Program 2 Buttons to Exposure Compensation - 7D Mark II

[MK44]

7D Mark II. I would like to program Exposure Control to 2 bittons; One +1 stop and a second -1 stop. Hocever, it appears you can only have 1 value. So the last one Ienter is used for both buttons.

I may be able to do it another way. Is it possible to assign C1 and C2 to buttons. I don't want to have to look at the top of the camera to invoke C1, C2 or C3. That way I could set C1 to + 1 stop and C2 to - 1 stop and assign C1 and C2 to two different buttons.

[Tronhard]

I shot with the 7d and 7dII for well over a decade.  I shoot wildlife which can be very similar to action shots - wild animals don't sit nicely for a shot, especially on the wing or in the hunt, so I hope I have some understanding of the issues.

I know of no way to assign EV compensation to custom buttons.  I would suggest that, even if one could assign an EV value to a C1-C3 button, the need to turn a dial on the top of the body is still there.   Even if one could assign the function to different buttons (which I believe is impossible) one would still have to remember to reset this after use, so the issue you express would still exist.

With all due respect to your experience and skill, the use of an EV dial, and having to remember to reset are simply things one learns to deal with.  Have you considered  the alternative to shoot in M mode and just use the front and rear dials respectively, so no need for use of the EV dial?

[MK44]

Tron,

Who said anything about EV (electronic viewfinder I assume)?

Let's say I'm shooting a bird in flight. That bird may have started below the tree line but still have sun shining on it. If the bird is any distance away, the background will take up a large amount of the frame and cause the ISO (I've been shooting in M mode 1/2500sec and f6.3 or 7.1) auto ISO to a create a very light image.

Conversely, the opposite is true when the bird goes above the tree line into a bright sky that causes the image to be too dark (actually, not the whole image but the bird).

The ideal would be to program the AF-ON button to +1 stop (or more) and the * button to -1 stop. When I press the button, compensation is on and when I release the compensation is off.

But it appears you can't program two buttons with different values for the same parameter. The value for exposure compensation for both buttons would be the last value programmed in.

So I'll leave AF-ON for +1 stop and I'll have to do something else to get -1 stop. Programming the Set button may be best. However, when I release it the value doesn't go back. So in this case I'll have to do it manually. Using C1,C2 or C3 isn't an option as I would have to take my eye away from the viewfinder and look at the top of the camera. What would also be good was if I could program those two buttons to invoke C1 and C2. But I don't see a way to do that.

[Tronhard]

"Who said anything about EV (electronic viewfinder I assume)?" 
Actually, your presumption is incorrect. If you Google the question "what is an EV dial" you get:

The term is in pretty standard use across all camera makers.

In the case of the 7DMkII, as I am sure you are aware, that function is assigned to the rear control wheel, and is accessible when you have pressed the focusing/exposure button. 
As to the rest, I fail to see that since you have shot with the 7DII for an extended period, why the need to assign the function of Exposure Compensation to a button when it is right at your finger (actually thumb) tip and has been for as long as you have used the camera?  But whatever...

[Waddizzle]

“ In the case of the 7DMkII, as I am sure you are aware, that function is assigned to the rear control wheel, and is accessible when you have pressed the focusing/exposure button. “

Shooting in M mode with ISO set to Auto.  I use the main wheel for Tv, the rear dial wheel for Av, and the [SET] button plus the main wheel for Exposure Compensation.  I think of it as Ev mode.

Also, I do not use BBF.  Instead, I program the BBF button for [AF-OFF].  I have found Zone AF point selection makes tracking BIF very easy.  The camera is going to lock onto the nearest subject to the camera, which will be your BIF nearly all the time.

If I lose tracking on the BIF, a quick tap on {AF-OFF] resets the AF system back to the Initial AF Tracking Point that I have defined, which is the center AF point.  I can use the R6 mark II the exact same way, as well as all my DSLRs laying around.

That’s what works for me.  Every camera I pick up behaves the same way.

[Tronhard]

Bill, I'm not really commenting on BBF or not - I'm commenting that there is such a thing as an EV dial and that by default its function is assigned to the rear dial - that's all...  To me, is a convenient and consistent way of overriding the exposure chosen by the camera.  As to the rest, I am rather bemused...

[Waddizzle]

I’m just saying the default behavior of the rear dial in M mode is Av control, not exposure compensation.  That’s all.

As far as BBF goes, using a rear button for focusing means I cannot focus and adjust exposure at the same time.  If I keep AF on the Shutter Button, I still cannot do both at the same time, but it is a much easier move with the forefinger from shutter to main wheel.  

As long as I keep the BIF in the frame, the camera reacquires focus almost immediately.  I cannot both focus and adjust EC, but I can switch very quickly.  For the most part, though, I rarely need to adjust EC because metering is locked on the BIF.  Background being light or dark does not really come into play.

[Tronhard]

I agree that the rear dial is Aperture control in manual mode, but in other modes, such as Av mode itself once the shutter button is half pressed one can turn that dial to enact exposure compensation, i.e. it becomes a EV dial for that purpose.  I really DON'T want to get into a debate about the merits of BBF and conventional focus.  Yours works for you and mine works for me, which is excellent!
To belabour a point that I was trying to make. I was simply trying to explain that there is such a thing as an EV dial and where that function is located, in default configuration on the camera body. From P57 of the 7DMkII Advanced User Guide: ref point 2.

[MK44]

Yes, I know about EV. I just had my mind on something else.