Canon T4i owners - How is the video autofocus

ghostdog · Jul 16, 2012

I expressed some interest on another thread in the T4i for its auto focusing video. I currently own a 7d and HF G10 camcorder. I was able to take some amazing video on the 7d, but the manual focus became extremely challenging when filming my kids at play. Obviously the camcorder is made for this, but the lack of DOF is the trade off.

My question for T4i owners is how impressed are you with the focus capabilities? Speed, accuracy, touch screen auto focus, other? How does it compare with other HD camcorder auto focus systems you may have experience with?

I'm keeping the 7d, but considering replacing the G10 for the T4i depending on the level of pros and cons. Feedback from actual owners is my first step in my consideration.

Much appreciated.

-Thanks

sdtag · Jul 17, 2012

I've had my t4i for 4 days now. So far I love it. I haven't tried video yet. I will try it this week/weekend and report back.
As a test I should shoot video in my driveway spinning 360 letting the camera focus on it's own?
What spin speed? Maybe 1 revolution in 10 seconds or is that too slow? 5 seconds? You want to see focus accuracy and focus speed?
I didn't get the STM lens, I have the EFS 18-55 lens. Is this a deal breaker?
My neighbors already think I'm crazy, this should help.

hukim0531 · Jul 17, 2012

I thought T4i can only autofocus with STM lens, but it seems other non-STM lenses can be used also. Youtube search yielded quite a bit of results. AF speed is nothing to write home about but seem to work pretty well.

sdtag · Jul 17, 2012

I tried it in my shop this afternoon. It did ok...
BUT
I can hear the little motor on the video playback.
It was dead quiet in there. I stood in one spot and spun a 360. I took 23 seconds, longer than I thought.
1920X1088 @ 29 fps. 23 seconds is a 133 mb file
In one spot I was looking down a row in between some shelves. I think it got confused a little - the video got a little jumpy there.
Overall it's ok, but really, I'm not impressed. I'll keep my t4i for pictures and my video camera for video.

my 2 cents...

hukim0531 · Jul 18, 2012

Yeah, I have Canon HV30 for my videos as well. But I don't usually carry my camcorder with me everywhere while my T2i is usually by my side. I don't take a lot of videos (files are huge) with my T2i but it's there when I need it. I try not to use MF much. If it's bright enough outside I try to stop down the lens as much as possible so the focus is not too big of a deal. I don't think DSLR makers will ever make it as good as their camcorder counterparts. I think they're mostly trying to play a none too hurried slow catch up with each other so the video capability (lack there of) doesn't become their Achilles heel in sales.

sovietdoc · Jul 18, 2012

I am not sure why everyone is so worried about AF in DSLR's. It won't be as good as dedicated video cameras, at least not for a while. A cheap 100 buck camcorder still has better AF than EOS 1D C for 16 grand..

Raian-san · Jul 18, 2012

I rather have manual focus to control what I'm shooting. It's not hard to follow focus with your hand on the lens.

hukim0531 · Jul 19, 2012

I have a difficult time getting the focus right using the dinky LCD screen using MF method, but perhaps I'm not shooting often enough to get used to the process. I think a screen scope like this can help with better focus control while a shoulder rig like this to help stabilize the shot.

Crollo · Jul 19, 2012

It is a photography camera, it is not designed for video purposes and you should never use it as such [there are exceptions but they don't apply here]. Before the digital revolution, nobody ever tried to use their 35mm SLR as a video camera. Making SLRs digital does not change anything.

Rigging the DSLR to be a decent video camera is just pointless. You spend as much money attempting in vain to bring the DSLR to a decent video camera level, and you've spent more then you would if you just bought a video camera that performs better then your DSLR and rig combined.
If you're so concerned about missing valuable moments, bring your camcorder with the same attitude that you bring your photography camera everywhere you go.

TheKenTurner · Jul 19, 2012

Crollo said:
It is a photography camera, it is not designed for video purposes and you should never use it as such [there are exceptions but they don't apply here]. If you're so concerned about missing valuable moments, bring your camcorder with the same attitude that you bring your photography camera everywhere you go.

Rigging the DSLR to be a decent video camera is just pointless. You spend as much money attempting in vain to bring the DSLR to a decent video camera level and you've spent more then you would if you just bought a video camera that performs better then your DSLR and rig combined.
[Before the digital revolution, nobody ever tried to use their 35mm SLR as a video camera. Making SLRs digital does not change anything.]

Are you kidding me? A Canon Rebel will take better video than any camcorder in the same price range. At this point in time, you can't say "it is not designed for video purposes". If you can show me a camcorder that had the same DOF, quality, and settings, then please show it to me.

-Ken Turner

Crollo · Jul 19, 2012

TheKenTurner said:
At this point in time, you can't say "it is not designed for video purposes".

it is not designed for video purposes

It's about as designed for video as my camcorder is designed for photography.

TheKenTurner · Jul 19, 2012

Crollo said:
it is not designed for video purposes

It's about as designed for video as my camcorder is designed for photography.

Are you saying the t200 is better than a T4i for video?

EDIT: also, having a mic jack, HDMI, manual audio controls, live view, flippy screen, and other video features clearly show my T3i isn't built for video at all. I hope you can sense my sarcasm.

-Ken Turner

Crollo · Jul 19, 2012

Are you saying that the T4i is better for photography then a 5DIII?

EDIT: Interesting...

TheKenTurner said:
DSLR is by no means the cheapest way to go. You can get a great (Panasonic TM900 or whatever the newest version is) for about $1000. My T3i + lens is about $1200 by itself.

TheKenTurner · Jul 19, 2012

Crollo said:
Are you saying that the T4i is better for photography then a 5DIII?

EDIT: Interesting...

TheKenTurner said:

DSLR is by no means the cheapest way to go. You can get a great (Panasonic TM900 or whatever the newest version is) for about $1000. My T3i + lens is about $1200 by itself.

Click to expand...

I'm sorry I may have missed it, but when did I mention the 5DIII? Statistically speaking, the 5DIII is better than a T4i. Statistically speaking, the T4i is better than the T200. Also, the t200 shoots in .avi. I feel sorry for anyone that has to edit footage from that.

DSLR is NOT the way to go if you're on a tight budget. BUT for the price, a $1200 DSLR will have better quality than a $1200 camcorder.

Do we have more issues? I'll be glad to back up my views and thoughts.