# Your Canon EOS 5D Mark III user tips



## Bosman (Aug 16, 2012)

I personally own the EOS 5D Mark III, I would like to start two threads for the new EOS cameras. This thread is here for you to offer shooting tips be it lighting and exposures with the 5D Mark III, focus points, Autofocus Case settings, Iso's, anything that you select in camera to get your best image captures for what you do. Please be generous with your tips, this will be a big help for all who own the camera!


----------



## Bosman (Aug 16, 2012)

Use your AF cases, they make a difference! For bikes in Triathlons Case 3 is what you need. Most other shooting ive done works well in case one but the servo and focus speed get a good shot in the arm on Case 3, i moved the accel/decel from +1 to Zero so it tracks the subject more than just switching to another subject on me and it works quite well. Shooting people on bikes is a challenge because they move fast and there are often times a pack coming at you and to get everyone you need to focus and re-compose lightning fast. Case 3 works well for this scenario. Learn about the three adjustments you can make within each case and read carfully how it affects the af and taylor it to how you want it to respond to your input. I usally shoot single point focus but with bikes trying single, 4pt, 8pt, 4 pt seemed the best. I haven't found surrounding points shooting to help much but this does seem to work well in some situations.


----------



## Bosman (Aug 16, 2012)

I have included the Autofocus guide for the 1dx and 5dm3 for easy access to the info. They use the same system so the info provided can be used for both cameras. The file is 3.5 mg as opposed to 12.


----------



## Gadger (Aug 16, 2012)

Thanks for the AF Setting Guidebook for the 5D Mk III, was getting a little confused :-[ compared to my 5D Mk II

Gadger


----------



## Bosman (Aug 16, 2012)

Glad to help! Knowledge is power!


----------



## Cptn Rigo (Aug 16, 2012)

Nice thread.

One of my favorite "custom" settings of the 5d mkIII is programming the "depth of field preview" to work as an "AI SERVO" quick switch. It work as a charm


----------



## bdunbar79 (Aug 16, 2012)

For ultimate control of shutter speed AND aperture, set ISO to AUTO in manual mode. This is particularly useful when using spot metering, and you want a specific aperture and shutter speed and don't want to suddenly have to worry about ISO.


----------



## Cptn Rigo (Aug 16, 2012)

Another cool feature is the "Register AF point", the way I use it is:
- Customize the AF-ON button to work as Registered AF point (pressing
- Select a focus point 
- Press the "AF point selection" button (The one that looks like a cross) and LCD illumination button at the same time
- Move the focus point elsewhere

Now, with the half shutter you use your main focus point, and with the back focus point immediately shift to the stored one 

Pressing AF point selection + ISO speed will reset the storaged focus point

Note:
This will work too with the "Depth of field preview" custom setting that I already posted 

Page 326
http://gdlp01.c-wss.com/gds/8/0300007348/01/eos5dmkiii-im-c-en.pdf

;D


----------



## canon816 (Aug 16, 2012)

Bosman said:


> Glad to help! Knowledge is power!



One of those "The more you know" ads with the shooting star just flashed back from my childhood.... but seriously... cool thread to start.


----------



## janvehrenkamp (Aug 17, 2012)

Cptn Rigo said:


> Another cool feature is the "Register AF point", the way I use it is:
> - Customize the AF-ON button to work as Registered AF point (pressing
> - Select a focus point
> - Press the "AF point selection" button (The one that looks like a cross) and LCD illumination button at the same time
> ...



pro tip:
unbind focusing from the shutter button and use af-on and * to focus.
getting used to it might take a day or two. but now even my girlfriend agrees.


----------



## Jotho (Aug 17, 2012)

Bosman said:


> Glad to help! Knowledge is power!


Thanks for starting this thread. I don't have to contribute with, but have a question instead. I shoot golf. The swing is a very fast motion and difficult to catch, I've become quite good at picking cool angles. But when it comes to maximize the no of frames I'm not sure how to do it. Obviously making sure I get a very fast shutter speed, I crank up the ISO a bit and open the aperture and let's the camera pick shutter speed, should I do the other way around? Pick shutter speed in TV mode? Any other settings? AF cases? AF points? Metering? Any tips are welcome. I have a 5D Mkiii, mostly I use my 24-105L. I shoot RAW and have set it to register to the CF card. I currently live in South East Asia, this means that it is normally very light even with overcast.


----------



## te4o (Aug 17, 2012)

janvehrenkamp said:


> Cptn Rigo said:
> 
> 
> > Another cool feature is the "Register AF point", the way I use it is:
> ...



yes, but in this case if you want to use the pre-registered point as quoted you need to set shutter for metering only, AF-ON for pre-registered and *(Metering) for AF-ON. I do that and use Mf-n for Metering stop. My pre-registered AF point is usually 2/3 to the left and the set point is to the right so I don't get confused with left and right as AF-ON button is to the left of the * button. 
Thanks for the Case 3 tips, I tried to start a thread like this about AF cases but it was too early probably and people haven't had enough chance to experiment and figure out their ways. Good timing now!


----------



## keithfullermusic (Aug 17, 2012)

DOF set to servo is the most useful thing ever in my opinion.

When doing sports, go to M, then setup your aperture and shutter speed and go auto ISO, and make sure to set the auto ISO range.

I also love the grid in the viewfinder.


Those are my basic tips.


----------



## Bosman (Aug 17, 2012)

keithfullermusic said:


> DOF set to servo is the most useful thing ever in my opinion.
> 
> When doing sports, go to M, then setup your aperture and shutter speed and go auto ISO, and make sure to set the auto ISO range.
> 
> ...


What do you do when your subject is heavily backlit? Auto iso only lets you have 0 comp. This is one thing i wish canon allowed with auto iso, i often comp +1 stops over when backlit, i have even had to do 2 stops over but wit highlight tone priority it just smooths things out for you.


----------



## Bosman (Aug 17, 2012)

Jotho said:


> Bosman said:
> 
> 
> > Glad to help! Knowledge is power!
> ...


Well, I'd get the main focus point on your guy with the golf club, once you have it switch auto focus off. Shoot F7.1 or so and set to one shot instead of servo since you turned your lens focus off. Also set to the highest shutter speed available. Use manual and set to F7.1 then adjust your shutter speed to say 1/4000 or higher if the exposure is close to the middle. Adjust your iso until all metering is showing a correct exposure then fire away. I shoot manual so for consistency i don't rely on my camera to make adjustments for me. It helps especially when a person wearing black comes into the frame because in other than manual your camera will most likely over expose the person. Its not as much of a problem with the 5dm3 in my testing however.


----------



## bdunbar79 (Aug 17, 2012)

janvehrenkamp said:


> Cptn Rigo said:
> 
> 
> > Another cool feature is the "Register AF point", the way I use it is:
> ...



I personally did that on my 1D4 and didn't like it. Personal preference.


----------



## SuperC142 (Aug 17, 2012)

By default, the directional "multi-controller" is unassigned. I assigned "AF point direct selection" to that. This makes it super-easy to select a different focus point (and more likely for me to do). _Especially_ when using very wide apertures, I've learned that it's far better (more reliable) to focus with your shot already composed the way you want it, rather than center-focus and re-compose.

Thanks for starting this thread! I'm *very* new to photography (in fact, my 5D3, which I received earlier this week, is my first SLR). These sorts of tips are invaluable to someone like me.


----------



## keithfullermusic (Aug 17, 2012)

Bosman said:


> keithfullermusic said:
> 
> 
> > DOF set to servo is the most useful thing ever in my opinion.
> ...



In cases like that I shoot in full M, AV, or TV. With the last two I bump up the exposure compensation. Usually at ground level you don't have to worry about it too much because there is usually something in the bg. But yes, I agree that it's not perfect.


----------



## bdunbar79 (Aug 17, 2012)

Bosman said:


> keithfullermusic said:
> 
> 
> > DOF set to servo is the most useful thing ever in my opinion.
> ...



I do a spot meter shot. Then if it's off, I use EC or read the ISO value and do it with ISO. I'm going to check my 1D4 and 1DX tonight and see if auto ISO will utilize EC or not. I don't think it does either. Problem with 5D3 is you can't spot meter off any other point than the center. This is where a 1D body is very useful. It can be done, however, you just have to make sure to take your spot meter reading and then lock it.


----------



## Bosman (Aug 17, 2012)

If you could exposure comp with auto iso in good light, it would rule! But...it doesn't...


----------



## Bosman (Aug 17, 2012)

Oh, like many have done here you can make your depth of field button by your lens mount activate the camera to servo mode while holding the button down. I prefer this because most of my images at a wedding are single shot shooting style and when they walk down the aisle i can get them in servo mode until that is done. i highly recommend it.
I have tried doing focus with the af button on the back of the cam then activating the shutter separately but i never liked pushing that button on my 1dm3 because it gets uncomfortable to do after a few thousand shots. I tried it again with the 5dm3 but again didnt like it so i do what works for me but there are advantages because if your subject doesnt move you hit the focus one time and after that just activate the shutter and the focussed area won't miss track or change. Its like turning the switch on a lens to af-off without having the trouble of forgetting you turned it off and fire off a bunch of images that are miss focussed.


----------



## AlexB (Aug 23, 2012)

Long time reader, first time poster here. Might aswell try to make it something constructive and hopefully helpful.

My tip: AE lock & Hold

I normally shoot in manual mode, but sometimes it happends that I wander into the lands of Av.

My problem with Av (and any other auto-exposure functions) is that whenever there is a big variation in the amount of light on your subject and on the surrounding scene and background, it tends to either get overexposed or underexposed. Now I can always go in and use exposure compensation, and I will in most cases do that before I even take the first shot judging by the scene. Sometimes I'll go bingo and other times I'll take another shot.

With the 5D Mark III came a rather interesting feature - AE lock and Hold.

Like the normal AE lock function it will lock your exposure, Very handy to use with spot metering in the situation I described above. But unlike it, there is no auto cancel after a set period of time or after the shot is taken. It will simply lock your exposure untill you press the button again and unlock it. Fancy, eh?

The function can be set in the custom controls panel.

Video explaining it:
http://youtu.be/DY5LPX52d70


----------



## te4o (Aug 24, 2012)

AE lock and hold is exactly what I mentioned above - customised to the MF-n button next to the shutter button. Thanx Alex! Good point


----------



## Bosman (Aug 24, 2012)

AlexB said:


> Long time reader, first time poster here. Might aswell try to make it something constructive and hopefully helpful.
> 
> My tip: AE lock & Hold
> 
> ...


Nice vid, i shoot manual, so this probably doesnt help me. However, on a sunny and cloudy filled day exposure can drop 2 stops so i do use av. I can't seem to visualize how this plays out or think of scenarios in my mind and understand what this does...If someone uses it tell me how you use it and in what situations please.


----------



## mdm041 (Aug 24, 2012)

I usually shoot manual but I still use still because I'm so use to adjusting to proper exposure. This gives me the chance outdoors to expose to the grass and then as I look around the sky doesn't afect me as much. I know I could just not change but I'm just used to movign things around to get the exposure I can forget.


----------



## kaihp (Aug 26, 2012)

Canon has released a series of downloadable tutorials for the 5D Mk III that can also be viewed on the LCD

http://learn.usa.canon.com/resources/products/eos_5d_markiii/5d_mark_iii_on_camera_tutorials_resource_list.shtml
Around 3.8GB in total


----------

