Is the Canon EOS R still worth it in 2020?
According to youtube, “it’s trash.” Also youtube, (5 months ago), “the EOS R is amazing!”
Is the EOS R still relevant after the release of the R5 and R6?
Yes. Here’s why:
The EOS R is a great hybrid camera. Great photos, great video.
The R5 can take better photos, (at 45Mp vs 30Mp, and IBIS for slow shutter, hand-held photography). The R5 can also take better video. Keep in mind that 8k Raw video is really for photography, not filming an epic feature film for theatrical release. 8k Raw video means filming short clips and selecting a frame as a Raw photo to edit in Lightroom or Capture One. 4k Raw video may be the way to go for filming.
The EOS R may take better photos than the R6, no real comparison tests are available at this time, but are forthcoming. On paper, the EOS R takes 30Mp photos, vs 20Mp on the R6. The R6 has IBIS for slow shutter, hand-held photography, vs cropped-in Digital IS only on the EOS R, which sometimes is Ok, but often not.
The R6 records 4:2:2 10bit (in h.265 compression), internally to SD cards, which is amazing! But it only records that at a highly compressed format, in IPB, vs ALL-I on the R5. The EOS R can only record 4:2:0 8bit internally to an SD card, but in ALL-I. Both the R6 and EOS R can record externally to a recorder, like the Ninja V, in 4:2:2 10bit ProResHQ uncompressed. Obviously the best video quality will be uncompressed.
The R6 can record the above both 1080p and 4k at Full-Frame, whereas the EOS R, can only record 4k in ~1.7 crop mode, which is slightly smaller than APS-C and Super35. Many mirrorless cameras have the same issue, due to due processors that cannot keep up the data being recorded, so line skipping and pixel binning are used to create the final video clip. This can lead to aliasing and artifacting, which is apparent on many cameras. To overcome this, the EOS R has an incredibly high data rate of 480Mbps, more so than the R6, even in IPB, even in 1080p. You could just use the EOS R as an APS-C/Super35 video camera, and punch out to Full-Frame when a larger field of view is needed.
Recording in Raw will always have the highest data rate and is always recommended over any compressed format, like h.264 or h.265, or the forthcoming, even more compressed, h.266. The problem with Raw is the file sizes. To overcome that, compressed Raw offers little to no loss in quality, while recording the video using smaller file sizes. Both RED ( RED Code) and BlackMagic (BRaw) have the best compressed Raw codecs, with applicable patents. Canon has Raw lite on the C200, and will offer a similar compressed Raw on the R5. Again, we will have to see the footage to compare. I would choose any camera that can record in RED Code or Braw over anything else for the best video quality, easily sacrificing IBIS and autofocus over video quality. If pretty good quality is enough for you, if you film weddings or events and just need a fast turn around, then IBIS and autofocus are more important than compressed Raw, and the R5 or R6 will be a quality option for you.
There is a camera that is both cheaper the R5 and R6, that records in top tier compressed Raw, in 6k, with full cinema controls; it’s the BlackMagic Pocket6k, at $2000, with a Super35 sensor and an EF lens mount. The Pocket6k also records in 4:2:2 10bit ProResHQ internally, without the need for an external recorder, like the Atomos Ninja V.
The Pocket 6k has push-to-autofocus, but not continuous autofocus. It also doesn’t have IBIS, which can be a good thing, as some situations, like filming the driver from passenger seat, in a scene, is best with the camera locked off on a tripod, with many sandbags; (cameras with IBIS produce this weird warping effect that cannot be removed in post).
IBIS ([mechanical] In-Body Image Stabilization): The obvious solution, for the EOS R, is to just to use a gimbal, steadicam, shoulder rig or other device to stabilize your footage. The IBIS on the R5 and R6 is great, but will never be equal to a Steadicam, gimbal, etc to provide stabilized footage.
Ask yourself what do you need IBIS for:
For slow-shutter photography without a tripod.
For filming an event or at a location/ venue, where tripods or gimbals are not allowed.
These are perfectly acceptable reasons. If you are buying a camera with IBIS to REPLACE a gimbal, then just don’t. Learn how to get stable footage with a non-IBIS camera. That is the most important thing you could ever do, and is a skill that with make you money immediately, because you can use that skill with any camera or set up. “Panther Walk,” holding the camera, brace it against your eye in the view finder are just a few ways. Hollywood has been using shoulder rigs for decades to stabilize footage and call it, “the handheld look.” Many modern cinematographers and camera operators use the EasyRig or variant to carry the weight of the camera, while directing the camera; (it’s not a stabilizer, but an option). If the camera is heavy enough, it provides stable footage. This is a concept that is lost on semi-pro and amateur videographers. By all means, be comfortable while you work, and working with less people is cheaper, but there is no need to reinvent the wheel here.
Many things in the EOS R feel like they were not completely finished and thought out before it’s release. And some features feel rushed. Like the misfiring Dual-Pixel AutoFocus upon initial release. Everyone thought Canon’s DualPixel AutoFocus was the industry best and was because so due to sensor design, but when Sony’s autofocus was faster and more accurate, the veil was lifted. Canon released several firmware updates that continually improved the autofocus, again, proving superior autofocus is not limited to sensor design. Now that the R5 and R6 are out, it is most likely, because Canon, that the EOS R will no longer receive any further updates and, in 2 years, Canon will most likely release a version 2, alongside the upcoming 100Mp RF photo-centric camera, and possibly the 150Mp camera.
Canon is going all-in on the RF mount and counting on 3rd party manufacturers to make RF lenses, as well as, releasing overpriced “affordable” RF lenses. One benefit is, currently, Canon fully supports EF lenses with their EF-to-RF adapters, which is fantastic, because great autofocus can be achieved with the largest selection of lenses. Keep in mind though, that this could be taken away at any time with a firmware update. Would Canon do this? I never thought Apple would do that sort of thing, but the company changed, and now they fully limit battery life on iphones to force you to upgrade to a new iphone, when the new model comes out, and design the mac computer operating system update to crash the mac, forcing the you buy the new model; nefarious. I’m hoping Canon would never do this and if they did, we can count on Youtubers setting their cameras on fire in protest. Canon appears to be back in mirrorless camera game, but we need stiff competition to keep every company honest and to keep them pursuing and developing new technologies. Competition and innovation are the consumer’s friend.
UPDATE: Both the R6 and R5 have overheating issues; it’s not just conspiracy hype. I was expecting 8k Raw to overheat the R5, but not the R6, when recording in 1080p IPB only. More information, here, in the coming months as these cameras hit the market, and Canon, hopefully, offers a solution to the overheating issues, like firmware updates and possible battery grip with heat sinks and fans. The BlackMagic Pocket6k deals with heat by not being weather sealed, extra vents above and below and including a fan. The Panasonic S1H 5.9k has weather sealing, but with an integrated fan. The Fuji XT3 and XT4 can record 4k in 420 10bit h265 internally, with good weather sealing and no additional fan. (2) Tilta has just announced a cage for the R5, that also includes a cooling fan, powered via USB-C. Did Tilta know ahead of time the R5 would overheat? Or was it just a good, and rather practical, guess?
Find your grove, discover what works best for you, then find a camera to meet those needs; it may be more than one camera, as not every camera can do everything. I know hybrid shooters, who went with a Fuji medium format camera, for incredible photography and a BlackMagic, for incredible video. The Sigma fp could satisfy both those needs. Maybe you only need incredibly fast autofocus if you shoot sports or live events, and could rent a camera, when needed. Although I have photographed live events, and sports with a slower focusing camera, and with back-button focus; it does require a lot more effort and knowledge of how depth-of-field works, but it is possible. Photographers have been taking photos long before the invention of the digital sensor; they developed skills over time, instead of a camera company just offering a new, automatic feature. The skills you learn in photography will far out last the camera body you buy today.