How to Select an Autofocus Point with a Canon EOS 60D

When you shoot in any of the fully automatic exposure modes (Full Auto, Portrait, Landscape, and so on) as well as in Creative Auto, the Canon EOS 60D’s autofocusing system looks at all nine autofocus points when trying to establish focus. Typically, the camera sets focus on the point that falls over the object closest to the lens. If that focusing decision doesn’t suit your needs, you have two options:

• Focus manually.

• Set the camera to a Creative Zone mode (P, Tv, Av, M, B, or C exposure mode.) In these modes, you can tell the camera to base focus on a specific autofocus point.

Again, these steps assume that you aren’t shooting in Live View mode or recording a movie.

1. Set the Mode dial to P, Tv, Av, M, B, or C.

   You can specify an autofocus point only in these exposure modes.

2. Press and release the AF Point Selection button.

   

   You see the AF Point Selection screen on the monitor if you’re on the Quick Control screen; if not, the autofocus points are illuminated in the viewfinder. From this screen, you can choose one of two modes:

   • Automatic AF Point Selection: All focus points are considered. All autofocus points on the screen appear in color.

     

   • Manual AF Point Selection: Choose a single focus point. Only one point is selected, and it appears in color. In the following figure, the AF point at 11 o’clock is selected.

     

   You can check the current mode by looking through the viewfinder, too. When you press and release the AF Point Selection button, all nine autofocus points turn red if you’re in Automatic AF Point Selection mode. A single point turns red if you’re in Manual AF Point Selection mode.

3. To choose a single autofocus point, set the camera to Manual AF Point Selection mode.

   You can do this in two ways:

   • Rotate the Main dial. This option is easiest when you’re looking in the viewfinder.

   • Press the Set button. Pressing the button toggles the camera between Automatic AF Point Selection and Manual AF Point Selection with the center point activated.

4. Specify which AF point you want to use.

   You can either rotate the Main dial or press the multicontroller to select a point. When all autofocus points again turn red, you’ve cycled back to automatic AF Point Selection mode. Rotate the dial or press the multicontroller to switch back to single-point selection.

That’s all there is to it. After you select the autofocus point, just frame your shot so that your subject falls under that point and then press the shutter button halfway to focus.