Canon 5D Mark III - BIF tutorial

Saw this over at naturescapes.com and thought some might benefit from this well written web posting: Canon 5D Mark III: Autofocus (AI Servo) for Birds in Flight

nice find, don't have a 5d3, but the info in this is generic enough to help me with my miserable skills at shooting them.

Thanks for sharing - I suspect this will also come in handy when my 1D X arrives.
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WesternGuy

thanks for the link!

Great article -- thanks for sharing the link!

Bryan

Nice find, thanks

Very nice. Thanks.
I tried it this morning and it was better than the other day for sure.
still not quite sure what setting the AF should be on per se.
One shot, point, zone, auto etc.
I was definitely closer though.

Terrific find, and very useful. Thanks for sharing

Thanks!

Very good!

looks like some good info, thanks

I've used similar settings with my 7D when photographing birds. Glad to see you guys making use of the article for your new cameras.

Alrighty then.....
The BIF pictures significantly improved this AM.
I followed all the settings he recommended and I can't complain a bit.

They work!

Didn't get the selection of BIF that I wanted, but, what I did take came out nice indeed.
The 2nd AF screen is important to set to focue first.
Here is what he says.
I don't think I set this to focus yesterday so this made a big difference.
He says...

"The second screen (AF2) under the AF tab also needs consideration. It sets up AI Servo focus or take-a-shot priorities. When you press the shutter, what should happen? Do you want the camera to assure focus before release, or not wait so long and capture the image even though it may be out-of-focus? (7D shooters have the same set-up option. Or dilemma.)


First image priority set to focus first.


I’ve set-up my 5D III to favor focusing for first image priority. So—as with the Yelllow-rumped Warbler—I can see why the camera didn’t immediately grab the shot. I was in a moving boat, and though it didn’t seem a difficult shot, my focus point may have strayed as well, and I was using the Spot Single shot, because of potentially intervening tree branches. In any case, I'm sticking with focus prioirty for now."

In my opinion, if you follow what he says to the letter you will have great results.

I guess this is the kind of thing I was alluding to in my thread on 5DIII AF.
This is the kind of stuff that many of us need to learn this complex but wonderful AF system.

Good stuff.

Good post!! Thanks!

Tsmith wrote in post #14389794
Saw this over at naturescapes.com and thought some might benefit from this well written web posting: Canon 5D Mark III: Autofocus (AI Servo) for Birds in Flight

I thought I would share the Q&A I had with the author of the BIF tutorial above.
My question was...

Hi Gary

I just got a 5D3 a couple weeks ago and took it and my 70-200 2.8 II to Florida and saw the link to your BIF using the 5D3 posted at the POTN forum.

I used the settings you gave and came up with some nice shots. Granted I didn't have a 400 or 500mm lens but I wonder about a couple of things.

Do I want to use spot focus when trying to catch the BIF using the 5D3 or some other setting.

Also, what do you think about using the 2X III extender with the 70-200 II? I was a ways away from the ducks when they were flying around but I know the focus changes when you use an extender.

Thanks Gary

Regards,

Karl

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His reply...


Karl

You wouldn’t be wrong to use Canon's default settings for the larger birds. For medium-sized, the -1,1,1 has been working for me, but I'm still experimenting. I wouldn't recommend spot focus unless you've got obstructions in the way, like shooting a duck through reeds or warblers in the willows. The single point center focus is still a good choice. I've mostly been using expanded by 4 or 8 points for flight shots, single point for perched birds.

I wouldn't hesitate using a 2x on your f/2.8 lens to get more reach for perched birds, but I'd tend to go with the straight 200mm for flight shots. If you can lure birds closer with bird song tapes, the 200mm can be quite good, and the 5D III pixel count allows for a good bit of cropping.

Good luck,

Gary

Gary Luhm Photography Specializing in sea kayaking, kayak surfing, birding, mountain scenics, tidepools e-mail: gluhm@garyluhm.net website: www.garyluhm.net 425-828-6594