Canon auto focus

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chrisirwin

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I started a previous thread to gather some opinion on the best way to spend £900 on some startup kit. The decision was between a canon 550d or canon 5d. having had a test of both now I am not sure about the build quality of the 550d in comparison to the 'built like a brick' 5d.
However what became apparent and is now of great importance to me is auto focus ability and speed. My main reason for buying this camera is to get some decent shots of my kids.
The 5d didn't seem particularly speedy with it's af in comparison to the 550d and also a 60d I had a play with.
Does anyone have knowledge/experience of both and have an opinion? I have tried looking at the comparison sites and most compare number of af points but I haven't found a comparison of af speed. Am I missing something?
 
The 5d will surpass the 550/60 in a studio environment or for portrait/landscape shots whereas the 550/60 will leave the 5d standing with autofocus on sports/wildlife.:. It depends what your going to be shouting.
 
The 5D and even the 5D mark 2 are pedestrian when it comes to AF speed. Really poor on such quality cameras. That said, it's not what they were designed for. For action shots of kids, I found I needed something much better. I've never used a xxxD camera so cannot comment, but the xxD range were fine - I have used the 30, 40 & 50. If you want the dogs wotsits in terms of AF, you can pick up a used Canon 1D mark II for sub-£500 these days, easily the best camera available on the s/h market for that money.
 
Flats said:
The 5D and even the 5D mark 2 are pedestrian when it comes to AF speed. Really poor on such quality cameras. That said, it's not what they were designed for. For action shots of kids, I found I needed something much better. I've never used a xxxD camera so cannot comment, but the xxD range were fine - I have used the 30, 40 & 50. If you want the dogs wotsits in terms of AF, you can pick up a used Canon 1D mark II for sub-£500 these days, easily the best camera available on the s/h market for that money.
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This exactly, the 1D is something else when it comes to AF. If you're happy to read the manual over and over again till you get to grips with it you'll love it!
 
I own both a 5D and a 40D, and also had a 450D in the past. The 5D has the best autofocus of all three and can easily keep up with you'd kids etc. The lenses speed and autofocus ability is far more important. Couple the 5D with some USM lenses preferably L lenses and you'd be surprised how good it can be. Manually select your focus points and track what your point of focus is.
 
Thanks guys. I did try some playing about with various af modes as well when testing the 5d. Took me a while to figure out but there was a mode (think it was af servo) which tracked a moving object ( cat in my case) and focused based on speed of said object. Would this be the preferred method?
 
i had the misfortune to own a 50D before a 5D2 and I've not noticed any difference on AF speed between the two - AF servo and center focus points for moving subjects, shoot kids rugby & skating without issue :)
 
chrisirwin said:
Thanks guys. I did try some playing about with various af modes as well when testing the 5d. Took me a while to figure out but there was a mode (think it was af servo) which tracked a moving object ( cat in my case) and focused based on speed of said object. Would this be the preferred method?
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AI servo is your best bet for anything moving. The 5D has 6 hidden assist points when using f2.8 or faster glass on the centre point, which the 40D or 450D doesn't and I don't think the 50D does either. Never understood why people slag the autofocus of the 5D off so much, as long as you take control it is more than up to most types of photography.
 
Folks that say the 5D2 has poor AF are talking rubbish. It's essentially the same as the 40/50D, ie very good, though what you ultimately end up with depends as much on the lens as anything else. Stick L-glass on a 5D2 and it'll keep up with most things, if you can keep the centre AF point nailed, particularly with an f/2.8 (or lower) lens.

If AF speed and servo tracking are a priority for you, then it's not that the 5D2 is in any way poor, it's just that the 7D and 1D series cameras are exceptionally advanced in that area - ultra fast and sensitive, plus a multitude of AF points coupled to sophisticated software algorithms.

Obvious choice around that budget is a 7D. Fast frame rate too.

Edit: couple it with a 70-200L 2.8 Mk2 lens and you can hardly miss. You'll need to spend time setting it up though, loads of options that taking some getting to know.
 
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The biggest limitation of the 5D II is the number of focus points. Richard uses f4 lenses but if you use fast glass wide open you need accurate focus and this is where the much larger selection of points on the 1 series, 7D or Nikon bodies come into their own.
 
The23rdman said:
The biggest limitation of the 5D II is the number of focus points. Richard uses f4 lenses but if you use fast glass wide open you need accurate focus and this is where the much larger selection of points on the 1 series, 7D or Nikon bodies come into their own.
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Richard uses all sorts of lenses on a 5D2, currently from f/1.4 upwards (borrowed Sigma 50 1.4). Servo tracking with centre-point and AF expansion enabled, no problems.

In fact I'm shooting a family with small children tomorrow and will be chasing them around the garden using just that. Fill-in flash on E-TTL too. It's a great combo :)

Edit: mentioning fast lenses, if you want to know how much difference the lens makes to AF performance, stick on a nifty-50 1.8 :eek: Fast, smooth and accurate with L lenses; slow, grinding, hunting with a cheapo.
 
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