Canon EOS R3 and Canon EOS R5 to receive new firmware next week

[AlanF]

I had my R5 fully serviced 2 weeks ago (sensor change), and the firmware is still the March 1.5.2. I was hoping that next R5 firmware will introduce some of the R7 AF improvements, or the pre-capture that many other brands had for years (and the R7 has), instead of more video updates.

What are the AF improvements of the R7 over the R5?

 

[liv_img]

What are the AF improvements of the R7 over the R5?

I really don't know for sure, as I have not touched any R7 until now. But from some reviews they tell it was more fast or precise? And I think it has some adjustable size of AF zones like R3?

 

[AlanF]

I really don't know for sure, as I have not touched any R7 until now. But from some reviews they tell it was more fast or precise? And I think it has some adjustable size of AF zones like R3?

I have both the R5 and R7 and the R7 in my hands has no AF advantages so I was wondering what I am missing. If anything, the R5 has better AF for birds in flight but there aren't enough opportunities at present for a definitive conclusion. I did find that R7 had difficulties using point focus (the little square with a dot in the middle) on relatively flat objects close by but I got round that by changing to having just the little square. I'd like the pre-capture mode from the R7 on the R5.

 

[koenkooi]

I have both the R5 and R7 and the R7 in my hands has no AF advantages so I was wondering what I am missing. If anything, the R5 has better AF for birds in flight but there aren't enough opportunities at present for a definitive conclusion. I did find that R7 had difficulties using point focus (the little square with a dot in the middle) on relatively flat objects close by but I got round that by changing to having just the little square. I'd like the pre-capture mode from the R7 on the R5.

I think that the R7 allows tracking and subject detection when using zone focus, like the R3. The R5 only allows tracking and subject detection in one mode.
Judging from the manual, some other features from the R3 AF are in the R7 as well. With the caveat of the R7 having a slower sensor, so the software improvements might not translate to real world improvements compared to the R5.

 

[DBounce]

Full sensor height recording is the solution to needing to address the multiple aspect ratios required to deliver on the multitude of different social media platforms. Full sensor height video recording allows you to record once and deliver everywhere:

 

[AlanF]

I think that the R7 allows tracking and subject detection when using zone focus, like the R3. The R5 only allows tracking and subject detection in one mode.
Judging from the manual, some other features from the R3 AF are in the R7 as well. With the caveat of the R7 having a slower sensor, so the software improvements might not translate to real world improvements compared to the R5.

I have found so far in the few tests I have been able to make that the R5 using the full sensor tracking and subject detection was better than the R7 and that switching to using the central zone for the R7 didn't improve it (dragonflies in flight as subjects). I might be seeing real world effects of the R5's faster sensor, which is what I had thought. I like the simplicity of just using the one mode.

 

[Sharlin]

Magic Lantern was able to give Canon DSLRs many extra features however.

That essentially stopped almost ten years ago though, I don’t think they have production-ready firmware for any remotely recent camera (DIGIC 6 and up?) due to a large change in processor architecture.

 

[liv_img]

I have both the R5 and R7 and the R7 in my hands has no AF advantages so I was wondering what I am missing. If anything, the R5 has better AF for birds in flight but there aren't enough opportunities at present for a definitive conclusion. I did find that R7 had difficulties using point focus (the little square with a dot in the middle) on relatively flat objects close by but I got round that by changing to having just the little square. I'd like the pre-capture mode from the R7 on the R5.

Good to hear from one who has both cameras. I'm a happy R5 user, but never tested the R7.

I only heard about the difference about Eye detection working in other Zone Modes, but I do not know if this is really interesting.

 

[MiJax]

I have both the R5 and R7 and the R7 in my hands has no AF advantages so I was wondering what I am missing. If anything, the R5 has better AF for birds in flight but there aren't enough opportunities at present for a definitive conclusion. I did find that R7 had difficulties using point focus (the little square with a dot in the middle) on relatively flat objects close by but I got round that by changing to having just the little square. I'd like the pre-capture mode from the R7 on the R5.

I much prefer the R3/R7 subject tracking setup over the R5/R6 AUTO tracking modes. The R3/R7 setup is much more malleable and offers various features the R5/R6 do not, all while offering everything the R5/R6 do.

We're not saying the R7 can match the speed and consistency of the R3/R5/R6, but it's clear to me its ability to be setup is superior to the R5/R6 in many ways.

 

[AlanF]

I much prefer the R3/R7 subject tracking setup over the R5/R6 AUTO tracking modes. The R3/R7 setup is much more malleable and offers various features the R5/R6 do not, all while offering everything the R5/R6 do.

We're not saying the R7 can match the speed and consistency of the R3/R5/R6, but it's clear to me its ability to be setup is superior to the R5/R6 in many ways.

Would you like to share some of your tracking settings as it might be of interest to try them. You have many great shots on Flickr.

 

[Atlasman]

I hope that Canon can implement on the R5, some variant of 6k 60p. I would take that over removing the 30 minute recording limit—if I need to go beyond, I’ll just use the Ninja V.

 

[Otara]

That essentially stopped almost ten years ago though, I don’t think they have production-ready firmware for any remotely recent camera (DIGIC 6 and up?) due to a large change in processor architecture.

Some of the big drawcards like raw video now come standard so there isnt the risk/reward impetus there used to be. Which might be a result of ML in itself, so well done. There is some progress being made on the R5, but its very recent and a long way to go.

 

[David - Sydney]

I’ve lost all hope of getting zebra highlight warnings

I recently got a Fuji X-S10 to compliment my R6 which does have them and it makes me then even more!

I would like them for stills shooting. I often shoot in contrasty lighting and want to expose to the right without clipping. I have never been able to put the histogram on the EVF screen for some reason and it was getting pretty crowded in any case.

 

[David - Sydney]

He means 16:9 aspect ratio or 1.85:1, etc., not the whole sensor. Shooting “full frame” could be nice for vertical videos or frame grabs…

Shooting video full frame would increase the bandwidth needed to record it. 8k or 4k120 etc already have thermal issues so this option could make it even worse. I agree that 8k raw frame grabs at 45mp/30fps would be an interesting option though instead of 33mp.

 

[David - Sydney]

Vertical videos are never nice. Can we just stop with that nonsense social media platforms need to allow mobile devices to be rotated so proper horizontal videos can be viewed full screen rather than forcing vertical videos to br the norm.

One of the best features of the DJI Mini 3 Pro is the ability to rotate the lens and shoot portrait. Firstly it can record straight to the social media format without loss of fidelity and secondly it can be used for pano stills which is limited if the lens couldn't be rotated.
Everyone has different requirements and having options is the best thing that manufacturers can provide.... even if you don't use it and think that it is an abomination

 

[David - Sydney]

Magic Lantern was able to give Canon DSLRs many extra features however.

ML enabled exposure to the right which should be simple to implement for R5.

 

[David - Sydney]

Removing the 100% arbitrary 29:59 record limit in the R5 would be a smart move. I'm looking at an R7 purely for it's no record limit, but would consider another R5 (or R6) if they did that.

Why a smart move for Canon? I agree that it is arbitrary and simple to remove but Canon would rather sell you a R5C at a premium over R5 if you really need the extended recording time.

 

[David - Sydney]

Some of the big drawcards like raw video now come standard so there isnt the risk/reward impetus there used to be. Which might be a result of ML in itself, so well done. There is some progress being made on the R5, but its very recent and a long way to go.

I didn't realise that they were working on the Digic X! Canon's engineers were allowed off the chain for the R5 so many of the conservative features are now implemented with their limitations. The list of additional features (besides removal of the R5's 30 minute video limitation) wouldn't be a long list - would it?

 

[MiJax]

Would you like to share some of your tracking settings as it might be of interest to try them. You have many great shots on Flickr.

I appreciate it, but honestly, I find only marginal differences in the AF Cases. I find that being able to anticipate what the system is going to do is the most beneficial factor to getting shots. That said, I do generally, use the "Locked on" settings or whatever settings that work to slow the release of the tracked subject. For the Accel/Decel setting, I generally leave in the middle, (0). I mainly shoot Eye AF using the Auto mode on the R5/R6. For the R3/R7, I really liked the custom sized zone with subject tracking enabled. On both systems, I used a second AF button with single point enabled, for a last resort option when the tracking fails.

If I'm not mistaken, it's a fairly vanilla or common setup.

 

[SnowMiku]

I haven't updated my firmware at all on the R5.
If fact I've rarely done it in the past with all my other cameras.
Do people recommend it for the R5. Did it genuinely improve anything - focus tracking in particular in the last firmware update?
I'm a sort of "if it ain't broke don't fix it" type of person but if tracking was improved I'd take that

If you don't need any of the new features you can just leave it alone, I generally do the same thing when it comes to firmware.