topic Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock in EOS DSLR & Mirrorless Cameras

EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

thegios — Tue, 17 Sep 2024 12:45:03 GMT

I have triple BBF configured

- SHUTTER: Metering Start
- AF-ON: Metering and AF Start
- *: Metering and AF Start but with subject detecnion OFF
- FOCUS POINT SELECTION: Af with eye control

How do I lock exposure now?

I am asking because people keep on telling me that by half pressing shutter the exposure is supposed to be locked, but this is not the case in any metering mode and/or shooting mode and/or focusing mode.
Thx

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

stevet1 — Tue, 17 Sep 2024 13:01:29 GMT

thegios,

What does your manual say about AE lock?

I know that on my camera, half-pressing the shutter takes an exposure reading, but doesn't lock it. That's done by pressing the * button.

Steve Thomas

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

thegios — Tue, 17 Sep 2024 13:10:13 GMT

R5 Mk2 (like also R5 and R6 Mk2 and many other Rx) have by default AE-LOCK assigned to * button and shutter button doing both metering adn AF. When you do BBF you remove AF from shutter and assign it to another button. In my case I have three buttoins doing BBF: AF-ON, * and focus-points selection (all three doing different Af stuff).
I am left with no buttons for AE lock.
I could assign AE Lock to shutter button, like Fuji cameras do, but KI am not sure if this makes sense.

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

p4pictures — Tue, 17 Sep 2024 17:18:50 GMT

There are other choices for where to put the AE lock, and even the type of lock you want. One option is to use the depth of field preview button, though actually I would suggest using AE-lock with hold on that one. You just have to remember to press it to lock the exposure and then press it again to unlock the exposure.

Check this section of the manual to find out what buttons you can assign for the AE lock you want to use.

https://cam.start.canon/en/C017/manual/html/UG-08_Customize_0030.html

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

stevet1 — Tue, 17 Sep 2024 21:01:39 GMT

thegios,

I have a T8i, which is not as sophisticated as your camera, but I have mine set up so that the shutter button does the metering, and the AF-ON button does the focusing. The * button locks the metering, and if I want to HOLD that lock for longer than the standard six seconds, I hold down on the AF-ON button.

I also use AI Servo exclusively.

Steve Thomas

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

Waddizzle — Tue, 17 Sep 2024 23:02:40 GMT

Welcome the Canon Community.

The default behavior for all Metering Modes when using One Shot AF is to lock exposure when focus locks.

The default behavior for all Metering Modes when using Servo AF is to lock exposure when the shutter is fired.

When using default Meter Mode, Evaluative Metering, the entire scene is taken into account but the exposure is biased at the locked AF point. This behavior helps to make sure your focused subject is getting the proper exposure setting.

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

thegios — Wed, 18 Sep 2024 06:34:51 GMT

Waddizle, yes thanks this I know but

1. What if in One Shot I want to take exposure in a point different from focus point?

2.Whatbif in Servo I want to lock exposure regardless if subject being tracked moves?

By the way I have an R5 Mk2 with plenty of buttons but probably not enough 🙂

I could assign to shutter button the AE Lock but then the following won't work

3. In SERVO I want the exposure to be calculated each time I take a picture in burst while following the subject

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

thegios — Wed, 18 Sep 2024 06:44:09 GMT

Waddizle actually I have another question at this point

- servo

- spot metering

- subject tracking on

- I point center focus point on subject, subject gets in focus and tracked, I start shooting in burst, the subject moves out of the center but camera keeps on tracking him while I shoot: whe is the exposure calculated at each shot? Always at the center being in spot metering?

Remember I have an R5 Mk2 where this new option is available: https://cam.start.canon/en/C017/manual/html/UG-03_Shooting-1_0490.html

but only for Evaluative, while my scenario above is spit metering where subject is being tracked in the whole area: original metering is taken at focus point in the center where spit metering is, but then subject moves while still being tracked in focus.

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

p4pictures — Wed, 18 Sep 2024 08:35:31 GMT

When you select spot metering and also partial metering there is a grey circle overlaid in the viewfinder and on the LCD at the centre of the frame. This is indicating the area that the metering is using. It does not move from the centre of the frame even if the AF points move.

I have to contradict @Waddizzle in the way EOS cameras automatically lock exposure.

When a camera is set to evaluative metering and one shot AF, exposure is automatically locked when the AF locks. For any other metering pattern; spot, partial or centre weighted there is no automatic exposure lock with one-shot AF, and the metering continues to update until the photo is taken.

For servo AF there is no automatic exposure lock with any metering pattern.

This is the true for all EOS DSLR and EOS R series mirrorless models.

When the EOS 6D Mark II was introduced Canon added a new custom setting that is now in many cameras that will change the above default AE-lock process. The custom function allows the photographer to choose which metering modes will have automatic exposure lock when using one-shot AF.

Here's some links to the relevant pages in the EOS R5 Mark II manual.

https://cam.start.canon/en/C017/manual/html/UG-03_Shooting-1_0480.html

Make sure to expand the note for the details.

https://cam.start.canon/en/C017/manual/html/UG-09_Custom_0030.html#Custom_0030_2-3

Some cameras - EOS-1D series DSLRs mostly, but I expect the EOS R1 too - have a custom function that changes the behaviour of spot metering so that it is linked to the AF point position, not exclusively at the centre. Here's some pages from the EOS-1D X Mark III manual where this is covered.

https://cam.start.canon/en/C001/manual/html/UG-03_Shooting-1_0270.html

https://cam.start.canon/en/C001/manual/html/UG-08_Custom_0030.html#Custom_0030_1-6

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

thegios — Wed, 18 Sep 2024 09:28:26 GMT

Yes correct, I forgot to mention this, since this is the very first thing I configured on my R5Mk2 (BTW: I've had an R for 6 years before).

Sometimes I wonder if Canon is over-engineering...

Let me recap:

WHEN METERING IS LOCKED
- ONE SHOT
  - EVALUATIVE: at focus
  - SPOT ETC: at shot unless forced by new option "AE lock meter. mode after focus"
- SERVO
  - ALL: at shot
WHERE METERING IS TAKEN
- EVALUATIVE: whole area with abias on focus point(s)
  QUESTION 1: what does this option does then: https://cam.start.canon/en/C017/manual/html/UG-03_Shooting-1_0490.html
  I evaluative already has a bias on focus point(s) what's the purpoose of this "Detect priority AE while AF"?
- SPOT ETC: at the center
  QUESTION 2: if I have SPOT METERING but also subject tracking on, if I point center of frame (the spot) on the subject and focus, the metering is taken at center on the subject, but then the subject moves off-center and since is being tracked the focus points follow the subject: where is now metering taken, still at the center?

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

thegios — Wed, 18 Sep 2024 10:18:23 GMT

After some tests, probably I have an answer to QUESTION 2: metering is taken at center on the subject, but when the subject moves the focus is still on the subject but metering is still taken at center and as a matter of fact changes whiel subject moves off center

I still don't have an answer to QUESTION 1

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

p4pictures — Wed, 18 Sep 2024 14:47:19 GMT

For your QUESTION 1

The new ability in the EOS R5 Mark II to choose to bias the evaluative metering to the subject or not works like this.

The camera must be set to evaluative metering, subject detection cannot be set to NONE

In such case the detected subject in the frame will be the most important part for the exposure system, even if other parts of the frame are in-focus but not a subject. You can imagine a person stood in a doorway, the face is the important subject, even though the door frame is also in focus.

When Detect priority AE while AF is off, then all the in focus AF points are considered as being important areas for the metering. This is also the effect when subject to detect is set to none.

Hope that helps.

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

thegios — Wed, 18 Sep 2024 15:31:29 GMT

This helps indeed, because I had the same interpretation: to me there is a distinction between SOMETHING in focus and a SUBJECT in focus, where SUBJECT can be a person, an animal or a vehicle. I had dis discussion with someone else in an other forum who would say: why a chair in focus should not be a SUBJECT, and to me the reason is that otherwise Canon would not have made a menu option for SUBJECT detection on/or where you have a limited list for subjects (person, vehicle, animal).
So according to waht you say:

EVALUATIVE + "Detect priority AE while AF" ON + "Subject to detect" ON: metering on SUBJECT
EVALUATIVE + "Detect priority AE while AF" ON + "Subject to detect" OFF: bias toward whatever is on focus
EVALUATIVE + "Detect priority AE while AF" OFF + "Subject to detect" OFF or ON: bias toward whatever is on focus

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

p4pictures — Wed, 18 Sep 2024 18:05:01 GMT

Agreed that's how I read it.

And for good measure when you use the AF areas with the padlocks they force subject detection to none and also whole area AF tracking off, so this setting is not relevant for them either.

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

thegios — Wed, 18 Sep 2024 18:11:43 GMT

"when you use the AF areas with the padlocks"

What do you mean here?

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

p4pictures — Wed, 18 Sep 2024 22:19:02 GMT

The EOS R5 Mark II has four additional AF areas each with a padlock in the lower right corner.

Check the second screen illustration on this page of the EOS R5 Mk2 manual

https://cam.start.canon/en/C017/manual/html/UG-04_AF-Drive_0060.html

These "padlocked" AF areas also force subject to detect to none and switch off whole area AF tracking, so that these areas will work the same as the ones in the original EOS R5. But since they have no subject then the "Detect priority AE while AF" setting is not used, simply the active focus points.

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

thegios — Thu, 19 Sep 2024 04:01:16 GMT

Oh yes yes, I know... Apologies but couldn't associate "padlock".

Thanks again

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

jeffn54 — Fri, 27 Sep 2024 00:40:28 GMT

I have not tried the specific configuration of the BBF button you have defined here. But, I found in most if not all cases I can lock the Exposure with the * button on the back.

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

p4pictures — Fri, 27 Sep 2024 07:55:03 GMT

You are correct that the * button locks the exposure normally on most cameras. However the OP mentioned that they had reconfigured their * button to work as an additional focus button with different settings to the AF-ON button, and in-doing so needed a different way to access the AE-lock function.

Re: EOS R5 Mark II: BBF and AE Lock

KFSC307 — Mon, 05 May 2025 08:57:19 GMT

I guess the thing that confuses me is that despite one shot, with spot focus, and the AE lock after focus set up on my R5M2 is that if I lock the focus, and then recompose, the meter keeps moving along reading wherever I am pointing the camera. I see no evidence of anything being locked. I came from the Nikon environment and when I chose AF/AE lock, it locked the AE where I focused on the subject, and the meter did not twitch at all when I recomposed.

I realize that by shooting in manual that it makes little difference as to AE lock, but I find it annoying that you cannot get clarity even when choosing AE lock after focus. Maybe I am doing it wrong, but so far, it makes no difference. It is like an option that does nothing.