PowerShot SX70 HS How to use autofocus

[LucyLou]

Hi all.  I’m adept I shootings in manual mode with my Canon R5 but I just purchased the Power shot SX70 HS.  How to use the autofocus has me baffled.  I press the auto focus button but I don’t see a difference in the viewfinder.  I have this nightmare fear that I’ll return from my 3week trip to India and all my pictures will be out of focus. Help!  

[backe · Accepted solution]

Hey LucyLou! On the SX70 HS, make sure the AF mode is set to Face + Tracking or 1-point AF in the menu. Also, half-press the shutter button, not just the AF button; it should lock focus, and you’ll see a green box in the viewfinder if it works. 

[normadel]

Using autofocus is the default for the camera. Start by looking at your User Guide for basic setup and picture taking. Unless you specifically set the camera for manual focus, it autofocuses. Unless you are too close to what it is trying to focus on, that is.

https://gdlp01.c-wss.com/gds/1/0300032371/03/pssx70hs-ug3-en.pdf

You may want to do a Reset back to all default settings, to clear any settings you made unwittingly.

[normadel]

If you have not already taken your India trip, I highly suggest you study the SX70 HS user guides you got with the camera, and downloaded from here, to learn what the controls are:

https://www.usa.canon.com/support/p/powershot-sx70-hs

There ISN'T an AF Button. There is an AF Point Selection button on the camera, what backe is referring to. There is an AF LOCK button on the screen. Neither one is a focusing button.