Maybe strange...for many.
But for me, the R8 is the least tempting camera in Canon's FF range.
No IBIS, no dual SD/CF, very low definition EVF and a size requiring a body prosthesis if you have normal sized hands (like the EOS R and RP).
Sure, the sensor is excellent, the size appeals to many (me excluded), the price is very reasonable. As a backup, in case (very improbable!) my EOS R fails, ok!

A 20-70 mm f2.8 would likely be a purchase and I would trade in a 15-35 mm f2.8 and 24-70 mm f2.8 towards the purchase. Basically I would replace two lenses with one. I rarely shoot wider than 20 mm and when I do I have Canon RF 10-20 mm f4 lens.

Canon Rumors said:

Oh I see. Sorry about that. There'd be no way for any sort of communication with the lens itself. I guess it could be done with the adapter if you could select the lens and the adapter would do the work. There is a company that makes lens adapters that turn manual focus lenses into autofocus. I don't know off the top of my head if they do FD.

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I very humbly suggest you’re not getting my main point regarding a conceptual ‘smart’ FD to RF lens adapter.

The 4 mechanical FD lens interfaces I discussed in my long post completely identify that particular lens to a FD lens compatible camera body, whether purely mechanical (F-1 (old), FTb, TLb) or ‘electronic’ (AE-1 and successors).

Of course, RF lens mount bodies do not have the corresponding mechanical FD lens interface on their side. I suggested adding both an encoder and positional solenoid to the smart FD to RF lens adapter to bridge the gap. This is basic electromechanical engineering.

The only thing in the way is the RF electrical body/lens contacts interface and their use specifications. Maybe yes, maybe no.

FD lens autofocus I won’t touch on.

John Wilde said:

I suspect that the era of optional EVFs is over, due to poor sales.

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But what were the products that had poor sales? For example, EVF-DC2 was only working with a couple of M series cameras that probably were not Canon's most-selling anyway. It might sell much better if the smaller V cameras end up selling well, especially if there will be more of them in the future. EVFs are crucial when shooting details in bright outdoor situations, in my opinion.

SnowMiku said:

I wonder what improvements it would have over the original?

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I have the R8 and the sensor is wonderful, no need to change that. I would love to see a joystick on the R8 II, the screen-touch AF point selection is slow and annoying sometimes.

Any Name said:

Disclaimer: video is just not my thing, so I'd rather not to pay for all this unused (by me at least) functionality.

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This again.. Tell me how removing some video features would make the camera cheaper. The sensor still need to have fast readout to support 30FPS (the current R8), dual pixel AF, the EVF, etc. If they separate the R8 line into 2, that just means extra development and R&D cost and sales split between 2 models = higher cost per model. Removing some video codecs won't make the camera cheaper. Making an R8V only makes sense because of different ergonomics and the EVF can be dropped.

eero said:

I think making EVF-DC2 compatible with R50V (and other upcoming small V cameras) wouldn't be too difficult, if the Canon engineers are not planning anything better. If they are, I hope they publish it soon.

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I suspect that the era of optional EVFs is over, due to poor sales. Also, it seems that the camera industry decided that video-centric consumer cameras don't get EVFs. The Sony ZV-E10 II, Sony ZV-E10 II, Nikon Red ZR and Nikon Z30 don't have EVFs, so Canon isn't alone in that decision.

Jaysheldon said:

I should clarify: I'd like an RF-S pancake lens equivalent to a 24, 28 or 35mm FF.

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I know its not rf-s, but there is already a 25.6mm equivalent 16mm full frame pancake, in case that interests you. No worries if you are wanting an exact 24 or 28, but just thought Id mention it.

22mm pancake is all I am interested in....look how successful the fuji x100 series is, proving that many people can be limited to just 35mm equiv.

If only due to the popularity of the fuji, every brand should offer a 35-38mm equiv pancake. Its not rocket science. Its the first lens many of us want in any system, and especially in small mirrorless cameras.

P.S. Alternatively, for full frame, this could be done with the extant 28mm pancake if Canon added a 1.3x (raw capable) crop /aps-h crop in camera. Then you would have a 28, 35 and ~50 travel option and make the canon full frame models near perfect do-everything cameras, esp r5 ii with its high resolution...

Canon Rumors said:

There are lots of those out there. I recommend URTH. I think I have all of their RF mount adapters. The C/Y, FD, M39 and Leica M adapters get a lot of use. I have started to buy some K mount lenses too.

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I was thinking of much more than a passive ‘extension tube’ FD to RF lens adapter.

It’s all predicated on the RF lens/body electrical contact interfaces and their capabilities, which I have no knowledge of. My thoughts might not be possible to implement.

The Canon FD lens mount has 4 mechanical interfaces when mounted to a compatible camera body:

• A cylindrical ‘boss’ pin which indicates the lens’ maximum aperture and compensates for the small difference between a f-stop and T-stop.
• A ‘tab’ lever which moves in a semi-circular ‘race’ which follows the lens’ aperture selection ring. This moves a small ‘circle’ in the camera viewfinder for ‘match needle’ light metering. (On old mechanical FD lens cameras.) This tab lever could be coupled to a mechanical encoder followed by an analog-to-digital converter to transmit the lens’ aperture setting back to the camera.
• A very small pin which pops up when the lens’ aperture ring is moved past its minimum (smallest) setting by depressing a button on the ring to either a green circle (old) or green ‘A’ (new) index. This was used on the ‘electronic’ FD mount cameras (AE-1 etc.) to allow shutter-priority Automatic Exposure. More on this in (4)
• A much larger tab lever which stops the lens down to its selected aperture when the camera shutter button is pressed. This allows both focusing and light metering with the lens wide open (how quaint!) An electromechanical solenoid could be incorporated into the FD/RF adapter to provide the same function. For shutter priority AE, the position of the stop down lever at shutter release needs to follow what the camera decides is the correct exposure aperture.

If all these features can be incorporated into a ‘smart’ FD to RF lens adapter, that would make a world of difference when using existing vintage Canon FD lenses.

Lens correction profiles for vintage Canon FD lenses – a whole different topic!!!

I like my R8 a lot. I’m interested to see what improvements the R8II brings. However, I have zero interest in a retro camera.

I do wonder if this means the R8II will be a retro camera, or if it means there will be a ‘retro version’ of the R8II sold alongside a version with current styling.

If ‘retro’ means a silver top version like they’ve done with other cameras, then I’d choose black (as I did with the M series). If it means numbered dials on top for exposure settings and a boxy, less-contoured grip then that’s a hard pass for me.

Here's another crazy take: What if it's not even going to be a Mark II but just a silver color edition of the R8?

I'm having trouble imagining where this R8 Mark II is going to slot in without cannibalizing sales of the R6 Mark II. Would it be a(nother) cripple-hammered R6 Mark II with marginal updates? But if so, which updates? Or will they even put the R6 Mark III sensor without IBIS?

Keep in mind, the original R8 was a budget model with a MSRP of $1499, I don't think the Mark II would cost much more.

Very nice shots, I especially like the second one.

Noreaster and 7Dmki,

Very nice. Thanks for sharing. Keep posting.

SnowMiku said:

I wonder what improvements it would have over the original? Will this release make it time to retire the RP and have the original R8 take its place?

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Is the RP still in production?

Also perhaps a lens adapter FD to RF with some feature not in the many currently out there.

Great news! It just need a shutter shield (problem of original R8)!

Canon Rumors said:

I guess "retro" is more about prime lenses, you're probably right. The 45 would be cool.

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When I owned an AE-1, the lens I used the most was a Vivitar Series 1 35-85 f/2.8. If Canon could make it f/2 and half the weight of that lens, I might buy it.

I would love to see a retro style version of the next R8 body as I love the R8 size for travel photography and love the look of Fuji X cameras. However I hope they keep the deep grip from the original R8 as I know old vintage style cameras don’t always have grips but I think thats essential to keep the great ergonomics of the R8. For me they could do a more squared off design with metal top plate and multiple dials but keep the grip. That would be perfect.

Canon Rumors said:

I'd be cool if they did the 16-28 and 28-70 2.8s. They won't touch an L. I have no idea if lenses are in the cards

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I'd say the RF 28, 45 and 50 1.8 would be great candidates.

Before I actually see Canon deviating from their classic form factors, I expect an R8 housing with just a silver top. Remember, they did that with a special edition of the RP, too.

Wouldn't be too bad, tho:

Canon Rumors said:

I'd be cool if they did the 16-28 and 28-70 2.8s. They won't touch an L. I have no idea if lenses are in the cards

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A retro looking shell for these two lenses would be perfect.

It would be a excellent opportunity to (sort of) split the R8-line into a 'more video oriented' branch (the 'R8 V') and a 'more photograph oriented' branch (the 'R8 Mark II'). Being at the low-end of the full-frame range, it would be a logical point to test the waters for such an approach.

Disclaimer: video is just not my thing, so I'd rather not to pay for all this unused (by me at least) functionality.

SnowMiku said:

This is the first time I've heard of an R8 mark II. Will it get a normal release or only have the retro look? I wonder what improvements it would have over the original? Will this release make it time to retire the RP and have the original R8 take its place?

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I don’t mind the retro style, for those who care about that sort of thing, but there’s a reason modern cameras look the way they do. Their design is much more ergonomic, which significantly improves ease of use. That said, the original R8 is already close to being the perfect camera. If it’s positioned as the replacement for the RP, it’ll be the best of both worlds. Speaking for myself, and likely a bunch of other people, I couldn't care less about having a retro looking device.

This is the first time I've heard of an R8 mark II. Will it get a normal release or only have the retro look? I wonder what improvements it would have over the original? Will this release make it time to retire the RP and have the original R8 take its place?

But please, Canon: if you do release retro lenses, do not base one on the RF 24-50mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM. No one wants that lens, and I don’t think the camera itself would want to be mounted to it.

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I agree, but it's probably just us on the forum that don't want this as a retro look kit lens. I'd much rather a 50mm f/1.8