7DMKII Focus keeper rate ideas?

[Bigjezza]

Hi,
I have a 7D MKII. Let me just start with the fact that I understand that no AF is perfect. I also understand that f1.4. 2.8etc have a very small DOF

I've found that shooting one shot mode at a piece of typewritten paper in direct sunlight 50mm f1.4 I can expect maybe 7 or 8 out of 10 in focus at 100% (admittedly the 50mm 1.4 isn't razor sharp at that aperture) Is this to be expected? When viewed on a 28" 4K display other shots look fine until I get to about a 5CM of the display, and notice the focus is a bit off. Even with my 24-70 (Mark I) at 2.8 its maybe 70-90% spot on. Of course I didn't record my findings, just a casual chimp at the images and review on the screen.

Is it normal to think that at casual print sizes, maybe even upto 13X19, the oneshot AF is OK, but if I want to pixel peep or print bigger I'm better off MF with live view?

I went to the trouble of doing the test after I found it extremely difficult to get the iris/pupil in focus consistently. In fact with my kids I seem to get better results with AI Servo. Any tips there?

Howabout sports/action with a 70-200mm f2.8 IS USM II. Any idea on the keeper rate there? A number for me to strive to? I took it out the other day to the kids sports day and in AI Servo atleast 80% were great. Is that something to be proud/worried about??

 

[Marsu42]

I've found that shooting one shot mode at a piece of typewritten paper in direct sunlight 50mm f1.4 I can expect maybe 7 or 8 out of 10 in focus at 100% (admittedly the 50mm 1.4 isn't razor sharp at that aperture) Is this to be expected?

Af performance is a combination of camera body and lens, and choosing the old 50/1.4 which doesn't even have a real ring usm isn't your best choice there.

Is it normal to think that at casual print sizes, maybe even upto 13X19, the oneshot AF is OK, but if I want to pixel peep or print bigger I'm better off MF with live view?

Yes, Live view or precise/trained mf (with a viewfinder screen that allows you to see the dof) is your best bet and won't have the jitter of phase af that only has split seconds to make the decision. Note that for other cameras LV with focus peaking (Magic Lantern) is a tremendous help, but it's not available on the 7d2 (yet, if ever).

I went to the trouble of doing the test after I found it extremely difficult to get the iris/pupil in focus consistently. In fact with my kids I seem to get better results with AI Servo. Any tips there?

The actual focus point might be larger than what your vf shows, so getting pupils in focus that are a bit behind the eyebrows and cheeks is a challenge with thin dof.

 

[jaayres20]

The 50mm 1.4 is well known for focusing issues such as back focusing. It isn't a good lens to test the accuracy of a camera's AF. Get a lens that has great performing AF like the 24-70 or 70-200.

 

[Bigjezza]

The 50mm 1.4 is well known for focusing issues such as back focusing. It isn't a good lens to test the accuracy of a camera's AF. Get a lens that has great performing AF like the 24-70 or 70-200.

I mentioned I had both of those in addition to the 50mm

I'm after an idea on the expected consistency of the 7D Mark II with a 24-70 f2.8 (Mk I) and 70-200 IS f2.8 MkII in one shot outside on a target... Anyone tested theirs?

 

[Sabaki]

I've just returned my 7Dii and will get a replacement in the next day or two.

I spent some time analyzing my out of focus images and then the (almost) in focus images. The issue it seems is not a lens-to-body calibration scenario but rather the AF system that isn't doing its job right.

I spoke at length to a senior Canon rep who advised that it sounds like an AF sensor malfunction.

I'm crossing everything I can cross, hoping the next body is perfect.

 

[Bundu]

Howabout sports/action with a 70-200mm f2.8 IS USM II. Any idea on the keeper rate there? A number for me to strive to? I took it out the other day to the kids sports day and in AI Servo atleast 80% were great. Is that something to be proud/worried about??

This is my first post on this forum. Got my 7Dm2 a week ago and read on this forum about focus problems on the mark2. Did some testing to try and determine if mine is a keeper.
Test conditions:
Completely overcast
Tv mode - 1000th shutter speed
auto iso - ranged from 1600 to 3200
Used spot + 4 focus points
10fps
AI Servo
A 7 year old child running flat out directly at me from 20 meters away (the only person that was willing to do a lot of running!)
I kept shooting till she ran past me.
Both lenses used micro adjusted
Three tests with 100-400 @ 400
Did not count shots at less than MFD
18/24 in focus
19/23 in focus
17/20 in focus
Three tests with 15-85 @ 85
all three tests all frames in focus - 27, 19, 24 frames
The 15-85 performed faultless and the 100-400 not. Is it because of the focal length or autofocus of the lens?
Is the performance of the 100-400 acceptable? I have noticed that with BIF (also overcast conditions) the keeper rate is higher. The birds did not fly strait at me but at a diagonal.
No problems whatsoever with one shot on stationary objects.
Had to AFMA the 100-400 with the 1.4III to -18

All in all I am very satisfied but do not know if the keeper rate is par for the 7Dm2. It is much better than my 70D, especially fast moving objects coming straight at me.

Thanks for a very informative forum - have been following it for more than a year now.
EDIT: She is 5 years old, not 7 - my granddaughter. Not exactly lightning fast!

 

[Sella174]

Shocking. Just simply shocking. Plus unbelievable.

 

[Bundu]

This is shot with 15 point area AF. There was a break in the clouds with some backlighting - this series do not look as sharp as the ones without backlighting and 1 + 4 expanded autofocus. Any tips on what settings to use in this case?
Apologies, new to photography and need to learn as much as I can!!
Am I even posting in the correct section?

https://www.flickr.com/photos/127859403@N07/sets/72157649043156158/

 

[Bigjezza]

Shocking. Just simply shocking. Plus unbelievable.

Care to elaborate?

I'm not 100% satisfied, and rather than send the body in for fruitless repairs I'm just wondering if I have anything to worry about...

 

[Bundu]

Shocking. Just simply shocking. Plus unbelievable.

Well, as stated, I am not good at this....... yet. I will get it better with some practise and I suppose adjusting/setting up the camera properly. I think that the problem I have on the photos might be using the 15 point area focus points - the camera might not be selecting the correct one? The first tests with 1+4 was much better.

You will see that both the 15-85 and 100-400 not perfectly in focus very time on the link below.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/bundutec/

tracking sens+2
accel/decel tracking +2
AF point switching 0
First image priority - focus
Second image priority - focus

I would also like to know if I have something to worry about.

 

[Marsu42]

I would also like to know if I have something to worry about.

No, it isn't. Just like with your shiny new car, you keep polishing it for the first weeks, carefully removing every tiny speck on the finish. With a new dslr, you keep pixel peeping and playing around with all settings.

*af: if you check the correct afma with the usual methods (diy or expensive software), it comes down to keeper rate and max. magnification. Tracking with thin depth of field is challenging for a phase af camera - with my 6d of your 20 kid shots, probably one would be in focus. Barely. Do check and experiment with the af settings in the firmware though, there are lots of options how the camera predicts the subject's movement.

* exposure: you didn't include the exif info in your flickr shots, so I cannot tell. But one reason for a slight blur (which you interpret as lack of sharpness) is too low shutter speed. That's the problem with a crop action camera - for fast movement, you need ~1/2000+ which results in high iso esp. in lower light. To check for this, simply use Tv with 1/8000s and look again

Last not least, if your new toy would be perfect, how do you expect Canon to sell the 7d3 ?

 

[Bigjezza]

Haha re the car made me laugh

Is it fair that in one shot at wide apertures its ok to miss a shot here and there? That's all I'm really wondering...

 

[Bundu]

I would also like to know if I have something to worry about.

No, it isn't. Just like with your shiny new car, you keep polishing it for the first weeks, carefully removing every tiny speck on the finish. With a new dslr, you keep pixel peeping and playing around with all settings.

*af: if you check the correct afma with the usual methods (diy or expensive software), it comes down to keeper rate and max. magnification. Tracking with thin depth of field is challenging for a phase af camera - with my 6d of your 20 kid shots, probably one would be in focus. Barely. Do check and experiment with the af settings in the firmware though, there are lots of options how the camera predicts the subject's movement.

* exposure: you didn't include the exif info in your flickr shots, so I cannot tell. But one reason for a slight blur (which you interpret as lack of sharpness) is too low shutter speed. That's the problem with a crop action camera - for fast movement, you need ~1/2000+ which results in high iso esp. in lower light. To check for this, simply use Tv with 1/8000s and look again

Last not least, if your new toy would be perfect, how do you expect Canon to sell the 7d3 ?

Thanks, your comments helped me solve the issues I had.

I upped the shutter to 1000th sec, and the light had a huge influence. I took this 37 shot series with the light coming from above and slightly in front of her. All pictures sharp except for when she ran through deep shade when they got softer (almost in focus)


https://www.flickr.com/photos/bundutec/sets/72157647127523874/

31/37 with the light as it was plus deep shade is a win in my books!

Thanks again for your help, much appreciated!

 

[Bundu]

Haha re the car made me laugh

Is it fair that in one shot at wide apertures its ok to miss a shot here and there? That's all I'm really wondering...

My 50 1.4 always soft at 1.4 and correctly focus only about 70% of the time. At f2.2 and smaller sharp and hit rate 90% plus.

I wanted to get the new car but - priorities!!!!

 

[Bigjezza]

My 50 1.4 always soft at 1.4 and correctly focus only about 70% of the time. At f2.2 and smaller sharp and hit rate 90% plus.

I wanted to get the new car but - priorities!!!!

Thanks, that does set my mind at ease!
Can anyone comment on the 24-70 f2.8?

 

[Marsu42]

Can anyone comment on the 24-70 f2.8?

The mk2 has an improved af system vs. the mk1, but it's only usable with the latest camera bodies like 1dx and 5d3. But both are photo journalist lenses designed for fast and spot-on af. There's a lensrentals article on that, but it's not recent so it doesn't say anything about the 7d2.

 

[Bigjezza]

At 2.8/24mm on the 24-70, 10 shots in One Shot, after racking each shot to macro I'm seeing maybe 2mm difference of the focal plane at a distance of 100cm. (Camera wasn't moving) Am I being stupid? Demanding too much? Maybe I've forgotten just how bad my kit lens with my 400D was 6 years ago and its long gone. I don't have anything to compare the 7DMKII + 24-70 to, except other lucky owners out there.

 

[Loswr]

At 2.8/24mm on the 24-70, 10 shots in One Shot, after racking each shot to macro I'm seeing maybe 2mm difference of the focal plane at a distance of 100cm. (Camera wasn't moving) Am I being stupid? Demanding too much? Maybe I've forgotten just how bad my kit lens with my 400D was 6 years ago and its long gone. I don't have anything to compare the 7DMKII + 24-70 to, except other lucky owners out there.

What are you focusing on for the above test?

 

[Bigjezza]

I was afraid I'd get asked that
Tonight I'm scrutinising a jar of garlic with the camera sitting on the table... 8)
Oh and the 2mm difference (at a guess) isn't every shot... 8 are fine, 2 are off... with miniscule differences between the great ones.

 

[candc]

Shocking. Just simply shocking. Plus unbelievable.

Well, as stated, I am not good at this....... yet. I will get it better with some practise and I suppose adjusting/setting up the camera properly. I think that the problem I have on the photos might be using the 15 point area focus points - the camera might not be selecting the correct one? The first tests with 1+4 was much better.

You will see that both the 15-85 and 100-400 not perfectly in focus very time on the link below.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/bundutec/

tracking sens+2
accel/decel tracking +2
AF point switching 0
First image priority - focus
Second image priority - focus

I would also like to know if I have something to worry about.

i don't think you need to have your af settings that high. i use -2,0,0 for bif and it is plenty fast enough for birds flying straight at me. i experimented with some higher settings and found it to be inconsistent as if the af was overreacting.