The EOS R is Canon’s first full-frame mirrorless camera and is intended to entice you away from competing products such as Nikon’s brand-new Z6 and Sony’s outstanding Alpha A7 III. The EOS R is the first model in Canon’s new line of full-frame mirrorless cameras, which will be based on a new lens mount known as the RF mount.
Although Canon has already begun dabbling in mirrorless photography with its modest lines of APS-C sensor-based EOS M cameras, such as the EOS M6 and EOS M5, the EOS R is the first model in this new line. Even though many Canon EOS R variants were released more recently, the original EOS R is still one of the most excellent Canon cameras and can be purchased reasonably.
Canon EOS 5DS R Features
A full-frame sensor with 30.3 megapixels and no optical low-pass filter is utilized in the EOS R. Although Canon emphasizes that this is not the same sensor, the EOS 5D Mark IV DSLR shares the exact pixel count, so if it sounds familiar, the reason is that it is because Canon shares the exact pixel count.
However, we strongly suspect that it is very closely connected to the chip used in the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. This is not a terrible thing, considering that this chip is one of Canon’s sensors that performs the best.
Additionally, there is a new DIGIC 8 processing engine and a robust native ISO range of 100-40,000, which can be enlarged to settings similar to ISO50 and 102,400 – precisely matching the capabilities of the EOS 5D Mark IV.
Canon EOS 5DS R Build Quality
The EOS R has a design aesthetic that falls between a traditional EOS DSLR and that of Samsung’s NX1 mirrorless camera.
The outside of the EOS R features a nice matte finish, while its internal components are magnesium alloy and magnesium. When you combine this sturdy construction with a handgrip suitable for a DSLR, you can be sure it is very well crafted.
In contrast, a side-by-side comparison with the similarly sized EOS 5D Mark IV reveals that the EOS R, although thinner, is not significantly smaller. Instead, it feels like an EOS 6D Mark II when held in hand.
This may be seen to be excellent news for many Canon customers, as they will undoubtedly be pleased with the familiarity of the EOS R. This implies that Canon users will continue to enjoy the exact fantastic handling, in addition to receiving improved support for longer and heavier lenses. Having said that, if you like the smaller size of a mirrorless camera over that of a DSLR, you might not notice as significant of a difference as you think there would be.
Canon EOS 5DS R Autofocus
When we’ve used it on recent EOS DSLRs (as well as on Canon’s EOS M mirrorless line) for Live View focusing, Canon’s Dual Pixel CMOS AF technology has pleased us, and the improved version of this system that’s available on the EOS R is one of the camera’s primary selling points.
This has a phase-detection autofocus system with an astounding 5,655 points (that’s not a mistake, there are 5,655 possible spots), 88% vertical and 100% horizontal coverage, and a working range that goes as low as -6EV (with f/1.2 lens).
When the EOS R was used with the brand new RF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens, the camera could rapidly power through its focusing range, making focusing at varying distances simple and quick.
Canon EOS 5DS R Performance
The EOS R has a maximum frame rate of 8 fps, making it quicker than Canon’s EOS 5D Mark IV, which is only capable of 7 fps, but slower than both Sony’s Alpha A7 III (10 fps) and Nikon’s Z6 (12 fps) (11fps). This slows down to 5 frames per second with focus tracking and even further to a pedestrian three frames per second if you wish to utilize the ‘tracking priority’ setting on the EOS R.
However, the buffer on the EOS R is pretty good, allowing the user to record up to 100 JPEGs or 47 raw files before taking a break to process the data.
On the other hand, the touchscreen capability of Canon’s products is relatively well-developed. In contrast to the restricted touchscreen functionality found on Sony’s mirrorless cameras, the technology found in the EOS R enables you to operate a wide variety of the camera’s functionalities.
This covers shooting and reviewing images (including utilizing the back screen to touch and drag the AF point) and navigating the menu system and Quick menu of the EOS R. The touchscreen interface provides a pleasant and responsive experience overall when used.
Canon EOS 5DS R Image Quality
It should not come as a surprise that the Canon EOS R delivers image quality equivalent to the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV given that the two cameras share a sensor. This is very encouraging news because, even though it may not quite reach the same heights in terms of resolution and dynamic range as the more expensive 42MP and 45MP sensor competitors from Sony and Nikon, it is unquestionably the most capable sensor that Canon currently has in its arsenal.
What exactly does it mean when applied to the outside world? If you have the right post-production tools, you shouldn’t rule out the possibility of printing an A2 size document, and making a Super A3 print with a high level of detail shouldn’t be too difficult either.
Moving on to the sensitivity performance, we find that the EOS R has reasonable control over picture noise. The results indicate no evidence of noise up to an ISO of 800, with only a hint of luminance noise (grain-like appearance) showing at an ISO of 2000. Light noise becomes more evident when the sensitivity is increased to ISO 10,000, chroma noise, color noise, and luminance noise.
Canon EOS 5DS R Specs
| Body type | Mid-size SLR |
|---|---|
| Body material | Magnesium alloy |
| Sensor | |
| Max resolution | 8688 x 5792 |
| Image ratio w:h | 3:2, 16:9 |
| Effective pixels | 51 megapixels |
| Sensor photo detectors | 53 megapixels |
| Sensor size | Full frame (36 x 24 mm) |
| Sensor size notes | Offers 1.6x and 1.3x crop modes, as well as medium and small Raw sizes. |
| Sensor type | CMOS |
| Processor | Dual DIGIC 6 |
| Color space | sRGB, Adobe RGB |
| Color filter array | Primary color filter |
| Image | |
| ISO | Auto, 100-6400 (expandable to 50-12800) |
| Boosted ISO (minimum) | 50 |
| Boosted ISO (maximum) | 12800 |
| White balance presets | 8 |
| Custom white balance | Yes |
| Image stabilization | No |
| Uncompressed format | RAW |
| JPEG quality levels | Fine, normal |
| File format | JPEG (Exif v2.3, DPOF v2.0)Raw (Canon CR2, 14-bit) |
| Optics & Focus | |
| Autofocus | Contrast Detect (sensor)Phase DetectMulti-areaCenterSelective single-pointTrackingSingleContinuousFace DetectionLive View |
| Autofocus assist lamp | No |
| Manual focus | Yes |
| Number of focus points | 61 |
| Lens mount | Canon EF |
| Focal length multiplier | 1× |
| Screen / viewfinder | |
| Articulated LCD | Fixed |
| Screen size | 3.2″ |
| Screen dots | 1,040,000 |
| Touch screen | No |
| Screen type | ClearView II TFT-LCD |
| Live view | Yes |
| Viewfinder type | Optical (pentaprism) |
| Viewfinder coverage | 100% |
| Viewfinder magnification | 0.71× |
| Photography features | |
| Minimum shutter speed | 30 sec |
| Maximum shutter speed | 1/8000 sec |
| Exposure modes | Scene Intelligent AutoProgram AEShutter Priority AEAperture Priority AEManualBulbCustom |
| Built-in flash | No |
| External flash | Yes (via hot shoe and PC sync port) |
| Flash X sync speed | 1/200 sec |
| Drive modes | SingleHigh-speed continuousLow-speed continuousSilent single shootingSilent continuous shootingSelf-timer |
| Continuous drive | 5.0 fps |
| Self-timer | Yes (2 or 10 secs) |
| Metering modes | MultiCenter-weightedSpotPartial |
| Exposure compensation | ±5 (at 1/3 EV, 1/2 EV steps) |
| AE Bracketing | ±3 (3 frames at 1/3 EV, 1/2 EV steps) |
| WB Bracketing | Yes |
| Videography features | |
| Resolutions | 1920 x 1080 (30p, 25p, 24p), 1280 x 720 (60p, 50p), 640 x 480 (30p, 25p) |
| Format | H.264 |
| Videography notes | Supports ALL-I and IPB compression |
| Microphone | Mono |
| Speaker | Mono |
| Storage | |
| Storage types | SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-I compatible), CompactFlash |
| Connectivity | |
| USB | USB 3.0 (5 GBit/sec) |
| HDMI | Yes (mini-HDMI) |
| Microphone port | Yes |
| Headphone port | No |
| Remote control | Yes (Wired and wireless) |
| Physical | |
| Environmentally sealed | Yes (dust and water-resistent) |
| Battery | Battery Pack |
| Battery description | LP-E6 lithium-ion battery & charger |
| Battery Life (CIPA) | 700 |
| Weight (inc. batteries) | 930 g (2.05 lb / 32.80 oz) |
| Dimensions | 152 x 116 x 76 mm (5.98 x 4.57 x 2.99″) |
| Other features | |
| Orientation sensor | Yes |
| Timelapse recording | Yes |
| GPS | None |
Canon EOS 5DS R Verdict
The Canon EOS R is a compelling camera that should fulfill the needs of many EOS DSLR owners searching for a reliable mirrorless option. However, if a system didn’t constrain us, it would not be easy to choose the EOS R above its competitors. This is especially true when considering the price premium over other outstanding cameras, such as the Nikon Z6 or the Sony Alpha A7 III. However, things will likely change with the subsequent model when Canon has had the chance to refine some aspects of the product and make it more user-friendly.
