Hey Reading the Manual does help.

[ronaldbyram]

Ok Guys!! who reads the Manual? Come on now!! speak up!

I have read the manual for my 7D Mark II but didn't see this entry.

In low light my burst rate would slow down. Tonight I was re-reading the manual and discovered a option I missed. With the AF point selection and EOS iTR AF when in use shutter speed will fall to 9.5 shots a sec. also under low light the continuous speed will fall off.

 

[rpt]

Duh! Engineers don't read manuals!


I must admit that though I read the manual, I can't remember that particular item. Come to think of it I can't remember anything I read!

 

[Orangutan]

Yeah, I learned something from my 70D manual: there's no way to turn off mandatory focus confirmation. I can't tell you how many times I've focused on a bird in brush, only to have the 70D refuse to take the picture. There should be a custom function so that full shutter-press always takes the picture, even without focus confirmed.

 

[eli452]

The say is: "If everything else fails, read the instructions"

 

[Orangutan]

The say is: "If everything else fails, read the instructions"

Correction: "ONLY if everything else fails, read the instructions" ;D

 

[AlanF]

Yeah, I learned something from my 70D manual: there's no way to turn off mandatory focus confirmation. I can't tell you how many times I've focused on a bird in brush, only to have the 70D refuse to take the picture. There should be a custom function so that full shutter-press always takes the picture, even without focus confirmed.

Are you using A1 servo? I always do and it doesn't seem to have that problem on my gear.

 

[rfdesigner]

Yeah, I learned something from my 70D manual: there's no way to turn off mandatory focus confirmation. I can't tell you how many times I've focused on a bird in brush, only to have the 70D refuse to take the picture. There should be a custom function so that full shutter-press always takes the picture, even without focus confirmed.

Are you using A1 servo? I always do and it doesn't seem to have that problem on my gear.

I use AIservo on BBF on my 6D.. but I have to go back to one shot when using flash in low light to get the AF illumination from the flash gun to activate.


Sometimes the apparently unrelated effects are weird.

 

[ronaldbyram]

I have the option for my 7D MKII and 70D to tell lens sto stop searching if it can focus.
and if all else fails go manual focus.

 

[Pippan]

Yeah, I learned something from my 70D manual: there's no way to turn off mandatory focus confirmation. I can't tell you how many times I've focused on a bird in brush, only to have the 70D refuse to take the picture. There should be a custom function so that full shutter-press always takes the picture, even without focus confirmed.

Are you sure? I don't have a 70D but on the 80D you can go to Custom Function Settings > C.Fn II -4 AI Servo 1st Image Priority and set it to Release. That way pressing the shutter button will take the picture even if it can't focus.

 

[Orangutan]

Yeah, I learned something from my 70D manual: there's no way to turn off mandatory focus confirmation. I can't tell you how many times I've focused on a bird in brush, only to have the 70D refuse to take the picture. There should be a custom function so that full shutter-press always takes the picture, even without focus confirmed.

Are you using A1 servo? I always do and it doesn't seem to have that problem on my gear.

I don't use AI servo for perching birds, it's too twitchy. I tried it but could not get consistent results as it constantly tried to adjust.

 

[Orangutan]

I have the option for my 7D MKII and 70D to tell lens sto stop searching if it can focus.
and if all else fails go manual focus.

I do go MF, unless the bird moves out of reach first.

 

[Mikehit]

Yeah, I learned something from my 70D manual: there's no way to turn off mandatory focus confirmation. I can't tell you how many times I've focused on a bird in brush, only to have the 70D refuse to take the picture. There should be a custom function so that full shutter-press always takes the picture, even without focus confirmed.

I thought that only applied to 'One Shot'?

 

[Loswr]

Yeah, I learned something from my 70D manual: there's no way to turn off mandatory focus confirmation. I can't tell you how many times I've focused on a bird in brush, only to have the 70D refuse to take the picture. There should be a custom function so that full shutter-press always takes the picture, even without focus confirmed.

Have you considered back-button AF? If you set the shutter release to metering only, and use AF-ON for AF, a full press of the shutter release will take the picture (in One Shot or AI Servo), regardless of whether or not focus was achieved.

http://www.learn.usa.canon.com/resources/articles/2011/backbutton_af_article.shtml

EDIT: I should add, just FYI, that with back-button AF if you're taking a shot without the AF-ON button held down simultaneously, the selected AF point and the applied AFMA (if any) will not be recorded in the EXIF. AFMA would have been applied when you did focus, but if you aren't actively focusing when the shot is taken, AF point and AFMA aren't logged.

 

[Luds34]

I have the option for my 7D MKII and 70D to tell lens sto stop searching if it can focus.
and if all else fails go manual focus.

I do go MF, unless the bird moves out of reach first.

Go to BBF like others have suggested. Now focus and firing the shutter are completely decoupled and the camera will always snap shot when you pull the trigger.

For my experience, I thought the 70D performed quite well for action using Ai Servo and BBF. Focus and tracked like a dream (with any real light).

 

[Orangutan]

Yeah, I learned something from my 70D manual: there's no way to turn off mandatory focus confirmation. I can't tell you how many times I've focused on a bird in brush, only to have the 70D refuse to take the picture. There should be a custom function so that full shutter-press always takes the picture, even without focus confirmed.

Have you considered back-button AF? If you set the shutter release to metering only, and use AF-ON for AF, a full press of the shutter release will take the picture (in One Shot or AI Servo), regardless of whether or not focus was achieved.

http://www.learn.usa.canon.com/resources/articles/2011/backbutton_af_article.shtml

EDIT: I should add, just FYI, that with back-button AF if you're taking a shot without the AF-ON button held down simultaneously, the selected AF point and the applied AFMA (if any) will not be recorded in the EXIF. AFMA would have been applied when you did focus, but if you aren't actively focusing when the shot is taken, AF point and AFMA aren't logged.

Thanks for the suggestion. I've dabbled with BBF, but my grip doesn't seem to like it -- I have trouble holding the camera straight and secure with BBF. I'll try again -- sounds like there's more benefit than I knew.

 

[Keith_Reeder]

Back Button Focus + AI Servo has never let me down, and I've been shooting birds for > 15 years.