With video options like RAW now the norm on midrange mirrorless cameras, Canon determined to not fiddle with its newest mannequin, the 33-megapixel EOS R6 III. It’s a veritable cinematic beast, permitting as much as 7K RAW video seize internally with quick and dependable autofocus and rock strong stabilization.
On the similar time, it is a strong photograph digital camera with excessive burst speeds and heat, correct picture high quality. The R6 III has stiff competitors with Sony’s 33MP A7 V, although, because the latter delivers greater dynamic vary. The value may be a difficulty for patrons, because the R6 III prices $300 greater than its predecessor. Whether or not it’s price that extra cash is dependent upon what you’re planning on doing with it.
Canon/Engadget
Canon’s EOS R6 III is a midrange digital camera that’s excellent for content material creation due to its RAW video and glorious autofocus.
- Quick taking pictures speeds
- Glorious autofocus
- Highly effective video capabilities
- Spectacular picture stabilization
- Picture high quality lags behind predominant rival
- Costly
Dealing with and design
Canon EOS R6 III (Steve Dent for Engadget)
The EOS R6 III is quintessentially Canon by way of design. It strongly resembles the R6 II and EOS R5 II, with the identical button and dial structure on the rear. By way of performance, it is a good factor as the whole lot falls completely at hand, letting you management it by really feel when you’re used to it. Nevertheless, the R6 III’s design is a bit bland, so for those who’re searching for a trendy digital camera a la Fujifilm, this isn’t the one.
Holding the R6 III can be a pleasure due to the grippy, smooth rubber exterior, although at 1.5 kilos it’s a bit heavier than the A7 V. It’s snug to carry and use all day, not like Sony’s A7 V which felt uncomfortable after extended utilization due to the tougher materials and sharp crease across the fingertip space.
The R6 III’s 3.69-million dot, 120 fps digital viewfinder (EVF) labored tremendous for me to verify colour and focus, however falls in need of the one on the less expensive Nikon Z6 III. The flip-out 3-inch 1.65-million-dot rear contact show is on par for this class and does the job nicely. For storage, the R6 III helps CFexpress Kind B playing cards for capturing RAW video, together with SD UHS II for MP4 video and pictures.
Different key options embrace headphone and microphone ports, a full-sized HDMI enter (as an alternative of microHDMI as earlier than, fortunately) and a USB-C port for charging and transfers. Battery life is respectable for this class with a most 510 pictures per cost or 620 pictures for those who have interaction the facility saving mode or about 90 minutes of steady 4K seize. Nevertheless, you may roughly double these figures with Canon’s non-obligatory $150 BG-R20 battery grip.
Efficiency
Canon’s EOS R6 III gives quick burst speeds and skin-tone pleasant colours (Steve Dent for Engadget)
The R6 III gives a lift in taking pictures speeds over its predecessor due to an all-new 33MP sensor. It has a sooner readout pace than the R6 II as nicely, permitting for sooner bursts and decrease rolling shutter skew. As compared, Sony’s A7 V additionally has a 33MP sensor but it surely’s partially stacked, so it delivers much less distortion when taking pictures fast-moving topics.
With that new sensor and a 34 % sooner Digic X processor, the R6 III can shoot bursts at as much as 40 fps in digital and 12 fps in mechanical shutter modes (with steady AF and AE enabled). That’s second solely to the Panasonic S1 II (70 fps) on this value vary. You’ll be able to fill the buffer in about 3.7 seconds at that pace (150 RAW frames), which is an honest quantity for a midrange digital camera.
You often wish to keep away from the digital shutter with fast-moving motion on account of rolling shutter distortion, however the R6 III’s sooner sensor can deal with objects which might be shifting fairly rapidly. I additionally caught a couple of pictures of infants, bikes and canine I might need in any other case missed by utilizing the brand new pre-capture mode that information as much as 15 pictures earlier than totally declencing the shutter.
The brand new sensor and processor additionally make the R6 III’s autofocus system sooner and extra correct than earlier than. When taking pictures bursts for fast-paced motion like canine operating or biking, lower than 5 % of my pictures had been out of focus. And the EOS R6 III can now monitor animals, birds and autos, on prime of the faces, eyes and our bodies of individuals.
This digital camera additionally has a few new autofocus tips, together with one referred to as Register Individuals Precedence. That permits you to save as much as 10 people on digital camera that it might determine and mechanically swap to. I discovered it useful in a big gathering, serving to me deal with my niece having fun with her second Christmas. Nevertheless, the R6 III lacks a couple of autofocus options discovered on the R5 II like “motion precedence” for sports activities, eye management AF and AI upscaling.
In-body stabilization can be glorious, maintaining the sensor rock-steady for handheld taking pictures with 8.5 stops of shake discount. With that enabled, I used to be capable of properly blur motion on the streets whereas maintaining the background sharply in focus at shutter speeds all the way down to a full second.
Picture high quality
With a 33MP sensor as an alternative of a 24MP sensor, the R6 III gives fairly a bit extra sharpness and a contact extra dynamic vary than its predecessor. When taking pictures RAW, I used to be capable of coax quite a lot of element out of excessive distinction pictures on sunny days with darkish shadows. Nevertheless, Sony’s A7 V soundly beats the R6 III by way of dynamic vary, due to its modern new sensor.
The R6 III’s excessive ISO efficiency isn’t too dangerous for a higher-resolution digital camera both, with noise staying below management as much as ISO 12,800. As is typical with Canon fashions, pores and skin tones are hotter and extra flattering than on Sony and Nikon cameras, as a result of barely extra yellow-biased pink tones. These pleasing colours had been constant, even at excessive ISOs, once I shot youngsters and adults at a few indoor gatherings. Should you don’t need the effort of RAW, JPEG rendering is great straight out of the digital camera, with nicely balanced sharpening and noise discount.
Observe that switching to digital shutter mode drops the sensor to a 12-bit readout, which helps burst speeds however hurts picture high quality. It is a fairly huge draw back in comparison with the A7 V, which maintains 14-bit high quality even when taking pictures on the digital camera’s most price at 30 fps. So whereas on paper the R6 III wins the pace race, the ten further fps gained’t be well worth the drop in high quality for a lot of photographers.
Video
Canon’s EOS R6 III (Steve Dent for Engadget)
Canon has improved video on the R6 III in each approach, placing it almost on par with the costlier R5 II. Although it might’t shoot 8K, it might deal with 7K RAW video at as much as 60 fps (on CFexpress solely) and 4K at 120p, with much less rolling shutter than the R6 II. It additionally helps 3:2 “open gate” video that makes use of the complete sensor space so you may output high-res vertical video and different codecs.
The R6 III helps 4K 10-bit MP4 taking pictures at excessive information charges too for those who’d quite save space for storing or shoot on SD playing cards. You additionally get CLog 2 on prime of CLog 3 functionality for improved dynamic vary. Oddly although, Canon made it a little bit of a ache to modify to log modes in comparison with previous fashions, forcing you to slog by way of a bunch of menus to take action.
Video autofocus is great throughout all resolutions, with speedy topic acquisition and dependable monitoring. Face and eye detection work very nicely, and I solely often observed slight autofocus lag with fast-moving topics, notably after they had been shifting towards the digital camera.
As for stabilization, I may easily shoot handheld with no crop, offered I didn’t transfer the digital camera too aggressively. Digital stabilization allowed much more motion and the improved setting let me shoot easily whereas strolling (7K doesn’t work within the digital stabilization modes, although). Panasonic’s S5 II continues to be the perfect on this regard with barely smoother stabilization, however the R6 III isn’t far behind.
Video on the EOS R6 III is extraordinarily sharp in RAW and the HQ modes, notably with supersampled 4K HQ. Different 4K modes are subsampled, however almost as sharp. Rolling shutter is best managed than earlier than, however you’ll nonetheless wish to keep away from issues like whip pans, sudden jolts or speedy topics like propellers or golf swings.
In a wide range of taking pictures eventualities in shiny and darkish circumstances, Canon’s glorious colour science delivered heat pores and skin tones and correct colours. Taking pictures RAW video allowed me to extensively alter pictures in put up, whereas the CLog 2 mode drastically improved dynamic vary whereas I used to be taking pictures in contrasty circumstances. As an illustration, I shot the well-known Paris division retailer home windows and was capable of extract element from the very shiny and darkish elements of the video.
Overheating has been a difficulty previously on Canon’s R6 fashions, however the R6 III by no means shut down for me, even throughout a couple of exams of over quarter-hour. Total, it reliably delivered excellent video high quality and I truly most well-liked it to the R5 II as a result of smaller RAW file sizes.
Wrap-up
Canon EOS R6 III mirrorless digital camera (Steve Dent for Engadget)
Canon’s EOS R6 III is now the perfect midrange digital camera for creators due to the RAW video, speedy and correct autofocus and glorious dealing with. On the similar time, it’s a strong digital camera for pictures with excessive burst speeds, further decision and, once more, dependable AF. If it’s primarily pictures you’re taken with, although, Sony’s $2,900 A7 V is a more sensible choice. It matches the R6 III’s decision, value and autofocus however gives superior dynamic vary and decrease rolling shutter distortion.
Different video-centric choices could also be extra enticing for different causes — together with price range. Nikon’s 24MP Z6 III gives comparable capabilities, has {a partially} stacked sensor and retails for $2,400, however can usually be discovered on sale for much less. Panasonic’s S1 II can be choose on account of its RAW video and creator-centric options, although it prices extra at $3,200.
Which one to purchase, then, is dependent upon your price range, utilization (video or pictures) and whether or not you have already got lenses in a single system or one other. With that mentioned, if it’s a Canon digital camera you’re after and also you lean towards content material creation, the EOS R6 III is your best option.
