Review: Canon EOS R6 by DPReview

ahsanford

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Aug 16, 2012
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If you consider all the difference between these cameras, the $1400 starts to make more sense and they appear very similarly priced and spec'd to the mirrorless updated equivalents of the 5D4 and 6D:

[long list]


Sure, but the big, beefy horsepower specs and major feature adds are all here:
DPAF II​
1DX3 sensor (i.e. outdated handmedown off-chip 5D3/6D1 sensor tech no more for this price point)​
IBIS​
12 / 20 fps​
Huge buffer​
Eye AF for all sorts of creatures​
Two slots​
Joystick​
Thumbwheel​

Or put another way, put the R6 sensor in the R5 and take away the 8K and nicer 4K features. Would you sell that camera alongside the R6? I'm not sure I would. That sensor is the beating heart of the $3899 value proposition.

There are all sorts of differences between cameras, but the features that get people pulling out their credit cards are largely available on both bodies. The R6 got hooked up. I still contend the R5 is largely asking +$1400 for a better sensor and the expanded video it can bring down.

- A
 
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Bob Howland

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Mar 25, 2012
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Me too. It was not sharp. I think it is because of my bad wifi.
I think I had your problem. It was a lot sharper on my desktop computer with the hard wire connection to the cable modem than on a laptop using Wifi. It's looking like I'll be buying both an R5 and R6, probably using the R6 more. I really want to see the files from both cameras at high ISO, starting with 6400.
 
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Kiton

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Jun 13, 2015
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All that matters to me now is, does the R5 band on silent shutter in LED??!!

If they have dealt with the banding, or at least dealt with the majority of banding, Sony is in deep dog doo.
The only great aspect of the A9 was the lack of banding in LED situations.

Please Canon, don't screw this up!!
 
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Billybob

800mm f/11 because a cellphone isn't long enough!
May 22, 2016
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I can't help but chuckle at the number of comments asserting that finally a DPR review is fair to Canon. They're amazed that Chris and Jordan have finally shed DPR's anti-Canon bias and given a Canon product a fair trial. Some of these same comments assert that it won't last and the R5 will get the same old biased treatment.

Most seemed oblivious to the possibility that DPR hasn't changed, rather it is Canon that changed. I was an avid Canon users for years. I anxiously waited for the release of the 6D II with tremendous anticipation but was sorely disappointed when it was actually inferior to its predecessor in several respects. I considered the 5D IV, but it was more money than I wanted to spend on a camera especially one that, to me, didn't seem significantly better than the M III that it replaced. I bought a 80D hoping to keep a foot in the Canon water, but there was nothing exciting about that camera. And I don't even want to talk about the Rebel releases. How many variations on a single theme can a company trot through without making any discernible progress forward?

Thus, to me, Canon has been in a huge rut for years. Rather than biased against Canon, I saw the DPR treatment almost as a form of "tough love". We love you Canon, we know you can do so much better than you're doing, so why aren't you living up to your potential?

Now, Canon seems to have gotten the message, Maybe they were planning this tour-de-force for years--and just weren't ready when they introduced the R but knew they had to release something. It kind of reminds me of the original GodFather movie, where the Corleone family looks like they’re fatally weakened and are just waiting to be wiped out by competing families. Instead, in the penultimate scene, Canon, I mean the Corleones, turn the table and whack all the rivals in a single carefully choreographed, coordinated attack.

This is what the R5/6 offerings represent. Sure, video gets the headlines, but it’s the camera features and capabilities that will dominate the market. Incredible resolution (the A7R IV’s 61MP is of no consequence; I have to check the file size or EXIF data to distinguish R III and R IV images), competitive DR, AF and continuous rate that challenges the best sports cameras, state-of-the-art FF IBIS, and amazing ergonomics in a small package. And no doubt I left out several features including truly excellent video.

Hence, the question isn’t why has DPR suddenly given a fair review of a Canon product. No, the reviews have always fair. Rather, given the different between the R5/6 offerings and recent Canon offerings, the real question is why weren’t they even more critical of Canon’s half-hearted efforts?
 
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Jan 22, 2012
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I think I had your problem. It was a lot sharper on my desktop computer with the hard wire connection to the cable modem than on a laptop using Wifi. It's looking like I'll be buying both an R5 and R6, probably using the R6 more. I really want to see the files from both cameras at high ISO, starting with 6400.
Yep. It is sharp. :) And nice.
 
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Jan 22, 2012
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I think I had your problem. It was a lot sharper on my desktop computer with the hard wire connection to the cable modem than on a laptop using Wifi. It's looking like I'll be buying both an R5 and R6, probably using the R6 more. I really want to see the files from both cameras at high ISO, starting with 6400.
Yep. It is sharp. :) And nice.
I think I had your problem. It was a lot sharper on my desktop computer with the hard wire connection to the cable modem than on a laptop using Wifi. It's looking like I'll be buying both an R5 and R6, probably using the R6 more. I really want to see the files from both cameras at high ISO, starting with 6400.
Bob. Would you be kind enough to inbox me or email me [email protected] your findings when you compare the high ISO between the 2 cameras? I will be really really grateful. I will wait to buy as my kind of work is at standstill currently. THANK YOU.
 
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Del Paso

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Aug 9, 2018
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I can't help but chuckle at the number of comments asserting that finally a DPR review is fair to Canon. They're amazed that Chris and Jordan have finally shed DPR's anti-Canon bias and given a Canon product a fair trial. Some of these same comments assert that it won't last and the R5 will get the same old biased treatment.

Most seemed oblivious to the possibility that DPR hasn't changed, rather it is Canon that changed. I was an avid Canon users for years. I anxiously waited for the release of the 6D II with tremendous anticipation but was sorely disappointed when it was actually inferior to its predecessor in several respects. I considered the 5D IV, but it was more money than I wanted to spend on a camera especially one that, to me, didn't seem significantly better than the M III that it replaced. I bought a 80D hoping to keep a foot in the Canon water, but there was nothing exciting about that camera. And I don't even want to talk about the Rebel releases. How many variations on a single theme can a company trot through without making any discernible progress forward?

Thus, to me, Canon has been in a huge rut for years. Rather than biased against Canon, I saw the DPR treatment almost as a form of "tough love". We love you Canon, we know you can do so much better than you're doing, so why aren't you living up to your potential?

Now, Canon seems to have gotten the message, Maybe they were planning this tour-de-force for years--and just weren't ready when they introduced the R but knew they had to release something. It kind of reminds me of the original GodFather movie, where the Corleone family looks like they’re fatally weakened and are just waiting to be wiped out by competing families. Instead, in the penultimate scene, Canon, I mean the Corleones, turn the table and whack all the rivals in a single carefully choreographed, coordinated attack.

This is what the R5/6 offerings represent. Sure, video gets the headlines, but it’s the camera features and capabilities that will dominate the market. Incredible resolution (the A7R IV’s 61MP is of no consequence; I have to check the file size or EXIF data to distinguish R III and R IV images), competitive DR, AF and continuous rate that challenges the best sports cameras, state-of-the-art FF IBIS, and amazing ergonomics in a small package. And no doubt I left out several features including truly excellent video.

Hence, the question isn’t why has DPR suddenly given a fair review of a Canon product. No, the reviews have always fair. Rather, given the different between the R5/6 offerings and recent Canon offerings, the real question is why weren’t they even more critical of Canon’s half-hearted efforts?
Sorry to disagree, but the 5 D IV is significantly better than the 5 D III (DR, MP, touchscreen etc...)
It wasn't an upgrade, but a new and better camera (I'm using both).
 
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AlanF

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Aug 16, 2012
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.... It kind of reminds me of the original GodFather movie, where the Corleone family looks like they’re fatally weakened and are just waiting to be wiped out by competing families. Instead, in the penultimate scene, Canon, I mean the Corleones, turn the table and whack all the rivals in a single carefully choreographed, coordinated attack.....
So, now we know: Canon is run by the Yakuza.
 
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ahsanford

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Aug 16, 2012
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Sorry to disagree, but the 5 D IV is significantly better than the 5 D III (DR, MP, touchscreen etc...)
It wasn't an upgrade, but a new and better camera (I'm using both).


Agree with you personally, but it depends on what you wanted. If you wanted a big bump to framerate, if you wanted a tilty-flippy, if you wanted spot metering at the AF point like the 1-series, the 5D4 didn't deliver that.

Some folks literally moved downmarket from their 5D3 to a 6D2 just so they could get a tilty-flippy. Everyone's priorities vary.

- A
 
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Agree with you personally, but it depends on what you wanted. If you wanted a big bump to framerate, if you wanted a tilty-flippy, if you wanted spot metering at the AF point like the 1-series, the 5D4 didn't deliver that.

Some folks literally moved downmarket from their 5D3 to a 6D2 just so they could get a tilty-flippy. Everyone's priorities vary.

- A
would people move downmarket from a 1DX2 to R5?
 
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Jack Douglas

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Apr 10, 2013
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People can gripe about these cameras but I'm tickled pink. It will be interesting to see what the R5 does to my 1DX2 usage.

Edit: Posted just before seeing the above comment. Good question. I think it all depends on how much I value some of the 1 series only features and perhaps the 4K60 with no heating issues but the weight ... I don't need and the size ... I might find I like more rather than less??

Jack
 
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would people move downmarket from a 1DX2 to R5?

I can definitely imagine cases where people have used a 1dx2 for the higher video specs than the 5dmk4, who would be keen on a smaller, more capable rig in the R5. I know at least one person who has a 1dx2 for the 4k 60 - the r5 is probably a better option for them by far
 
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I can't help but chuckle at the number of comments asserting that finally a DPR review is fair to Canon. They're amazed that Chris and Jordan have finally shed DPR's anti-Canon bias and given a Canon product a fair trial. Some of these same comments assert that it won't last and the R5 will get the same old biased treatment.

Most seemed oblivious to the possibility that DPR hasn't changed, rather it is Canon that changed. I was an avid Canon users for years. I anxiously waited for the release of the 6D II with tremendous anticipation but was sorely disappointed when it was actually inferior to its predecessor in several respects. I considered the 5D IV, but it was more money than I wanted to spend on a camera especially one that, to me, didn't seem significantly better than the M III that it replaced. I bought a 80D hoping to keep a foot in the Canon water, but there was nothing exciting about that camera. And I don't even want to talk about the Rebel releases. How many variations on a single theme can a company trot through without making any discernible progress forward?

Thus, to me, Canon has been in a huge rut for years. Rather than biased against Canon, I saw the DPR treatment almost as a form of "tough love". We love you Canon, we know you can do so much better than you're doing, so why aren't you living up to your potential?

Now, Canon seems to have gotten the message, Maybe they were planning this tour-de-force for years--and just weren't ready when they introduced the R but knew they had to release something. It kind of reminds me of the original GodFather movie, where the Corleone family looks like they’re fatally weakened and are just waiting to be wiped out by competing families. Instead, in the penultimate scene, Canon, I mean the Corleones, turn the table and whack all the rivals in a single carefully choreographed, coordinated attack.

This is what the R5/6 offerings represent. Sure, video gets the headlines, but it’s the camera features and capabilities that will dominate the market. Incredible resolution (the A7R IV’s 61MP is of no consequence; I have to check the file size or EXIF data to distinguish R III and R IV images), competitive DR, AF and continuous rate that challenges the best sports cameras, state-of-the-art FF IBIS, and amazing ergonomics in a small package. And no doubt I left out several features including truly excellent video.

Hence, the question isn’t why has DPR suddenly given a fair review of a Canon product. No, the reviews have always fair. Rather, given the different between the R5/6 offerings and recent Canon offerings, the real question is why weren’t they even more critical of Canon’s half-hearted efforts?

I was in the same boat with the 6dmk2 also also looked at the 5dmk4 at the time but ended up in the Sony camp as there were a number of features that I wanted at the time.

Canon seem to have really pulled themselves out of the rut where they made decent cameras but with some noticeable compromises to cameras where, while maybe not perfect, everyone is going to use them as the benchmark again

I'm likely to stay in the Sony camp currently, but these put Canon firmly back on the radar as viable options when I feel I need to upgrade (it's just those lenses now)
 
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Keith_Reeder

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Hence, the question isn’t why has DPR suddenly given a fair review of a Canon product. No, the reviews have always fair. Rather, given the different between the R5/6 offerings and recent Canon offerings, the real question is why weren’t they even more critical of Canon’s half-hearted efforts?
That's simply, demonstrably untrue - DPR has habitually criticised things in Canon cameras that they've given no mind to when they've reviewed other manufacturers' cameras with similar issues.

Specifically, they've reviewed Canon cameras in such a way as to present them at their worst - what they can't do - rather than crediting them for what they do well. Regardless of what else a given Canon might bring to the table, DPR would always downplay its qualities by making greater play of what (in their opinion) was an issue, whether or not it was a Real World failing.

Most typically, they'd frequently weight their overall opinion of a Canon camera towards the negative, simply because of the good old (and to most people, borderline irrelevant) sensor dynamic range stick-to-beat-Canon-with. A camera might excel in pretty much every regard, but DPR would invariably dismiss those qualities by dwelling on Canon's supposedly inferior sensors.

Time and time again. A complete lack of objective balance, and a focus on what DPR subjectively thought was most important, to the exclusion of whatever the camera did well..

There's nothing "half hearted" about a camera that does everything very well, and Canon cameras invariably do. Bells and whistles rarely make for a better camera, and being impressed by shiny shiny while ignoring solid, worthwhile Real World performance, does not make for a good, fair, objective review.
 
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