gdanmitchell
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This is a tough question, and I don't think the answer lies entirely with the camera. The fact is that the camera can AF on any target that the AF points detect and the camera has no idea that the bird is any more interesting to the photographer than some tree, a cloud in the background, or anything else that falls into the frame.
For me it took a lot of practice to get to the point where I can follow the bird well enough and smoothly enough in the viewfinder to think about composition, birds position of wings and so forth, and keeping the bird under the center AF point. It you have a background that is at all complex - as opposed to clear sky, etc - you really need to use the center point and keep it on the bird.
You'll still get a lot of OOF and missed shots. I'm convinced that this is pretty much the nature of the game. Shoot lots.
Avoid shooting at very large apertures. A smaller aperture will give you a bit more leeway on focus.
To the extent that you can, think about the background as well. I sometimes shoot from bluffs along the Pacific coast. If a bird comes in below me I know that the camera is prone to AF on the water or the horizon. Tracking under the center point is really critical. (And, again, managing to do this is no easy task - it takes a lot of practice.)
However, if a bird takes a higher trajectory it may have a less patterned background and AF is a bit more likely to be accurate.
In some cases, if you can shoot in a place where birds follow almost the same path as they come by you may be able to pre-focus and turn AF off. (This also points out that getting to know the behavior of the birds is also important.)
Also, try to never give the camera a chance to AF on a further subject or, worse, on nothing. When this happens you may well encounter the searching that you describe.
In the field, this is all a lot more subject to uncontrollable variables than it is in a forum post! :-)
Dan
mikeengles wrote:
Hello
I have this combination and an annoying problem.
I usually use single AF and centre point and find that if I try to focus on a bird in flight, that rather than latch on to the bird at a distance, the camera moves the AF to focus on a nearer point or worse hunts back and forth. What was initially almost in focus in the viewfinder is thrown out of focus and the opportunity is lost. Is there a way of making sure that the camera actually focusses toward infinity rather than to the nearest point. I use the back button to focus.
Mike Engles
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