Canon 7D manual Zone AF contd, AF Point Expansion, Spot AF Point

Zone AF (cont'd)

Best for: Situations where you want to concentrate focus on the area of the viewfinder where you expect to place your primary subject.

Not recommended for: Situations where you need more precise control over the point of focus; specifically, where multiple focus points may cause the camera to focus closer than you wish.

Manual AF Point Manual AF point selection allows you to pick any one of the 19 AF points to be active, with the rest inactive. This forces the camera to focus upon a small and precise part

of a subject or scene. A single AF point, visible in black (or illuminated red) clearly indicates where the camera is looking to focus.

Best for: Selective focus on a small area such as a subject’s eye or a subject that has a foreground object such as a fence or archway in front of it.

Not recommended for: Situations where subject or camera movement will make it difficult to maintain a specific point of focus. In these situations AF Point Expansion may be a better option.

AF Point Expansion

AF Point Expansion allows you to manually select one AF point to be the primary point you want to use. As long as there is adequate detail, the system will concentrate focus on

the one point you have selected.

If for any reason the system point loses sight of the subject or can’t find sufficient detail, it will automatically activative

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the surrounding AF points. The number and location of surrounding AF points will vary depending upon which AF point you manually selected. There is no way to add or subtract the surrounding AF points.The viewfinder will, however, display the expanded points: During selection and shooting your primary AF point will appear as a standard AF box. The expanded points will have the standard AF box and a smaller spot AF box within it.

AF Point Expansion will work the same way whether

you’re shooting a stationary subject in One-Shot AF Mode or tracking a moving subject in AI Servo AF.

Best for: Situations where you want to limit focus to a specific point but also allow the AF system to automatically expand that point if it’s unable to achieve focus. This mode is particularly useful for sports photography and other moving subjects, especially if you’re concerned that the single AF point you selected may pick up plain, solid areas of a player’s uniform, a blank wall, open sky, and so on.

Spot AF Point

As with Manual AF Point Selection, you select any one of the 19 AF points to be the active point of focus. The difference is that the AF point is

smaller and more concentrated. This allows you to read an even smaller area of the subject and focus even more precisely on one particular element in a scene. When Spot AF is active, a small secondary box appears inside of your manually-selected AF point. You will see a “box within a box” in the viewfinder.

Keep in mind that although the AF point size is reduced as compared to ordinary Manual AF point selection, the actual area is larger than the inner box. Allow for this fact when composing and shooting.

Best for: Pin-point focus upon a tiny area of a scene, particularly when neither the camera nor the subject are in motion. Spot AF is particularly useful for macro photography of three-dimensional subjects, where depth- of-field can be extremely shallow.

Not recommended for: Moving subjects where it may be difficult to keep the AF point placed on an area of adequate contrast and detail.

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Enabling or Disabling AF Selection Mode Options The factory default setting is to have AF Point Expansion mode and Spot AF mode disabled and not selectable. To enable or disable any of the AF point selection modes:

1.Navigate to Custom Function III-6 (“Select AF area selec. mode”) on your EOS 7D.

2.Press the Set Button to move the orange highlighting from the number “6” at the top right corner down to the Disable-Enable-Register row.

3.Turn the Quick Control Dial to highlight “Register.” Press the Set Button to select Register.

4.Turn the Quick Control Dial to scroll through the options. If an option is un-checked, press the Set Button to display a checkmark. If an option has a checkmark, pressing the Set Button will uncheck it.

5.Scroll to the word “Apply.” When Apply is highlighted in orange, press the Set Button.

6.The highlighting will immediately move to the word “Enable.” Press the Set Button one last time to lock-in your choices.

How to activate the AF point selection mode of your choice using the viewfinder:

1.Press the rear AF Point Selection Button. The available focus points will illuminate.

2.Tap the M.Fn Button to cycle through the available modes. They will appear in green at the bottom of the viewfinder. You will see only the modes you have previously enabled via Custom Function III-6.

3.When you see the mode of your choice, tap the Shutter Button to select it.

How to choose the AF point or zone of your choice using the viewfinder:

1.Press the AF Point Selection Button. The available focus points will illuminate.

2.Using either the Main Dial on the front or the Quick Controller or Multi-controlleron the rear, move the AF point (or zone) to where you want it.

3.Tap the shutter button half-way to register the point or zone you’ve chosen.

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