R5 focus problems after 1.8.1 update - anyone else?

[JonnyPInk]

I waited to update to see if there were problems and up until last week, everything was spot on as for as autofocus and eye AF. After the update, it is spotty. I have really bad focus drift and starting to miss way to many shots with with 500 F4 and 1.4 tele. Again, up until the update, it was one of the best I had used. Happening on other lenses as well where it just will not focus on the subject without manually focusing first.

[Tronhard]

I hope the measures that John and I have suggested will work for you.

[johnrmoyer]

I also have the EOS R5 and latest firmware, but not the same lens. I hope some of this might be helpful anyway. Immediately after updating the firmware, I saw some odd behavior, but everything went back to normal after I removed and replaced the battery. I mostly use EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM +1.4x III or 2x III for birds.

Odd behavior I saw included camera menus not acting like documented in the manual. I speculate that having long EF lens with extender attached during firmware update not all data structures are reinitialized during reboot unless battery is removed and replaced, or maybe lens removed and replaced. Removing and replacing battery appeared to fix it for me, but I also switched lenses a few times.

The camera seems to me even better at finding the eye of a bird among branches than before the update, but maybe a little worse if the focus difference is very different from what is needed. Focusing on a tree trunk at about the same distance as the bird seems to me to make the camera able to find the eye of the bird.

Great Crested Flycatcher (Myiarchus crinitus) in Norman, Oklahoma, United States on May 6, 2023

Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) in Norman, Oklahoma, United States on May 5, 2023, EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM +1.4x III, 1.6x crop mode and additional cropping to reduce size for upload

[JonnyPInk]

Thank you!!! I am going to rent either the 100-500 or buy it. I really want the RF 800 and may rent that as well. But I will try some of the other lenses I have. I I have switched the battery and the lens. The 70-200 with the 1.4 tele did seem a bit better. And if not, i will try resetting everything. Thank you for the info and suggestions.

[Tronhard · Accepted solution]

I shoot the RF 100-500 with the R5 and it is a brilliant combination, with an extremely high keeper rate. I hope that you find that too.

[JonnyPInk]

Thank you, thank you!! I just rented that lens - the problem is with my old lens and it needs service. So, time for a new lens and I think it will be the RF 800. I can still get some amazing shots with my old 500 F4 but now the stabilization in the lens is squealing so I have to turn it off. 💖 Good excuse to get some new glass!!

[LeslieP]

I've just updated from 1.7.1 to 1.9.0 and am having the exact same issue with the exact same setup (except my 500mm is the latest one, not the first version). Animal eye AF has just lost the plot now! I photographed a squirrel from super close range, totally clean background, pretty clean foreground, they literally have a pale eye ring around their eye, it should have been the easiest eye to pick up of most mammals and it was failing HARD. I mean hard, like the squirrel would roughly be in focus when I pick up the camera, I hit the eye AF like I normally would for it to lock on to at least the animal if not the eye right away and it wouldn't even grab the animal! It's picking up pieces of bark in the foreground or just searching! But this squirrel is taking up most of the frame with a distinct eye (see photo), there is no reason it should be doing that and it never has in the past. I've been using this combo and these settings for YEARS and I've never had issues, this is a major bummer because I'm definitely not in a financial to just get a new f4 telephoto lens! Hoping this gets fixed soon.

[LeslieP]

I'm having the same issues with my 100-500, no teleconverter, the AF is terrible now, both single point and eye AF. All since the update 

[shadowsports]

Greetings Everyone and Happy Holidays,

2 things worth mentioning. Firmware v1.9.0 is available for the R5.  No reason not to be using it.

The RF 100-500 has a MFD which varies depending on set focal length.  If you try to focus on something (using eye detection) and are closer than the minimum MFD for the set focal length, the camera will not lock focus accurately.  True of any lens of course.  🙂

[philipsouth]

Yes, even in 2024, new out of the box and same issues, you're not alone.... I waited a few years to allow the kinks to work themselves out.  SO....  I did an internet search for this same exact reason and this forum came up.  I finally decided to climb aboard the R5 mirrorless group after shooting the last 20 years with all the renditions of the Mark 5D's.  I am nearly regretting my purchase now but not giving up yet.  I want the camera to work so bad, I came to this site in desperation.  I've lost sooo many great opportunities these 2 months that I've owned the R5.  I purchased the R5 (firmware 1.8.1 pre-installed) with with the RF 100-500 lens and shot after shot is blurry, (even on a tri-pod with slow moving birds such as pelicans are worthless shots). I have shots at 1/1200+ with birds nicely framed and I can't get the auto focus to lock on for a second, it just continues to hunt and by the time it does, the birds long gone. I joined up with a photo group excursion a couple weeks ago and 2 others photographers in the group couldn't understand it either. I've also watched dozens of different tutorials on bird settings, field tested the settings and still 90+% of my shots are worthless.  So many people rave how good birding is with this combo, that's why I got it.  Please Help!!