Manual or Auto focus

blade_922

blade_922

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Omar
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When shooting wildlife like birds do you shoot manual of auto focus?

Like if a bird is in flight auto or manual?

And if it is on a tree or somewhere perched auto or manual?

They are quick buggers so just wondering what's best in this situation.

Thanks
 
I normally use continuous autofocus but it does depend on what lens etc you are using too :shrug:
Personally I have enough trouble tracking the damn things without having to worry about focus :D
 
Nearly always auto.
 
Gremlin said:
I normally use continuous autofocus but it does depend on what lens etc you are using too :shrug:
Personally I have enough trouble tracking the damn things without having to worry about focus :D
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Yeh tracking them down is a huge problem. You see them in the viewfinder, blink and they are gone. I'm using a sigma 150-500mm lens.
 
Practise should help you find the bird at 150mm and zoom in while keeping the bird in frame. It's not easy but it is possible!
 
blade_922 said:
Yeh tracking them down is a huge problem. You see them in the viewfinder, blink and they are gone. I'm using a sigma 150-500mm lens.
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I've got one too but never use it at full zoom on birds in flight, usually around 300m max, keeps them in the viewfinder a bit longer ;)
Normally I go for nikon 70/200, superfast auto focus (y)
 
Nope. All lenses focus wide open regardless of aperture selected.
 
In flight auto. When they are in the cover of trees, bushes were branches or twigs may confuse the auto then manual.
 
AI focus for BIF and single shot focus for static subjects. It has to be said that the two major obstacles to pin-sharp focus on BIF is practice and camera sophistication. I use my 7D for BIF and my keeper rate is not brilliant, but with my old 550 it was abysmal.

Use the multi shot setting and focus using only the centre focus point. Don't be shy of upping your ISO to give you fast shutter speeds. Oh and disable the IS unless your lens has IS for panning too.
 
Without looking at the lens if I remember rightly the 150/500 does have two IS modes, I rarely have it turned on, on any my lenses
 
Why the 9 point Joe?
 
Gremlin said:
I normally use continuous autofocus but it does depend on what lens etc you are using too :shrug:
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This.. All depends on what lens I use.. Normally for stationary, i'd auto focus on a spot, then wait for the 'moment' while switching to manual for speed.. Especially for birds, id use this method to avoid missing the shot..
 
Auto if the subject is in an open area-manual if slightly obscured by twigs etc. Single point focus also

Les ;)
 
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Lez325 said:
Can you explain why????

Les :rolleyes:
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Auto focus because for tracking birds is clearly better specially in flight, some in very low light environments may have to use MF depending on lens, I use AF-C because it is continues focus keeping track and focus of your subject and personally use 9 focus points so when tracking if the bird moves slightly the focus with still be there.
 
How do you use AF Continuous? Is there a setting for it on the camera so it keeps track of and focuses your subject? Or does AF do that generally anyway?
 
If you have your camera set to AF Servo or it's equivalent then yes the focus system will continually update provided the subject stays under the selected focus point (or points)
 
artyman said:
If you have your camera set to AF Servo or it's equivalent then yes the focus system will continually update provided the subject stays under the selected focus point (or points)
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:plus1: well put

Les
 
Use either depending on how you feel and how quick you can focus.

Just because in the past, photographers only have manual focus cameras, it do not mean we have to assume AF is now a must-do thing. Beside, it helps to do some manual focus once in a while to keep your skills going, in case AF breaks down, or could not cope with subject. Both MF and AF are just tools, you use whichever to your liking.

If AF could not cope, you can always override and swtich to manual.

Just go with how you feel.
 
BIF are tricky, but AF continuous is probably the best choice most of the time. I prefer single point, keeping it on the subject, and normally use back button focus but experiment and find out what works best for you. MF is possible, everyone used it in the past, but is probably more useful for birds sitting in trees etc where foliage can confuse the AF.

I remember reading some advice on the forums years ago, where the poster suggested practicing on seagulls if there are any in your area. They're fairly large, bold, very common and tend to fly in a relatively slow and predictable manner.

Practice is the key to this, and a lot of other things, but resign yourself to a fair number of failures unless you're good or lucky!
 
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