I've been playing about with CRAW burst mode on my Canon R7; I only went and posted the results and photos in the wrong forum. One aspect I've been concerned about was rolling shutter.
There is a feint possibility some of my photos do exhibit this artifact. On the other had, the disturbance in the wing might have been a result of slow shutter speed.
Until now....
And...
R7 was in Shutter priority, with a minimum speed of 1/2000. It was happy to run at 1/2049.
I later set shutter speeds to 1/5000 and then 1/16000, the fastest the R7 can do.
What do you reckon, folks? Rolling shutter? Slow shutter speed? Combination of the two?
90% luck, 5% field craft, 5% camera skills.
I don't know what differentiates the two, or at least, HOW to differentiate the two, Angus, but my twopenneth is 1/2000 should have been fast enough to freeze the wing, especially on a bright sunny day like that appears to be
Something to consider, how straight was the flightpath, any twisting/turning/avoiding of objects etc and the robin would need to offset the wings to enable a sharp diversion, thus giving the impression of rolling shutter.
I'm only wildly guessing.
Mike
Flickr: Peak Rambler
That looks like rolling shutter though if it is, the right wing is the only one that was moving and it was moving as fast as the sensor could read - if that makes sense.
Check this one and look closely at the feathers that are running vertical on the top wing - clearly the birds right wing feather s were up there but its wing flap beat the sensor read speed to the bottom.
https://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/4736962
Yep, looks like rolling shutter. It's one of the bitter ironies of photography in that the times you really need the speed electronic shutter gives you are also the situations where the problems it can give are most likely to manifest themselves! Tell everyone you worked hard to achieve your artistic vision of capturing the soul of the robin's movement & accept the technology's limitations :-)
___
Find me on Flickr / All about your camera - The Getting off Auto Index
The Robin does launch itself slightly to its right to avoid the small twig to its front left. I think the two photos above are where it is straightening itself out slightly. The last photo containing a robin in the sequence is this. Quite blurry due to tracking not tracking. The Robin is flying straight at this point.
I am not experienced in the ways of rolling shutter to determine if this photo exhibits it. The left wing in particular does not look correct. However, it might be. The shutter speed was 1/2000 - more than sufficient to freeze helicopter blades rotating so fast their tips are supersonic.
Angus, I am no expert in the field of photography but that does look like rolling shutter. Have you tried Electronic First Curtain mode? Only thing about using that mode is the shutter noise and a slower frame rate. I only use Electronic shutter when there is no or little movement in the subject. I love my R7 but it certainly has issues compared to the R5 etc. From what I have read it seems to be an issue with the sensor used in the R7. I have to admit that I will be looking at the R5 Mk2 when it comes out. Won’t be able to afford it but will still look at it.
Kind Regards
Ed
Not sure if these links will be of help. If you have already seen these videos then please accept my sincere apologies.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsmY4f1J0t8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxbfFm79qdg&t=1007s
Wotcher, Ed.
I haven't seen either, so thanks for posting.
Having used my R7 a reasonable amount, I knew the issues and kind of worked out why. Though having the cause of issues confirmed by Canon is really nice.
I did have to groan sarcastically after reading a few comments about Duade's video. Some people seem to expect too much from equipment, but aren't prepared to pay money for the performance they demand e.g. wanting a Rolls Royce with the performance of a Ferrari but at the price of a base level Ford.
What is a little surprising is this. Old school photographers (getting out a light meter, manually setting focus, dialing in correct ISO, actually focusing on subject, etc) would know all about problems shooting in gloomy conditions and low level contrast. Some, possibly most, modern photographers are unaware of this and expect their equipment to get these settings perfectly correct every time to produce professional results.
Duade did emphasis the price point of the R7, which is something I've also commented on. To use the old adage, you get what you pay for. To use another adage, I feel we are getting huge amounts of bang for our bucks.
I've also read that the image processor in the R7 is the same as in the 90D, but with a few enhancements. This would definitely limit it's capability in any camera, let alone a mirrorless one. Technology has moved on apace, whereas the sensor in the R7 is long in the tooth, and needs putting out to pasture. However, I reckon this is one reason why Canon was able to offer the R7 at such a low price. They didn't need to spend millions developing a new sensor, and then having to set a high price to recoup costs.
The R7's auto focusing in low contrast conditions is something I've known about for sometime. Last year, I tried to focus on an air sea rescue helicopter, which was a long way away, against a very cloudy sky, with the sun setting. The R7 could not do it. Hardly surprising. White helicopter, grey/white clouds, low light; even my old MKI eyeballs could barely pick it out.
I'm very happy to know that the focusing/tracking issues I've encountered aren't down to me - well, not wholly down to me. Confirming what I already suspected is also brilliant - so thanks for posting the link to the video.
Interesting that Duade didn't comment on the tracking not being able to keep up with fast moving subjects. Perhaps in another video he does. However, I reckon the same issues will occur, whatever settings are used. The R7 just doesn't have the processing power to cope with fast moving subjects when shooting at high speed. Chuck in compression, and the poor thing will be on its knees with exhaustion.
I take Duade's philosophical view: Live with and accept the limitations of the R7. If people want a more performant camera then splash the cash.
Duade has different expectations to me, which I realised watching the video. He expects either all or the vast majority of his photographs to come out perfect: pin sharp, completely in focus, correct lighting, etc. My expectations are a lot lower. A couple great photos out of a lot will suit me.
My camera's setup is pretty much as Duade describes. One difference is I've set Accel/Decel from -2 to +2. It seems to work quite well. Though I may tinker a bit I now know what it does. Never knew that before.
I wont use electronic first curtain. Seems a cheat to me. Having bought a mirrorless camera, I want to use it in full electronic shutter mode; especially as rolling shutter seems only to occur with fast continuous shooting.
Like you, I love the R7. It enabled me to have a great mirrorless camera at a price I can afford. Similarly, I'll look at and drool over the R5, R3 and up coming R1. Wont buy one unless I win mega big on, say, the premium bonds.