elliott937 Loc: St. Louis

For years, in using my Canon DSLRs, I've always turned off the gazillion focusing squares and elected for just one in the center. I suppose if photographing a moving subject, moving either toward or away from the camera would be a perfect time to have the gazillion squares turned on. For me, I prefer to have just one focusing square and have total control. Am I missing something? Or, do many of you turn off all but one of the focusing squares?

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

I use center-point only and <re->compose.
(Who knows what all those other dots are focusing on.)

PHRubin Loc: Nashville TN USA

I use the one at the top center of the group. That is closest to faces when I am doing people. I recompose slightly afterwoods.

BebuLamar

I use the zillion squares. It works reasonably well. When it doesn't work well I focus manually.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

With all the recent discussion of exposure, this post is well-timed given the importance of focus, where less can be done in post when you missed the focus (except, maybe, aggressive culling of inferior results).

Depending on your camera model, you can control the cycle options. I typically shoot with a single point, but also use the expanded point (a cluster of 5) and the Zone (a group of 9) that are useful when I use selective focus. "Selective" being where I move the point / group around to frame to the location of selective focus. When shooting with wide apertures, this is very necessary unless you like centered compositions or cropping.

One trick I've developed is to set the AF point / group first and then to frame the shot at those AF point(s). It can be cumbersome to move a single point around the frame with the camera to your eye, particularly when shooting people or moving (or waiting) subjects. But, if you approach the subject knowing where you plan to place the subject within the frame, set your AF point(s) there before you begin to shoot. It may be too demanding to frame the subject around a single point, but a zone of 9 can be very efficient and you're not forcing the camera to guess where to focus from the wider array.

A model like the 5DIV has seven (7) area modes, if I'm reading the manual correct. You can reduce these seven "active" options to a smaller group, like say three (Single Point, Single Point Expanded, and Zone).

elliott937 Loc: St. Louis

Question for BebuLamar: Suppose you want to capture an image, for which there are tree branches closer than the subject, won't your camera focus on the tree branches? Or is that the time you focus manually?

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

I can't focus manually, with acceptable precision, through the viewfinder except with mirrorless models and focus peeking. To do it manually, I need the DSLR zoomed live view or the focus peek. Otherwise, I trust the AF of my cameras and lenses to do a great job if I can just get a point / group properly set on the subject. It's not like I need glasses yet, but I still can tell my eyesight is not what it used to be, especially for unassisted manual focus work.

BebuLamar

I generally have good DOF and the camera sometimes do recognize the face and focus on that. But of course it do fail often enough. And I focus manually.

BebuLamar

I have done it since 1977 when I bought my first SLR camera. I installed a plain ground glass focusing screen in my Nikon F2AS back then. I focus on any part of the image. I never used any focusing aid like split image, or micro prism.
It was good enough then and it is good enough now. I like things the way they were unless the world forced me to change which happens often enough.

speters Loc: Grangeville/Idaho

No, you're not missing anything, it's a thing of preference, I myself like multiple points and with them I'm also in full control, I can have whatever point/s I choose on the target at all times, I have a harder time trying that with a single point.

boberic Loc: Quiet Corner, Connecticut. Ex long Islander

I use spot focus and metering. All those little squares confuSe the hell out of me (I confuse easily)

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

picsman Loc: Scotland

I use spot focusing and 3D so it tracks the subject.

wdross Loc: Castle Rock, Colorado

You need to go to the closest camera store and have them put a new Olympus E-M1X in your hands. It will follow your subject and change to whatever number of focus points and shape, one to 122 focus points, that is required to follow and cover the subject. And you can individually turn on and off any of the 122 focus points so you can make your own custom focus pattern. The E-M1X's artificial intelligence is truely amazing. And it can easily track five cars at the same time and let you choose which one to focus on.

Delderby Loc: Derby UK

Single point for me every time - plus focus lock - and/or it's so easy to move the point round the touch screen with my M43 - either for auto or manual focus. After all, the camera can only focus on one point - why trust to luck? especially with up-market lenses. I don't use BBF, but is there any point (ouch)! when using multiple focus areas?