topic Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me? in EOS DSLR & Mirrorless Cameras

Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

ilzho — Fri, 22 Jul 2016 13:41:17 GMT

Ok, I am trying to understadn about back button focus, but I am not truly underatnding it.

Can someone dumb this down for me?

There are a lot of people who love it and I am not grasping the concept.

I have a 7d mark ii, shoot mostly in ai servo, burst mode, center point AF.

Thank you,

David

Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

kvbarkley — Fri, 22 Jul 2016 13:43:50 GMT

It is just a method of decoupling the focus function from the shutter button. It allows you to focus and then press the shutter any number of times without changing focus.

Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

TTMartin — Fri, 22 Jul 2016 13:53:11 GMT

@ilzho wrote:
Ok, I am trying to understadn about back button focus, but I am not truly underatnding it.

Can someone dumb this down for me?

There are a lot of people who love it and I am not grasping the concept.

I have a 7d mark ii, shoot mostly in ai servo, burst mode, center point AF.

Thank you,
David

Back Button Focus is having to press two buttons instead of one.

You camera normally defaults so that AF and metering starts when you half press the shutter, and the shutter activates when you fully press the shutter.

Back Button Focus requires you to press a button on the back of the camera to activate focus (and removes it from the shutter button), and then press the shutter button to activate the shutter.

For AIServo and tracking moving subjects I would advise you do NOT use Back Button Focus.

The advantage of Back Button Focus is that you can suspend AF by releasing the rear button. The disadvantage of BBF is you have to press two buttons most of the time in order to be able to occasionally suspend focus.

Instead all non-Rebel dSLRs since at least the 40D have an AF ON button on the back. This can be reprogrammed to AF OFF.

By doing this you can suspend AF by pressing the now AF-OFF button. This means that you only have to press two buttons occasionally when you want to suspend focus, instead of most of the time with BBF.

Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

ilzho — Fri, 22 Jul 2016 14:00:22 GMT

Ok, this helps

I have no problem pressing the shutter button half way to achieve focus, although I still have lots to learn.

Thank you,

David

Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

Waddizzle — Fri, 22 Jul 2016 17:13:09 GMT

@ilzho wrote:
Ok, this helps
I have no problem pressing the shutter button half way to achieve focus, although I still have lots to learn.
Thank you,
David

To each his own, I guess. I like BBF, most especially in AI Servo mode. Why? I have a couple of reasons.

Because I am not good at half depressing the shutter.without activating the shutter, or losing focus lock. Picking out a bird on tree limb in the middle of a tree is much easier when you can press the shutter and not have the camera refocus, dropping focus on the bird. Holding the BBF button is as natural as holding the camera, for me. I have found it most useful with lenses that allow for MF override, because I can switch between MF and AF on the fly.

http://www.learn.usa.canon.com/resources/articles/2011/backbutton_af_article.shtml

Like i said, to each his own. I suggest you give it a try, and see if you like it. As noted above, the default behavior is that the camera engages AF when the shutter is half depressed. BBF separates engaging AF to a separate button. You will also have to remove AF from the shutter button, too.

Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

TTMartin — Fri, 22 Jul 2016 17:44:42 GMT

Waddizzle wrote:

Picking out a bird on tree limb in the middle of a tree is much easier when you can press the shutter and not have the camera refocus, dropping focus on the bird. Holding the BBF button is as natural as holding the camera, for me. I have found it most useful with lenses that allow for MF override, because I can switch between MF and AF on the fly.

All of that can also be done by pressing the AF-OFF button when needed.

I find the times I need to suspend focus, like those you mentioned above, occur a lot less than times that I want continuous focus.

So for me, I would rather press two buttons sometimes, rather than two buttons most of the time.

Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

Waddizzle — Fri, 22 Jul 2016 17:54:58 GMT

"All of that can also be done by pressing the AF-OFF button when needed."

If you mean holding the AF-OFF button, so that you can manually override the AF and turn the focus ring just seems more complicated to me. Pressing the shutter becomes a third task: focus ring, AF-OFF, and shutter.

Like I said, to each his own. If I want to manual focus, I simply tap BBF, turn the focus ring, and press the shutter when I want. I can hold the shutter button half-depressed to keep MF Override engaged. If I want AF, I just hold the BBF button for AI Servo mode, or tap it briefly for "One Shot", even if the camera is in AI Servo Mode.

I don't think there is no one right way to always use the camera.

Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

Waddizzle — Fri, 22 Jul 2016 18:03:31 GMT

"Because I am not good at half depressing the shutter.without activating the shutter, or losing focus lock."

Holding the shutter is easy. Holding the shutter while the camera is moving is not. Holdng and moving is hard for me.

Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

ilzho — Fri, 22 Jul 2016 20:34:52 GMT

Well I will give it a try, eventually.....

Thanks

Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

ebiggs1 — Sat, 23 Jul 2016 15:01:16 GMT

It is one of those things where if you need it, it is great. If you don't it's useless. Most of the time it is useless if all you shoot is the run of the mill things. It can even hurt in some situations. I rarely to never make use of it.

Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

ilzho — Wed, 27 Jul 2016 22:26:28 GMT

Ok, so I am going to try the BBF tomorrow.

I can't seem to find step by step instructions on how to turn it off/on.

I went into custom and disabled the AF from the shutter button and made it metering, but what do I choose for the AF-ON button? There are a few option and I want to make sure I get it right.....

Thanks.

Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

Waddizzle — Thu, 28 Jul 2016 00:14:58 GMT

@ilzho wrote:
Ok, so I am going to try the BBF tomorrow.
I can't seem to find step by step instructions on how to turn it off/on.
I went into custom and disabled the AF from the shutter button and made it metering, but what do I choose for the AF-ON button? There are a few option and I want to make sure I get it right.....
Thanks.

Check out the article at the link that I posted above.

Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

RobertTheFat — Thu, 28 Jul 2016 00:18:24 GMT

@ilzho wrote:
Ok, so I am going to try the BBF tomorrow.
I can't seem to find step by step instructions on how to turn it off/on.
I went into custom and disabled the AF from the shutter button and made it metering, but what do I choose for the AF-ON button? There are a few option and I want to make sure I get it right.....
Thanks.

Be sure you're looking at the unabridged version of the instruction manual. I.e., the one on the CD or downloaded from the Canon Web site, not the printed version delivered with the camera (which often seems to be incomplete these days).

Don't be preoccupied with "getting it right". Concentrate on expanding your reach and learning from what you do wrong.

Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

ilzho — Thu, 28 Jul 2016 00:29:04 GMT

I agree, I'm learning, relearning, taking it slow.

I have a lot of questions, (look the answers up online or youtube, some good, some not), but as long as I take it slow and figure out what I did wrong/right, this is how I'm going to learn.

A few weeks ago at a race, there was a band peforming and I took pictures. They asked me to send them some and I did and they loved them.

They want me to take more pictures of them performing, I told them I was a beginner and they didn't care. So I agreed to this Sat night (free). So I'm trying to get a little more knowledge and power before then, but the more I shoot, the more I learn......

Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

jrhoffman75 — Thu, 28 Jul 2016 16:00:28 GMT

http://www.p4pictures.com/2014/11/back-button-af-eos-7d-mark-ii/

Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

ilzho — Thu, 28 Jul 2016 20:27:14 GMT

I'm liking the BBF.

It makes feel that I have the camera a little more secure in my hand.

I like that I don't lose focus on a static subject, (just like one shot, i guess).

I do like it in AI servo, hopefully my thumb doesn't get cramped.....

I think I can get used to it.

Thanks for the articles and help.

Re: Can someone dumb down BBF back button focus for me?

Waddizzle — Fri, 29 Jul 2016 14:28:48 GMT

@ilzho wrote:
I'm liking the BBF.
It makes feel that I have the camera a little more secure in my hand.
I like that I don't lose focus on a static subject, (just like one shot, i guess).
I do like it in AI servo, hopefully my thumb doesn't get cramped.....
I think I can get used to it.

Thanks for the articles and help.

Like anything new, it takes a little getting used to. I was fully assimilated after just one afternoon shoot.

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I have big hands, so having a battery grip makes the camera a little taller and more comfortable for me to hold, irregardless of whether or not I'm pressing BBF or not. Without the grip, like on my son's 7D2, my fingers are a bit balled up and cramped, mainly because his camera lacks a battery grip.

I like the balanced weight that a battery grip gives the camera when used with heavier lenses, like the EF 70-200mm f/2.8. If you do purchase a battery grip, I would highly recommend that you stick with a Canon grip. The Canon grips typically have the same texture, contours, and button placement of the landscape grip. And, any L-Bracket that you might buy for your camera w/grip will be made by a third party, and so it will be designed for the exact shape of the Canon grip, not a third party grip.