1D Mk II / IIn focus questions

I have a 40D and do a lot of sports photography. I'm seriously considering selling it to get a 1D II or IIn.

When I shoot sports with the 40D, I use the center AF point only and am in Servo mode. When shooting with the 1D, do you leave all the AF points active and let the camera pick the one to use or do you constrain it to the center point only?

I hear lots about how great 1D focus is but I'd like some more info.

n1as wrote in post #7605695
I have a 40D and do a lot of sports photography. I'm seriously considering selling it to get a 1D II or IIn.

When I shoot sports with the 40D, I use the center AF point only and am in Servo mode. When shooting with the 1D, do you leave all the AF points active and let the camera pick the one to use or do you constrain it to the center point only?

I hear lots about how great 1D focus is but I'd like some more info.

You use the ring of Focus mode under AI Servo. All 45 points would be active. They will track the subject as best as they could inside this ring, or circle.

OK, that's how it could work, but how well does it work. Does the 1D "ring of fire" work well enough that pros routinely use it for sports or do they revert to single center point only?

The ring of fire is very useful, but depending on the sport you may want to use the center AF sensor. For instance the ring of fire may pick closer field players than the one with the ball, yet it's the ball carrier you want in focus, so the Ring may be a poor choice here. I use the Ring to shoot flying models simply because it's much more easily kept on them than 1 single sensor. You can set the camera up so that the ring is the normal focusing mode and center point can be instantly chosen by pressing the "assigned AF button" where you use the menus (in advance) to assign a specific AF mode to the button. The 1 series bodies have a lot of features that allow very careful custom set ups to suit intended uses.

n1as wrote in post #7605886
OK, that's how it could work, but how well does it work. Does the 1D "ring of fire" work well enough that pros routinely use it for sports or do they revert to single center point only?

I assume it works well since that's what the pros were using 4 years ago. Personally, I don't shoot sports. I shoot birds. The subject is often much smaller than players in the football field. I normally use the center focus point. I got some success using the ring of focus mode but tracking birds in their moving environment is just a bit challenging overall.

We shoot sports w/ a II & a IIN. Can't remember the last time we didn't have just the center point on. It's been 4 or 5 years at least.

We'll drop focus occasionally when the subject moves unexpectedly and we'll catch the far wall crystal clear. By far the exception & not the rule... Biggest reason for this with us is usually not enough glass in front of you & the subject gets small in the viewfinder.

I just picked up a MKII, all I can say is...............

(had the 50D, not even close)

The issue I've seen with the 40D in basketball is that I'll get shots with the player's back foot is in focus or maybe their hips while their face is a bit OOF. Clearly they moved faster than the AF system could track. Sometimes the issue is that the center focus point was on their belly where there is nothing to focus on. Or, DOF was shallow enough that when they lean forward their face goes out of the focus zone.

I'm thinking that a MK II or IIn, while older than the 40D, would handle these situations better.

I shoot pro hockey, baseball and some high school stuff-- by far the 1D2 is better than the 40D-- the focus is killer. I have all of them including a 40D-- I use my 40D for remote work-since it is lighter.
You can't go wrong with a 1D2 or 2n for sports- or heck anything else.

Lol, the focus speed of the XXD cameras feels almost lethargic compared to the 1 series.

Just got my N yesterday and can't wait to give it a proper beating.

20DNewbie wrote in post #7610084
Lol, the focus speed of the XXD cameras feels almost lethargic compared to the 1 series.

Just got my N yesterday and can't wait to give it a proper beating.

It likes to be beat!

stathunter wrote in post #7610059
I shoot pro hockey, baseball and some high school stuff-- by far the 1D2 is better than the 40D-- the focus is killer. I have all of them including a 40D-- I use my 40D for remote work-since it is lighter.
You can't go wrong with a 1D2 or 2n for sports- or heck anything else.

OK, then the next question is mkII for $1100 or MKIIn for $1700? Either seems tough to find. I lean toward the IIn for the bigger LCD but maybe the differences aren't worth $500?

Anyone want to make a deal?

n1as wrote in post #7610128
OK, then the next question is mkII for $1100 or MKIIn for $1700? Either seems tough to find. I lean toward the IIn for the bigger LCD but maybe the differences aren't worth $500?

Anyone want to make a deal?

I have both-- In my personal opinion I would go without the larger screen and get the Mk2.

n1as wrote in post #7610128
OK, then the next question is mkII for $1100 or MKIIn for $1700? Either seems tough to find. I lean toward the IIn for the bigger LCD but maybe the differences aren't worth $500?

Anyone want to make a deal?

This thread has some of the differences, I'm pretty sure there's a few more(been lusting after them for so long it's all a bit fuzzy now).

https://photography-on-the.net …ghlight=1D+MkII​+vs.+MkIIN

Another thing you can do with the II's is set up AF expansion. This will allow you to choose a focus point, then set the camera to use the 7 or 13 surrounding points to assist when you are tracking (you don't need to leave on all 45 points for this). This means that you acquire focus with the selected AF point, and then the surrounding points will "help" if the subject falls off of that point.

I find this to work great in some cases, and not so great in others. I left it on the "7" expansion (this uses the points immediately surrounding the selected points) last weekend for a youth bball tourney and had great success.

I usually use the focus points just a bit above center, or below center so that I can avoid clipping feet or heads when the player is dribbling or shooting. I like to shoot pretty tight. One of my absolute favorite options on my IIn is that I can set the camera to whatever focus point I want, and have another focus point "registered". I can then use a set button to switch from the selected focus point to my registered focus point (I usually set the center point for this). I have mine set up so that when I hold down the WB button on the back of the camera (which is under my thumb, next to the * button) it will use the registered AF point, and when I hold down the * button it will use the selected AF point. This is great for fast action, when your selected AF point may not be ideal for a changing situation.