So...maybe my 7D was broke the entire time?

So I finally convinced the store that I bought my 7D from to let me switch it up after having problems with inconsistent focusing on both a Sigma 30mm F1.4 and a Canon 24mm F1.4L II. I sent in the lens and camera combo(7D w/ 24mm) to Canon SIX times). It was always inconsistent. Strange thing is it was pretty reliable with my other lenses (F2.8 lenses).

One thing I had noticed through testing so much was that the center point actually was faster...but missed much more than any other point. I don't know if this is even possible but I wondered if something could be interfering with the center point on the AF sensor...but it never came back with anything but "electrical adjustments" needed.

Anyway, I got the new 7D body and gosh darn it its rarely if ever missed with my 30mm sigma. I'm not talking about MA here, I'm talking consistency. I am seriously amazed. I really don't think this is a placebo effect thing, I've specifically tried it on targets that made the first 7D have loads of trouble. For the first time I feel like I can trust the camera. Nothing worse than having expensive equipment but always doubting it.

Now I wonder if my problems with the 24mm were because of the lens...camera...or a combination of both.

Anyone else have an experience similar to this?

I had one of the first launch copies, and had no issues like that. I did set the AI Servo sensitivity down to slow, something I learned from the 1D3 issues. It is quite possible though that Canon had some units out of whack. I always question the new owners that just go out and buy the 7D, then have issues, but those that are seasoned photographers having some issues, you have to recognize that there are some lemons out there.

A good working 7D is a great camera.

TeamSpeed wrote in post #13395101
I I always question the new owners that just go out and buy the 7D, then have issues, but those that are seasoned photographers having some issues, you have to recognize that there are some lemons out there.

A good working 7D is a great camera.

Yeah, I agree! And a bad one can be a freaking nightmare! The burden to establish that it's really the camera is almost an overwhelming task. Between the company denials and the "brand homers" claiming "user error" you can soon find yourself urinating up twine!
I'm glad you were able to swap it out before the clock ran out.
Enjoy it!

I just got the point where I was wondering why I got rid of my 50D. I never really had any problems with the focus on it....but I found myself taking more test shots than actual shots because I didn't trust it (7D). I would even make excuses for it (oh it could have picked up on the target a couple points away, there was a reflection that threw it off, etc.

I'm hopeful this is behind me now and I can move on enjoying my camera.

Just wish I didn't spend so long troubleshooting it.

I've had a weird thing that seems to have been slowly building ever since I bought my 7D. I find myself on important shots shooting the same thing 2-3 times just to make sure one is in focus. This is because I've run into a few shots that were lost because focus wasn't right. I just figured it was user error and have even joined in on the "7D focus problem" threads by stating that I believe most of the problems people experience are user error.

But your mention of "trusting" the camera is making me re-evaluate that. I have a T2i as well and I don't recall feeling that way. I think I need to look a bit deeper into it.

It's strange that there seems to be this concern about the 7D's focus. I'm wondering, are most folks relying on the shutter button to do the work or have you redirected the control to the camera's back * button? I have found that isolating the focus to the back has improved my own success rate.

There's a similar ongoing thread on this topic.

I had some weird issues with particular lenses on 7D, and when I'd try to MFA my results were variable every time I tried to MA (esp. my 100-400 and my 500L). But then the camera would take some stunning images, and I'd stop worrying about it for a while. Eventually I sold the 7D because it was making me crazy. I just didn't completely trust it. I replaced it with a 1D2n and T3i, and I have not had the same concerns. I usually keep the gripped T3i on my 500mm lens. Feels silly using a D-Rebel on such a big lens, but it works great (definitely slower to focus, but highly accurate).

Cheers,
Michelle

Kevan wrote in post #13412492
It's strange that there seems to be this concern about the 7D's focus. I'm wondering, are most folks relying on the shutter button to do the work or have you redirected the control to the camera's back * button? I have found that isolating the focus to the back has improved my own success rate.

There's a similar ongoing thread on this topic.

I have noticed the same. I was testing with the 300mm and my success rate seems better than when using the shutter button.

Obvious user error [Sarcasm]

because mine worked perfect. [gross sarcasm]

StarTzar wrote in post #13413050
I have noticed the same. I was testing with the 300mm and my success rate seems better than when using the shutter button.

I'm not sure how that would make a difference, but I'm going to give that a try for a while. The last few shoots I did with people, I actually used a smaller aperture than I wanted just to reduce the chance of me getting things out of focus. I really shouldn't have to do that. Manual focus would be nice but you can't really do that well on these newer AF cameras.

NU27D wrote in post #13395384
Yeah, I agree! And a bad one can be a freaking nightmare! The burden to establish that it's really the camera is almost an overwhelming task. Between the company denials and the "brand homers" claiming "user error" you can soon find yourself urinating up twine!
I'm glad you were able to swap it out before the clock ran out.
Enjoy it!

See, that is what I thought when my first playstation 3 broke....


then 3 more broke....


and the guy on the phone told me it was my fault.... frustration does not even begin to describe it.


SDiver, I am really glad to hear that you got a new 7D. just in time for the 1Dx right?

its sad because the sony product is good, but their service.... well. never mind.

Kevan wrote in post #13412492
It's strange that there seems to be this concern about the 7D's focus. I'm wondering, are most folks relying on the shutter button to do the work or have you redirected the control to the camera's back * button? I have found that isolating the focus to the back has improved my own success rate.

There's a similar ongoing thread on this topic.

I had tried both, honestly over the six times of sending it to Canon probably took a thousand test shots...sad I know.

What I kept finding is that sometimes it would favor the object of highest contrast it seemed in the shot without that object being anywhere near the focus point chosen. It didn't always seem to happen this way but when it did it was repeatable. Again and again it picked something entirely different than what I was trying to focus on (and yes I had tried all focus modes).

In these situations sometimes MFA wouldn't even make a difference because you would choose a different scene and the camera would actually try to lock onto your focus point rather than just an area of contrast in the scene.

Like I said, its like the center point was covered partially and it defaulted to the focus tracking I think the 7D can do by the metering sensor contribution.

jthomps123 wrote in post #13413389
Obvious user error [Sarcasm]

because mine worked perfect. [gross sarcasm]

Obvious hardware error [Sarcasm]

because 3 of mine all sucked. [gross sarcasm]

See, I can do it too!

TeamSpeed wrote in post #13414779
Obvious hardware error [Sarcasm]

because 3 of mine all sucked. [gross sarcasm]

See, I can do it too!

I think a good starting point to deal with 7D apologists would be to assume they are beginners and too inexperienced to realize that their keeper rate is lower than it should be....

See, we can all do it!

In all seriousness - the 3 i've used all exhibit poor AF accuracy at times way below its price point.

So here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to take 500 random shots with my 7D with a single lens. I'll do it in 5 sets of 100 and then count the keepers in each set when it comes to focus. The large number should average out any user error. I'll do the same with my T2i with the same lens in the same conditions. This should give me a good data set. If the difference is minimal either way, that is to be expected. At the end I'll either trust it or I won't.