[Brightcolours]

BrightColors,

 

I am only saying from my personal experience.

I have shot with Canon DSLRs also...including 450D, 5DMII...

Nobody is saying that they don't work. Otherwise people won't use them. 

All i'm saying is, there's a agreed and well-understood way of working with a DSLR..."get many shots"...

Agreed? I find it rather debatable. I never have to do that "get many shots". These images were without AF, but with AF confirmation and/or trap focus using the PD AF sensor, with just one try:



I might make more photos of a subject, but that then is to try to catch the best angle or composition... The above shots were with my 55mm f2, but I get similar results with my 85mm f1.8 and 55mm f3.5 with focus confirmation using PD AF on my low-end EOS 450D.

 

Also with PD AF I get fine results without having to shoot many same shots (again, I shoot most compositions once when using focus confirmation or AF):

Anemones with 35mm f2

Horses with crappy Sogma 18-50mm f2.8 EX DC

Windmill with 70-200mm f4 at 200mm.

Its a bit frustrating when there's a alternative system around and you can see that focussing is so much more accurate without this trial and error/chimping involved. 

I don't have that trial and error problem much, really (I did when I had the Canon EOS 350D). If you do, something is wrong with your equipment, either calibration wise or design wise. As I pointed out above, apparently something is going on with the D800 AF, which makes it to some rather temperamental? Maybe something to research.

I have to point out (for completeness) that above 3 lenses never were sent in for calibration, nor has my 450D ever seen any service. I do however have a Tamron 90mm f2.8 which focusses like shit at infinity (ok-ish at close up distances). I have used a Canon EF 100mm f2.8 USM macro which focussed rather inaccurately on an EOS 50D, but focussed spot on on my 450D.

I also tend to think that the continuous tracking abilities of DSLRs are over-rated. 

Overrated? If your shooting style does not need AF tracking much (mine does not either), it is a feature that is not important to you. But the AF tracking ability of PD AF is hardly overrated....

 

Can you show any examples of the AF goofing up so that you have to shoot and shoot in the hope that you get an in focus image? And is that in certain situations, or all the time? Can it have to do with the complex AF of your D800 not being set right for the type of shooting? Or is it linked to a particular lens?