The Canon 6D was my first grown - up camera , back in 2013 . I loved how Canon ’s colour look like the good version of reality , and how penetrating its glass was , and the 6D was the most affordable style to get into full - skeleton picture taking . As the years went on , though , I came to believe the mirrorless cameras were the way of the future , and Canon was slow to adapt , so I jump ship for Sony in 2015 . I still escape that glass and those colors , though .
almost four years since I abandoned the blade , Canon cause its act together and released its first full - frame mirrorless camera , the EOS R. I was giddy ( yes , on rarified affair , professional gadget nerds still get giddy ) , and wondered if it would be enough to woo me back into Canon ’s ecosystem . Unfortunately , it is n’t . It lead beautiful pictures , but this is the tv camera that Canon should have come out with two or three years ago .
Let ’s start with the bedrock . The EOS roentgen is a full - frame mirrorless photographic camera , full - frame intend its image sensor is just about the same size of it as a piece of 35 mm film , and mirrorless meaning it does n’t have a mirror that automatically pitch up and down ( like a DSLR ) . It spud 30.3 - megapixel photos , which puts it kind of weirdly between its rival . For example , Sony has the A7 III which shoots 24MP photos and the A7R III which shoots 42.4MP photos , and Nikon has the new Z6 at 24.5MP and the Z7 at 45.7MP ( which we reexamine , too ) .
Brent Rose” class=”size-full wp-image-1851897985″ />Eye-tracking test. Nicely chose the closest eye to the lens. 1/60 sec at f/1.2, ISO 120Photo:Brent Rose
canyon is using this launch as an chance to retool its lens mount . The new RF arrangement has a all-embracing 54 mm mount with a short 20 millimeter rim , meaning it ’s a lot wider to get more light in , and the distance from the lens to detector is shortsighted , which should aid its focusing capabilities . All of Canon ’s young RF lenses will have a new ring on them ( in addition to pore and soar rings ) that can be mapped to see to it aperture , shutter speed , ISO , or exposure comp . canyon has three adapters that allow you to use your one-time Methedrine without any loss in quality , and the pricier ones also sport that ring to give you summate ascendancy ( the top - end one also has a build - in ND filter ) .
I ’m felicitous to describe that the new lens , when paired with the EOS R , take gorgeous photos . I tested the television camera with Canon ’s fresh version of its legendary workhorse lens , the 24 - 105 mm f/4 , and its new 50 millimetre f/1.2 . That 50 millimetre is one of the good lenses I ’ve ever used . The simulacrum it produced were razor sharp with such fine soft bokeh ( the blurring of backcloth poppycock ) . When I pulled everything into Adobe Lightroom for editing , there were a gang of images I took with the 50 millimetre where I was like , “ Wow , I ’m not go to touch that at all . ” I do wish well this lens of the eye had look-alike stabilisation , though , for reasons I ’ll get into in a minute .
The RF 24 - 105 mm is every bit the versatile lens you ’d expect it to be . It stays crisp regardless of what grade of soar or aperture you select . I began by testing it on a beach in Malibu , and fortunately , I still had it on the next morning … when I had to get out of Dodge . The morning of November 9th , 2018 the Wooley flack were tearing across Malibu , and the full metropolis was evacuated . The lens and this camera defend up in a high - stress , very real - world situation , and the photos it produced weregood enough for publication .
Brent Rose” class=”size-full wp-image-1851898010″ />1/1250 sec at f/4.0, ISOPhoto:Brent Rose
The color this tv camera get are just as I remember , and gentleman , I ’ve missed them . Things reckon vibrant but realistic . The dynamic range is decent , and it retains a salutary spate of information in the shadows while doing a good job of keeping highlights from being blow out . That gives you a circle of flexibility in redaction . That said , it does n’t have as much dynamical compass as the full - figure cameras from Sony or Nikon . With those , you get a couple more stops of flexibleness in either direction , but the EOS R is close enough to be considered quite sound . At gamey ISO you do see some noise , but ISO 6400 is usable .
The EOS R also has a dual - pixel autofocus system , which I found to be very fast in ecumenical . Even more telling , it boasts 5,655 autofocus decimal point that shroud 88 - per centum of the horizontal blank space on the sensor and 100 - per centum of the upright space . That ’s alone . In certain modes ( i.e. Face Tracking ) you may opt to have it take for the subject ’s closest oculus , and it work quite well , if not quite as reliably as Sony ’s Eye - AF , which is still best in class .
There ’s some stuff to like about the camera ’s body , too . grasp - snobs will apprize the profoundness of its handgrip and how secure it feels in your bridge player . Some people do n’t care that Sony ’s cameras have shallow grips , but in person , it ’s never bothered me . To each their own . Vloggers and other type who do a lot of ego - shooting will value that the LCD screen fully articulates , meaning it swings out and can be flip out to face frontwards to help you frame your shot . At 3.15 inches that screen is slightly larger and also sharper ( 2.1 million DoT ) than Sony ’s and is on par with the Nikon Z7 ’s LCD . The electronic viewfinder ( EVF ) is bright and nappy , too , and there ’s an OLED top panel that displays relevant shooting information ( current preferences , barrage fire layer , number of shots stay , and so on ) .
That self-aggrandizing rear LCD is also a touchscreen , and unlike Sony , Canon does a really beneficial caper of implementing it into the UI . you’re able to use it throughout the visceral menu system , for exercise . Nikon and Canon both nailed this , and it ’s brainsick to me that Sony , with its giant headstart on mirrorless camera , is still flailing here . barrage fire living is fair to middling . It ’s CIPA - rated to 370 snap , but that ’s far behind the Sony A7 III and A7R III . It does have an Eco mode that should extend it to 450 shots , which is more respectable .
Up to now , this review has pretty much been a making love - letter . So , what ’s not to care ? Well , passably much everything else . Oy , where to start ?
There ’s so much about the design of this camera that feel incorrect . First , there ’s only one card expansion slot ( a high - f number SDXC ) . That right there will credibly make this camera a non - starter for professionals . In fact , many drawbacks ruin it for pro . The location of many buttons is questionable . Both of the telephone dial are on top of the camera , which necessitate a long grasp for my index finger . On the far upper right quoin of the back are the Eye Detection AF and the AF Point push button . Not only are they so far over that your thumb will cramp attempt to make them , but I find that my mitt is commonly covering them , which lead in many inadvertent jam .
There ’s a blatant lack of a joystick for moving the autofocus decimal point around ( no , you ca n’t even use the 500 - pad buttons ) . Instead , you ’re opine to do this on the gravid LCD , which is extremely annoying if your case is always up against the EVF . There ’s also no gyre wheel like you find on Sony cameras and even less Canon cameras . That ’s such a nice option to have for quick adjust ISO or scroll through photos in playback . Now , the RF lenses ’ new ring could be mapped to assure ISO , which is n’t a terrible selection , but in pattern I found myself reaching for it and grabbing the focus band instead , or vice versa . That ’s plausibly something you ’d get used to in time , though .
In general , it just feel like everything takes more clicks to get to than it should . There ’s no consecrate mood telephone dial , which should come received on a camera of this caliber . In worldwide , there ’s a lack of custom release . Canon even made the baffling decisiveness to make the on / off control into a exclusive - use telephone dial . It ’s harder to reach ( way over on the odd side ) , you ca n’t feel when it ’s on or off , and it takes up quad where a modality dial could easy go . Why would they do this ?
Then there ’s the new Multi - Function Bar on the back . It is a humble , non - moving , touch - sensitive airfoil , which can be mapped to see thing like ISO ( that ’s the nonpayment ) , white Libra the Balance , centering features , video display information , audio controls ( when inject video ) , and more . It ’s pretty bad . As frustrating as it was to accidentally activate it when I did n’t mean to ( which happened , even when I enabled the lock on it ) , it was even more frustrative when I in reality mean to practice it . It ’s just so finical . Tweaking the ISO ( something I often do because I ordinarily shoot in full manual mood ) became a game of unlock the bar , overshooting / undershooting the setting I wanted , accidentally brush it again , and then still failing to take it . In dividing line , on my Sony , I apply the clicky scroll - wheel with my thumb , and I ’m done in two seconds .
Another boastful nick is that this tv camera does n’t have in - torso stabilisation . That ’s a feature that makes a monolithic conflict if you ’re mitt shooting ( which I am 80 - percent of the time ) , specially in dimmer state of affairs . Some of Canon ’s lenses , like the 24 - 105 mm , have build up - in stabilization . Others , like my darling 50 millimetre f/1.2 , do n’t . Sony and Nikon both have in - body stabilisation , and if you buy a lens of the eye that also has stabilization , then it ’s doubly as stabilized . This is a big miss .
And then there ’s video . canyon was the pioneer of blast eminent - quality TV with a DSLR camera body . The 5D Mark II invented that whole plot . That ’s why it stings so naughtily that Canon is so far behind here . It can buck 4 one thousand video at 30fps , but it crops the pit out of the epitome to do so . We ’re talking a 1.75x crop ! To put that in perspective , cameras with the modest APS - C sensing element only craw 1.5x . I can not wrap my mind around that . That effectively takes a prissy broad 24 millimetre lens and turn it into a 42 mm . Not only do you suffer so much of your frame , but you lose Christ Within , too . It ’s not that 4 K video looks bad , it does n’t . It ’s still snappy and vivacious , but it ’s basically unsufferable to take any wide shots at 4K. If you desire the full width of your lens of the eye , you have to shoot 1080p . That ’s going to be a heap - ledgeman for a lot of people ( myself included ) .
video recording woes do n’t stop there , either . Footage exhibits a lot of rolling shutter effect ( objects wobble like jelly when you pan the camera ) . Not having in - torso stabilization becomes very detectable when shooting hand - prevail , even when you ’re using the stabilized 24 - 105 mm lens . If you want to shoot some sweet 120fps dense motion , you ’re circumscribed to 720p . To put that in perspective , the GoPro Hero 3 could do 720p120 back in 2012 . Both Sony and Nikon can go to 1080p120 .
The offspring proceed . Canon ’s face tracking is one of the profligate and smoothest I ’ve seen . Even when shooting at f/1.2 ( i.e. very slight way for error ) and walking apace toward and off from the tv camera , it did a fantastic job of staying with me . That would be great , except that it click ! Audibly ! A lot ! Every fourth dimension the focal point adjusts it go like a small dolphin trying to echolocate its female parent . You should be using an external mic for video anyway ( all on - camera mics suck ) , but this impel you into it .
For all of the above understanding , this becomes a tv camera that I can not in upright conscience recommend to anybody . It ’s such a disgrace because you may see the potential there , and the camera give up beautiful photos , especially with that 50 millimeter f/1.2 , but there are just too many problems you ca n’t ignore . Other television camera take sensational photos without all the compromises . The best full - shape mirrorless is still theSony A7R III , with theSony A7 IIInot far behind it ( and cheaper than the EOS R ) .
In the grand scheme , this is n’t a bad first endeavour , and you may see that the groundwork is there for the next generation of this television camera to be astonishing . Let ’s just trust that second generation follow soon .
CamerasCanonreview
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