Should I buy the Canon EOS M50?

[johnwalker1]

I’ve been looking into it for a while now and I’m really interested in buying the mirrorless M50 camera from Canon. I mainly want to use it for mainly photography, and videos once in a while when I’m out with friends or family. My budget is from $600-800. I’m getting to know some specs and things this camera can do but I’m still very conflicted if I should look towards a DSLR camera or something. I’m very tempted to buy it, but I just don’t want to be making a poor decision. (Beginner Photographer) Thank you!

[shadowsports]

Mixed bag of reviews and feelings on this model and platform as a whole

Google "m50 turns on by itself" 

Camera is off, but will turn itself on when any button is pressed, bumped, etc. 

This is documented on many photography websites.   

My advice.  Don't do it. 

Let's let some others weigh in.

[Tronhard]

---

@johnwalker1 wrote:

I’ve been looking into it for a while now and I’m really interested in buying the mirrorless M50 camera from Canon. I mainly want to use it for mainly photography, and videos once in a while when I’m out with friends or family. My budget is from $600-800. I’m getting to know some specs and things this camera can do but I’m still very conflicted if I should look towards a DSLR camera or something. I’m very tempted to buy it, but I just don’t want to be making a poor decision. (Beginner Photographer) Thank you!

---

Hi John and welcome to the forum

Right now it's hard to give you a lot of good advice without some more details - you will get lots of advice but without that you are most likely getting others' preferences that may not align with your reality.

First your budget: Does that include the lens(es) to go with the camera or just the body?  You have to consider the lenses in your plans and they can cost far more than the body.

We don't know the kinds of subjects you are going to photograph.  There is, for example, a big difference between taking reasonably close shots of social events and general photography, and for shooting images of wildlife - which generally requires a much bigger, heavier and more expensive gear.

What are you going to produce? Is your purpose to produce images for social media and digital viewing or do you want to create prints, and if so how big?   Most people seem to produce digital output and that requires a lot lower investment compared to large, detailed prints.

What is your intention?  Is this purchase for casual photography, or are you starting on a path to a serious hobby?  The more serious  you are the more you need to consider the camera as part of a system that will expand as you up your game.

If you can add some more detail that would be very helpful.

[ebiggs1]

Should I buy the Canon EOS M50?

The one word answer to that question is, no.  It is a dead end!

[RobertTheFat]

---

@ebiggs1 wrote:

Should I buy the Canon EOS M50?

The one word answer to that question is, no.  It is a dead end!

---

John, you'll probably get an argument from some in this group, but I have to suspect that Ernie is right. It's unreasonable to expect Canon to continue a mirrorless line whose lenses are incompatible with their newer R series.

In a way, it's almost as though Canon had two competing groups working on mirrorless; and the group on the M series made it to market first, while the group on the R series did a better job. That's probably bunk, but it sort of fits the evidence.

[Waddizzle]

---

@RobertTheFat wrote:

---

@ebiggs1 wrote:

Should I buy the Canon EOS M50?

The one word answer to that question is, no.  It is a dead end!

---

John, you'll probably get an argument from some in this group, but I have to suspect that Ernie is right. It's unreasonable to expect Canon to continue a mirrorless line whose lenses are incompatible with their newer R series.

In a way, it's almost as though Canon had two competing groups working on mirrorless; and the group on the M series made it to market first, while the group on the R series did a better job. That's probably bunk, but it sort of fits the evidence.

---

Who knows what Canon has in mind?  It is odd how the R mount and the EF-M mount seem to be incompatible with one another.  BUT.......

Canon is still releasing new M Series bodies and lenses, right along side R Series bodies and lenses.  Sigma just announced a lineup of fast primes for the EF-M mount that are similar to their fast primes for the Sony E-Mount.  

Again I highly recommend the EF-M 22mm f/2 STM as a walk around lens.  It has an equivalent FL of 35mm.

[Tronhard]

I think Canon are looking at two very distinct markets: the traveller, or a person who (for whatever reason) chooses to go for a small, compact and lightweight APS-C system, vs those who are prepared to accept bulk and weight for prosumer or professional systems.  There are adapters for the EF-M to EF, and EF to RF lenses, so there is a commonality of EF capability that allows one to go in either direction if one has the common lenses.

I use EF, EF-S and EF-M lenses, and I am going out to shoot with the Canon M5 today actually because I don't need the bulk and weight, and the results will be posted on line.  If I consider it appropriate I can use one of my 3, 5D units - it's all about choice I think.

Canon do make some acceptable EF-M lenses depending on what one wants to do with the images.  This is why I go to the trouble of asking so many questions of inquirers - it is tempting for us at this end to extoll the virtues or vices of certain cameras based on our perspective, but I think it is better if we know the context of the person making the inquiry.  Some may scoff at M series cameras and lenses but there IS a market for them (or they would not exist) and there will be people asking for our advice who are best served by these units.

I have no personal experience with the M50, but I have a couple of M5's and they are OK cameras.  They certainly fill a niche for compactness of interchangeable cameras.  I would not go for the M50 personally because is not really set up for stills shooting as well as the M5, which boasts a metal body, and an EV control on the top.  I DO wish the M5 had the fully-articulating screen though...

[ebiggs1]

Should I buy the Canon EOS M50?

Look at one of the Powershot series cameras from Canon. For example the Canon PowerShot G9 X Mark II Digital Camera. Plus it is on sale right now.