Hands on
EYE, EYE Calibrating the camera’s Eye Control AF is done via the menu item, using built-in infrared sensors
THANKS FOR THE MEMORY The EOS R3 joins the growing band of cameras that will accept CFexpress Type B cards
ALL NEAT The top-plate layout is very Canon: logical, with a full-info LCD panel and large, easy to use buttons and dials
The EVF is lovely and very detailed, thanks to 5.76 million dot resolution – and there’s the option of a 120fps refresh rate. One drawback of many mirrorless cameras is image blackout during continuous shooting, which makes keeping a moving subject correctly framed difficult at best. No such problems on the EOS R3’s EVF, which is blackout-free, even when shooting at its top rates. With its mechanical shutter, this is 12fps and an amazing 30fps with the electronic shutter – both with AE/AF tracking. It certainly made an impressive sound (you can set electronic shutter to make a noise, too, or have it silent if you prefer) – but we’ll have to wait to see if those rates are delivered in practice. Speed is one of the EOS R3’s key selling points, and files are
subject, and with partial pressure on the shutter button, the camera will acquire and track it. Calibration is obviously important. Canon says the more times it is done (at the venue where you are shooting), the more accurate the system will be. The process means looking in turn at a small grey circle, which recedes to a little spot as you look at it. It starts at the centre of the frame, then moves to the sides. Infrared sensors in the camera eyepiece look back into your eye to carry out the calibration. I only had time to do a few calibrations, and I got the orange circle to move to the right place a couple of times – but on other occasions it seemed to roam around the EVF freely. Let’s see how the feature works on a production camera. It will also be fascinating to see if pros take to it. Autofocus certainly seemed very
POWER IT UP The EOS R3’s accessory shoe offers power and communication with dedicated accessories
BUILT FOR THE JOB The EOS R3’s relatively modest 24.1-megapixel resolution means benefits in high ISO performance and fast shooting rates, but still with decent-size files
Summary Obviously, it is very early days – and I have yet to take a picture on the EOS R3 – but even after a short time with the camera, I can appreciate the potential for news and sports pros, especially those currently using EOS-1 DSLRs. The very similar body layout and feel of the controls means that when they transition over to mirrorless, minimal time is wasted getting used to the new body and there’s no need to retrain muscle memory. For enthusiast photographers and moviemakers, the EOS R3’s price is obviously a serious factor, as is its deep body design and lower megapixel count. If you want to go Canon mirrorless, then lighter, cheaper and higher-resolution EOS R models are already on the market.
fast and responsive – and the EOS R3 claims to have the quickest AF of any in the EOS R range. The human/eye/ face/body detect was impressive, too. written to two card slots. One is SD, but the other is CFexpress Type B. It’s interesting they are not both CFexpress B – like on the EOS-1D X Mark III – or CFexpress A, the option Sony used on its A1, which means SD cards are accepted, too. WC THERE’S NEVER BEEN A BETTER TIME TO MAKE GOOD USE
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Issue 93 | Photography News 35
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