I currently own a 20D and it only lets you select 1 autofocus point or all of them. I mostly shoot sports/action shots. These are indoor shots of colorguard/winterguard kids (twirling flag/rifle). I can't use a flash and the lighting usually sucks.
I am seriously considering the new Mark III as my next camera because it handles the high ISO so much better. My question is ... of all the 45 autofocus points does it let you select just a group in the middle or can you only select the center point?
I use the ai servo all the time with just centerpoint focus but i am concerned about the autofocus issues. Yes, my kids often wear dark costumes or single color costumes that make it very hard to get a good focus and I was hoping the Mark III did a better job than my 20D.
My other thought was to go with a 40D but I really think the picture quality would be better with the mark III.
Thoughts?
White Balance so easy, even our 5 year old can do it.- Melissa Strickland
It is possible to select AF points that are 1) to the left and right of the AF point you manually select, or 2) which surround the AF point you manually select.
Of the 45 AF points, only 19 are user-selectable. These points are "horizontal-line sensitive." The other 26 AF points are AF "assist points." These AF points surround the various 19 selectable AF points and are horizontal-line sensitive only.
With a 2.8 lens or faster, if you select one of the 19 points, it provides a cross-type AF (sensitive to vertical and horizontal lines). With a lens (or lens+extender) whose maximum aperture is greater than 4, the center point will work as a cross-type AF point, while all the other 45 points are horizontal-line sensitive only.
In the custom funticion menu you can choose to expand the manually-selected AF point in the manner mentioned above in the first paragraph.
I switched from a Nikon D200 to the Mark 3 about a month ago. I have some difficulty with the AF. I do not believe it works as well as it should (or was intended to) and is a bit of a disappointment in that regard. By no means am I suggesting this renders the camera unusuable or that my AF problems are comparable to what some have reported, only that it the number of oof shots is higher than I think it should be. Some shots that I would swear were dead-on focused when I shot them turn out to be oof when I get back to the computer and view them. Most shots are fine, but the risk that the photo of the game-winning touchdown catch will end up oof is higher than it should be, I think.
That said, the picture quality is absolutely stunning, as is the low-light performance. I am taking pictures of night HS football at 3200 ISO and sometimes at 6400 ISO with shutter speeds up to 1/640. This is at fields where I didn't even bother to show up when I was shooting with the Nikon. At 3200 the image quality is comparable to what I got on the Nikon at about 800 ISO (but at shutter speeds of about 1/200) and with some processing looks great. 6400 ISO produces enough noise that I wouldn't enlarge these beyond, say, 8 x 12 in most cases, but at that size and smaller I have no difficulty selling the prints and customers are very satisfied. If the AF problem is ever entirely resolved (hopefully with firmware upgrades), the camera would be perfect.
White Balance so easy, even our 5 year old can do it.- Melissa Strickland
Thanks so much for your response. Luckily the two lenses I own are both L 2.8 (24-70 and 70-200). It will not be till late spring before I can purchase the camera and I hope also that there will be some firmware releases by then.
I usually don't sell anything larger than an 8x10 and I have been really impressed by the 3200 and 6400 iso shots I have seen.
I just hate the thought of spending so much on a camera and not getting the autofocus I think it should be getting.
White Balance so easy, even our 5 year old can do it.- Melissa Strickland
Moving from the 20D to the 1D series will give you a huge increase in keepers from what you are used to. I moved from a 20D to a 1D2 years ago and now also own and shoot with a 1D3. You will find that the transition from the 20D to the 1D series will take some adjustment. Once your learning curve isn't so steep though you will be pleased I predict with the camera's ability to capture action. It is a significant step up from the 20D.
My experience with the 1D3 reminds me a bit of the adjustment from the 20D to the 1D2. Both cameras just behaved differently in AI-Servo. Going from the 1D2 to the 1D3 has been a process of adjustment for me as well. It's focus is far more sensitive than the 1D2 and the AF-On is in a slightly different spot from the 1D2 so shooting 2 bodies, a 1D2 and 1D3 took a while to adjust to. Overall I am more and more pleased with the camera...
White Balance so easy, even our 5 year old can do it.- Melissa Strickland
The 40D is worlds better than even teh 30D is focus (accuracy and speed), low light focus/low contrast focus, and High ISO / low noise and IQ.
IQ is comparable to the mk3, as is ISO up to about 3200. The 40D stops at 3200, but I can print 8x10s with no post processing needed and noise is not an issue anyone is gonna quibble over and on smaller prints there just is no noise.
White Balance so easy, even our 5 year old can do it.- Melissa Strickland
Going from the 1D2 to the 1D3 has been a process of adjustment for me as well. It's focus is far more sensitive than the 1D2 and the AF-On is in a slightly different spot from the 1D2 so shooting 2 bodies, a 1D2 and 1D3 took a while to adjust to...
I have had little trouble going from a 1D2 to the 1D3. However, I do NOT use the "AF ON" button; my strong preference is to use the half-depressed shutter button for focus. I shoot a variety of subjects, mostly action, and I am very pleased with the autofocus performance of the new camera in AI Servo mode. My belief is that most of the OOF shots I get are the shooter's fault, and the other ones are simply situations where the camera was simply tricked by the conditions.
What I DO have trouble with is going back to the 1D2 after shooting with the 1D3; the 3's simpler menu system is superior, for one. The 3's larger LCD screen is another welcome addition. Finally, the lighter weight of the new body is sorely missed when going back to the 1D2...
White Balance so easy, even our 5 year old can do it.- Melissa Strickland
Linear Mode
