Originally posted by clackers Same answer for you, Dan: Show us newer objective tests.
If you want me to show you lab tests with wrong Af settings like the german lab did, I can. Even then it will be hard to beat those results with any camera they used if you give me time to learn the Af from each.
But what's the point in showing bad results due to wrong Af settings? Above I showed you real life examples and below it's the very next burst from the series. I have around 400 images from this shooting with around 280-300 images taken in bursts of 5-12 shots. I usually don't take bursts with more than 5-7 shots, except when it comes to very fast subjects. Out of these 280-300 images, I have around 9 images out of focus and this is mostly because I never shoot with focus priority on the first shot. Knowing very well the cameras I work with, I know what the Af system is capable of and I know that I rather lose the first shot knowing that the next ones will be in focus rather than miss the entire burst by prioritizing the first shot by selecting focus priority for Af. That's why when I test the Af system I always take singular shots also to see how fast and accurate the camera I'm using will acquire focus in challenging situations. I see lots of people using focus priority for the first shot and with fast subjects you may miss the opportunity in lots of occasions. This is another thing that the german lab didn't mentioned in their "respectable" test regarding Af settings.
Again, straight out of camera burst of 9 images. As long as the german lab wasn't using as a subject the mighty Usain Bolt, getting that bad results when shooting faces is doable only if you work hard to fail or if you don't take time to learn a complex Af system with 6 Af cases, multiple Af point selections and various tweaks for each of the 6 Af cases.
Originally posted by clackers They always beat supposition, anecdote and subjective tests, which the internet seems to thrive on, and your post, I'm afraid to say, is exactly the same.
The above images are images taken for fun and given the colors of the horses and given the backgrounds, in a few situations it's hard for the Af system to lock focus (white horse with white background, white horse with people with contrasty clothes in background, etc.). And it did focused for 2 reasons:
1. I know how to set the Af system to get the best out of it
2. I know how to track because it's something I worked on very hard during the years, mostly with 400mm + lenses and by shooting wide open with them rather than fool myself by shooting at f8-f11 to have enough DOF to keep an entire elephant in focus
Originally posted by clackers Here is just one set of *objective* results with a reproducible method from a German lab. Incredible, isn't it?
It's incredible that it's so easy to cancel their tests just by looking at the Af settings they used. I showed the print screen of yours to some of my friends and the Nikon shooters were surprised also by the setting used. This means to me that the german lab just used a combination of wrong af settings, like:
1. Af case not suited for the subject
2. Af point selection not suited for the subject
3. Af configuration for each case they used was untouched or again, used wrong given the subject
4. Af priority vs. Release priority used wrong
5. Lots of wrong combinations from the above 4 points, which is what they did in my opinion.
But, given that we talk about tracking, Auto Af it's not recommended for faces or for birds, with a few exceptions when comes to birds. Next, when shooting sports with a slow lens, it doesn't matter if the focus is on the player's shirt because at f6.3 there is enough DOF to get the face in focus also. This is why the photographer should concentrate in keeping the subject in the frame by using either single point af or 1+4 Af combination. If the camera doesn't have the settings that allow tweaks like ignoring obstacles when tracking af is active, then you rather use single point af to maximize the results. This technique needs practice and also needs a photographer who knows the sport because anticipation is another great "tool" available. When comes to birds, there are lots of variables that can make the Af system to fail but there are also (in some cameras) lots of features that when used right the results are very good.
As I said, the repeatable results of the german lab can be successfully ignored in my opinion given the wrong settings they used from the print screens you posted.
Using wrong Af settings will give repeatable wrong results over and over again. The useful thing to keep in mind from all the comments you made in this topic is regarding the D5 comment of yours where experienced photographers know very well both the subject they are shooting and the camera they use and based on these 2 things they know when the action is so intense that anticipation and pre-focusing can get you the winning shot instead of relying on Af system always. This is a very useful comment for both experienced and inexperienced photographers and you should have bolded it to draw attention to it.
The german lab tests are just for clicks and views.