the lens toward the lens-release button, labeled in Figure 1-3.
FIGURE 1-3: Place the lens in the lens mount with the mounting indexes aligned.
To remove a lens, turn the camera off, press the lens-release button, grip the rear collar of the lens, and turn the lens toward the shutter button side of the camera. When you feel the lens release from the mount, lift the lens off the camera. Place the rear protective cap onto the back of the lens, and if you aren’t putting another lens on the camera, cover the lens mount with its protective cap, too.
If you bought a zoom lens, it sports a zoom ring. Figure 1-4 shows you the location of the zoom ring on the 18–55mm kit lens; for other lenses, see your lens user guide. With the kit lens, rotate the zoom ring to zoom in and out. A few zoom lenses use a push-pull motion to zoom instead.
FIGURE 1-4: Here’s a look at the 18–55mm kit lens.
The numbers around the edge of the zoom ring, by the way, represent focal lengths. The number that’s aligned with the white focal-length indicator, labeled in Figure 1-4, represents the current focal length.
Some lenses, including the alternate 18–135mm kit lens, also have a zoom ring lock switch. When the lens is set to the 18mm position, you can use the switch to lock the lens at that focal length. That way, when the camera is pointing downward, gravity can’t cause the lens to extend to a longer focal length (a problem known as lens creep).
Both kit lenses sold with the 80D offer image stabilization, indicated by the initials IS in the lens name. Image stabilization attempts to compensate for small amounts of camera shake that are common when photographers handhold their cameras and use a slow shutter speed, a lens with a long focal length, or both. Camera shake can result in blurry images, even when your focus is dead-on. Although image stabilization can’t work miracles, it enables most people to capture sharp handheld shots in many situations that they otherwise couldn’t. The feature works regardless of whether you use autofocusing or manual focusing, and it works for both still photography and movie shooting.
On non-Canon lenses, image stabilization may go by another name: anti-shake, vibration compensation, and so on. In some cases, the manufacturers recommend that you leave the system turned on or select a special setting when you use a tripod, so check the lens manual for information.
Your camera offers an excellent autofocusing system. With some subjects, however, autofocusing can be slow or impossible, which is why your camera also offers manual focusing. Chapter 8 fully explains automatic and manual focusing for viewfinder photography, and Chapter 4 explains how things work when you’re using the monitor to compose images (Live View mode) or are shooting movies. But here’s a primer to get you started:
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❯❯ Setting focus in MF mode: Just rotate the lens focusing ring. Figure 1-4 shows you where to find it on the 18–55mm kit lens.
❯❯ Setting focus in AF mode: Press the shutter button halfway to initiate autofocusing. After the scene comes into focus, press the button the rest of the way to take the picture. A couple pointers to remember:
● How the camera finds its focusing target and when it locks focus depend on autofocus settings that we detail in Chapters 4 and 8.
● If you’re using the 18–55mm kit lens (or any STM lens from Canon), turning the focus ring when in autofocus mode has no effect on the lens – it turns but does not focus and will never hit a physical stop. Both the 18–55mm and 18–135mm USM lens offer full-time manual focus when using one-shot AF. Simply press and hold the shutter button halfway, and then turn the focusing ring.
❯❯ Waking up a sleeping lens: With both kit lenses (as well as some other STM lenses), the focusing motor doesn’t operate if the camera has gone to sleep because of the Auto Power Off feature, which we explain in the section “Setup Menu 2,” later in this chapter. The lens itself goes to sleep if you don't perform any lens operations for a while. Either way, manual focus adjustments aren't possible when the lens is in this state, and automatic focusing during zooming may be delayed. You can wake the camera and lens up by pressing the shutter button halfway.
❯❯ If you have trouble focusing, you may be too close to your subject; every lens has a minimum focusing distance.
❯❯ In order to properly asses focus, you need to adjust the viewfinder to accommodate your eyesight, as outlined next.
Adjusting the Viewfinder
Near the upper right of the rubber eyepiece that surrounds the viewfinder is a dial (see Figure 1-5) that enables you to adjust the viewfinder focus to match your eyesight. The dial is officially known as the diopter adjustment control.
FIGURE 1-5: Rotate this dial to adjust the viewfinder focus to your eyesight.