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AF advice please for A7II


pfogle
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Hi, I've set up my A7II as follows:

 

Back button focus using the AF/MF button - normal AF when lever is up, Eye-AF when lever is down.

 

Now, I've read on this forum that the phase-detect sites only work on AF-C. As I never use AF-C, it was a revelation to me to see that AF-C is much faster then AF-S, using the FE 28/2 with back button focusing - I don't see the hunting and 'breathing' that I see when using shutter button AF.

 

Now, my questions are, is there a reference anywhere with all the AF alternatives? And what does 'Center Lock AF' do, and how to use it?

 

Also, what's the point of the monitor screen called 'For Viewfinder'? Just don't get it...

 

Thanks for you help :)

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  • 2 weeks later...

i did recently post about A7Rii's AF but I cant see it so maybe its because I'm a new member. Could you offer some advice on what focus method you would use for fast moving subjects (or even just subjects walking towards the camera) as I am finding AF painfully slow compared to my old canon 5d3 and I'm binning so many photos because of it..

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In fact the A7II has a terrible focusing system! For more

tricks you use, it will never be even reasonable!

  

That is soooo true. Just rummage thru old forum threads

and you will find that NO ONE uses that camera anymore, 

cuz no one could get decent focus with it. We are actually 

forming a class action suite against Sony. If you've been 

damaged, you'll wanna join in. 

   

I can't join in cuz I got so frustrated that I drove truck over 

my a7-II so I'm disqualified :-(  

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im actually relieved to read this because i think the focus is shocking. 

 

I'm reading all these great things about the A9 but I'm pretty sure I read the same stuff about the A7Rii before I bought it.

 

To clarify, I have the A7Rii, not the A7ii. You guys still think the A7Rii has awful focussing? (if so, I'd agree)

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Guest Jaf-Photo

Like the first poster wrote, it's important to know that AF-C is the best mode on Sony mirrorless cameras. If you come from a different system you may be used to AF-S, single spot, focus and recompose and such. But using Sony AF-C with face recognition, eye af, lock-on or just plain is much faster, more versatile and accurate, if you just get used to how it works.

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Like the first poster wrote, it's important to know that AF-C is the best mode on Sony mirrorless cameras. If you come from a different system you may be used to AF-S, single spot, focus and recompose and such. But using Sony AF-C with face recognition, eye af, lock-on or just plain is much faster, more versatile and accurate, if you just get used to how it works.

Nice advice!!

Thanks!!!

 

Enviado desde mi PRA-LX1 mediante Tapatalk

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Hi, I've had the camera (with default FE 3.5-5.6 /28-70 lens) for about a week, and also find the autofocus a little challenging. Currenly reading "The Sony A7 II: The Unofficial Quintessential Guide," they say "The Sony A7 II has one of the complex focusing systems on a digital camera." ( I guess so!) They go on to talk about phase detection and contrast detection systems. Then, they say "Although phase detectors provide fast autofocus, they can be unreliable in achieving accurate focus. This is evidenced by cameras that rely exclusively in this type of focusing, such as the Nikon D810, Canon EOS 5D Mark III, or Sony a99." So, the contrast detection is supposed to be an assist to the phase detection, and this is all happening without direct user control. Truly, I feel I am in the deep end of the pool, learning this camera technology. I've gotten some beautifully focused shots in Sports, Program, and Aperture priority modes. I've also had some spectacular fails!

 

By default, the camera is "reading" the entire frame and then establishing focus with its best guess. The book goes on to detail various ways of adjusting/controlling the focus. It has a table of 8 different settings for focus area, not including face or smile detection, or any other specialty modes. It will take a while to get comfortable with all the options and menu commands. Then, there's also being able to move the focus area on the display, with menu/dial commands, quickly enough to get the shot.

 

I'm really hoping this is simply a matter of learning how to operate the camera. For those that believe this camera is inferior to others for focus, has anyone taken the same shots with multiple cameras? Also, same shots with different lenses? 

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Guest Jaf-Photo

Sony has hybrid autofocus which is a combination of on-sensor phase detection and contrast detection. It's also known as the dancing green spots.

 

This autofocus can be supported with a lot of different algorithms, which is why Sony has so many oddly named AF settings.

 

The best advice is to watch instruction videos that explain hlw these settings work. Gary Friedman has good videos on YouTube.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Well, it's got some crazy logic! AF-C is definitely faster than the terrible AF-S which has no phase-detect. And you can only use Eye-detect in AF-S, so it's too slow to use for a portrait with, say, the 85/1.8, because the subject will move before it finds focus.

 

I find the AF-C is OK, if you have a light touch, and can take the pic before it starts hunting (!), and I use it for lenses like the 28. For portraits, I thing I'll just go with manual focus - at least I can see when it's sharp, and don't seem to need the focus magnifier.

 

At least it's better than my A7R...

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.

 

Now, my questions are, is there a reference anywhere with all the AF alternatives? And what does 'Center Lock AF' do, and how to use it?

 

 

 

What I've noticed is the camera loses

the "locked on center" subject somewhere

around the outer third of the screen.

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Guest Jaf-Photo

In the newer cameras eye-af works in af-c too. That said, I think eye-af works well in af-s in combination with face recognition. For close shots I use eye-af and for wider shots face recognition kicks in. For extra special portraits, I switch to manual focus but for more casual shooting these af modes work well. (There may of course be differences in performance between lenses.)

 

Well, it's got some crazy logic! AF-C is definitely faster than the terrible AF-S which has no phase-detect. And you can only use Eye-detect in AF-S, so it's too slow to use for a portrait with, say, the 85/1.8, because the subject will move before it finds focus.

 

I find the AF-C is OK, if you have a light touch, and can take the pic before it starts hunting (!), and I use it for lenses like the 28. For portraits, I thing I'll just go with manual focus - at least I can see when it's sharp, and don't seem to need the focus magnifier.

 

At least it's better than my A7R...

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  • 1 month later...

In the newer cameras eye-af works in af-c too. That said, I think eye-af works well in af-s in combination with face recognition. For close shots I use eye-af and for wider shots face recognition kicks in. For extra special portraits, I switch to manual focus but for more casual shooting these af modes work well. (There may of course be differences in performance between lenses.)

 

 

Hi Jeff,

Is it possible to do aye af in af c with a7ii? Or that's exclusive for a7rii.

Im not able of finding that configuration.

Thanks

 

Enviado desde mi PRA-LX1 mediante Tapatalk

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