No question is too silly!

[Dog mom]

The focus mode selector button on the front of the camera has  me baffled. Yes, I am new to the XT5 and photography. When do I use this little gem and why. 
I have been given three different explanations by a camera shop.

1. It is for the lens?

2. Don’t touch it if you are a beginner.

3. It should be set to what my dials are set to. Manual - put it to M - Continuous put it to C

If I am adjusting the dials on top of the camera why do I need to switch this little dial. Any help in advance will be greatly appreciated. I do have the manual but it doesn’t explain why and when. 

[jerryy]

This switch is for your lens’ auto-focusing.

”C” tells the body to use continuous focusing, either CL (low speed -  for slow moving puppies, kittens or kids) CH (high speed - for faster moving puppies, kittens or kids or anything that.moves quickly or frenetically). CH or CL is set using the top dial settings. The subject keeps moving and it may be tricky to keep trying to focus to get the photo using the standard compose / focus/ take the photo technique.

”S” is for single shot focusing, point at the subject, half press the shutter button to compose/ focus, then full press to take the photo. Or just push the shutter button to get the image if the situation is suitable.

”M” is for manual focusing, you twist the ring on the lens to set the focus as you want then press the shutter button to get the shot. The focus is entirely up to you, the camera treats the lens as if it does not have a motor in it. Okay, that is mostly true, there are some very old lenses such as the version one 14mm f2.8 lens that can be set to override this setting and autofous anyway, but Fujifilm has not used that design in many years. Note: There are many aids built into the camera to help you manually focus your shots.

https://fujifilm-dsc.com/en/manual/x-t5/taking_photo/autofocus/

https://fujifilm-dsc.com/en/manual/x-t5/taking_photo/manual-focus/

As you can guess, this switch setting does not have to completely match the top dial settings, manual exposure settings are different than manual focusing, I am surprised you were told not to mess with it.

p.s. You may want to pose your questions in the dedicated X-T5 section to get quicker responses from the X-T5 users.

 

Edited June 22 by jerryy

[pw-pix]

1 hour ago, jerryy said:

This switch is for your lens’ auto-focusing.

”C” tells the body to use continuous focusing, either CL (low speed -  for slow moving puppies, kittens or kids) CH (high speed - for faster moving puppies, kittens or kids or anything that.moves quickly or frenetically). CH or CL is set using the top dial settings. The subject keeps moving and it may be tricky to keep trying to focus to get the photo using the standard compose / focus/ take the photo technique.

The burst speed of the shutter is set by the CL and CH control on top of the camera, it is unrelated to the focus mode setting on the S C M control. The focus speed is not related to the burst speed setting.

You might have been joking, but your post adds confusion.

[jerryy]

5 hours ago, pw-pix said:

The burst speed of the shutter is set by the CL and CH control on top of the camera, it is unrelated to the focus mode setting on the S C M control. The focus speed is not related to the burst speed setting.

You might have been joking, but your post adds confusion.

No, I was not joking. Reread her post, the first sentence is “The focus mode selector button on the front of the camera has  me baffled.” which is what I explained in my answer: the focus mode selector button. My CSM explanation is essentially the standard approach Fujifilm has taken for some time.

Explaining the frame rate differences as I did to someone brand new to the camera seems an easier approach to understanding than saying it is 20fps vs 7fps. Not to mention, the following is how Fujifilm describes it: “Continuous AF: Focus is continually adjusted to reflect changes in the distance to the subject while the shutter button is pressed halfway. Use for subjects that are in motion”  https://fujifilm-dsc.com/en/manual/x-t5/taking_photo/autofocus/  You have to go to page 166 of the manual to get to a very brief explanation of CH vs CL without any context. High speed capture vs slower speed capture seems appropriate to explain so that someone that had been given the impression the top dials are needed for the csm button would realize how they work. I think it is better than saying put the csm button on S the top dial on CH and mash the shutter button — there is no example of when to use that or why.

The X-T5 is a wonderful tool, but sometimes examples, humorous or otherwise, help new users understand it better when the manual does not help or when people tell new users to just leave it alone. 

Edited June 23 by jerryy