Canon EOS R50 evaluate: Massive efficiency for a tiny digicam

Canon’s mirrorless EOS R mirrorless digicam household now sits at a wholesome 11 members, however most of these up to now have been high-end fashions priced at over $1,000. Just lately, although, the corporate has been wooing budget-minded consumers with fashions just like the $480 R100 and the topic of this evaluate – the $680, 24-megapixel R50.

The R50 makes use of a 24-megapixel APS-C sensor from the $980 EOS R10, so picture high quality must be on par. In any other case, you’ll be able to consider the R50 as an RF-mount model of the older M-mount M50 Mark II – however with updates like uncropped 4K that make it higher for creators. On the similar time, it’s even lighter and smaller, so it’s superb for journey, avenue images and extra.

The place the $480 R100 is aimed on the backside finish of the mirrorless market, the $680 R50 is concentrating on customers a bit extra severe about images and content material creation. Does it have sufficient going for it to entice such customers? Let’s have a look.

Physique & Dealing with

The EOS R50 is diminutive in each weight and dimension, weighing in at simply 375 grams with a battery and reminiscence card. With a equally mild and small lens, just like the 18-45mm equipment or the brand new 28mm pancake mannequin, it may simply slip right into a small bag. Vacationers and vacationers will usually accept a smartphone fairly than lugging round a heavy digicam, however the R50 removes that barrier.

There’s a worth to be paid when it comes to usability, nonetheless. It has a comparatively small grip that’s successfully unusable with massive lenses, although it does have a pleasant rubber materials so it shouldn’t slip out of your arms.

The R50 can be missing in controls in comparison with different fashions. It has only a single dial to vary settings, that means you need to hit the publicity compensation button to toggle between shutter pace and aperture in guide mode. However for the reason that digicam is designed for rookies used to smartphones, it’s basically designed to be managed by the touchscreen. That works nicely sufficient, however the principle menu objects are just a little small and fiddly.

The two.95-inch touchscreen is sweet although, with a comparatively excessive 1.6 million dot decision. As with all different Canon EOS R cameras, it absolutely articulates, making it helpful for selfies and vlogging. The digital viewfinder is on the low finish although, being comparatively small and with a low 2.36-million dot decision.

With the identical small battery because the EOS R10, it will get simply 370 photographs on a cost – maybe the digicam’s greatest weak point. It’s, nonetheless, a big enchancment over the 305 photographs you get with the unique M50 II. Different options embody a mic however no headphone port, a single gradual UHS-I card slot, USB-C and micro HDMI ports and sure, a built-in flash that’s good for its goal market.

Efficiency

One important downside with budget-oriented cameras is the shortage of an excellent autofocus system – one thing that’s essential for digicam novices. Fortunately, the R50’s hybrid phase-detect autofocus may be very stable. A simplified model of the AF from excessive finish cameras just like the R3, it tenaciously follows topics and captures sharp pictures.

It could monitor eyes, faces and heads, together with animals together with canine, cats, birds and horses. It additionally tracks autos like race automobiles, bicycles, trains and airplanes. You may both let the system select a topic, or faucet the touchscreen to pick out it your self.

Efficiency is rather less reliable for animals and autos than it’s for individuals. And topic monitoring will usually drop the topic in the event you’re too far-off from it. However general, the AI system is reliable, significantly with individuals.

That serves it nicely for burst capturing, which is surprisingly quick for such a small digicam. It could seize frames at as much as 12 fps in mechanical shutter mode or 15 fps in silent digital mode. Nonetheless, you’re restricted to 42 JPEG photographs in a burst and simply 7 uncompressed RAWs, because of the small buffer and gradual reminiscence card slots.

On high of the standard guide and auto capturing modes, the R50 has artistic settings for rookies together with one thing known as A+ Superior Auto. If it detects a scene that’s tough to shoot attributable to excessive distinction or darkness, it takes 4 photographs and combines them right into a single JPEG picture, very like smartphones have executed for years. The outcomes will be pleasing, however may additionally look overprocessed.

As you’d count on, there’s no in-body stabilization, so that you’ll must depend on optically stabilized lenses for that – and there are solely two of these within the APS-C lineup. These solely ship 4 stops of shake discount, however it’s sufficient to permit for sharp photographs at 1/tenth of a second or so. When utilizing the silent shutter operate, beware that some rolling shutter impact is current, however it’s moderately nicely managed.

Picture high quality

Because the R50 shares the R10’s 24-megapixel sensor, picture high quality is sort of the identical. For regular capturing, I noticed coloration correct pictures with pores and skin tones leaning on the nice and cozy facet as is typical with Canon’s coloration science. JPEGs strike an excellent steadiness between sharpening and noise discount, whereas RAW information enable for a good quantity of room to tweak photographs.

Low-light efficiency isn’t superb, although. ISO 6400 is just about a tough restrict, and even then you definately gained’t have quite a lot of room to spice up blacks with out getting tons of noise. And also you don’t have in-body stabilization to assist at low shutter speeds.

Fortunately, the R50 does have a built-in flash that may fill in in the event you’re missing mild. Simply make sure that to dial the illumination ranges down within the settings to keep away from blowing out your topic.

Video

The place the EOS R10 provides cropped 4K 60p video, the R50 is proscribed to 4K 30p. Fortunately, that’s uncropped, nonetheless, and supersampled from 6K. You’re restricted to 1080p for slow-mo, however fortunately it may shoot as much as 120fps, although 60fps is significantly sharper.

It’s the most affordable digicam available on the market by far with 10-bit mode through the HDR PQ mode, although the footage requires some tweaking for regular utilization. A C-Log mode that may enhance dynamic vary isn’t accessible, however it’s not likely needed for its meant market section.

For a comparatively small and low-cost digicam, the R50 provides glorious video high quality. The oversampled video may be very sharp, and colours are correct and human pleasant. The truth that 4K video isn’t cropped is a large plus for vloggers.

The autofocus can be excellent for a digicam on this worth bracket, with tenacious monitoring that retains focus sharp in most circumstances. It additionally has a “close-up demo mode” that works very like Sony’s product showcase mode, rapidly switching focus out of your face to any object you convey as much as the digicam.

The digital stabilization is OK for strolling and speaking, so long as you attempt to transfer easily. All of these items make the R50 a superb digicam for vloggers and content material creators able to step up from a smartphone.

Wrap-up

With the R50, Canon has discovered an excellent steadiness between energy and affordability. The place the R10 has quite a lot of competitors at its larger $980 worth level, the $680 R50 has just a few rivals

Its primary competitors is Sony’s $700 ZV-E10, which is barely higher for vlogging however not pretty much as good for images. Another choice is the $700 Nikon Z30, which provides an analogous characteristic set however lacks an EVF and has much less dependable autofocus.

If these fashions are an excessive amount of, Canon simply launched the $480 R100, the least costly new mirrorless digicam available on the market. Content material creators could lean towards the Sony ZV-E10, however in the event you’re on the lookout for a stable hybrid digicam that may do every thing, Canon’s R50 is a good alternative.

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