Equipment recommendation for young aspiring photographer

[DYoungJr]

I’m hoping to get some recommendations on equipment for my son. He is developing a passion for photography and I want to start getting him his own gear. He has been taking pictures for his high schools athletic teams, a semi-professional lacrosse league and other athletic teams and has started talking about dreams of making photography a career.  Currently, he’s using my 6D Mark ii with a 70-200 2.8 lens. 

I would like to get him started down the path of mirrorless, but I’m not sure where to start him. Ideally I’d like to be in the $1,500 range for his first camera, but I don’t know a lot about the R series cameras. Any feedback is greatly appreciated. 

[Tronhard]

Hi and welcome:

Given your son is currently using a full-frame camera and lens, I would recommend sticking with that format, and within the R-series the most suitable candidate would be the EOS R6MkII.
For a quick review of the R6II from a sports photographer:

The main benefits are face and eye tracking, In-Body Image Stabilization, and expended dynamic range from its 24MP CMOS sensor.  It is rugged, well- sealed and the controls are well laid out.  I can be customized for specific applications and settings.  There is a lot to learn about so I recommend watching videos on setup and download a copy of the manual as a PDF that can be searched.  The Canon EF lenses can be used via the EF-RF adapter and they work seamlessly.
Electronic shutter frame rate is both a benefit and a challenge, the solution is not to use the maximum 40fps, but a lesser one, which will still far outperform a DSLR, but will not generate so many almost identical images and avoid rolling shutter.
You can get one, refurbished from the Canon store.  These are new and overstock, new but open box, demo or show models normally but 'good as new' and with a Canon one-year warranty.

Shop Canon Refurbished EOS R6 Mark II Body | Canon U.S.A., Inc.
You can get a refurb adapter: Shop Canon Refurbished Mount Adapter EF-EOS R | Canon U.S.A., Inc.

[DYoungJr]

Thank you for the info. Do the EF lenses perform well on the R cameras with the adapter?  

[Tronhard]

Absolutely!  I agree with the statements of the sports photographer in the video I posted and I am confident you will get the same feedback from my colleagues who use the EF 70-200 f/2.8 as well.

As an aside, I would recommend he watch some of the videos from sports photography from Brigham Young University - they are extremely instructive.  Here is an example:

While I don't shoot sports much myself, there are some similarities between my major genre of wildlife and sports.
Here are some examples: 
Legacy Lenses with the EOS R6 MkI: EF 100-400L MkI... - Canon Community
Legacy Lenses with the Canon EOS R5 - 1: EF 70-300... - Page 2 - Canon Community
Just make sure you get a Canon EF-RF adapter as some 3rd-party adapters have issues.

[DYoungJr]

Thank you for your responses and the resources to explore the camera. Based on that I ordered him a R6 Mark ii today.  I think it will carry him for quite awhile. I’m looking forward to watching him grow as a photographer and seeing how far he is able to go. 

[shadowsports]

Greetings ,

I'm skimming the post, but did you also get him a EF to EOS R adapter so he could use the existing EF 70-200 with the R6 mkII?

Edit- I see that Trevor mentioned it.

[DYoungJr]

I did get the adapter. After some research it looks like the 70-200 should work really well with the camera using the adapter. 

[Waddizzle]

Excellent news!  Make sure he uses a lens hood.