Just got back from a soccer tournament, where my mom tested her rebel xti for the first time. However, a bunch of shots were ruined because the focus was incorrect, like here:



Any tips for keeping the correct subject in focus?

manual focus would probably be easier for her. Auto focus lenses have a 'focus spot' in the center of the field of view. If that spot is between the subjects (like in photos, the autos in the background) then thats what will be in focus. So Im sure there is nothing wrong with the camera. They do have a focus hold button, but those can be hard to use (to hold and follow a subject, then get the shot, while still holding the button), manual will probably easier to use.

Like with the meters, if you know what its going to do ahead of time, makes it easier to use. Tell her not to relay on the 'auto focus', like the 'radar detectors' that came out in the 80's lots of people were still getting tickets and wanting to know why, its a radar detector, not a cop detector. IE no radar, no alarms, so folks were not using them correctly. So it is an Auto Focus, but the subject placement is still up to you. (that and the rapid movement of your subjects, can be a pain. It wont find your subject and focus on them. But it would be nice.)
Sports can be really difficult with 'auto focus', most of the sports photogs I knew may have used auto lenses, but rarely used the auto feature.

Especially on confusing backgrounds, either with lots of similar colors, or lots of sharply defined objects. It will have a hard time deciding what to focus on. (that and a rapidly moving subject, well its kind of hard to get all that at once)

EDIT- ya l just looked at the enlarged photo, the camera focused on exactly what it was pointed at.

With the Rebel XTi (or 400d as it is over here) you have to make sure you pay attention to what the camera has focused on. It will show you this by flashing any number of the nine AF points in the viewfinder. The ones that illuminate red are the ones the camera is choosing to focus on. Normally, the xti will pick which AF points to use automatically but you can manually adjust which ones the camera is using by pressing one of the buttons marked with a magnifying glass on the rear of the camera (I think it's the left hand one of the two) and then choosing which point you like with the selection wheel.

Another thing to check would be whether she was using One Shot focus or one of the AI focus modes. One Shot will simply focus and lock on whichever AS point(s) the camera (or you) has picked. AI Servo will continuously track the chosen subject, providing you keep your finger half-pressed on the shutter button. AI Focus will pick which one of the other two modes that it thinks is most appropriate, starting out with One Shot mode then automatically switching to AI Servo if the subject starts to move. Again, you need to half depress the shutter button in order for it to track.

It was on sports mode, which uses ai servo I believe. I'll see if it helps using the set focus point. I just don't think she's really ready to manually focus on sports yet She already has to zoom in and out all the time.

Oh well, we'll try some more this weekend. Hopefully the results will be better.

I set my cannon on manul focus, use a 70 to 300 lens, and a tripod.......

I usually find a spot to manul focus on and then take the photo. IE: if my son is getting ready to bat at baseball, I will pre-focus on the catcher. Then I will fine tune it by picking a spot on him in the center of the lens.

Yea, but baseball is exponentially more predictable than soccer

ar1stotle wrote:

It was on sports mode, which uses ai servo I believe. I'll see if it helps using the set focus point. I just don't think she's really ready to manually focus on sports yet She already has to zoom in and out all the time. Oh well, we'll try some more this weekend. Hopefully the results will be better.

It wont matter the mode, tell her to make sure and keep the CENTER of the focus box on the subject. But again with rapidly moving subjects, the focus will have a hard time keeping up. (I believe its a servo motor, and not a servo mode. But its been a long time.)
Best bet, keep her shooting, taking tons of photos. It will just take time, and being comfortable with the camera.
I do think you are selling her short, however. Manual focus is not that complex, I would bet she can handle it. lol
Whats the focal length of the lens?


EDIT-Ah, I see now, Dan was discussing the two different focusing modes. One is a continuous focus, where the other finds a your subject a locks in on it, requiring you to re-press the focus button to make the lens focus again.

Would focal length be the 75-300mm? It's a telephoto (the kit lens doesn't zoom nearly enough to see across the soccer field).

ar1stotle wrote:

Would focal length be the 75-300mm? It's a telephoto (the kit lens doesn't zoom nearly enough to see across the soccer field).

Yes thats it, and that is a tuff lens to work with. No wonder she is having issues. (the lenght 75-300) thats a large field to cover and be comfortable. Most sports photogs use fixed focal length (but thats probably price prohibitive, more expensive )
Tell her to pick a range and not to mess with the focal length to much (the 75-300 part) and say keep it dialed in on something like 250 or 300, then all she will need to do is worry about focus. Once she has the finding and focusing on a moving target down, then move on to the changing focal length of the lens.
Stick it at 300, then dont move it back and forth.. just working maintaining focus. I only have 2 zoom lenses and both are rather small coverage a 35-70 and a 70-210 neither of which I use very much, the fixed lenses are brighter, lighter and easier to handle (and generally sharper too, not as much glass in them). But I will give that a rest, she has the 75-300, and on a bright day, it should be easy to work with.

Again tell her to stick to one focal length and learn the shooting - focusing bit. Then move on to changing the focal length.
Maybe see if the local art center has some evening photography classes or workshops. She would stand to learn a lot, and might have a real good time doing it also.

I have the same camera and get a botched shot every now and then. I shoot soccer games regularly. For lense I use a Cannon EF 70-200MM F2.8L with Image stabilization coupled to a 1.4 extender. It gets me across the field enough. Long focal lengths without image stabilization will most often produce blurred images at lower shutter speeds and some in even higher shutter speeds. Its most ofthe time not the camera but he lens you are using. the lower the aperature rating the better the lens however they come with a price tag. The lens mentioned above runs around $2400.

I dont use any of the modes. I use the standard "P" and set my own ISO, white balance, and have the focus set to AI Servo for motion. An average game I will click off about 1500 shots at full resolution.

A sample taken about 100 yds away with poor lighting late in the afternoon in the fall of last year.