Autofocus that defies expectations

Using deep learning AI, trained and programmed by thousands of real-world photographs, the EOS R7 has been equipped to reliably recognise and track subjects over 100 per cent of the frame.¹

When photographing people, the camera always focuses on the eyes if they are visible. If they are not (if sunglasses or a helmet are being worn or the face is turned away, for example), the EOS R7’s next priority is the head, then the body. In this way, people are continuously tracked even if they momentarily turn away from the camera, or even if the face is obscured by a mask. Even upside-down subjects and athletes wearing helmets are recognises and brought into sharp focus.

Photographing birds in flight is one of the biggest challenges for wildlife photographers. But the EOS R7 identifies birds and can track them perfectly as they fly through the landscape, letting you capture every subtle movement at up to 15 fps using the mechanical shutter, or 30 frames per second when using the camera’s electronic shutter.² Cats and dogs are also recognised by the camera’s algorithm.

And for motorsports photographers, the EOS R7 also tracks vehicles, including motorbikes and cars. The camera can even distinguish between closed- and open-cockpit cars, focusing on the driver’s helmet if this is visible.

The initial or starting AF point or zone can also be set so you have control over where to start and the camera tracks from there.

The EOS R7 can be told to prioritise one type of subject over another, and even how fast to switch between different subjects that enter the frame – good for when you are photographing a specific athlete, for instance.

What suits one subject might not suit another, which is why we’ve given the EOS R7 four AF cases – focusing behaviour presets designed different ways of working.

Case 1:
General. Ideal for most moving subjects

Case 2:
Ignores obstacles and keeps tracking subjects. Good for sports and wildlife when subjects may be momentarily obstructed by objects in the foreground.

Case 3:
Responds quickly. Use when you’re waiting for a subject to appear in the frame: a mountain biker suddenly jumps into the frame, for instance.

Case 4:
For subjects that accelerate or decelerate quickly, such as motorbikes entering or exiting a corner.

Case A [AUTO]:
Let the camera automatically choose the most appropriate of the above cases for the subject.

651 focus zones are spread out across the entire frame. Use them together when tracking fast moving subjects or individually or in groups when you want to be more specific. The EOS R7’s Flexible Zone AF allows customisation of the size and position of the AF area, to suit your exact requirements.

1-point AF
Be completely in control, focusing with a single AF point. Great for macro work.

Spot AF
Focus with an even smaller area than 1-point AF, for ultimate selective control.

Expand area AF (Above, below, right or left)
A single AF point is selected, and the camera also uses focus points above, below and to the sides to assist – useful when you need to be selective, but the subject is also moving.

Expand area AF (Around)
Similar to the above option, but with more assisting focus points for even more accuracy with moving subjects.

Flexible Zone AF
Group single AF points together into a zone, which can be moved around the frame. The camera will choose AF points from this zone only, tracking a moving object as it moves within it. This is a good tactic when you need to concentrate on subjects in a certain part of the frame.

Whole area AF
Uses all of the EOS R7’s 651 focus points simultaneously, finding and tracking objects wherever they are in the frame.

When it’s dark, the EOS R7 still focuses without hesitation, locking on accurately in light as dim as -5EV³ . Thanks to this sensitivity, autofocus is also possible with very narrow maximum apertures – as small as f/22. This enables autofocus even when using ultra telephoto lenses with teleconverters.

When you pick up the EOS R7 you’ll notice your thumb resting naturally on a four-way AF controller that’s used to move the active focusing point or area around the frame. It’s surrounded by a customisable control wheel, so you don’t have to hunt around for other functions.

With the camera to your eye, you can also touch-and-drag with to move the active focus point – using the touchscreen like the trackpad on a laptop.

For those who like ‘back-button focusing’, AF can be initiated either by an AF-on button on the back of the camera, instead of a half-press of the shutter release. This AF-on button can also be used to start and stop tracking and change AF orientation modes.

Depth of field is shallow when you’re working close up, so the EOS R7’s focus bracketing is a great asset for macro photographers. A single press of the shutter-release button triggers continuous shooting while focus is adjusted automatically from its initial position towards infinity.

The resulting series of pictures – all at slightly different focus points – can be merged into a single composite image using our Digital Photo Professional software, for perfect front-to-back depth of field. Additionally, the EOS R7’s depth composite feature now allows this process to take place in-camera, with depth-of-field cropping allowing photographers to specify where focus starts to fall off.

Dual Pixel RAW
Every pixel on the EOS R7’s 32.5 megapixel sensor is split into two photodiodes, each of which sees a slightly different view of the world – just as your eyes do. This small difference – known as parallax – is what enables the camera to autofocus so quickly and accurately.

Normally, when a photo is captured, the signals from both photosites are merged to form the final image. But when the camera is set to Dual Pixel RAW mode, each photosite’s signal is saved separately, as two images within in the same RAW file.

When editing such Dual Pixel RAW files in Canon DPP software, it’s possible to adjust certain parameters to refine the final result.

Image Microadjustment
When an image isn’t quite sharp enough in a specific area, it’s possible to adjust this to achieve critical sharpness, thanks to the depth information in the image file.

Bokeh Shift
With Dual Pixel RAW it is possible to adjust the position of out of focus areas, or ‘bokeh’, to enhance composition, for example moving an out-of-focus foreground object that is obscuring the subject.

Ghosting Reduction
Light shining directly into the lens can cause internal reflections, otherwise known as ‘ghosting’. This can be controlled with Dual Pixel RAW and minimised with careful adjustment.