The Digital Photo Guy

This is On the Level

Most people who do landscape or architectural photography own a spirit level. Also called a bubble level, it’s usually mounted in the camera’s hot shoe and the purpose is to assist in leveling the body side-to-side and front-to-back. The problem with these levels has alwasy been lousy workmanship (too loose, too tight, too sensitive, too insensitive, etc) and cost. Because they’re made of acrylic blocks, they’re prone to damage. Below are two from Jobu Design, I use the one on the right.

Well, citizens, Canon has a better idea and it works like a charm. In fact, Canon gives you two ways to view and use the built-in, electronic level on a 7D. Yes, you read that correctly. It’s built-in, as in no more fumbling around for the little acrylic level somewhere in the bottom of your gear bag and it’s electronic meaning it’s consistent and accurate. Click to read more

Spot and Expanded AF Points

These two features seem diametrically opposed in terms of usefulness. Spot AF is an extra small AF Point inside a normal AF Point while AF Point Expansion increases the size of the AF Point by selecting points around it.

As seen in the above left photo, Spot AF uses a smaller area inside the normal AF Point. The actual Spot AF Point is actually a bit larger than the small box but stll smaller then the large box (did I just write that?).

As you can imagine, that tiny AF area can be handy for macro photography. How many times have you tried to focus on a very tiny detail but couldn’t be sure you got it until the photo was on the screen? Click to read more

Getting the Best Out of Your Canon 7D Auto Focus

The Canon 7D has turned out to be one of the most capable Canon mid-range dSLRs ever. It’s not just new, it’s revolutionary in mid-range dSLRs. It has so many new capabilities that it’s difficult to pick just one or two as my favorites. One feature I apprecate the most is its new AF system.

Anyone who keeps up with things dSLR knows about the new 19-point AF system. Compared to the older 9-point system, 19 points is a huge improvement. It allows precise selection of just the right AF point for just about any scenario. If that were the only improvement, it would be big but Canon didn’t stop there.

My personal favorite new feature within the 19-Point AF system is the new Zone AF. Click the image below to see the different zones that can be selected.

Using the standard Canon AF Point Selection button on the back top right and the new M-Fn (Multi-Function) button, I can cycle through all the AF Area Selection Modes I’ve enabled. Yes, you heard that correctly. I can choose which of the 5 AF Area Modes to enable so I don’t waste time cycling through unneeded modes. 

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Compositing Photos

As always, whenever I post an article I receive a flurry of e-mails asking, “How’d you do that?” This week, it was about replacing the dull Parisian sky with a bright blue SoCal sky. This is a pretty simple task so I prepared a short 3 minute video.

How Your Camera’s AutoFocus Works

(and why you should care)

I posted this as a question on a site I visit from time-to-time and no one either knew the answer or cared. Therefore, I decided my readers were a better audience for something a bit more technical but, nonetheless, important to getting the most out of your camera gear.
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