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The time was coming, and it has arrived. The Canon EOS R5 has been officially discontinued, This may not be news to everyone, but I think it could help with some buying decisions over the next few months for some shooters.
Note: The discontinuation will make its way around to the various subsidiaries. Canon USA for example may have a lot of stock and won't “discontinue” it until inventory levels are lower.
What can you say about the EOS R5? It was Canon's true arrival into the world of full-frame mirrorless cameras alongside the EOS R6 that was announced on the same day. There was nothing wrong with the EOS R and EOS RP, but the R5 and R6 were the first ground up developed RF mirrorless cameras from Canon. The R5 was a camera that had crazy amounts of coverage over the next 6 months, some of it was great, and some of it was hot not.
Should You Still Buy an EOS R5 Today?
One of the the questions I see online: “is the R5 worth buying today?”. The answer is a resounding yes, unless there is some specific feature that you must have that the EOS R5 doesn't. It will be a great camera for years to come, as most cameras made today are.
Repairs? Canon will officially service the R5 into the 2030's. There isn't a date on when service life will end, but the date is generally well down the road for cameras considered professional.
Service Life Information
EOS R5 vs EOS R6 Mark III
If you're in the market for a new camera in and around $2500, the question of the R5 vs R63 is out there, and it's a valid one.
I bought the EOS R6 Mark III, and for the first time in a long time, I have a bit of buyer's remorse. There are a couple of things about the R5 that I didn't realize I would want. I didn't initially like the R5 and sold it when the R3 came.
My negative feelings about the camera mostly had to do with the ergonomics and size of mirrorless cameras. The R5 was my first Canon mirrorless. Over the last 5 years, things have become second nature in that regard and that isn't an issue anymore.
Why the Buyer's Remorse?
Maybe my experience will help a few people, these are things that have been talked about before.
The top-down LCD
I use it a lot on the R1, as I have the fliipy screen turned around more often than not. I also don't like too many things in the EVF. Old school? Maybe. The top down is also nice to aid in preserving some night vision when you want to.
EOS R5 vs EOS R6 Mark III
The EVF
The other thing that has been difficult is the resolution of the EVF. The R1 is a movie theater, but going from that viewfinder to an EVF with 60% less resolution is annoying. The R5 EVF is a lot better for me as I spent many years with the R3 as my main camera.
Resolution
Yes, I am the “24MP is enough” psycho, but I wouldn't mind having the 45MP instead.
None of those things may matter to some people, or maybe they're worth considering. I'm well past the buying and selling gear stage of my life, so I'll roll with the R63 unless someone wants to do a 1 for 1 trade.
There are obviously features that people would want that the R63 has, and that will be the way to go for them.
You have time!
There is still lots of inventory of the EOS R5 out there, so you do have some time if you'd prefer buying one new. There will probably be one more round of price drops at some point, but who knows when.
The used market is full of them, and they are easy to find sub-$2000 USD.
Hats off to the EOS R5 and keep enjoying it.
Photo by Tolu Akinyemi 🇳🇬 on Unsplash
But, I do still miss my R, although I love the R5!
I don´t know the exact difference (other from the spec sheet) between the R6ii/ R6iii and R5 EVF, but I know the difference between the R8´s EVF and the R5´s... boy, it really is night and day. The R8 EVF works for casual and slow photography, but with fast paced kids you really feel or see the difference.
It was really interesting to read about your buyers remorse: when the R6iii came out, I was like: wow, should I trade? But I figure I´d miss the top LCD (using the R8 I can tell you: yes, I do! although the wheel has advantages) and maybe a bit smaller files would be great... but in the end, the R5 is the right camera for me. Period 🙂
Hope the service runs a long time.
It's not that I was rooting for it to be discontinued, but I expected it to happen within a year after the release of the R5 Mark II. It lasted a little longer.
Solid camera.
I went with the R6, I don't regret my choice, and I don't see myself replacing it anytime soon but, if I imagined, back in the day, that I'd be keeping my R6 for so long, perhaps I would have gone with the R5, for the extra resolution.
I guess, in a way, I didn't expect these two cameras to be as competent as they became. I put it this way because I went through all the firmwares that added new features, so what I bought didn't completely match what I ended-up with, the product was significantly improved over time, it exceeded my expectations.
Again, solid camera/solid cameras.
Aside from it being a gimped form of the 5D Mark IV.
I might have to let go my like new 5Div one day but it's the last of the 5D generation. 🙂
That, and the new M-Fn menu, with two levels and different controls.
Not only I prefer the power switch on the left, I absolutely hate where they decided to move it to, it's just so out of reach, I have to bend my finger to get there👎
I love 😍 the new M-Fn menu and its 2 levels.
I love 😍 the power switch on the right side, especially when including a "lock" position. And hate the video-stills switch on the left, had to disable mine with 3M's strongest duct-tape.
I hesitated for a while between a second R5 II and a very cheap brand-new R5, but quickly decided for another R5 II.
Just for the love of this wonderful new switch! (And muscle memory...)
The R5 II is almost ergonomically perfect for me, only beaten by the R1.