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Need advice: Using EyeFocus & Normal Focus


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I have not had my 7RII for very long but I am not new to digital photography (I probably qualify as an "old fart").

 

I do mostly portrait photography, in studio and outside.  I use AF-C with EyeFocus on the AEL button and that works well.

Now, if I am working outside, I may be further away from the model or I may want to take a quick photo of a car passing by (or whatever).  In that situation, EyeFocus will not work and that's very annoying because the camera is not focussing properly when hitting the EyeFocus button since there is no eye to focus on.

 

What would be a good setup/setting to be able to focus in both types of situations?  EyeFocus on AEL (as it is) and use another button for another type of focus?  Or can I leave the shutter half-press to normal focus (it is currently off) and use the AEL button only when I want EyeFocus?

 

Any insightful advice will be appreciated.

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If I'm not mistaken, you can assign as many buttons as 

you wish to activate focus but they will all be in the same 

focus mode. IOW, you don't only have eye-AF on the AEL

button, you have AF [any, and all, AF modes] on the AEL 

button ... but you happen to favor using eye-AF. Acoarst I 

may be wrong, as my a7-II is not an 'R' version and there 

are  a few differences in the firmware between versions.  

   

In any case, you can check that cuz you have the 'R', but 

I've got no way to check it. If it actually works in the way 

that you imply, then its seems you've answered your own 

question ... differing AF modes on separate buttons does

look like the prefect solution ... IF it's possible.  

   

The universal answer to ALL questions such as yours is,  
"Whatever works for you". Dig into the manual and menus 

and work it out. Other users may have solutions that work 

for them but every user is unique. BTW, we all agree that 

the manual sucks, but the PDF version, which has exactly 

the same pages, has the benefit of being searchable.  

   

Frinstintz, my personal solution would be to quit eye-AF in 

favor of a single small AF spot, using only Back Button AF 

and AF-S mode. OTOH, if I were toadally sold on eye-AF,  

then for the situations you describe, I'd operate in the DMF

AF mode for eye-AF on a back button, so that for suddenly  

arising non-eye subjects I'd just focus manually, cuz DMF

AF allows that ... and being on Back Button AF, my use of

the shutter release has no effect on focus.  

  

BTW, AF behavior is not the same for all lenses, which is  

just one more reason that my solution, or any other users' 

solutions, may not transfer successfully from user to user.

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Thanks for the advice Username.

 

I have to say that I am not too keen on manual focus.  I'd rather concentrate on my model and let the camera focus automatically on the eye of the model (that's partly why I bought a Sony camera BTW). 

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Thanks for the advice Username.

 

I have to say that I am not too keen on manual focus.  I'd rather concentrate on my

model and let the camera focus automatically on the eye of the model (that's partly

why I bought a Sony camera BTW). 

Sure. But my suggestion involved KEEPING the eye-AF for your model or 

portrait subject, and instant access to MF only for those unexpected other 

photo-ops that pop up involving general subject matter. 

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Yes, of course. I guess I did not finish my line of thinking; I am not keen on using manual focus in most circumstances, especially when I am in a hurry (such as moving around from a model to something else for example).

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Looks like you need two cameras, each in-hand, 

each set to a different AF mode. This acoarst is 

a toadall PITA. It's up to you whether becoming 

more keen on MF is the lesser of two PsITA :-(  

  

It's not just a joke. It was once common to hang 

two cameras on one neck, by necessity ... clearly 

not just to look well equipt ! While what was once 

common is not common anymore, maybe it's not 

a dead idea but has just become not-so-common.  

    

--------------------------------------------------------------   

    

OK, so your outdoors work is at distances not too 

amenable to eye-AF. I feel safe assuming that you 

know when you're going to work outdoors, so that 

means the need to re-config the camera [get out 

of eye-AF to normal AF] is not some sudden need 

or impulse ... therefor you have time to manage it.  

   

Once you're outdoors using normal AF then those 

passing cars, or whatevers, are easy to bag. So no

AF problem outdoors. Indoors using eye-AF, do you

also get the impulse to suddenly shoot non-eye-AF

subjects ? Maybe some impulse control ? Outdoors

impulse is OK, indoors not. You'll always have your

camera set for the job at hand [AF outdoors, eye-AF

indoors] and if any other subject pops up, so what ? 

Thaz not the job at hand. It's only a photograph not

taken. Zillions of folks are not photographing zillions 

of things every minute of the day. No harm, no foul. 

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Carrying two cameras, yikes!

 

I am currently experimenting with "normal focus" on the shutter half-press

and EyeFocus on the AEL button.  We'll see how that works!

  

Wouldn't that mean you hafta hold onto the AEL/eye-AF button all 

the time right up to shutter release for every eye-AF shot, so as to

prevent the shutter release AF from overriding the eye-AF focus ?    

   

I can't tolerate any function requiring hanging onto a half-press of

the shutter.  So, holding onto TWO buttons would just drive me up  

the wall. OTOH, MF makes you uncomfortable. Each to their own.      

Hope it works out comfortably for you ! 

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Wouldn't that mean you hafta hold onto the AEL/eye-AF button all 

the time right up to shutter release for every eye-AF shot, so as to

prevent the shutter release AF from overriding the eye-AF focus ?

 

Yes, you are right.  That's the only way that EyeFocus works actually regardless of any other settings.

 

I can't tolerate any function requiring hanging onto a half-press of

the shutter.  So, holding onto TWO buttons would just drive me up  

the wall. OTOH, MF makes you uncomfortable. Each to their own.      

Hope it works out comfortably for you ! 

 

Well, I can't say that I love the way it works but this is not totally different from using an AF-On button.

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