7D Mark ll Focus?

Im anxiously waiting for my new 7D Mark ll today. I have been reading about all the focus issues and am wondering what the best way to test the camera is to see if I got a good copy.
I get very confused reading all these post sometimes looking for just the right information.
How to know if the focus issues are because of the camera or the lens. Any help on test I can do to make sure Im getting razor sharp photos would be a great help.
Thanks so much

How do you currently focus? Ie, center point or expanded, servo vs one shot, etc.

Depends on what I'm shooting. I am using chart to check lenses for front and back focus using center point. I guess my biggest question is how to test focusing when using Al Servo. I have been taking photographs of dogs running around the yard using different focus points All 65, Zone, Expand etc. and also trying different cases. When a shot is out of focus I don't know if it was me or the camera?

First, I would assume the camera is fine unless something shows up wrong. The few that have had to be repaired or replaced have caused a lot of unnecessary concern. Many of us have received cameras that are just fine. Don't get into a hurry to get to the serious AF stuff unless you are experienced with the 5DIII or the 1DX - most of the reported errors are user error and the longer learning curve the camera needs. The 7D2 is a fine camera. One Canon tech told me it was "a mini 1DX".

Second, I would MFA lenses ASAP. They're probably at least close enough to check out the camera but MFA is not difficult so do it first. Then I would try one shot focus with a single focus point on static subjects at various distances. They should all check out well. Don't try the camera out on birds in flight right off the bat - there's a lot to learn about the AF system.

Next you need read, watch tutorials, whatever method works best for you to learn the AF system. Here's a good start: http://www.learn.usa.c​anon.com …birds_as_art_mo​rris.shtml. This video series from Canon is primarily about bird photography but everything in is is easily transferred to other subjects. You will need to learn about which focus arrays are user selected spots and which are auto select on the closest object. You will need to learn about "AF cases" and how to modify them if you want.

Visit Canon's 7D2 support site. Under "brochures and manuals" download both the complete manual (the printed on shipped with the camera is abbreviated) and the special AF manual.

Enjoy the new camera and the learning curve. Don't be concerned about it being bad - they are almost all excellent. By the time you learn how to use it effectively you will know if you got a bad one (probably not). Hope this helps. The camera can be complicated but it will reward you if you take time to learn it.

My keeper rate is much higher with my 7D Mark II vs. my 7D.

Thank you for the info and tips, I will check it all out.

Make sure you eliminate all the normal factors for a soft or OOF image, before you make any educated conclusion that your camera has an issue.

- Make sure your shutter speeds are more than adequate to stop your action AND the action of your subject at the focal length you shoot at.

- Make sure you take control of the AF points and don't allow the camera to make that selection.

- Make sure you use One Shot for static testing, and do your adjustments with that. AI Servo will honor any settings you make in AFMA.

- Use the AFMA feature, it is there to allow you to tweak the camera's focusing values at both ends of any zoom lens for up to 20 lenses (or more now perhaps?)

- Make sure you have no filters on your lens.

- Try to use natural lighting if at all possible for your tests and adjustments in AFMA

If you do all of this, and you still have odd focusing behavior where a point was laid on a object, and you end up with hit or miss focusing, then I would start to worry a bit. Too many folks skip some of these points or don't even try to use the AFMA feature that is included as a great user tool.

The camera works fine without doing any MFA. You don't need to spend very much time in the menus to get excellent results. IMO many of the problems people have are due to meddling with the settings by those who are not ready for this.

Good luck with the camera. 95% chance it is perfect.

I received my 7D MK II last night put didn't have anytime to play around with it. Can't wait to test it out after work. Thank you for all the info.

All good points from TeamSpeed.
When i got mine i went out and shot a load of shots, got back home, and was disappointed with the results.

It was time to step away from the camera, have a look at why things had gone wrong, as it turned out it was my lazy shooting style that caused the problems. I let the camera dictate the settings, all were in poor light with gloomy, dark, overcast conditions and the resulting shots mirrored these conditions.

Once i took control and set the camera to M or TV mode, i upped the shutter speed to twice the focal length, that cured the blurry or as some have said OOF shots by eliminating motion blur. I set the iso to Auto and made adjustments in camera to what i wanted as my maximum, set my F setting to two stops above the lens, ie, f5.6 lens then i set the f setting to f7.1 (these are only a guide as to when "i" started to see improvements)

These settings were the point where i started to see massive improvements in my shots instead of shooting in AV mode for practically everything as i have done in the past, and also using the correct focusing points for what i was shooting at that time.

Good luck with yours, and post some of your shots and findings

I just got back to this thread intending to post most of what's already been said. The advice given is excellent. I would add my voice to the choir that's encouraging you to start with easy shots first. Get comfortable with the camera there, and you'll have confidence as you move to more challenging shots.

Over the past few years, I've gone from 60D to 7D to 70D to 7D2. The 7D2 definitely had a harder learning curve (for me) than the others. I tried to do too much at first. Once I stepped back and started with simpler shots, things got much better. I'm very happy with the camera.

I want to add that I have never before put a camera in manual and then floated the ISO. I've been very careful to control ISO and use lower speeds. The 7D2 RAWs are so good and so yield such good results in post that I am now confident of using higher ISOs. Being able to lock down both SS and aperture and use the ISO to adjust for variables is really useful. OP - spend some time learning how much more can be done in post. The 7D2 really pays off once you begin to manipulate the RAWs.

Such great and useful information, thank you so much.
Can't wait to get my hands on this bad boy....any minute now

rgs...I really want to spend my time getting the photos right in the camera as I am not one that likes to sit at the computer manipulating photos. I'd much rather be shooting...shooting=editing=

britt777 wrote in post #17406164
I'd much rather be shooting...shooting=editing=

Editing is for doing during the slow parts of football games. Not sure what I'll do next week...

britt777 wrote in post #17406164
rgs...I really want to spend my time getting the photos right in the camera as I am not one that likes to sit at the computer manipulating photos. I'd much rather be shooting...shooting=editing=

I understand that completely. Of all the arts, photography seems to strike that instant gratification gene that we all have the hardest. I only mention post processing because the 7D2 RAW files have so much more potential than, say, the RAW files from my 50D. If you shoot JPEG and trust processing to the camera, you might see a good deal of it but shooting JPEG has it's own drawbacks and the processing choices will be Canon's - not yours (although one could argue that's a good thing).

Ansel Adams, drawing on his musical training, said the negative is the written music (the unheard potential) and the print is the performance. In digital terms, the camera file is the written music and post processing the performance.

Enjoy that new camera. It's great.