topic Re: Deciding on a new camera help in EOS DSLR & Mirrorless Cameras

Deciding on a new camera, help - Upgrade recommendations from EOS R7

Ivanteixeira — Tue, 24 Sep 2024 13:40:53 GMT

Hello. I currently have a canon R7 and I am thinking of changing it for a canon R5 Mark II. Full frame lenses I currently have the 100-500, the 50mm 1,2 and the 24-70 mm 2,8. I shoot street, architectural and wildlife mainly and some portraits.

Do you feel the R5 will be an upgrade to my photography?

regarfs

Re: Deciding on a new camera help

shadowsports — Sun, 15 Sep 2024 01:58:36 GMT

Greetings,

First question. What do you plan to do with your output? Are you happy with the resolution of your R7? If so, the R5mkII would be appropriate. If you don't need 45MP, then the R6mkII would be my next choice. Personally, I love the rez of my R5 C. I'd be hard pressed to buy a 24MP camera. My DSLR was 26MP. I wanted my next camera to be mirrorless, and to get a bump in resolution. I skipped over the R6 and R5 because I wanted to explore video (seriously). I got all my wishes with the R5 C. After sitting at 33 with the R7, once again, I'd want more not less. However, you need to make this decision, not me. 😁

Re: Deciding on a new camera help

Tronhard — Sun, 15 Sep 2024 01:52:07 GMT

Hi Ivan and welcome

In terms of image quality the difference will be massive.

You will find signiicantly less noise and the focus and face/eye tracking is beyond comparison.

With a 45MP sensor the is BSI and stacked the camera's data throughput will also be far,far better.

The rest is up to you as the photographer to learn the features and configure them the best way for your purposes

Re: Deciding on a new camera help

JFG — Sun, 15 Sep 2024 03:40:13 GMT

Hi Ivanteixeira,

Upgrading from the Canon EOS R7 to the EOS R5 Mark II will be a significant step up, depending on your needs and preferences. I like you also shoot street, architectural, wildlife, sports and some portraits. Here are some key differences and improvements you might find beneficial from your R7:

1. Sensor and Image Quality: The R5 Mark II features a higher resolution sensor which can provide more detail and better image quality, especially in low light conditions. A 45-megapixel full frame sensor, which is a significant upgrade from the 32.5-megapixel APS-C sensor in the EOS R7.

2. Autofocus System: The R5 Mark II has an advanced autofocus system that features a Dual Pixel CMOS AF II with improved subject tracking and Eye Control Focusing, which can be more accurate and faster, especially for moving subjects, as in sports or wildlife photography. Eye Control Focusing allows you to select focus points just by looking at them through the viewfinder, making it faster and more intuitive to capture images that are moving or not.

3. Video Capabilities: If you also shoot video, the R5 Mark II offers superior video specs, including 8K recording.

4. Build Ergonomics: The R5 Mark II has a more robust build and better ergonomics, which can enhance your shooting experience. EOS R7 is Polycarbonate body. The R5 Mark II is Magnesium alloy body with better weather sealing. The R5 Mark II is more durable and better suited for challenging shooting environments.

5. Additional Features: Features like Auto Lighting Optimizer (ALO) and Highlight Tone Priority that help you achieve better exposure and dynamic range in challenging lighting conditions. In-Body Image (IBIS) which can significantly reduce camera shake, especially useful for handheld shooting in low light.

I upgraded from an R6 Mark II (which is now my backup or second body for different lenses) to an R5 Mark II and I'm definitely more than glad I did. I love the R5 Mark II and if you make that choice, you won't regret it, and I think you'll feel like I do.

Re: Deciding on a new camera help

jrhoffman75 — Sun, 15 Sep 2024 10:53:25 GMT

@Ivanteixeira wrote:

Hello. I currently have a canon R7 and I am thinking of changing it for a canon R5 Mark II. Full frame lenses I currently have the 100-500, the 50mm 1,2 and the 24-70 mm 2,8. I shoot street, architectural and wildlife mainly and some portraits.

Do you feel the R5 will be an upgrade to my photography?

regarfs

One thing to be aware of if you switch to a full frame body from the "crop sensor" R7 - the angle of view (i.e. telephoto effect) of your lenses will be reduced. Probably an advantage for street and architecture photography but could impact your wildlife photography. To see the effect set your 100-500 mm lens to a little over 300 mm.

Re: Deciding on a new camera help

Ivanteixeira — Sun, 15 Sep 2024 14:59:16 GMT

Thank you for your advice

Re: Deciding on a new camera help

Ivanteixeira — Sun, 15 Sep 2024 14:59:34 GMT

Thank you so much

Re: Deciding on a new camera help

Ivanteixeira — Sun, 15 Sep 2024 15:01:39 GMT

Thank you

one last question If I get the R5 mark II and shoot with my 100-500 over 300 mm I will get decent wildlife? I have already spent some money on the 3 lenses and adding the R5 aI will want to old off on getting any other lenses for a couple of months 🙂

Re: Deciding on a new camera help

jrhoffman75 — Sun, 15 Sep 2024 15:38:24 GMT

You will get decent wildlife. What you see at ~300mm with the R7 is what you will see at 500mm with the R5. The image quality on the R5 will allow you to crop your images.

Re: Deciding on a new camera help

shadowsports — Sun, 15 Sep 2024 16:03:19 GMT

Greetings,

Good Question. Using the RF 100-500 with your R7 you would receive an equivalent FOV of 160-800mm. The R5mkII has a crop mode setting which would allow you to use your existing lens in a similar configuration, but, the resolution you would be capturing at is 17.3MP. This is because the crop setting on the full frame sensor means it would not be using the full size of the sensor to capture images.

Here is a good measure. Open some of your favorite images in DPP and look at the focal lengths they were captured at. Also how much cropping do you typically do? This might help and give you an idea what to expect.

The above is a possible use case. After review, you may find that the majority of your shots sits between 100 and 500 and that your existing lens will be enough. It will do so at 45MP.

Another possible option. Use a 1.4x TC. On the 100-500 a TC can only be used between 300-500mm, but effectively gives you 420-700mm. You do loose 1 stop of light using a 1.4x TC so this should be noted.

Last option. Buy the RF 200-800mm as a final solution. The wait time for this lens is 4-7 months on average. I have one on order finally and I am not a wildlife shooter at all 😆

The truth is, I don't think you'll be unhappy shooting wildlife with the 100-500 on a R5mkII. Both of these were shot at 45MP with the 100-500 and cropped in post. My colleague Trevor (@Tronhard) has shot wildlife extensively with his 100-500. He's got the 200-800 also.

CropSpasski River Valley_Crop

I have no plans to get rid of my 100-500, even when my 200-800 arrives. Its already proven itself as an exceptional piece of glass. I'm sure you are very aware of its quality. I'd give the R5mkII a try and see how you like it. I'd expect it to be a great mate for the 100-500 and do extremely well for wildlife. If you decide you want more reach, use it in crop mode, buy a TC or get the 200-800 as a final solution.

Re: Deciding on a new camera help

Tronhard — Tue, 17 Sep 2024 00:30:53 GMT

I shoot predominantly wildlife and I use the Full-frame format in the R-series. Wildlife covers a fairly wide range -from the innocuous, and placid close-in to the easily spooked and sometimes dangerous that are hard to approach.

However, while you will lose the 'crop magnification' effect of a crop sensor, you do gain a much greater sensor area and capacity, so you can crop if necessary. I have shot birds with the R5 and cropped in, and the much lower noise of the FF sensor allows me do get pretty close to what one would get with the R7.

In that context, you may find this post I made to be of interest: where I compared the performance of the R5 in 1.6x crop mode , using the RF100-500 (rendering about 18MP & FoV 160-800) vs the 20MP R6 with the RF 200-800 . The differences are very modest.
Is there Much Difference in Quality and FoV? - Page 3 - Canon Community

You will see a benefit at the wide end for street and architecture for sure as you are returning the Field of View back to its native range so your 24-70 will be more effective in those contexts. While you may have used the 50mm as a portrait lens (on a crop-sensor camera it renders a FoV equivalent to an 80mm lens on the FF), it will return back to its natural 'normal' FoV of 50mm.

You will also get a far, far better performance from the sensor. The following is a comparison of Dynamic Range from a site called Photons to Photos, which nerds out on tech stuff: here they are comparing different sensors' ability to render a DR of 6.5EV (Stops), the R7 has to have an ISO set as low as 2,213, while the setting for the same DR on the R5II is 4,392 - the R5 is even better at 5,435. That's a massive difference and shows the R5II has a significant improvement in performance of the R7.

My point here is unless you need to produce very large, high-resolution prints, you will find the MP size of the resultant images from the R5 in crop mode to be absolutely fine for social media, digital display and prints up to about 11x17" (A3 metric) with minimal difference. The benefit of this is that you gain the extra wide FoV at the short focal length, but if you choose to switch to 1.6x crop mode you get the 'focal length multiplier' in magnifying your long FL FoV. Throughout, you will get much, much better dynamic range and, BTW, a stronger, more sealed body and far superior focusing system.

Re: Deciding on a new camera help

JFG — Mon, 16 Sep 2024 20:17:51 GMT

Hi Ivan,

I myself don't own an EOS R7 camera, however, from what I have read comparing the R5 Mark II with the R7 for wildlife photography, both cameras have their strengths, specially when paired with the RF 100-500mm lens. Here are some key points to consider:

Canon EOS R5 Mark II

Resolution: The R5 Mark II has a 45-megapixel full-frame sensor, which provides higher resolution images. This is particularly beneficial for wildlife life photography as it allows for more detailed images and greater cropping flexibility without losing quality.
Autofocus: The R5 Mark II features advanced autofocus capabilities. Including Eye Control AF and AI-powered subject detection, which are excellent for tracking fast moving wildlife.
Low-Light Performance: The full-frame sensor of the R5 Mark II generally performs better in low-light conditions, which can be crucial for early morning or late evening wildlife shots.

Canon EOS R7

Crop Factor: The R7 has an APS-C sensor, which effectively increases the focal length of your lens by 1.6x. This means that your 100-500 lens will have an effective focal length of 160-800mm, giving you more reach to capture distant subjects. (This means that with the R5 Mark II your 100-500mm will perform like a 100-500mm lens. When you purchase a 200-800mm lens it will perform like a 200-800mm lens.)
Speed: The R7 offers a high burst rate, which is useful for capturing fast action. However, the R5 Mark II also has a very competitive burst rate.

Conclusion

For Maximum Image Quality: The R5 Mark II is the better choice due to its higher resolution and superior low-light performance.
For Extra Reach: The R7's crop factor can be an advantage for getting closer to distant wildlife without needing a longer lens.

Ultimately, the best choice depends on your specific needs. If you prioritize image quality, the R5 Mark II is a fantastic option. If you need more reach and are happy with the quality of your pictures than stay with the R7. If you're looking to improve the quality of your photography the choice is clearly the R5 Mark II. The R7 is still an excellent camera for wildlife photography.

BTW, I do own an R5 Mark II.

My two Indian cents !