R1 Settings for larger wildlife
p.1 #1R1 Settings for larger wildlife
I have a Canon R1 that is currently set up for bird photography using Jan Wegener's recommended settings. As a result, my shutter button is configured to shoot at a high frame rate on the half-press, with the full press set to 40 fps.
Later this month I'll be travelling to eastern Finland to photograph bears from a hide. I can't imagine I'll need anything like 40 fps for this type of photography.
For those of you who have photographed bears or other large mammals, what camera settings do you recommend for this sort of situation? If there are any good articles or YouTube videos that cover R1 wildlife settings for bears, I'd be very grateful for any recommendations.
Later this month I'll be travelling to eastern Finland to photograph bears from a hide. I can't imagine I'll need anything like 40 fps for this type of photography.
For those of you who have photographed bears or other large mammals, what camera settings do you recommend for this sort of situation? If there are any good articles or YouTube videos that cover R1 wildlife settings for bears, I'd be very grateful for any recommendations.
Jul 04, 2026 at 02:28 AM
p.1 #2R1 Settings for larger wildlife
I think the camera's standard settings handle large wildlife, especially bears, really well. I don't feel the need to try and tweak any settings in hopes of improving performance like you may do with fast and erratic birds and smaller wildlife. The animal AF detects bears and their eyes really well. The auto case settings AF mode seem to work fine for me. Easily kept up with diving and splashing bears. I would continue to use setting that are intuitive to you. If you are like me when the action happens you tend to shoot with instinct.
If you want to fiddle, you can try the OV sim. view assist in the red menu as it may help you see darker subjects in the viewfinder a bit better. Use the E shutter and turn the sound off. If you don't currently shoot this way in can take a bit of getting use to shooting with no tactile feedback.
Maybe others have more to add
If you want to fiddle, you can try the OV sim. view assist in the red menu as it may help you see darker subjects in the viewfinder a bit better. Use the E shutter and turn the sound off. If you don't currently shoot this way in can take a bit of getting use to shooting with no tactile feedback.
Maybe others have more to add
Jul 06, 2026 at 10:26 AM
p.1 #3R1 Settings for larger wildlife
Fordsabroad wrote:
I have a Canon R1 that is currently set up for bird photography using Jan Wegener's recommended settings. As a result, my shutter button is configured to shoot at a high frame rate on the half-press, with the full press set to 40 fps.
Later this month I'll be travelling to eastern Finland to photograph bears from a hide. I can't imagine I'll need anything like 40 fps for this type of photography.
For those of you who have photographed bears or other large mammals, what camera settings do you recommend for this sort of situation? If there are any good articles...Show more →
This a for the R5 MkII, but applies to the R1 as well.
I use shutter preferred with Auto ISO.
I have the 3 back buttons set to C-AF, single point,and small area.
the M-fn button cycles beteeen shutter preferred, (C1). Aperture preferred with EC set to take 3 shots 1.3 stops apart (C2), and full manual (C3) with the DOF preview EFS button to with Pre-Cp off and on.
I use EFCS at the max 12fps for all except the C3 for pre-cap which is ES at 30fps (bird wings with no rolling shutter)
Big Mammals is usually C1 at 1/1600. As the animal size gets smaller the SS goes up.
Black Rhino, Lewa, Kenya (1 of 1)-2 by Alan Kefauver, on Flickr
I have a Canon R1 that is currently set up for bird photography using Jan Wegener's recommended settings. As a result, my shutter button is configured to shoot at a high frame rate on the half-press, with the full press set to 40 fps.
Later this month I'll be travelling to eastern Finland to photograph bears from a hide. I can't imagine I'll need anything like 40 fps for this type of photography.
For those of you who have photographed bears or other large mammals, what camera settings do you recommend for this sort of situation? If there are any good articles...Show more →
This a for the R5 MkII, but applies to the R1 as well.
I use shutter preferred with Auto ISO.
I have the 3 back buttons set to C-AF, single point,and small area.
the M-fn button cycles beteeen shutter preferred, (C1). Aperture preferred with EC set to take 3 shots 1.3 stops apart (C2), and full manual (C3) with the DOF preview EFS button to with Pre-Cp off and on.
I use EFCS at the max 12fps for all except the C3 for pre-cap which is ES at 30fps (bird wings with no rolling shutter)
Big Mammals is usually C1 at 1/1600. As the animal size gets smaller the SS goes up.
Black Rhino, Lewa, Kenya (1 of 1)-2 by Alan Kefauver, on FlickrJul 06, 2026 at 01:44 PM
|
p.1 #4R1 Settings for larger wildlife
Alan Kefauver wrote:
I use EFCS at the max 12fps for all except the C3 for pre-cap which is ES at 30fps (bird wings with no rolling shutter)
What is your reason for preferring EFCS? Just curious, as most seem to default to e-shutter.
I use EFCS at the max 12fps for all except the C3 for pre-cap which is ES at 30fps (bird wings with no rolling shutter)
What is your reason for preferring EFCS? Just curious, as most seem to default to e-shutter.
Jul 06, 2026 at 04:31 PM
p.1 #5R1 Settings for larger wildlife
rscheffler wrote:
What is your reason for preferring EFCS? Just curious, as most seem to default to e-shutter.
Fast bird wings and rolling shutter. Much better on the MkII... I loaded all the MkI settings to the MkII so could just be habit. Now that the MkII has sound options I could go to ES but I tend to burn too many frames in ES.
Alan Kefauver wrote
I use EFCS at the max 12fps for all except the C3 for pre-cap which is ES at 30fps (bird wings with no rolling shutter)Fast bird wings and rolling shutter. Much better on the MkII... I loaded all the MkI settings to the MkII so could just be habit. Now that the MkII has sound options I could go to ES but I tend to burn too many frames in ES.
Jul 07, 2026 at 11:37 AM
p.1 #6R1 Settings for larger wildlife
Yes, R5II's e-shutter at ~1/160 compared to the R5's 1/60 makes a big difference in action-packed situations but might still be slightly slow enough to show some rolling shutter. In this case with the R5II, EFCS would be the safest choice to maximize 'scan' speed.
As you probably know, the R5II allows setting lower e-shutter frame rates, which I find very useful and another reason I prefer it over the previous generation cameras.
The OP's R1 however has ~1/300 e-shutter scan speed, which is as fast or faster than a traditional mechanical shutter and therefore wouldn't benefit from EFCS. I'd argue EFCS is a hindrance due to viewfinder blackout, though maybe less so with larger, slower moving targets at lower frame rates.
As you probably know, the R5II allows setting lower e-shutter frame rates, which I find very useful and another reason I prefer it over the previous generation cameras.
The OP's R1 however has ~1/300 e-shutter scan speed, which is as fast or faster than a traditional mechanical shutter and therefore wouldn't benefit from EFCS. I'd argue EFCS is a hindrance due to viewfinder blackout, though maybe less so with larger, slower moving targets at lower frame rates.
Jul 07, 2026 at 04:54 PM