AF Area Mode
- Thread starter smd3000
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By far the most reliable AF setting to use in any situation is a single AF point - either central or off centre if your man subject isn't central - YOU are choosing where the camera focuses.
Using multi AF points might seem like a good idea - but they can get it wrong. Generally speaking, they work by locking focus with whichever AF point is on the part of the subject closest to the camera, which is OK in some situations - not in others, landscape being an obvious example where you probably want maximum DOF and so need to focus at or around the hyperfocal distance ( the distance at which you need to focus to give you maximum DOF at any given aperture)
Like many people here I shoot birds in flight and would love to think that multi AF points would be reliable in most circumstances, but the fact is, they're not, it proves to be very hit and miss in practise - almost everyone who shoots birds in flight will choose a single AF point in most circumstances even though it makes it more difficult to track the bird and maintain focus.
Using multi AF points might seem like a good idea - but they can get it wrong. Generally speaking, they work by locking focus with whichever AF point is on the part of the subject closest to the camera, which is OK in some situations - not in others, landscape being an obvious example where you probably want maximum DOF and so need to focus at or around the hyperfocal distance ( the distance at which you need to focus to give you maximum DOF at any given aperture)
Like many people here I shoot birds in flight and would love to think that multi AF points would be reliable in most circumstances, but the fact is, they're not, it proves to be very hit and miss in practise - almost everyone who shoots birds in flight will choose a single AF point in most circumstances even though it makes it more difficult to track the bird and maintain focus.
