topic Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II in EOS DSLR & Mirrorless Cameras

Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

Skip70 — Tue, 09 Jun 2026 23:39:16 GMT

I just noticed that I am not able to move the manual focus point on any of the modes -- spot, 1-point, zone, etc. Happens with any lens. I've spun both control wheels and the focus point remains stuck in the lower center position. Auto focus point moves around okay, just the manual is stuck.

Is there some setting or configuration somewhere I may have changed to cause this?

Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

deebatman316 — Tue, 09 Jun 2026 23:56:01 GMT

@Skip70 if the lens is set to MF then the AF Points are NOT active. You must manually focus the lens until it’s in focus. This is very difficult in DSLRs since they don’t have manual focus aids in the viewfinder. Like older manual focus SLRs. Live view can help a lot with manual focusing.

Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

Skip70 — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 00:25:30 GMT

Of course, I have the lens set to auto focus. I also indicated that there auto focus points move just fine.

Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

stevet1 — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 01:03:09 GMT

Skip70,

As Demetrius said, the focus points are a function of the camera's autofocus system.

While you are in manual focus, tapping on the screen to move the focus point doesn't do anything at all.

I think what you want to do is position your focus point while you are in Af, and then turn your manual focus on.

Steve Thomas

Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

deebatman316 — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 01:06:29 GMT

@Skip70 Are you trying to use manual AF Point selection. If so do you have custom controls setup by any chance. Can you use the joystick to change AF Points. Also make sure the lock switch isn’t on.

Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

Skip70 — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 01:26:17 GMT

Deebatman316 seems closest to understanding what I'm saying. To be clear, I am simply trying to use the multi-controller or quick control dial (as I always have been able to do) to change the location of the focus point(s) through the viewfinder (not the Live Screen). I am doing this when the focus mode is set to one of the manual modes (spot, 1-point, etc.) Pressing the AF select button has no effect on being able to move the focus point. The auto focus posts move around just fine when I am in an auto focus mode.

I do have some custom controls (such as BBF) but not aware I have anything that would have suddenly changed the ability of the dials to move the focus point. No, the lock button is not on.

Said again, when in a manual focus mode, I was always able to move the focus point around on the grid in the viewfinder. Now it is stuck in the center bottom.

Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

Skip70 — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 01:28:27 GMT

One cannot position focus point when in AF; the camera does that. The operation should be that I a move the focus point (the square) to whoever I want within the sets of focus points in the viewfinder.

Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

stevet1 — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 03:50:38 GMT

Skip70,

All I can say is this:

I have a T8i. My camera does not have an AF/MF switch on the front. Maybe yours does.

If I want to switch between AF and MF, I have to do it with a switch on the lens.

If I am in AF, when I press the focus mode button, all the focus points light up in red, and I can move the focus point with the left and right, or up and down arrows surrounding the set button .

If I am in MF, the focus points do not light up, and I cannot move the focus point. It stays in the center. In the viewfinder, I can't even see it. In Live View, I get a small black rectangle in the center that I can't move.

Steve Thomas

Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

kvbarkley — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 12:28:18 GMT

I think we have a confusion in terms here. When he says "I am doing this when the focus mode is set to one of the manual modes (spot, 1-point, etc.) " he means manual control of the AF point, not using manual focus on the lens.

(On my T6S the AF focus indicator *does* work in manual focus. I get a confirmation beep from the AF system if the camera decides it is in focus after I adjust the focus manually. I have not tried changing focus points while doing this.)

Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

Waddizzle — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 17:00:08 GMT

The only focus point mode that prevents the user from moving the focus point around is Spot AF. The only available focus point is the center AF point.

Just to be clear, I also find your description of the issue confusing. Repeating the same words over and over again doesn’t help.

Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

ebiggs1 — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 17:01:15 GMT

Do a full reset of your camera and then try again.

Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

Waddizzle — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 21:34:01 GMT

Another reason why you can’t move the AF point is your shooting mode. You need to be in set to a creative mode to be able to move around the AF point.

You also need to be in a creative mode to reset the camera.

“ Do a full reset of your camera and then try again. “

There isn’t a single setting that resets the entire camera. The rest option in the camera menu system will perform a soft reset. Ernie is taking about a hard reset, I believe.

Charge up your battery. You are going to have to walk through the entire menu system. There are several options that are not included in the soft reset. If a menu setting opens to its own submenu, then it probably should have its own exclusive reset option.

Once you reset the camera, do not immediately begin entering your favorite settings. Test the camera first.

Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

FloridaDrafter — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 23:00:31 GMT

@Skip70 wrote:

I just noticed that I am not able to move the manual focus point on any of the modes -- spot, 1-point, zone, etc. Happens with any lens. I've spun both control wheels and the focus point remains stuck in the lower center position. Auto focus point moves around okay, just the manual is stuck.

Is there some setting or configuration somewhere I may have changed to cause this?

Hello, Skip!

I have to admit that I am baffled by your terminology "manual focus point". A camera reset is probably in order, but if you haven't done that already, try this:

First, press and hold the AF point selection button, then press the "SET" button. This should re-center your AF point, that is, move it from lower center to center.

Newton

Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

ebiggs1 — Thu, 11 Jun 2026 14:54:21 GMT

"Ernie is taking about a hard reset, I believe."

"Once you reset the camera, do not immediately begin entering your favorite settings. Test the camera first."

Absolutely, you need to make sure there isn't some setting somewhere perhaps by mistake and this is the fastest way to get back to square zero. I don't have a 6D Mk II to try but if the full reset doesn't fix it then it is probably not possible on that model. This is simply basic advice when things don't go as wanted.

Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

Waddizzle — Sat, 13 Jun 2026 07:52:09 GMT

“ I just noticed that I am not able to move the manual focus point on any of the modes -- spot, 1-point, zone, etc. Happens with any lens. I've spun both control wheels and the focus point remains stuck in the lower center position. Auto focus point moves around okay, just the manual is stuck. “

Hello again, Skip, Are you trying to use Live View shooting mode?

Let’s reset the conversation and stop talking past one another. Find some common ground between what’s being said and how it’s understood.

First and foremost, the 6D2 is a camera designed for use with auto focusing lenses. It does not have the type of manual focusing aids that were found in film cameras sold decades ago.

Those old film cameras had a single focusing area in the center of the optical viewfinder. You could not move the focusing point. Its location was fixed.

Photographers had to find work arounds if they wanted the primary area of focus to be elsewhere from the center. A common work around was called “focus and recompose.” You would center the subject in the center of the frame, and then reorient the camera slightly before firing the shutter.

Because the 6D2 is first and foremost a camera designed for use with auto focusing lenses, photographers had to create work arounds to the camera with manual focusing lenses.

The camera was designed to allow for these work arounds. The camera would use the center AF point in the optical viewfinder, just like you would with a film camera and a manual focus lens.

That is how you would use the camera with a manual focus lens. No matter if you are using the optical viewfinder or the rear Live View screen.

A point of confusion has been your description of where your “manual focus point” is located in a lower corner. The camera doesn’t have any manual focus points. The only has auto focus points, some of which can be activated when you use a manual focus lens. However, this active AF point MUST be defined using an auto focusing lens.

Most users choose the center AF point. The camera will not allow you to reselect an auto focus point when the camera is not in auto focus mode. I hope this helps.

Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

Skip70 — Wed, 17 Jun 2026 11:05:35 GMT

As suggested by a couple of you, I reverted to factory settings and did a hard reset of the camera just to be sure. The manually selected focus points seen in the viewfinder now respond to the dial on the camera, as it should.

Re: Manual focusing point will not move - Canon 6d Mark II

ebiggs1 — Wed, 17 Jun 2026 15:09:40 GMT

Great, glad it worked