HELP!!!!! DO you use A-dep mode?

[eminaddiesmom]

I have a digi rebel. I read my manual a zillion times and still cannot get this mode right. I set it and then shoot, but every time i shoot a large group, about 1/3 of it is out of focus. i thought the whole point was for the camera to sense the area that should be in focus. what am i doing wrong? Any and all feedback is appreciated.

Erika

[Hellashot]

Even t hough A-DEP is at the end with the creative modes, it's more of an automatic mode where you have little control over which focus points it's actually using for calculating DOF. I'd suggest using P or Av with adequate appeture settings for each. I've found you only get very good images when you stray from automatic modes.

[tim]

Never used it, I use Av at F5.6 - F8 for groups, depending on how close to them I am. Play with this (http://www.dofmaster.com/dofjs.html) and work in Av rather than trusting the camera, it's not perfect technology.

[kawter2]

never used it once..

[judyg]

Wow that's a great link, thanks Tim.

[Illegally_Alive]

i really hate that it's an option, i'd rather have it pull up a set of custom functions!

[robertwgross]

A-DEP works, but it sometimes works in ways that I struggle with.

A-DEP is supposed to work by calculating the closest focus point and the farthest focus point, and what depth of field is necessary for that, and then what aperture will get that.

However, when I am shooting a field of wildflowers, I have some points relatively close and other points relatively far away. As a result, the A-DEP tries to get to a high f-number in aperture. As a result of that, it slows down the shutter to be fairly slow. If I screwed up and did not use a solid tripod, then the slow shutter yields an image with camera-shake written all over it, and that can sometimes be confused with out-of-focus.

---Bob Gross---

[markubig]

yeah, i tried A-DEP a few times and it never worked right so i stopped using it. I've had better luck doing what Tim said f/5.6-f/8 and then i try to put a focus point on a person who is 1/3-1/2 in the depth of the group.. . . results tons better than A-DEP.

[Leorooster]

I never used A-DEP. Depending on the distance, I normally set an aperture below f/8 when taking group pics.

[Maureen Souza]

Well, I HAVE used A-DEP with reasonably good results for a large group shot. I also took the same group shot on P mode and AV mode,f 5.6. Can't say that there was any significant difference in any of them......

[Rob612]

Been there done that... tried A-DEP several times, never got it working in a pleasant way, never used again.

[Wazza]

I find by taking lots of shots in practice, you get an "eye" for what settings are needed. And change it in AV mode, to the required estimate, and choose the focus yourself. Of course, you can have one of those DOF calculators also. But I don't carry a laptop around, so it's just trial and error. And if the shutter speed drops too low, with a high f, such as 22, a tripod maybe required.

[Titus213]

I really liked A-dep - on the old Rebel film camera. It let you select both the near and far focus point and then tried to make it all happen. As far as I can tell the DRebel version just tries to show the two points to you.

[Curtis N]

The Digital Rebel is an entry-level DSLR. For many people (like me), it's their first upgrade from a P&S and it takes a long climb up the learning curve before they get comfortable with the creative modes and manual features. That's why the camera has all those "idiot-proof" automatic modes. For beginners, sometimes it's easier to take the shots and not have to think too much.

Depth-of-field is one of the more complex concepts that a beginner needs to learn. DOF gets shorter as sensor size increases, so if you're accustomed to a small sensor P&S, DOF will become more of a problem than they're used to. That's why the A-DEP mode is useful for a novice.

The most important thing to remember about A-DEP mode is that it uses all 7 AF sensors. If one of them is pointing at the foreground and another is hitting a distant mountain, the camera might choose a smaller aperture and slower shutter than you really need (or want). Pay close attention to the upper and lower AF points - for instance, they may not be pointing at actual people in a group shot. A-DEP isn't so useless if you think about the data the camera uses to make its decisions. For example, in a group portrait, recompose (without changing the zoom lens) so that all 7 AF points are aimed at people. Push the shutter half-way down and note the aperture the camera chooses. Then swith to AV mode, set the aperture accordingly, compose and shoot.

As with any other technical concept, experiment with different settings, look at the EXIF data to see what the camera's computer is doing. With experience, you can gradually wean yourself from the automatic settings toward more control of the camera.

[goatee]

I too tried to use A-Dep once, and it didn't work, so now, I simply make use of the depth of field preview, which helps me ensure I get the correct dof. Actually I'm surprised nobody else has suggested it yet.

[EOSAddict]

Titus - I agree! I loved the DEP mode on My EOS 100 - used it a lot for landscape pics - was devastated when I realised Canon had changed it for the DReb.

eminaddiesmon - as far as I can make out, the A-DEP mode on DReb uses all 7 focus points and tries to achieve a DoF across them all - but this only works if the range you want in focus falls in the 7-point AF cross - not very likely!

Anyone know if the 350/XT DEP mode is the same?

[eminaddiesmom]

thanks so much for all your help! I'm so glad it's not just me. I guess i'll just keep using Av or Manual mode. You guys are awesome!

Erika

[ed2day]

I've played with A-Dep mode and found it to be semi-useful. I'd love to have the method on the old film camera where you could independently select your near and far field objects. Unfortunately it's been dumbed down in (I think) all the non-pro digital Canons. It works if you can get your nearest and farthest subjects to fall under the AF sensors. If not you're out of luck.

My experience has been the opposite of Bob Gross. I've presumed that the camera in A-Dep mode picks the largest aperture(smallest f/#) it can get away with in order to reduce camera shake. Which makes me want to kick my camera since I'm using that mode because I want to maximize depth of field. I've tried it outside on a bright sunny day where I try to include a foreground object several feet away and infinity and it will come back with f/5.6. No...you don't understand, I'm trying to MAXIMIZE depth of field, how bout f/16, I have a tripod! So I pull my hair out.

And DOF preview mode has not been useful for me. At f/16 it lets in so little light I can barely make out anything.

[roanjohn]

n o p e!!!!

rO1

[robertwgross]

My experience has been the opposite of Bob Gross. I've presumed that the camera in A-Dep mode picks the largest aperture(smallest f/#) it can get away with in order to reduce camera shake.

Your presumption was illogical.

---Bob Gross---

[ed2day]

Your presumption was illogical.

---Bob Gross---

I agree! But that's just what I've seen. I don't know how else to expain it picking f/5.6 on a bright day. I don't think I've ever seen it pick anything smaller than f/8--not that I've used it that much. You see it pick small apertures?? Guess I'll have to play with it some more.

[lostdoggy]

Its best to stay away from A-DEP. If you are interested in the greatest amount of DOF just use the smallest f/stop posible in Av mode with respect to the slowest hand holderable shutter speed. For reference 1/(focal length) . Increase ISO if necessary to bring up shutter speed.

[ed2day]

Its best to stay away from A-DEP. If you are interested in the greatest amount of DOF just use the smallest f/stop posible in Av mode with respect to the slowest hand holderable shutter speed. For reference 1/(focal length) . Increase ISO if necessary to bring up shutter speed.

Yes, that's the idea, but how do you know if that "greatest amount of DOF" is enough? The only way I know is with a DOF calculator which I don't always have with me. Used to be there was a DOF scale printed on the lens, but I guess they got rid of that along the way.

[robertwgross]

Yes, that's the idea, but how do you know if that "greatest amount of DOF" is enough?

That's what the Depth of Field Preview button is for.

A-DEP is not intending to produce the smallest aperture. It is intending to produce sufficient depth of field to cover the near point and far point. If your points are relatively close together, then it should be able to do that easily with a fairly normal aperture. If your points are far apart, then it might have to go to a teeny, tiny aperture to get there, and that might cause the shutter speed to go very slow. Of course, we can always push the ISO up high to normalize the shutter somewhat. All I need is a camera with ISO 12800.

---Bob Gross---