p.1 #1 · Conclusive evidence on best R7 shutter mode?
I've read/watched so many different opinions now that I have no idea if there is really a "right" answer. I'm primarily taking wildlife/bird shots and most of those are not high speed and/or high action. I've taken some great shots in EFCS, but some of what I've seen indicates that electronic shutter has resulted in a higher keeper rate. My primary difficulty has been with longer distance targets. If I can't get eye tracking then my keeper rate is vary low. Could this be shutter shock or just technique? Any strong opinions about which mode is producing the most high quality images?
p.1 #3 · Conclusive evidence on best R7 shutter mode?
I've had that happen occasionally, but not as much as what I seem to read/hear about. Generally, when one of a series is good the others have been as well (primarily with EFCS so far). I definitely haven't seen the every other or every third shot in/out of focus consistently. My main problem so far has been longer distance shots (even when mounted on a stable tripod) and/or situations where I use only single point focus or subject tracking. My keeper rate has been much lower in those situations compared to eye focus tracking. I'm not convinced it's a shutter issue, just curious if there has been a truly conclusive reason to shoot primarily in one mode or the other. I'm relatively new to photography, so technique could definitely be an issue.
p.1 #4 · Conclusive evidence on best R7 shutter mode?
Mmeece wrote:
I've read/watched so many different opinions now that I have no idea if there is really a "right" answer. I'm primarily taking wildlife/bird shots and most of those are not high speed and/or high action. I've taken some great shots in EFCS, but some of what I've seen indicates that electronic shutter has resulted in a higher keeper rate. My primary difficulty has been with longer distance targets. If I can't get eye tracking then my keeper rate is vary low. Could this be shutter shock or just technique? Any strong opinions about which mode is producing the most high quality images?...Show more →
There are differences in shutter shock depending on the lens.
I made a table that is stuck on the back of my camera. The shutter speeds are the minimums I found usable for a long lens.
If the subject is not moving or moving slowly, then ES can be used. EFCS [H] gave best results over a wider shutter speed range and is fast enough for certain action.
Overall it is best not to the use R7 if you don't have to. They desparately need to update the sensor readout speed and hopefully without AA filter.
R7 ES* Speed EFCS Speed MS Speed
Mode FPS FPS FPS
H+ 30 N/A 15 1/250** 15 1/250**
H 15 N/A 8 1/60 6.5 1/250**
L 3 N/A 3 1/60 3 1/250**
* Rolling shutter
** 1/250 - 1/400
p.1 #5 · Conclusive evidence on best R7 shutter mode?
What lenses and do you use IS (image stabilization)?
So you're saying that if it's single point AF or just subject tracking, that if it's off, all images in a sequence are equally bad?
At far distances there are atmospheric factors that can degrade image quality. Just the way the wind wafts the air can change things from one moment to the next, whereby you could have a good sequence and moments later it's all worse. With non-eye subject tracking, AF isn't necessarily locked onto a set spot on the subject and might jump around. But I would expect this to be more of a factor at closer distances where critical eye focus compared to other parts of the animal would be more noticeable. And at closer distances these mirrorless cameras are a lot more consistent at finding and locking onto eyes.
As EB-1 noted, the R7's sensor is not exactly cutting edge state of the art. It's slow and perhaps AF performance suffers due to loss of focusing cycles caused by blackout from the physical shutter blades, whereas e-shutter does not suffer from such blackout. But that wouldn't explain performance differences between regular single point AF, subject tracking AF and eye tracking AF. With single point AF and small subjects it can be difficult to keep the focus point consistently on the subject. Depending on the AF case settings, momentary positioning on something other than the subject could cause AF to jump. This would be less of a problem with subject tracking AF, but if the subject is small or challenging and the background is distracting enough, it's possible AF could lose consistency.
p.1 #6 · Conclusive evidence on best R7 shutter mode?
Using a Sigma 500mm F4 DG OS (does have IS). When I've had this issue all the shots in the series are just about equally bad. I do think that part of the issue could be the background and/or lack of contrast now that you mention it. It's possible that I'm simply expecting too much with a relatively small subject at a long distance. Subject tracking has worked a little better than single point, but when I get eye tracking my keeper rate is much higher. I've veered off from my main question, but it's certainly possible that the shutter mode doesn't have anything to do with this. Going on a trip soon and will hopefully have some larger animals for some test shots.
