10 April 2019

Dustin Abbott: “Canon EOS R Review”

Like most new Canon cameras, the initial reaction for many is to be underwhelmed. It is sometimes easy to overlook the areas where Canon is quietly innovating (the sensor protecting “shield” and control ring on the RF lenses/adapter are genuinely useful innovations) because of the obvious areas where Canon is lagging (no IBIS, video quirks, lower frame rate, single card slot). Typically Canon cameras prove to be better cameras than their specs, however, and I do think that will be the case here. What’s somewhat atypical, however, are the ergonomic fails of the EOS R, as that is typically an area of strength for Canon. In this case an attempt to be innovative (the touch bar) actually proved to be a fail (at least from my perspective). If you are using a camera on a regular basis, however, you typically learn ways to get it to do what you want it to do, and Canon has allowed for a higher degree of customization on this camera than is typical for them. The excellent touchscreen also helps in this regard. I also think that Canon has implemented the best grip I’ve found in a mirrorless camera yet.

Dustin Abbott

Sharing this on the blog feels a bit overdue, as I’ve read this extensive review of the Canon EOS R back in January, around the time I’ve linked to the article about disassembling one of the new lenses in the RF system. But I think it touches a lot of great points and it’s balanced in evaluating the negatives and the innovations of the new system, compared to other reviewers I’ve seen. In this article I’ve first learned that the lens adapter supports not only EF lenses, but also EF-S lenses. This opens the opportunity for many amateur photographers, who own EOS crop sensor cameras (including myself), to switch to this mirrorless body without needing to spend money on upgrading lenses from the start – something that I’m sure Canon considered while designing the new mount and adapter.

Photographer Dustin Abbott gives a detailed, real world review of the Canon EOS R – Canon’s first full frame mirrorless camera. Find out what they did right… and what they did wrong

Personally, I must admit I’m very tempted to upgrade to this camera soon – or to its more entry-level version, the EOS RP, launched only recently. I’m not dissuaded by the weaknesses everybody seems to be complaining about: I don’t care neither for faster frame rates, not for any of the advanced video options, I’m not shooting professionally to consider dual-card slots a necessity. I must admit in-body stabilization would be great, but I’ve managed for years without it. It’s great that the cameras have fully articulating touchscreens (I wouldn’t buy one without), that I would be able to use my existing lenses (I’m up to four already) and to charge the camera directly through an USB cable, and I’m excited about the adapter with built-in filters, which would considerably simplify my photo travel kit – and I could also use a polarizer almost constantly. And, let’s face it, mirrorless cameras are the future, to the point I don’t think most photographers should invest considerably in classic DSLR systems.

On a final note, last week I got the chance to test the EOS RP for a short while, so I hope I will find time to follow up with some of my first impressions.

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