For those of you still using or new to the Canon R5, my friend Richard Day has amazing luck photographing birds with this camera. He’s using the same menu settings I’ve used but finds the following settings helpful.
Richard uses the back button when he wants to switch to Eye Detection AFUsed when you need to nudge the focus a bit on the lens. Very useful!Allows the camera to keep focusing. Per the owner’s manual, “You can manually adjust the focus after the AF operation if you keep holding down the shutter button halfway.” Good option. I agree. What color do you want “peaking” when you’re in MF? I have mine set to red. Anything surrounded by red is in focus.Turn this feature to Disable so your nose doesn’t select the focus point.This AF method can also be changed with the AF Point Selection button on the back of the camera.
I’ve moved on to a Canon R6 Mark II and a Canon R3 camera. I hope these settings help for those using the R5.
Professional photographer leading workshops and tours. I use Canon cameras but I'm familiar with all the other brands. Love photography birds and nature. Love talking about photography and gear.
View all posts by kathyadamsclark
3 thoughts on “Canon R5 — More Menu Settings”
Hi Kathy,
I see that you are using a R3. I’m also using a R3, but with an older mark 1 500mm f4 L IS lens. Generally speaking I’m getting great results most of the time, especially with perched birds. BIFs though have a very low keeper rate, even larger birds filling the frame. I don’t know if it’s the lens or not not being able to keep up (I am saving gor a mark 2 lens). I am using eye tracking for BIFs. Canon recommends flexible zone with AF tracking the same as what the Pangolin YouTube video channel has on their R3 setup. I haven’t tried it yet, but I am confused at how to actually use the AF system in this mode. Do I frame bird and initiate focus start with say, the AF ON button, or just frame and the camera detects movement and automatically starts to track. Do you use your R3 the same way for BIFs?
Great question, David. Thanks for posting. I’m only using the R3 with the new RF lenses. I sold my 500mm f/4 several years ago. After buying the 100-500mm RF lens, I never used the 500mm that much. Life was just so much better with the flexibility of the zoom. I have Animal Eye set and then I use the AF Menu 1 Subject Tracking-on, Subject to Detect-Animals, Eye Detection-Enable. AF Menu 2, I have Case 2 activated. The camera is set to Flexible Zone AF 1 most of the time. Big things in flight, I switch to Whole Area AF. Small bird in the brush, I switch to 1-point AF. Almost everything is hand held thanks to the IS in the body and in the lens. I hope this helps! Here are some of my blog posts on the R3: https://kathyadamsclark.blog/2022/04/27/sanderlings-with-the-canon-r3/ ,
and here: https://kathyadamsclark.blog/2022/03/09/canon-r3-flying-birds/
Hope this helps. Let me know if there are any more questions.
Many thanks Kathy. I followed a YouTube setup video that lets me select the flexible zone (and adjust it on the fly to match the size of the zone area to the bird that I am shooting) and let’s me turn AF tracking on/off via 1 of the custom buttons on the front of the body. I’m still not really sure how to use the damn flexible zone though – do I just enable it and AF tracking and have the bird in the zone and it does the rest or do I have to activate the AF process by pressing a button, say, the AF ON button [that I use for back button focus). I’m really confused by it lol.
I’m not using IS at all. My mark 1 makes a really loud noise when IS is activated. A mate in Germany also has the mark 1 500f4, but uses it with a R7 and he has the same issue too, so it must just be an issue when using the older mark 1 lenses with the R bodies. IS seems to work, it’s just really noisy and I’m worried that it’s not 100% compatible and might burn the IS motors out etc…I have mentioned this to Canon Australia, but they’ve just “noted” it and not commented on it. They’re not interested in providing support as it’s an older dicontinued mark 1 lens.
The RF100-500 is nice, but it is way overpriced imho and has drawbacks (using a TC you must have the lens set to 300mm or longer). I think I will wait for Canon to authorise 3rd party AF lenses and get the Sigma 150-600 for RF mount when it is eventually released. The EF version has far too many Af micro problems with R bodies to be reliable. I am not a pro, just an enthusiast hobbyist photographer who likes shooting birds. I do not have a disposable income to buy new RF lenses. The R3 is my forever body and tied to my home mortgage.
Kathy Adams Clark 
Hi Kathy,
I see that you are using a R3. I’m also using a R3, but with an older mark 1 500mm f4 L IS lens. Generally speaking I’m getting great results most of the time, especially with perched birds. BIFs though have a very low keeper rate, even larger birds filling the frame. I don’t know if it’s the lens or not not being able to keep up (I am saving gor a mark 2 lens). I am using eye tracking for BIFs. Canon recommends flexible zone with AF tracking the same as what the Pangolin YouTube video channel has on their R3 setup. I haven’t tried it yet, but I am confused at how to actually use the AF system in this mode. Do I frame bird and initiate focus start with say, the AF ON button, or just frame and the camera detects movement and automatically starts to track. Do you use your R3 the same way for BIFs?
Cheers,
Dave
LikeLike
Great question, David. Thanks for posting. I’m only using the R3 with the new RF lenses. I sold my 500mm f/4 several years ago. After buying the 100-500mm RF lens, I never used the 500mm that much. Life was just so much better with the flexibility of the zoom. I have Animal Eye set and then I use the AF Menu 1 Subject Tracking-on, Subject to Detect-Animals, Eye Detection-Enable. AF Menu 2, I have Case 2 activated. The camera is set to Flexible Zone AF 1 most of the time. Big things in flight, I switch to Whole Area AF. Small bird in the brush, I switch to 1-point AF. Almost everything is hand held thanks to the IS in the body and in the lens. I hope this helps! Here are some of my blog posts on the R3: https://kathyadamsclark.blog/2022/04/27/sanderlings-with-the-canon-r3/ ,
and here: https://kathyadamsclark.blog/2022/03/09/canon-r3-flying-birds/
Hope this helps. Let me know if there are any more questions.
LikeLike
Many thanks Kathy. I followed a YouTube setup video that lets me select the flexible zone (and adjust it on the fly to match the size of the zone area to the bird that I am shooting) and let’s me turn AF tracking on/off via 1 of the custom buttons on the front of the body. I’m still not really sure how to use the damn flexible zone though – do I just enable it and AF tracking and have the bird in the zone and it does the rest or do I have to activate the AF process by pressing a button, say, the AF ON button [that I use for back button focus). I’m really confused by it lol.
I’m not using IS at all. My mark 1 makes a really loud noise when IS is activated. A mate in Germany also has the mark 1 500f4, but uses it with a R7 and he has the same issue too, so it must just be an issue when using the older mark 1 lenses with the R bodies. IS seems to work, it’s just really noisy and I’m worried that it’s not 100% compatible and might burn the IS motors out etc…I have mentioned this to Canon Australia, but they’ve just “noted” it and not commented on it. They’re not interested in providing support as it’s an older dicontinued mark 1 lens.
The RF100-500 is nice, but it is way overpriced imho and has drawbacks (using a TC you must have the lens set to 300mm or longer). I think I will wait for Canon to authorise 3rd party AF lenses and get the Sigma 150-600 for RF mount when it is eventually released. The EF version has far too many Af micro problems with R bodies to be reliable. I am not a pro, just an enthusiast hobbyist photographer who likes shooting birds. I do not have a disposable income to buy new RF lenses. The R3 is my forever body and tied to my home mortgage.
Thanks for taking the time to reply.
Cheers,
Dave
LikeLike