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<\/p>\nOne more example of the Canon R5’s autofocus capabilities.<\/p>\n
When I first purchased the Canon R5 I got many requests from readers asking what I thought of its autofocus performance. I’ve responded several times with examples of photos that I’d have been highly unlikely to get sharp if I hadn’t been using the R5. But similar examples keep happening so today I’ve decided to present several more.<\/p>\n
I’m not presenting these photos because I think they’re necessarily aesthetically pleasing. I suspect their colors are too warm throughout for them to have much appeal for many of my readers. And because the colors of bird and background are so similar the hawk doesn’t stand out particularly well.<\/p>\n
But that’s part of what makes the AF performance of the R5 in these examples so impressive.<\/p>\n
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A week ago today the first bird I got in my viewfinder was this adult Red-tailed Hawk. It was very soon after dawn so the light was extremely warm, making the similarly-colored bird and background blend in with each other even more.<\/p>\n
As usual I was hoping for takeoff and flight shots but I was pessimistic about getting them sharp because there was so little contrast between the hawk and the background and because the hawk in flight would be so close to the cliff behind ‘him’. Little contrast and a close background would be two strikes against me in my attempt to get the hawk sharp in flight.<\/p>\n
Based on past experience I figured that once he took off the only thing I’d get sharp would be the cliff in the background. I had to remind myself that I was now using the R5 so maybe I had a chance to keep him in focus after all.<\/p>\n
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I wasn’t surprised to get the actual takoff shots sharp. After all, he was likely sharp while he was perched so…<\/p>\n
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why wouldn’t he be sharp while he was leaving the perch and even…<\/p>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/red-tailed-hawk-7865-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"red-tailed-hawk-7865-ron-dudley\\"")
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very soon after?<\/p>\n
I’ve left the next shot in the series out because his left wing put his head in deep shade, but he was sharp.<\/p>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/red-tailed-hawk-7867-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"red-tailed-hawk-7867-ron-dudley\\"")
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It was about here that I expected to lose focus on him but I didn’t.<\/p>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/red-tailed-hawk-7868-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"red-tailed-hawk-7868-ron-dudley\\"")
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He’s still sharp. This is probably my favorite photo in the series because just for a moment he presented his wings vertically.<\/p>\n
I’ve left the next photo in the series out because once again his head was in deep shade. But he was still sharp.<\/p>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/red-tailed-hawk-7870-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"red-tailed-hawk-7870-ron-dudley\\"")
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This is the last unclipped photo I got of him because he suddenly dove downward at a fairly steep angle so I lost him in the frame.<\/p>\n
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He was sharp in every shot I got of him. That just wouldn’t have happened with any of my previous cameras – instead I’d almost certainly have locked onto the cliff behind him. The R5’s animal\/eye detection feature came through once again.<\/p>\n
It doesn’t always come through, especially with very small and very fast birds, but in situations like this I’m beginning to learn that I can often count on it.<\/p>\n
Ron<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
One more example of the Canon R5’s autofocus capabilities.<\/p>\n