Canon EOS R7 Mark II Sensor Upgrades

[jeff89]

I was a 7D guy in 2012 when they released the 5DIII and 6D and wouldn’t even consider the 6D, as I felt it inferior to the 7D, which was in my opinion a flagship APS-C for Canon. While I purchased a 6D years later for astrophotography, I’ve always viewed the 6-series as a budget FF camera with limitations that didn’t do much for me and would rather save longer to get the 5-series.

In my opinion, this is a return to the status quo for Canon, and a camera I would likely add to my R1 and R5II lineup. Bravo Canon!

 

[Stig Nygaard]

Zooms, yes, most primes,no. That is why I think that Sigma will be overhauling their APS-C prime lens line over the next couple years.

Ah yes. My 12mm does have it. And I can see the new 15mm got it too. But it looks like the other primes (including my 56mm) are missing it.

 

[John Wilde]

A simple resolution upgrade will not tempt existing owners.

Most upgrades are incremental, designed for new buyers, not previous buyers of the same model.

 

[tron]

Most upgrades are incremental, designed for new buyers, not previous buyers of the same model.

I agree. However, there are cases that the previous buyers are tempted. For example I have upgraded from 5DmkII to 5DmkIII to 5DmkIV and have not regretted it.

 

[Exploreshootshare]

As far as I know, all(/most?) Sigma RF-S lenses does indeed have control ring!?!

Thx for the hint. I still not quite sure about all the lenses. Apparently, some lenses don´t have a dedicated control ring, but a "customizable" focus ring which can switched between focus (manually) and control ring feature. There is no physical button for switching, so one has to go through the menu to set it up or switch. Since I don´t own a R7 and sigma lens, I can´t test whether this correct or not. Other than that, is does sound like a hassle... I can live with a "control/ focus" switch just like the RF 16mm has it.

 

[dwkdnvr]

For me, the 39MP aligns with 8k UHD. It hits a spec sheet tick box and people won't quibble the difference with DCI.

45MP (3:2) is needed for 8KDCI and the R5 hits that with internal raw recording and records UHD as well of course which is cropped. Overkill for most users.

My guess that if the sensor is stacked then the extra AF processor would be added meaning 3 bodies with it. Additional volume should decrease the unit cost and will have class leading performance but it will impact the price segmentation.

Actually 8K UHD makes perfect sense, and I may even have had that realization in the past and have been willfully ignoring it. It does indicate that this flavor of R7II isn't 'just' a bird/wildlife beast but more of a hybrid which will probably make many folks here unhappy. But video clearly drives the market to a large degree.

I personally just want usable 4k120 - the R7 HD120 is actually quite good, but 4k120 even with a mild crop would be much better.

 

[zamorano]

Some interesting insight here, thanks everyone... After reading the discussion it seems clearer what to expect.

If I'm not mistaken, the 6D cost around 200 to 500 EUR more than the 7D. I'd say if it is a fully stacked BSI sensor, there isn't much of a competition so the price can be closer to the R6 III. But, as someone said, the 6D was more of a "budget full frame" camera while the R6 III is a serious beast, at least from my enthusiast perspective. If these specs are true - IBIS, stacked, BSI, 8K video - then the R7 II will also be seriously specced itself.

I'm not sure if it makes sense for the R7 I to remain in the catalog, where I live its price is already down to 1000 EUR which is R10 territory... To me it seems more likely they're selling it off to clear the space for - what kind of an R10 II could it be if it would compete with the R7 I at this price? Compared to the R7, newer software for sure, slight hardware upgrade only where necessary to support the software, downgrades to remove stuff that is not interesting for the the different target group.

 

[InternalRevenue]

Actually 8K UHD makes perfect sense, and I may even have had that realization in the past and have been willfully ignoring it. It does indicate that this flavor of R7II isn't 'just' a bird/wildlife beast but more of a hybrid which will probably make many folks here unhappy. But video clearly drives the market to a large degree.

I personally just want usable 4k120 - the R7 HD120 is actually quite good, but 4k120 even with a mild crop would be much better.

I think many people overlook just how good a general use video camera the R7 is for it's price; I've used it to film several work projects now and really appreciate it's capabilities: Headphone jack, dedicated video switch ON THE RIGHT SIDE with 3 custom profiles available, CLOG3 or HDR PQ, resistant to overheating (mine has never come close to doing so), 4K60 uncropped (despite being lineskipped you can't really tell unless cropping heavily or pixel peeping against oversampled modes), IBIS (a blessing and a curse, can't believe Canon still doesn't allow this to be turned off independently), auto-level, and much better battery life compared to the other RF-S bodies and the R8.

With the R7ii bringing an improved sensor readout speed, we should indeed see minimal rolling shutter and higher framerates; personally I'm hoping for faster than 120p, at LEAST 2K 240fps like the R5ii, but come on Canon you can go higher. 480 1080p anyone?

 

[Chig]

Personally I would have preferred a stacked sensor in the R6 iii as I find full frame works much better for my bird photography and would rather use longer focal length for magnification than using a cropped sensor. I have the 200-800 and it works great with 1.4x and even 2x extenders provided I'm not too far away. Distance ruins image quality more than any other factor I find and if I'm too far away no amount of magnification or MP helps over come the degradation of atmospheric effects.

 

[Markov]

I am a bit surprised nobody mentions macro photography. The R7 was already good for this and the mark ii sound great. More resolution means more cropping. Pre-capture is important for insects and, although the R7 has some form, I hope we now get the normal pre-capture. In such cases a stacked sensor is important to avoid rolling shutter effects in insect wings. And another advantage of a stacked sensor is that you can most likely use a flash with the electronic shutter. This would also mean I could use a flash with the built-in focus stacking.

 

[zapper]

This is what I'm struggling with. I fully expect that a stacked sensor (or more likely partially stacked) R7 in an R6 style body to be a $2500 camera. Maybe $2200 if they 'only' get the readout speed into the R6III range (13ms) rather than sub-10 (probably meaning cropped 4k120). You have to be a pretty committed bird/wildlife shooter for that to make sense since nobody is going to look at that body for general-purpose stills or even hybrid use given the competition and the dearth of quality APS-C lenses. If you have FF size, FF cost, need to use FF lenses, and are getting comparable functionality in terms of frame rates and buffer where is the value proposition? You need to be consistently shooting where R6III + TC doesn't give you the reach.

I bought the R7 with the 100-500 specifically for birding and wildlife, and used it exclusively for that for several years while using my Nikon Z fullframe systems for all else. Two years ago, I would have agreed with you.

But the introduction of Sigma's fine RF-S lenses changed that. The Sigmas have excellent optics, and really deliver on the size/weight advantage of the APS-C format. I now use the R7 with the Sigma RF-S f2.8 zooms and f1.4 primes as my all-around system. I've sold most of my Nikon gear, including 3 bodies and a dozen lenses, keeping only an old Z7 and few lenses for landscape and architecture.

All my complaints with the R7 are due to the slow sensor. I'll almost certainly be in line for the R7ii.

 

[neuroanatomist]

…I find full frame works much better for my bird photography and would rather use longer focal length for magnification than using a cropped sensor. I have the 200-800 and it works great with 1.4x and even 2x extenders provided I'm not too far away. Distance ruins image quality more than any other factor…

I am of the same opinion. Admittedly, I have not compared sensor sizes recently. I had both the 5DII and the 7D, and after getting the 1D X, I hung onto the 7D planning to continue using it for birds because of the extra ‘reach’ with my 100-400L. But comparing images from the two cameras, I preferred those coming out of the 1D X. I increased my reach by getting the 600/4 II and the extenders, which remain my primary set up for birds (now with the R1).

 

[AlanF]

Personally I would have preferred a stacked sensor in the R6 iii as I find full frame works much better for my bird photography and would rather use longer focal length for magnification than using a cropped sensor. I have the 200-800 and it works great with 1.4x and even 2x extenders provided I'm not too far away. Distance ruins image quality more than any other factor I find and if I'm too far away no amount of magnification or MP helps over come the degradation of atmospheric effects.

I use the same lenses on APS-C and FF. If I am cropping to below APS-C size, which happens for most of the time, it makes little difference to me whether I use FF or APS-C except that storage is better for APS-C and I can get better resolution. If I am doing BIF, then I greatly prefer FF as it is easier to find the bird and then keep it in frame. If I am using a prime lens, the wider field of view on FF is a big plus. You are a BIF nutter so there is a natural agreement between us!

 

[PinholeR5]

I do like some of the Sigma lenses for RF-s, but of the main reasons I´d prefer Canon lenses and also why I opted for the R8 as a "light" travel/ hiking setup is that all the Sigma lenses don't have a control ring. I use the control on every outing and I am so used to it. Going APS-C without control ring was/ is a definite no-go for me. Therefore, I´d need some tempting RF-S native lens options, which I absolutely don't see atm. But thats absolutely fine since the R8 works wonderfully with the contemporary 16mm, 35mm and 85mm prime lenses. I just might add the 28-70mm F2.8 to the kit.

My wife and her family are actually considering buying my father-in-law either the 23mm or the 30mm Sigma RF-S prime as a birthday gift.

As far as I know, all(/most?) Sigma RF-S lenses does indeed have control ring!?!

Zooms, yes, most primes,no. That is why I think that Sigma will be overhauling their APS-C prime lens line over the next couple years.

Ah yes. My 12mm does have it. And I can see the new 15mm got it too. But it looks like the other primes (including my 56mm) are missing it.

Thx for the hint. I still not quite sure about all the lenses. Apparently, some lenses don´t have a dedicated control ring, but a "customizable" focus ring which can switched between focus (manually) and control ring feature. There is no physical button for switching, so one has to go through the menu to set it up or switch. Since I don´t own a R7 and sigma lens, I can´t test whether this correct or not. Other than that, is does sound like a hassle... I can live with a "control/ focus" switch just like the RF 16mm has it.

There is Control Ring support on Sigma RF lenses.

Control ring support was a big item for me. I really like using the compact Sigma zooms and primes with the R50 which only has one ring and having the second ring on the lens was a huge consideration!

Most of the lenses don't have a deditacted control ring. You get Control Ring functionality by setting the focus ring to be a Control Ring. You can then customize the control ring as you normally would a dedicated physical ring. As @Exploreshootshare said, this functionality has to be setup through the menus, there is no dedicated button (just like with the Canon RF-S 18-45mm).

The newer Sigma RF-S lenses, like the 12mm & 15mm primes and the 17-40mm zoom have a dedicated Control Ring. The older lenses, like the 16, 23, 30, & 56mm primes and the 10-18mm, 18-50mm, 16-300mm zooms don't have a dedicated Control Ring.

For my use cases manual focus is not needed, so the R50 is configured for Control Ring and it solves the issue for me.

P.S. I also use the R7, but mostly with the 17-40mm or with the Sigma EF 50-100mm 1.8 adapted with the control ring adapter.

 

[Bob Howland]

There is Control Ring support on Sigma RF lenses.

Control ring support was a big item for me. I really like using the compact Sigma zooms and primes with the R50 which only has one ring and having the second ring on the lens was a huge consideration!

Most of the lenses don't have a deditacted control ring. You get Control Ring functionality by setting the focus ring to be a Control Ring. You can then customize the control ring as you normally would a dedicated physical ring. As @Exploreshootshare said, this functionality has to be setup through the menus, there is no dedicated button (just like with the Canon RF-S 18-45mm).

The newer Sigma RF-S lenses, like the 12mm & 15mm primes and the 17-40mm zoom have a dedicated Control Ring. The older lenses, like the 16, 23, 30, & 56mm primes and the 10-18mm, 18-50mm, 16-300mm zooms don't have a dedicated Control Ring.

For my use cases manual focus is not needed, so the R50 is configured for Control Ring and it solves the issue for me.

P.S. I also use the R7, but mostly with the 17-40mm or with the Sigma EF 50-100mm 1.8 adapted with the control ring adapter.

I just checked my 16, 23 and 30mm lenses on my R7 and they behaved as you describe. Thank you. I use the "control ring" to change the area in the view finder used for focus. I never use manual focus since most of what I shoot is moving rapidly and/or unpredictably and I'm old and slow. I imagine that a dedicated control ring is more important to Fuji owners since there it serves as an aperture control ring.

 

[zapper]

There is Control Ring support on Sigma RF lenses.

Control ring support was a big item for me. I really like using the compact Sigma zooms and primes with the R50 which only has one ring and having the second ring on the lens was a huge consideration!

Most of the lenses don't have a deditacted control ring. You get Control Ring functionality by setting the focus ring to be a Control Ring. You can then customize the control ring as you normally would a dedicated physical ring. As @Exploreshootshare said, this functionality has to be setup through the menus, there is no dedicated button (just like with the Canon RF-S 18-45mm).

The newer Sigma RF-S lenses, like the 12mm & 15mm primes and the 17-40mm zoom have a dedicated Control Ring. The older lenses, like the 16, 23, 30, & 56mm primes and the 10-18mm, 18-50mm, 16-300mm zooms don't have a dedicated Control Ring.

For my use cases manual focus is not needed, so the R50 is configured for Control Ring and it solves the issue for me.

P.S. I also use the R7, but mostly with the 17-40mm or with the Sigma EF 50-100mm 1.8 adapted with the control ring adapter.

Right, I just dived into the R7 menus to remind myself where those setting are. In the R7 it's AF 6: Focus/Control Ring where you have to choose between focus and control for those RF-S lenses with only one ring. If you choose Control Ring, you can use menu Custom 3: Customize dials to choose the ring function. I use the Fv mode when using the 10-18 and 18-50, so I don't need another dial and leave it on focus.

 

[@zajicekpavel]

I am currently using lens Sigma RF 17-40mm f/1.8 DC Art with the R10 and waiting for the R7M2. For info, photo from yesterday:

16. 3. 2026 05:37:39 by Pavel Zajíček

adobe.ly

there are third-party lenses for APS-C!

The problem is with availability, I waited half a year for the lens...

 

[GMCPhotographics]

I supect that the RF 200-800 will be a bit soft on the rumoured 39mp R7II. However, it'll be amazing on the current RF100-300L, RF 400/2.8 and RF 600/4.0 lenses.
I'm also anticipating the R7ii and the rumoured RF 300-600mm f5.6 will be an amazing combo. Effectively creating 500-1000mm lens if if was compared to a full frame equivelent. It might be the lens to get if you are into crop sensors and long reach. It would also make the RF 100-500L a stunning wide angle on full frame as a 2nd camera. OR a RF 100-300L as a wider option on the 1.6x crop / 2nd lens.

 

[brendon42]

There is no physical button for switching, so one has to go through the menu to set it up or switch.

On my R50V you can customize a button on the body to switch the ring between mf and control so you don't need to go through menus to switch. It may not be as convenient for some people as a button on the lens though.

 

[InternalRevenue]

On my R50V you can customize a button on the body to switch the ring between mf and control so you don't need to go through menus to switch. It may not be as convenient for some people as a button on the lens though.

And for those of us who've already assigned other necessary functions to every available button, it's unfortunately not an ideal solution. I'm disappointed Canon didn't add a "hybrid mode" option, one for instance where it functions as a control ring most of the time but if you hold down the metering button it'll act as manual focus when you turn it. Wouldn't be perfect for every situation but would save having to sacrifice a precious customizable button (especially important on the budget bodies). Doesn't seem like the newer bodies can do this either?