You are missing out if you’re not using your camera’s “Eye Autofocus” feature!

I’ve been shooting a lot of portraits for a project I’ve been working on, and I have to say, I’m just super impressed with how well and consistently it works. I’ve never had more in-focus portraits than I’m getting now.

Every shot is right on the money – sharp, clear, and I don’t have to do the “Focus and recompose” dance like I do (or shall I say, “did”) with my DSLR. Now I just compose my portrait the way I want it, press my shutter button halfway down, and it automatically locks right on my subject’s eye (I can see a little green focus rectangle lock right onto their eye, as seen below, without any input from me whatsoever), and I take the shot.

So, shooting portraits has gotten easier, and I’m getting every photo in focus. I am super digging this!

Here’s how to turn this feature on (well, on a Canon R6 anyway):

STEP ONE: Go to the menu on the back of your camera, tap on AF (Auto Focus), and in section number 1, for AF method (tracking), choose AF and the face icon, like you see above. So now it’s set to recognize faces, but this feature has been in cameras for like 10 years now, so go on to the next step.

STEP TWO: Tap on the next menu item down, ‘Subject to detect’, and from the list (which includes People, Animals, and None), choose People.

STEP THREE: Tap on the next menu item down, “Eye detection,” and choose “Enable” from the menu. Now you’re set – the camera will handle the portrait focusing so you can focus on composition and interacting with your subject.

If you’re not using eye autofocus yet, give it a try this week, and I think you’ll be amazed at the results. When it comes to portraits, this is a game-changer!

This is the type of stuff we’re teaching at next month’s “Photography Gear Conference.” It’s all about getting the most from your camera, lenses, and accessories. It’s not designed to sell you stuff (we’re not selling anything); it’s designed to help you learn all this stuff, so you stop worrying about the settings and the gear and focus on the stuff that really matters. We have tracks for Nikon, Sony, and Canon users. Here’s the link for tickets and more info.

Here’s wishing you a flippin’ fantastic week! :)

-Scott

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