I guess this is a generic question. I don’t follow the traditional set up where most split AF from the shutter and assign to the AF-ON. I have used it that way so I’m comfortable with both using the AF-ON or keeping the shutter half pressed for AF. For both my R7 and R62 I use the shutter for both AF and metering.
Yes I have found it essential to have alternative BBF focus method for when subject/eye detect is getting confused. Mostly use spot except for in-flight where I have 9-point surround, but that may change.At 9:45 on Jan's video he shows how the focus override works. He likes Spot focus but I prefer Single. At 10:20 he overrides eye detect to get focus back on the parrot. He moves the camera, not the AF point. Very effective for me. Notice he puts the Spot focus point on the body of the bird and after it focuses in he goes back into eye detect. Much faster than trying to get the on the eye or head itself. Doing portraits or other static objects moving the AF point would likely be better so you don't have to recompose.
One last thing you will notice is that he uses that white broken AF focus pre-focus square. I always use that as well. Page 3 of the A menus. AF Preview. If I lift my finger off past half way off the shutter button it kicks in and continues to AF. For Jan I think it engages when he lifts his thumb off the AD-ON to press the * and vice versa.
Over months of fine tuning that's what I came up with. I know I don't use all of the options that the Detail Set offers but I don't feel I need it to be that complex. I need fast AF recovery when AI does cooperate with my wishes.
The great part is there are so many options out there to customize. The 9 point (and 4) surround still uses the centre point as the primary and the outer points kick in to help, if if needs it. With Zone AF there are just more active AF points working for you. If 9 point works for you then great.
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As I say the 9 point I am not sure of. The idea was the selectivity of single point with some fudge for subject movement.The great part is there are so many options out there to customize. The 9 point (and 4) surround still uses the centre point as the primary and the outer points kick in to help, if if needs it. With Zone AF there are just more active AF points working for you. If 9 point works for you then great.
We know that we will never see which outer point kicked in to help the centre point in Servo. Not sure why Canon did that. DPP or your LCD will show if an outer point kicks in using One Shot. Rudy Winston once said in an article or video that Expansion AF works the same way in Servo as it does in One Shot. I put it to the test.
In One Shot I focused on a plain wall with no contrast. I would move the camera around to get try to AF. Eventually it did. Sometimes the centre point kicked on its own. Sometimes an outer expansion kicked in to help. Typically it was only one outer point. When it did it was first and was immediately followed by the centre point. It was like the outer point told the centre you are good to go. DPP, etc always showed the centre point and an outer point. With subjects with more contrast more outer would likely kick in. I have not shot in One Shot for well over 10 years.
Canon pulled tons of excellent videos, articles and blogs. I found a few on Wayback but I don't have the desire to hunt them all down. I just looked and guess what. One of two I have left is this one. I forgot I had it. I had more about this subject.
Canon DLC: Article: Differences between Zone AF and AF Point Expansion
Learn what the differences are between these two features in the EOS 7D Mark II.
ER7_2262 by Wayne Wilson, on Flickr
