Canon has discontinued the Canon EOS M6 Mark II

[neuroanatomist]

Maybe or maybe not! Not everybody buys a body and 2 lenses, then calls it quits. I bought my first EOS camera in 1997, 25 years ago, then bought an f/2.8 trinity over the next two years, then a 100 macro and a 100-400. That's five lenses, including 4 L's, purchased over a 4 year period. Plus four TS-E lenses, five high speed primes, a 300 /2.8, a Sigma 150-600 and 4 more film and DSLR bodies. That's "investing". The difference is that I view Canon etc as a mortal enemy and don't expect them to tell me their future plans.

Canon's announcements of milestones (i.e. xx millions of EOS bodies or EF lenses sold) and the years those announcements were made make it clear that they sell 1.4 lenses for every body. Looking on sales ranking sites from various countries, it's apparent that two-lens kits are popular choices for entry-level bodies, and typically APS-C cameras compose close to 90% of the ILC market. So, simple math says that most buyers of M- and xxxD/Rebel-series cameras buy a body with one or two lenses and calls it quits.

Also, as @scyrene points out, spending a lot of money on something isn't the same as investing. If you're a professional photographer, it's reasonable to claim you’re investing, but that would be investment in your business, not in Canon gear. The only people actually investing in Canon are CAJ shareholders.

 

[SteveC]

What do you think of the Tamron 18-200? I sometimes travel with the M6, M18-150, M11-22, and M22/2. On occasion, the extra 50mm would come in handy (not handy enough to make me bring the M18-55 + M55-200 instead of the M18-150, but I might consider the Tamron).

As a side note, Tamron was founded long before personal computers so they had no way of predicting the fact that autocorrect changes the 'r' to a 'p'.

I like it. I should note that I bought the one with the native EF-M mount after dealing with an EF-S version on an adapater. The EF-S version was noisy for cinema, the EF-M one is quieter.

I haven't done any sort of pixel peeping--not that you would care about that, or any other sort of detailed analysis.

 

[David - Sydney]

Probably most, yes I think you're right. I searched for months though for cameras without a viewfinder either adding bulk or in a very weird position, with lenses that were portable yet wide enough for vlogging and landscape, external mic input, vertical screen (fully articulating causes creepy eye movements on video). In fact, the only consideration I ignored was price. For some reason the whole industry things smaller should mean cheaper.
Every single one of my requirements is seen as bad by the press yet it doesn't take more than 5 minutes research to see I'm far from alone. It may not be extravagant, but I bought a 90D and everything about it is a bit bad for what I wanted so I had to upgrade to an M6ii which was cheaper for no reason at all that I could see. I have a range of EF and EF-S lenses as well as now a range of portable M lenses. Perhaps I'm not the target demographic, but I'm a demographic that's being pushed out of the Canon ecosystem by people who wish every camera had a massive integrated grip and used foot long lenses. For the record I also don't see why integrated grips would add thousands to the camera cost!

Have you considered the Sigma fp L?
- no viewfinder (can be added but to the side and not the top of the body)
- L mount for lenses
- very small but the price is not cheap at USD2.5k ($3k with viewfinder)
- no external mic unless via external recorder
- fixed rear screen

 

[Kit Chan]

I have both the M5 and an RP. Sitting them side by side, the m5 is actually taller than the RP. The RP is a little wider, and deeper, but not by much, and even more interestingly, the RP with the RF 50 STM lens weighs a whopping 5 ounces more than the M5 with the 21 STM lens. The RP is already very close to flagship M size and could pretty easily get a slight shave here and there to get it even more svelte.
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RF doesn't seem to be quite as big as I imagined. So maybe I would be happy with an 'R7' after all.

 

[adrian_bacon]

RF doesn't seem to be quite as big as I imagined. So maybe I would be happy with an 'R7' after all.

The RP is a very small camera compared to the other RF bodies. I personally prefer the larger grip of the RP over the M5, but that's because I have gorilla hands. My RP is my goto every day carry and it's been wonderful with the 50 STM, though I do wish canon would make an RF version of the pancake 40. On the RP that would be pretty boss. At any rate, the camera, plus the 50 STM lens and the battery charger fit in a nice small carry bag that I can put either in my backpack or luggage. With the 1.6 crop mode on the camera I basically have two lenses with just the one prime. The only thing canon could really do is make even smaller and lighter lenses for RF to go with a small and light body like the RP.

 

[Blue Zurich]

Funny how when many folks talk about travel they want the smaller sensor, less advanced camera with them yet when I travel it's to locales with spectacular beauty, interesting vistas...you get the idea. That's why I travel with the best gear I have, weight be damned. Unless of course it has been decided and discussed with the powers that be which state no one shall lag behind composing, framing or seeking particular light and therefore take the damn picture with the ipohne 12.

 

[Bob Howland]

I concur. A rumour is just that. Generally when Canon discontinues an item in the market, it is backed up by website information for a particular geography with Canon Japan's website being the ultimate source and nothing has been provided by CR Guy

An alternative hypothesis is if Canon has internally decided to discontinue the M6ii (ie nothing on Canon country XX website) then it could mean a M6iii is going to be released soon

There are lots of possible explanations and none of us knows which one(s) are true.

 

[Bob Howland]

I have both the M5 and an RP. Sitting them side by side, the m5 is actually taller than the RP. The RP is a little wider, and deeper, but not by much, and even more interestingly, the RP with the RF 50 STM lens weighs a whopping 5 ounces more than the M5 with the 21 STM lens. The RP is already very close to flagship M size and could pretty easily get a slight shave here and there to get it even more svelte.

I own an R5 and have used an RP. The RP is about as small as I want to go. On the other hand, I like the size of the M system lenses.

 

[unfocused]

Funny how when many folks talk about travel they want the smaller sensor, less advanced camera with them yet when I travel it's to locales with spectacular beauty, interesting vistas...you get the idea. That's why I travel with the best gear I have, weight be damned. Unless of course it has been decided and discussed with the powers that be which state no one shall lag behind composing, framing or seeking particular light and therefore take the damn picture with the ipohne 12.

This is always a dilemma with travel photography.

Although I don't pretend to be successful, I try to keep in mind:

1) My picture of "choose the iconic landmark" is not going to be better or different from the literally millions of other photos of the same place.
2) I am here to enjoy the experience. Photography can make the experience better or it can make it worse. If I become a slave to the pictures, it can be much worse,
3) Is my photography making the experience of my companions better or worse?

I'm fortunate, because my wife is also a photographer. However, our usual travel companions have zero interest in photography. Our compromise is to carve out some time for serious photography and then reserve most days for simply enjoying the trip and taking snapshots. Fortunately our companions are not early risers, so my wife and I can usually spend a few mornings out taking pictures and then still have most of the day to do group activities. Similarly, when they are ready to wrap up by mid-afternoon, we can spend some time taking pictures as the light improves.

Finally, now that we are mostly retired, we can schedule a few trips a year to chase birds or otherwise pursue photographs and then reserve our "vacations" for mostly relaxing.

 

[Madbox]

I guess that imaging sensor and manufacturing line will be updated and repurposed for a mystery rumor camera.

 

[David - Sydney]

There are lots of possible explanations and none of us knows which one(s) are true.

Of course... this is a rumours site after all!
The discourse is all about looking at the available information, try to make informed guesses (conclusions) and debate them. I believe that discontinuation is an opportunity to release a new body. That didn't happen with the 7Dii but has with 3 versions of the 1DX, 4 of the 5D (+R/SR), and 2 M6 bodies so far.
Releasing a new M body would quieten the "M ecosystem is dead" chorus though.

 

[lote82]

Funny how when many folks talk about travel they want the smaller sensor, less advanced camera with them yet when I travel it's to locales with spectacular beauty, interesting vistas...you get the idea. That's why I travel with the best gear I have, weight be damned. Unless of course it has been decided and discussed with the powers that be which state no one shall lag behind composing, framing or seeking particular light and therefore take the damn picture with the ipohne 12.

That's true if your goal is to take the best possible landscape photo and nothing else!

The first problem with travel photographing is that it can be anything (landscape, street, portrait, wedding, macro, wildlife ...) regarding your interests. Therefore you have to compromise.

The second problem is, that you (probably) also want to relax and enjoy vacation a bit. Walking through the (for ex.) rainforest while having big, heavy (and expensive) photo-gear with you can be quite annoying.
Therefore you have to compromise.

The third (and maybe the biggest) problem are your travel companions. unfocused already described that problem very well!
Therefore you also have to compromise.

For me personally (while traveling with my family) it's a tough decision finding the right balance between being a good father and a selfish photographing ass.

 

[lustyd]

Have you considered the Sigma fp L?
- no viewfinder (can be added but to the side and not the top of the body)
- L mount for lenses
- very small but the price is not cheap at USD2.5k ($3k with viewfinder)
- no external mic unless via external recorder
- fixed rear screen

Fixed rear screen and no external mic are deal breakers for me, even assuming there were compact lenses for the full frame sensor (I'm not familiar with L mount, so maybe there are)

 

[lustyd]

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It's funny because you posted this to suggest these are similar and I see something completely different. Where you see two compact cameras I see one compact (actually I think that's pretty bulky compared to my M6ii) and one quite large and bulky one. Where you see a slight difference in size, I see a big trade off between camera gear and bag space for things like food and water. You even chose one of the most compact RF lenses to make your point. Show us the M series with 11-22 next to the R series with 15-35 and you may start to see the problem. In this scenario just the lenses will be 21oz difference, and I can tell you that holding 21oz at arms length for any amount of time is not fun.

I don't think anyone here is suggesting that everyone needs small and compact cameras, it'd just be nice that you don't try to kill off the stuff other people need because you don't need it.

 

[RexxReviews]

I don't like this news.
Because I cannot imagine if and what consequences this means to the EOS M system.
I am no M owner. But if I was to get one body It would have been the M6 II. Because I like the idea of the optional EVF.

Edit: In Germany almost every shop has it on stock.

EOS-M was a waste to begin with, the M50 was the only reason the M line had even a SMALL significance. Canon hasn't made a new M lens since when? We knew this was going to happen at some point., If they can finally have all cameras using the same mount that lets then not have to split workloads. There have already been enough rumors that canon was making a small, no EVF RF mount camera so it wont Suprise me if we see something around the size of the M6MKII. Time for me to sell my M6 before the value drops too much. I have only used it as a webcam for the last year.

 

[Jasonmc89]

I’ve always had the feeling that Canon never had much love for the M system. R system is where it’s at..

 

[lustyd]

EOS-M was a waste to begin with, the M50 was the only reason the M line had even a SMALL significance. Canon hasn't made a new M lens since when? We knew this was going to happen at some point., If they can finally have all cameras using the same mount that lets then not have to split workloads. There have already been enough rumors that canon was making a small, no EVF RF mount camera so it wont Suprise me if we see something around the size of the M6MKII. Time for me to sell my M6 before the value drops too much. I have only used it as a webcam for the last year.

Specifically what lens do you feel was missing that would fit into the M form factor? Those wanting lenses with specific features had all of the EF mounts available which offered better speed, better zoom, better kudos, whatever, but all of thoe things were a trade-off from the purpose of the M system which was its size. Every lens has the same diameter for a reason.

Some of that changes when EF is phased out, because RF can't be adapted. The answer isn't current RF lenses though, it's copying the M series lenses into the RF mount to keep M alive. Sure, replace the M6ii with an RM6 if you like, but it would need to have the exact same form factor as the M6ii and they'd then need to launch a large number of lenses the same as M already has. The only thing that would change is replacing compatibility with EF lenses with compatibility with RF lenses. But then they'd STILL need to launch RF-M as a thing because those little lenses won't work with full frame sensors

 

[EOS 4 Life]

The difference is that I view Canon etc as a mortal enemy

Then why buy from them at all?
I never really understood brand haters who buy the brand they hate

 

[EOS 4 Life]

High-end DSLR and RF users are a different breed and have chosen those cameras because of their amazing versatility, so they'll be far more likely to "invest" in a couple of bodies and half a dozen lenses, IMO.

If you are not a pro then you are not investing in anything.
These are depreciating assets.
If you are a pro then switching systems is a business decision.

 

[EOS 4 Life]

But doing what I've done requires stability and long term commitment from the manufacturer.

No camera maker is committed to anything.
If market conditions are bad enough they will drop anything that is not profitable.
They are under no contract or obligation.