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How have mirrorless cameras changed the way you shoot?


As someone who has been a regular with the Canon EOS R system for the last few years, I really understood that when teaching students how things have changed for the better with serious mirrorless cameras. full.

I used to spend a lot of time teaching college photojournalists the basics of how focus and exposure work. Often these two key concepts are a really big barrier for beginner photography students to jump over to pursue a career as a good photojournalist, and most of a semester’s time will be spent understanding the fundamentals. this basic rule. This results in less time spent composing photos, understanding lighting, and essentially telling a visual story.

My “bulb moment” shows how much easier things have become when I give students a lesson in sports photography and explain the difference between AI-Servo (it’s AF-C for Nikon photographers) and One Shot (AF-S) mode. When it comes to moving subjects, I usually start by explaining to my students how I’ve more or less done things since the early 2000s, which is picking a focus point, turning on AI-Servo, then continue the subject below that autofocus point no problem. If enough students get there, I’ll start letting the camera pick up on the subject and explain advanced modes like 3D autofocus tracking.

When explaining the same principle to a CHEAP EOS, I was surprised to find that the camera’s face and eye tracking technology is so good, that the old practice, which has served me well for the past two decades, is really not the best way. easiest way. , learn. Today, I explain and point out the old ways, but in reality, the camera’s automated system can do it better. This is no different from the automotive world, where today’s automatic transmissions surpass the once-superior manual transmission when it comes to fuel economy and speed.

The same is true of automatic exposure modes, which themselves have become more complex, but also get a boost from the increased dynamic range of modern cameras. For starters, being able to preview what the exposure and color of an image will look like through the viewfinder before shooting has been more helpful than using a traditional meter to achieve this. there.

All of these advanced functions have made it much easier for my students to get to the heart of visual storytelling. It also got me thinking about my own mirrorless shooting, and what I’m doing differently now that I’ve been shooting for several years with the R system, first with the EOS R and now EOS R6.

Continuous, continuous autofocus

Given the limited popularity of AF points on traditional phase-detection AF systems on DSLRs, I used to switch very frequently between servo and one-shot autofocus modes. For example, if I’m shooting a portrait, it’s likely that I can’t always keep the subject’s close eye below the point of focus, so one shot will allow me to make a bit of focus correction if needed. With the EOS R’s eye-detect autofocus, I was able to keep the camera in AI-Servo mode with eye detection enabled and it would track the eyes basically anywhere in the frame and make sure that even when I’m using the shallowest depth of field I’ll be in focus. It’s even easier on the R6 with the thumb to scroll through the face and eyes as needed. It’s a much-needed control point that Canon has re-added to its camera.

My previous experience with eye detection and autofocus was with Fujifilm’s initial implementation of the feature, which didn’t seem to let me choose which eyes or faces were in focus, limiting its usefulness. its benefits. By being able to select faces, I found that I could even use this method to focus in a demonstration that included dozens of faces in each shot. Eye detection autofocus has, across brands, come a long way and is a game changer for those stepping up from DSLRs. It’s also a lot easier to explain to newbies.

Rotating screen

The caveat I’ve made to students in the past for most DSLRs is not to use the rotating screen for composition, focus, and photography. In general, live view systems have worse autofocus than viewfinder phase detection. With mirrorless cameras, these systems are the same through the electronic viewfinder as on the rear monitor. No more choosing between getting a creative eye composition out of search engines or precise autofocus. You can have both. It’s another game changer with autofocus systems in mirrorless cameras that have evolved to the point where most can compete with even the best DSLRs out there. I was able to get 12 frames per second with autofocus on the R6; That’s better than an EOS 1D Mark IV I paid $5,000 for over a decade ago, at half the cost. I don’t mind using the rear monitors anymore, and that makes my sometimes “shoot from the hip” advice I give students a bit outdated.

I still hate touch screens

One of the reasons I have a love-hate relationship with the EOS R is the touchscreen. As Canon’s first serious entry into the mirrorless camera market, it lost some of the freedoms on traditional Canon controls and replaced many of them with the use of the display. touch or winky touch bar never worked for me and was pitifully killed. I still can’t get used to changing settings or setting up autofocus this way. My students love to do both. I guess that makes me old and stubborn? While it’s nice that the EOS R6 retains all those functions if my students (or other new photographers) want it, I’m grateful for the return of the many tactile buttons, joysticks and dial more.

What do you do differently?

Do you find yourself changing the way you work due to the move to mirrorless? Are there things you love or hate about it? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.





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