I've been cooking up a full write-up on the R3, but, decided against publishing it. Instead I'm going to share a set of anecdotes...
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Eye controlled AF works well despite what others may have said. I'm an eye-glass wearer in full disclosure. Some notes...
1. You may need to calibrate it a few times, and, sometimes calibrating it with your glasses off, and then with glasses on, helps. Different calibrations exist for different lighting. I have a calibration for indoors and one for outdoors, for example. It makes a big difference I should add.
2. Works in conjunction with Subject tracking. With People, or any of the other tracking methods, eye-controlled AF is "Weighted" by your eye-tracking, it will actually lock unto things outside of the focus point nearby that are identified as a subject. Eye-controlled AF works more as a means of selecting which subject. You can override this by either not using a subject tracking (OFF), or by overriding it, see #4 below.
3. I find setting AF type to cross point or zone 1 (customized) works best vs whole frame. Set zone 1 to 2 sizes smaller on the vertical and horizontal is about right. Makes the square a bit bigger than a 9-point cross, which is just right for dealing with slight variance of the eye-controlled AF detection.
4. If you need to use exact AF point, no subject detection, you can override it temporarily by assigning M.Fn2, DoF preview or Exposure lock buttons (amongst others) to "OFF" subject tracking. Useful if you want to shoot say the food in front of the person of choice, not a person, etc. To do so...
Customize buttons
Select for Example M.Fn2 (what I have set)
Select "Switch to registered AF Func." PRESS INFO
Toggle "Subject to detect"
Tap on "Subject to detect"
Select "OFF"
.
In practice the way this works is like DoF Preview... When M.Fn2 is depressed, subject tracking is "overriden" to OFF, vs People, which I have it set to by Default. Releasing M.FN2 will switch it back to People in my case, which I’m usually shooting making this an ideal setup for quickly overriding the default behavior for exact AF instead of subject tracking.
5. Autofocus works best in Electronic Shutter vs Mechanical or EFCS. Presumably this is due to the focal plane / autofocus data isn't interrupted 12 times a second. Helps in demanding situations like dark venues with fast moving kids. Perhaps this may have played a role in Nikon's decision to go full ES on the Z9?
6. A 1DX thing, smart controllers aren't enabled by default if you want to use them. You have to set them up first. Eye-controlled AF is "better", but smart controllers were the best thing till eye-controlled AF came along and are a good means of exact AF focus for whatever reason and are superior to the AF joystick that is also available.
7. Setting AF to M.FN1 vs the AF button, is more efficient, and, limiting AF methods to those you want makes it a one button affair that’s fast an efficient. I have Cross type, Zone 1 (which I've again customized to two sizes smaller than default) and whole frame enabled meaning I only ever need to hit M.FN1 maybe twice to get to where I want. I use whole frame when shooting from the hip, where eye-AF isn't available because it isn't being held up to my eyes. I use the modified zone 1 most of the time and cross point when I need more precision or the camera subject detection doesn’t agree with me before I go M.FN2 override above. This is very quick in practice and becomes second nature despite the explanation sounding complex.
8. AF Cases are still needed, despite how advanced the R3 is. AF case 4 for example, hits my kids in the swing with the highest degree of hitrate. Practically flawlessly I might add. But AF case 1 or "AUTO" doesn't do as well. I have it on my "My menu" for quick customization.
9. Eye-controlled AF has limits, particularly with bright backlight situations. Canon sells a large eyecup for the R3 which is ridiculously big. Presumably this solves the problem, but creates a weird looking beast. This would be a time where switching to smart controllers is warranted. Doesn't happen often though, but at the right time of day, sure, it's a limit of the sensor technology apparently.
10. If you get a bad calibration, blow it away and make a new one. It is that easy, and don't be afraid to. Don't forget to name your calibrations too for the light conditions, or venue. I have my eye-AF calibrations in "My Menu" again for quick access.
The R3 leaves little to be desired when you understand it and use it correctly. I’ll touch on more aspects in later series like handling, image quality, etc.
.
Eye controlled AF works well despite what others may have said. I'm an eye-glass wearer in full disclosure. Some notes...
1. You may need to calibrate it a few times, and, sometimes calibrating it with your glasses off, and then with glasses on, helps. Different calibrations exist for different lighting. I have a calibration for indoors and one for outdoors, for example. It makes a big difference I should add.
2. Works in conjunction with Subject tracking. With People, or any of the other tracking methods, eye-controlled AF is "Weighted" by your eye-tracking, it will actually lock unto things outside of the focus point nearby that are identified as a subject. Eye-controlled AF works more as a means of selecting which subject. You can override this by either not using a subject tracking (OFF), or by overriding it, see #4 below.
3. I find setting AF type to cross point or zone 1 (customized) works best vs whole frame. Set zone 1 to 2 sizes smaller on the vertical and horizontal is about right. Makes the square a bit bigger than a 9-point cross, which is just right for dealing with slight variance of the eye-controlled AF detection.
4. If you need to use exact AF point, no subject detection, you can override it temporarily by assigning M.Fn2, DoF preview or Exposure lock buttons (amongst others) to "OFF" subject tracking. Useful if you want to shoot say the food in front of the person of choice, not a person, etc. To do so...
Customize buttons
Select for Example M.Fn2 (what I have set)
Select "Switch to registered AF Func." PRESS INFO
Toggle "Subject to detect"
Tap on "Subject to detect"
Select "OFF"
.
In practice the way this works is like DoF Preview... When M.Fn2 is depressed, subject tracking is "overriden" to OFF, vs People, which I have it set to by Default. Releasing M.FN2 will switch it back to People in my case, which I’m usually shooting making this an ideal setup for quickly overriding the default behavior for exact AF instead of subject tracking.
5. Autofocus works best in Electronic Shutter vs Mechanical or EFCS. Presumably this is due to the focal plane / autofocus data isn't interrupted 12 times a second. Helps in demanding situations like dark venues with fast moving kids. Perhaps this may have played a role in Nikon's decision to go full ES on the Z9?
6. A 1DX thing, smart controllers aren't enabled by default if you want to use them. You have to set them up first. Eye-controlled AF is "better", but smart controllers were the best thing till eye-controlled AF came along and are a good means of exact AF focus for whatever reason and are superior to the AF joystick that is also available.
7. Setting AF to M.FN1 vs the AF button, is more efficient, and, limiting AF methods to those you want makes it a one button affair that’s fast an efficient. I have Cross type, Zone 1 (which I've again customized to two sizes smaller than default) and whole frame enabled meaning I only ever need to hit M.FN1 maybe twice to get to where I want. I use whole frame when shooting from the hip, where eye-AF isn't available because it isn't being held up to my eyes. I use the modified zone 1 most of the time and cross point when I need more precision or the camera subject detection doesn’t agree with me before I go M.FN2 override above. This is very quick in practice and becomes second nature despite the explanation sounding complex.
8. AF Cases are still needed, despite how advanced the R3 is. AF case 4 for example, hits my kids in the swing with the highest degree of hitrate. Practically flawlessly I might add. But AF case 1 or "AUTO" doesn't do as well. I have it on my "My menu" for quick customization.
9. Eye-controlled AF has limits, particularly with bright backlight situations. Canon sells a large eyecup for the R3 which is ridiculously big. Presumably this solves the problem, but creates a weird looking beast. This would be a time where switching to smart controllers is warranted. Doesn't happen often though, but at the right time of day, sure, it's a limit of the sensor technology apparently.
10. If you get a bad calibration, blow it away and make a new one. It is that easy, and don't be afraid to. Don't forget to name your calibrations too for the light conditions, or venue. I have my eye-AF calibrations in "My Menu" again for quick access.
The R3 leaves little to be desired when you understand it and use it correctly. I’ll touch on more aspects in later series like handling, image quality, etc.
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