Dog Park! AF mode testing.

[pixmedic]

wanted to try out some of the D7100's different AF modes and see how they worked. there's quite a few to choose from.
AF-C, AF-A, 5,9,21,51pt,auto, 3D Tracking... lot of options to choose from.
What I learned from all the testing is....None of it means squat if your shutter speed is too slow to stop moving objects.
But, that's what I get for dickering around too much with the AF stuff and not paying any attention to my other settings.
a few came out ok(ish).

The 3D tracking is pretty good. probably a little better with people and facial tracking. with the dogs, it had a hard time distinguishing their heads from their butts. 51pt AF was cool, but I got a lot of missed focus shots, especially with the dogs running.
AF-C and AF-A arent really that much different. AF-A is just Nikons "auto" AF mode where the camera can distinguish between moving and still objects. I liked it since i didn't have to switch modes from continuous focus to single.

Anyway....next time i think i will just drop into shutter priority, set my SS a little higher, and let the camera take care of the rest. I only took the 85mm out today, so had to do a lot of cropping. Ran them through LR for a quick edit before export, then as an afterthought, re-sized in MS paint 'cause the files were too big to upload here.
The Retriever in the blue harness is our rescue, Magic.

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[Parker219]

Dogs running / playing is one of the hardest things to capture IMO. I think you did a great job. As far as the focus goes, it looks good to me. For some reason, I like pics 4 and 5 the best.

 

[limr]

I don't know nothin' about no AF modes, but the pictures look good to me. The first one is a good capture - I like the paws off the ground and the tiny bit of motion blur in the tails. And #4 and 5 are great portraits. Magic looks like he's doing really well!

 

[pixmedic]

this handful was out of about 80 pictures.

 

[JacaRanda]

Gotta love the dog parks. It's time for us to go again.

Once you get all that focus and shutter speed stuff down, get on your knees or grab a stool/bench etc. Get most or more shots at the pooches eye level.
Maybe some shots with them snagging tennis balls.

 

[JacaRanda]

I don't know nothin' about no AF modes, but the pictures look good to me. The first one is a good capture - I like the paws off the ground and the tiny bit of motion blur in the tails. And #4 and 5 are great portraits. Magic looks like he's doing really well!

Yes yes yes - Magic is a Beaut!