Focus problems with the Canon 7DII?

Lee Jay said:
When all points are selected, it's going to try to focus on the closest object - the fork in her right hand.

There you go, here is your answer. The camera did what it was supposed to do: it focused on the nearest point.
I don`t see any problem here.
The problem is you`re using the wrong focusing mode for the subject.

Nelu
 
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JRPhotos said:
The problem is that I can take these same shots with NO problem on the 7D, same lens, etc. I'm not going to shoot @ f/8 when I have a 2.8 lens and want that shallow depth of field.

Three issues...

The 7DII has far more AF points, with a wider spread. The fork in the early examples wouldn't have been near a 7D AF point, for example.

That you have issues with some lenses only suggests AFMA would help. Set up on a tripod, good light, high contrast subject with lots of detail. Take ~5 shots in Live View, then ~5 through the viewfinder. Pick the sharpest of each set, and if the Live View image is noticeably sharper, AFMA is warranted.

The fact that you're letting the camera pick the AF points has already been mentioned.
 
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I just want to clarify, I retook some photos using the single AF point, same results, 1-2 out of 3 photos were out of focus.

Same lens, same settings, different flash, problem happened without the flash as well. I realize that the AF system is new but this is not right. I've been shooting for years and have never had this problem before.

I typically shoot with one AF point when it comes to portraits, I use all AF points when I'm shooting a nice wide landscape.

This isn't the only lens this happens with. I'm going to end up having B&H send me another one in exchange for this one.
 
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JRPhotos said:
I just want to clarify, I retook some photos using the single AF point, same results, 1-2 out of 3 photos were out of focus.

Same lens, same settings, different flash, problem happened without the flash as well. I realize that the AF system is new but this is not right. I've been shooting for years and have never had this problem before.

I typically shoot with one AF point when it comes to portraits, I use all AF points when I'm shooting a nice wide landscape.

This isn't the only lens this happens with. I'm going to end up having B&H send me another one in exchange for this one.

Have you tried to AFMA the lens? I had to adjust my 17-55 by +2 on the wide end and -3 on the long end....
 
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JRPhotos said:
Sportsgal501 said:
Why don't you try shooting something "moving" at a nice rate of speed?
Birds maybe or some sporting event? ???
I don't shoot sports, portraits, wildlife and landscapes.

Maybe the Canon 6D or Canon 5D Mark III (Portraits) would have been better for you, since this camera is aimed towards Wildlife and Sports Photographers.
 
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GraFax said:
I've seen where some folks are saying there may be issues with DPP 4 and soft RAW conversions. Try using the version of DPP that came with the camera on CD (3.14?) and see if that sharpens things up.

I tried DPP 3.x as well but it's the same results, I can tell they are blurry on camera as well. I don't want to micro adjust, never had to with the 7DI and the same lenses... why would it matter now? And how would that help when this isn't consistent?


I'm not even going to consider the 5DIII right now, the 7D worked very well for portraits, I upgraded to the 7DII for the better AF, GPS and better noise.
 
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JRPhotos said:
GraFax said:
I've seen where some folks are saying there may be issues with DPP 4 and soft RAW conversions. Try using the version of DPP that came with the camera on CD (3.14?) and see if that sharpens things up.

I tried DPP 3.x as well but it's the same results, I can tell they are blurry on camera as well. I don't want to micro adjust, never had to with the 7DI and the same lenses... why would it matter now? And how would that help when this isn't consistent?


I'm not even going to consider the 5DIII right now, the 7D worked very well for portraits, I upgraded to the 7DII for the better AF, GPS and better noise.

If you end up returning it go with the Full Frame Canon 6D for additional $100.00,the 7D and 7D Mark II are two different creatures. You should also check the Canon USA tutorial site, it might be able to help you out.
 
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JRPhotos said:
I just want to clarify, I retook some photos using the single AF point, same results, 1-2 out of 3 photos were out of focus.

Same lens, same settings, different flash, problem happened without the flash as well. I realize that the AF system is new but this is not right. I've been shooting for years and have never had this problem before.

I typically shoot with one AF point when it comes to portraits, I use all AF points when I'm shooting a nice wide landscape.

This isn't the only lens this happens with. I'm going to end up having B&H send me another one in exchange for this one.

I'm with you, I'd probably return it.

But, in order to find the issue, take one more stab (No flash). Try using the live AF in a similar setup. Live AF using the phase detect feature of the dual pixels has been extremely accurate, sometimes achieving consistent sharp focus even with problem lenses.

If the use of Live AF produces good results, then the camera is probably front or back focusing, but nothing is obvious in the small online images.
 
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JRPhotos said:
I don't shoot sports, portraits, wildlife and landscapes.

Since you managed to achieve consistent AF using live view and have no need to photograph moving subjects or landscape, I suggest you move to a contrast based AF camera. The A6000 or XT1 or EM1 or GH4 beckons... ;D
 
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Woody said:
JRPhotos said:
I don't shoot sports, portraits, wildlife and landscapes.

Since you managed to achieve consistent AF using live view and have no need to photograph moving subjects or landscape, I suggest you move to a contrast based AF camera. The A6000 or XT1 or EM1 or GH4 beckons... ;D
That was a typo, I meant that I shoot only portraits, wildlife and landscapes. I'm not switching brands, I have a big investment in Canon gear.
 
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JRPhotos said:
I just took a bunch of photos in Live View with and without the flash, all are very consistent.... If this is front or back focusing, would another 7DII do this? I've been trying to mess with the MA but it's very confusing to me even after reading the CLC document.

That's good news, many cameras do not match a lens, and the results show up most often in wide aperture closeups.

I use Reikan Focal, but the 7D MK II is not yet supported. There is a method called Dot Tune which can be used in a pinch to adjust the AFMA. Google it, it takes only a few minutes, and might fix the issue.

After reading that you do portraits and landscapes, my thought was that you have the wrong camera. A 6D costs less, and will give noticible better images for portraits and landscape. You might have to sell your ef-s lenses, but you can buy the kit with a 24-105mm L and notice the improvement.

A 7D MK II is optimized for those who need many FPS, and want to track moving subjects.
 
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I'll try the MA.

I looked at the 6D but don't like the 11 focal points, 19 was nice for certain situations where I didn't want to recompose but put the dot right where I wanted it.

I'd have to sell my EF-S 17-55 and EF-S 10-22 and get their equivalent lenses at a much higher price.
 
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I've tried my 7D2 with a 24-205, 100 Macro, 100-400 (including with 1.4x tc), and a 300 2.8 ii (including 1.4 and 2x tcs). I haven't MFA'd any of the lenses, and I'm getting sharp focusing with all of them. Sounds like your 7D2 has a problem... :(
 
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