wegener]

Glad to help!

[@Tigermeal]

An answer to your final question: I haven't heard about them but I work like that way anyways from my own experience. Some minor differences, instead of a spot focus point assigned to a button I have one configured to disable eye detection, tracking etc so if I use the zone I can bring it back to old school zone by the push of a button or when single point/spot is my choosen af point to start tracking, it becomes that by the push of the button. This also helps reaquiring a bird when focus is lost instead of the detection going wild on the background for a moment. It's also pretty bad you cat configure pre capture on a button with the R1 or R5 II. Just always on or off resulting wanting pre capture for the start of a series and taking small bursts after that in the same result as if you would have kept pressing the shutter button without a pause :(

[@Tu142Bear]

Nice video as always!

[@santoshmahalik]

Last two tips were new for me 😊

[@speedbumpmedia9584]

One pleasant surprise on the new Nikon Z50II is you can set a Fn button to cycle through focus modes with each press. You can actually even select which focus modes/fields it will cycle through. Now for Nikon to push that option to the Z9, etc.

[@kaawe100]

Both Z8 and Z9 have this

[@speedbumpmedia9584]

@ I know you can set it to switch to a specific focus mode but haven’t checked to see if you can now cycle through modes. It’s been a while since I set up my Z9.

[@Aviator168]

I have a slow-focusing camera (Canon EOS M3) and some not-that-sharp lenses. Prefocusing lets me take some nice shots of birds in flight.

[@jan_wegener]

It's a great trick that can make a big difference with older cameras.

[@tc9778]

Great video I wonder if you could do a detailed autofocus setting for the canon R1 I haven’t seen anyone really talk about all of the setting in it

[@jayzn1931]

Great tips! I am definitely faulty of focusing on a subject too long. It has happened to me as well, that at some point the AF switches to something else and suddenly the bird flies off. When using precapture, there is no other way though, except to use manual focus. I would be interested in bird video AF-tips as well as how to use the different custom buttons on super tele zooms, as I never used one myself and they seem to work a little differently.

[@michaelmcdonald5154]

Good tips. Thanks. However the Pre-capture on the R7 is useless because the sensor’s readout is too slow.

[@gearoidosullivan356]

Hi there Jan. Nice video and some good tips. Having watched a few of your recent videos, I was wondering which lens you'd recommend to pair with an R1. I am trying to decide between the 100-500 and the 200-800. I got to briefly try the 200-800 about 6 months ago on an old R5, and I found it quite frustrating for birds in flight (not having a focus limiter was a terrible oversight for canon). I've never had the chance to try the 100-500, but it does seem like a better option for general photography. It's the prospect of the video performance at 800mm that has me intrigued. Any opinions you could share? Greetings from Ireland.

[@thereandbackagain2022]

At least I’m not alone, great tips. Thank you

[@adminggroup5737]

Great video some additional AF experiencing for review * Exposure. Best AF is from proper exposure. Machine can not get good AF if under or over exposure too much. Canon DPAF read the AF information from the images as we see * IS. It helps AF in most conditions. But for bird from perching to flying, or very erratic BIF,, it will get better results by turning off IS if shutter speed faster than 1/1000”.

[@jan_wegener]

First one is great! I never turn the Is off tho

[@adminggroup5737]

Turning Off IS for Better Bird-in-Flight Photos In my experience, both OIS (Optical Image Stabilization) and IBIS (In-Body Image Stabilization) can work against you when photographing a bird transitioning from perching to flying. Even with OIS set to mode 2 (optimized for panning), these systems often try to stabilize the lens to keep the subject's original position in the frame. When I moved the lens to follow a bird taking off, the IS systems tried to "lock" onto the initial perch, resulting in the first few shots capturing more of the branch than the bird. The bird itself was often out of frame or on the edge. Unfortunately, pre-capture features couldn't compensate because the sensor never caught the bird properly during those moments. After turning off IS, I noticed a significant improvement. The camera followed the bird's motion seamlessly, and I was able to keep the subject in frame without interference from stabilization trying to anchor to the perch. For this type of scenario-fast, vertical, or erratic bird movements-disabling IS can be much better. thanks for replying!

[@jan_wegener]

@@adminggroup5737 quite an interesting observation.

[@BW_Maher]

Good tips Jan. Thanks! I’m curious? Do you have the camera set to spot and then override that with one of your BBF buttons or do you do it the other way around and have tracking as the default. I’ve found advantages and disadvantages to both. Currently spot is the default and tracking initiates when I hit the AF on. The Star button initiates the spot autofocus. If you aren’t pushing either BBF. What mode is the camera in? Hope that makes sense.

[@jan_wegener]

Spot is my base and eye overwrites it

[@BW_Maher]

@@jan_wegener Thanks Jan. Appreciate the reply.

[@axelhildebrandt]

The only thing I would add is using the manual focus ring on the lens if AF is struggling, especially with birds that are surrounded by leaves or other items that could confuse the AF system. Overall, in my experience the AF of the R5II works much better than the original R5 with acquiring initial focus even with busy backgrounds.

[@jan_wegener]

Yes that’s a good one

[@Chris_Wolfgram]

Nice video Jan :) I will have to try the "turning the camera at an angle trick" the next time my camera starts to get wonky with AF :) BTW, I think I have the most dodgy AF system on a mirrorless camera > with my loved / hated R7's :) lol Even more than a faster readout speed, I really hope the R7 Mk II has a more reliable AF system. I am concerned that they might just never be as good as a Full Frame camera though.

[@alanclarke6195]

Thanks Jan another great video A lot of what you said I will try. I have tried a similar thing with dragon flies I say in a hide for about 20 min following 2 dragon flies and got the shot I wanted Thank you

[@jan_wegener]

Awesome

[@mjpt57]

As a hobbyist your video is probably a bit advanced for me. But I do need to ask - what is pre-focusing and does my Canon R6 do it? Thanks.

[@jan_wegener]

Any camera can do it, it’s something you do. Focus on an area in similar distance to where you expect the subject to show up

[@suhailzubaid9192]

I have been watching your videos on my TV. I have subscribed today. I apologise for this delayed action.

[@jan_wegener]

Better late than never 😀

[@ianslingsby3415]

Great tips and advice it's not all about the settings.

[@jan_wegener]

Thanks! Glad you found it helpful.

[@jeremyedwards8320]

Very useful, thanks

[@jan_wegener]

Glad to help!

[@marklaurendet1861]

An interesting set of tips. Not sure if I got this right but I thought cross type phase detect AF points like in current OM System flagship bodies reduces the need to turn your camera to aquire AF ?

[@jan_wegener]

They may, but most cameras don’t have them

[@longpham-hg5ds]

Hi Jan, can i ask u how to record camera’s scr with that full of information incl focus spot pls?

[@jan_wegener]

I use a ninja v

[@amermeleitor]

Could i add one? Know your lens, not all lenses focus the same speed and they all behave different. Use your focus limiters for that lens. If you are birding there isn't a need for the lens to go into the macro / closeup zone.

[@Michael-ps7ji]

Using an R7 and wondering. I have my camera in spot AF and back button for eye af. Does where that spot AF point location matter right before you press eye af? Does it help the camera acquire a target faster if I have the spot point on the bird right before I press it? Thanks!

[@jan_wegener]

It shouldn’t normally help

[@alexandermckown1409]

lots of good new advice.

[@jan_wegener]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@garymeredith2441]

Jan maybe you can help us understand why digital SLR is faster at acquiring a subject than the latest mirrorless cameras I have found this with my 1DX will acquire a Bird in flight faster than my R3 I have a hard time understanding this .

[@sharonhaasbroek7464]

I'll try this.

[@jan_wegener]

Hope it helps!

[@stan2990]

Merci beaucoup pour la traduction vocale en français 🙏🙏😉

[@noelmurray4129]

Please, Please do a video of the Canon rf 600mm f/4 Jan. Absolutely nothing out there on tips about this lens. Kind regards

[@jan_wegener]

I have done one about all 3 canon 600s a little while ago

[@noelmurray4129]

Would love to know more indept information about the AF stop buttons, Playback ring and focus Preset. Do you even use them in the field yourself Jan? Kind regards

[@jan_wegener]

@@noelmurray4129can’t say I do other than the MF ring

[@angelogarciajr5356]

I do all of this. My problem is not having sharp images after the focus locks on? Struggling with this problem with R7 with 100 500? I see it lock then shoot and entire shot is soft?

[@jan_wegener]

That’s something not uncommon with the R7 unfortunately It has a tendency to jump a bit

[@nedjohnston3544]

❤ thanks

[@lairdperkins]

That dead pixel on your black hat though... lol I brushed my monitor at least twice.

[@jan_wegener]

Oh no haha

[@KurtisPape]

12:22 oh dear, not the Sony example 😅

[@jan_wegener]

Haha! It was the only one like that I have on file 🙈

[@MrSimonyde12]

Anyone else with r5 mkII that experience small issues where AF is slightly off in stable conditions? Coming from the r5 I noticed that several of my shots are just off what it focus on - For instance I can see the eye tracking jump straight to the eye of an owl, and then it keeps the tracking without a problem, however, when I look at pictures taken there’s an weirdly high number of pictures just out of focus (focus a couple of cm in front of the eye) - I’ve tried it in several scenarios… And I didn’t feel this was an issue in the original r5?? Shooting with rf 400mm 2.8.

[@jan_wegener]

did you try to change the AF settings to a less aggressive settings like in my set up video?

[@andrewkeir2282]

I had not heard of tilting the camera