Review of Canon EOS M from the point of view of a convinced canonist. Canon EOS M camera review Canon eos m series camera review

Nothing special is seen below - a compartment for a battery and a memory card, as well as a standard thread for mounting on a tripod. If you use a tripod with a docking pad, it blocks the cover and prevents you from quickly changing the memory card. This is a very popular disease. compact cameras and mirrorless. However, again, the positioning of the EOS M does not allow us to classify this as a serious ergonomic flaw.

Screen and interface

As you can see, Canon has abandoned most of the controls in favor of the touch interface. Potential buyers should get used to it. The display itself deserves all the praise. This is a 3-inch TFT-matrix with a resolution of 1,040,000 dots, high touch sensitivity and even multitouch support. The same screen, by the way, was used in the Canon EOS 650D. True, there he had a rotary design.

The space between the matrix and the protective glass is still filled with transparent rubber to minimize glare. Viewing angles are close to 180 degrees, which means you can forgive the screen for a fixed design.

Menu navigation is organized using buttons and a navigation dial. It's very similar to the EOS 650D's menu, and for those familiar with Canon's DSLRs, it's easy to get the hang of the camera.

Functionality

The Canon EOS M inherited the 18-megapixel CMOS sensor from its older relative, the EOS 650D SLR camera. The matrix is ​​notable for the fact that it contains points for both contrast and phase focusing. AT reflex camera, of course, there is a full-fledged phase focusing system, and the EOS M uses a hybrid phase-contrast focusing method. The sensitivity range of the sensor, as in the case of the EOS 650D, is ISO 100-12800, expandable to ISO 25600 in photo mode. By the way, the noise is very moderate. One of the best performance among mirrorless cameras. Below we take a look at the test shots.

The second element, borrowed from the mirror brothers, was the DIGIC 5 processor. According to the developers, the performance of the chip has increased 5 times compared to the previous DIGIC 4. The sensor-processor bundle offers the user a fairly good rate of fire: 4.3 frames in full resolution are produced per second with focusing at a buffer depth of 17 JPEG or 6 RAW shots.

• Purchase time: 2015
• Strengths: Good picture, reliable ... almost monolithic body (made of of stainless steel by the way), light weight, which is good for the neck and, as a result, for long hikes and travels.
• Weak sides: Of the bad, I am ready to confirm only three facts that are important to me. The first is the lack of an optical or at least an electronic viewfinder, which is why shooting on a sunny day is straining. The second is a weak battery. Native lives 100 frames in RAW format, the Chinese colleague from DSTE pulls 140-150 frames on a single charge, so three DSTE batteries will help you. The third is an uncomfortable grip. Otherwise, it does not differ in anything cardinal FOR ME from the top crop cameras of the Canon brand (I don’t shoot videos at all).
• Used analogues: Canon 40d
• Comment: I want to contribute to the discussion of the Canon EOS M camera. A lot has been written about it, both good and bad. As an attachment, a few photos taken with an 18-55 kit lens.

• Purchase time: January 2016
• Strengths: High image quality, all the necessary functionality, compactness, metal case, high quality production, does not attract attention. Canon cameras have the best touch controls on the market
• Weak sides: The difficulty of focusing on moving objects, a small park of native optics (lack of high-aperture portrait lenses), a large and unchanging focus area.
• Used analogues: 600D
• Comment: My review is, of course, overdue. The camera was bought in addition to the DSLR as a camera for travel, because. the DSLR was abandoned due to its size. Bought used in new condition. I don't have any issues with grip. The camera is 100% consistent with my needs: it looks like a soap dish, easy to operate and at the same time produces amazing photos. I didn’t want a built-in flash, a swivel screen, a bunch of buttons and wheels. The quality of the 18-55 whale lens surprised me very pleasantly, in addition I bought a 22/2. Yes, the necessary native optics are not enough, but I'm waiting. I tried older optics through an adapter - it didn’t take root. This camera, in my opinion, is only for native optics. I am delighted with the camera, despite the numerous criticisms on the Internet. I think she's underrated.

• Purchase time: 30.11.2014
• Strengths:- color, midtones, etc. are quite normal (I liked a very good BB in the light of fluorescent lamps in the room and sodium street lighting)
  - working ISO of about 800, and below - no complaints at all
  - turn-on speed is not annoying
  - focus is not instantaneous, but tolerable
  - focusing accuracy is tolerable ("taking into account the intended purpose")
  - enough high speed continuous shooting
  - touch screen for control is quite convenient, accurate, responsive
  - even ancient lenses work if through an adapter!
  - compact and lightweight with a 22mm lens allows you to put it in a spacious jacket pocket
  - the 22mm kit lens (a popular configuration) does not have a lens hood, but the lens is very small and generally relatively protected
  - 22mm kit lens is quite good in image quality and fast aperture
  - you can use any full-fledged flashes, radio synchronizers, etc.
• Weak sides:- You still need to look for a 43-mm light filter for a 22-mm fix (complete with this, one of the few "native" lenses)
  - 22mm "fix" is the only compact lens on the EF-M (out of stock)
  - an adapter for EF / EF-S lenses - the size and weight of a "pancake" itself and with even a compact and light fix screwed on will turn the camera into a "DSLR" in size and weight
  - the buffer is small, a series of frames fit a small
  - incomprehensible and large lag after each frame in single shot mode
  - no auto-brightness on the screen, unfortunately - can be a problem
  - controls are similar to old PDAs in terms of convenience
  - uncomfortable grip
• Used analogues: There were no similar ones, there were different "soap dishes" and "adult" DSLRs
• Comment: The camera was taken as an everyday camera or for events to which it is not convenient to drag the FF even with a small "fix".
  The general impression is:
  In general, inconvenient control, which is not 100% push-button, but also not 100% touchscreen, and so far requires meaningful and non-quick manipulations for a banal change of AF from auto to manual or to change what other parameters that often have to be changed to another once; moreover, the touchscreen does not have a quick change of parameters, tk. controls (scales, "knobs" are different, drop-down menus) are displayed very small and, God forbid, on 1/10 of the screen, and virtual buttons are even smaller. The shortcomings in AF / speed / ... are not significant for the "soap equivalent", and the camera is very different from the soap dish - for the better.
  Here are some of the major shortcomings:
  - the camera is quite small and small and it has a large non-switchable touchscreen on most of the back panel, which is mandatory and has no alternative not only for sighting, but also for control, so there is almost nothing to grab onto when a small-sized 22 mm "fix" is screwed on (and with large - for example, through an adapter - lenses you don’t need such a perversion as a small-sized camera with a touchscreen)
  - the camera, although not heavy in absolute terms, but the combination of a plastic and not "grasping" body without "rubber" and small size, with small and very limited (because touchscreen, buttons) surfaces that you can hold, requires constant voltage to hold, which tires very quickly, since you have to strain hard, holding the “carcass” in your crooked fingers, almost without resting on your palm, in order to relax your hands.
  So it's really good camera according to its capabilities, but it will never be able to replace a full-fledged DSLR due to an extremely uncomfortable hold in its hands. After DSLR, this is some kind of mockery. Where there should be rubber - this one has slippery plastic. Where the DSLR has a handle - a decorative ledge (decorative because there are buttons on the opposite side of the body, so you can’t grab the ledge in any way). Where you cover the SLR with your whole palm - here you hold it with your fingertips.
  Total: as a "fotik for every day" or God forbid - a tool - it will not work. As a good aid to carry with you - yes, excellent. In camera good quality pictures and compactness, with complete unusability with the so-called. ergonomics. You can shoot, but it will not bring joy. Maybe only if the hand is small at all if, but not for me.
  I attach a picture with direct conversion without processing by means of ACDSee Pro under the conditions: ISO 2500, aperture priority, BB / exposure / AF "automatic", 22 mm lens on the "hole" 2.0, 1/40 sec. The room is medium in size, dark walls, lit by 1 incandescent lamp with a matte light-diffusing bulb ~40 W near the wall. In my opinion, the image is noticeably "warmer" than the real one (according to the picture it is ~2900K, but ~2500K would be more correct), but in general the color gamut and exposure are quite accurate. The camera also focuses without any problems. EXIF photo saved.
  P.S. Oh, yes: like any mirrorless camera, this camera always has a matrix on and heats up, and noise grows with heating. Therefore, turn off the camera / send it to sleep if you are going to shoot at high ISO.

• Purchase time: year 2014
• Strengths: Full control of manual settings, shooting in RAW, universal focal lengths(18mm - 55mm), continuous shooting, matrix 22.3 * 14.9
  Assembly - Made in Japan.
• Weak sides: Weak battery. Uncomfortable grip. Bulky/heavy.
• Used analogues: Canon IXUS 860IS
• Comment: Paradoxically, the Canon IXUS 860 IS soap dish shoots sharper and gives better colors. When I bought the EOS M, I thought that in any case it should be no worse than the Canon IXUS 860 IS. But no: not everything that is more expensive is better. Personally, it didn’t work for me - I sold it after six months; no matter how many times I look at my photos from him, I have no regrets. No sharpness, no colors, no ease of shooting.

• Purchase time: 04.09.13
• Strengths: compact, easy to handle, excellent build quality
• Weak sides: difficult to buy regular width, weak battery, out of place access to the map
• Used analogues: 5D MarkII is not an analogue but I will compare!, soap dishes and other mirrorless cameras
• Comment: I took it for purely technical and highly specialized shooting, where zero distortion and a quick change of focus point without moving the camera are important. Much has been written about the uncomfortable grip! Bullshit! Yes, it’s not perfect ... but it doesn’t bother me personally at all ... and I shot with one hand (which I usually don’t do ... well, always the left hand on the lens) and that’s what, but there is NO problem holding the camera ... and it is very convenient to carry it with one hand (when you realize that it lies like a native in your left hand :-)) But its compact size and low weight are very convenient. There are minuses! The battery runs out quickly, so buy more right away. If you are shooting from a tripod, then you have to unscrew the heel in order to get the card every time. This does not please me. The 18-55 lens is very nice! But it is not enough, and the width cannot be bought. And from 18-55, for example, in Venice, I was squeezed almost everywhere ... there is a very dense building and there is nowhere to go, and the lens was not wide enough ... (those who go there, keep in mind ... you need a width there !!! :- )) Subjectively, pictures from the EOS M 18-55 lose the MarkII 24-105L (according to the wife, she is not experienced in photography), but any Mka soap box will wipe your nose! Both for convenience and results. In general, an interesting camera and very special because of its breed. It has absorbed the pros and cons of soap dishes and DSLRs and is different! Precisely not better worse... different. I found it interesting and useful for me. At work, she fit in 100% and the mark there is not a competitor to her with any glass! But as a travel camera, I managed to try it only once. It is inferior in result to an adult DSLR, but you don’t always have the strength to carry a heavy kit. And the soap dish is replaced by a mobile phone :-). And if the soap dish is disgusting to you as a class, and it’s not the right time to drive tanks into battle, then EOS M will help you out. But no more. If it is considered as the only camera, then it will lose to its sister from Sony (both in terms of ergonomics and lenses). And as a separate branch of the armed forces in the Canon army, capable of helping out in a certain situation, she is quite capable. I give her five for professional suitability! I love it at work :-)
No viewfinder, not enough protrusion to hold with one hand, weak battery, slow autofocus, access to memory card and batteries from below, noise at medium ISO, few EOS-M lenses, high price at the time of release, no Wi-Fi, no GPS.
• Used analogues: Konica Minolta A200, Sony NEX 5, Nikon 1 J1 and Canon DSLRs EOS 7D, 5D Mark II, 5D Mark III.

The Canon EOS M50 is an entry-level mirrorless camera that sits above the relatively compact EOS M100. Both cameras have an APS-C sensor and separate command dials, but the M50 has a 2.36MP EVF, hot shoe and a more comfortable grip similar to the EOS M5. A hinged touchscreen adorns the back and stellar Dual Pixel autofocus is available when shooting photos and videos.

Same sensor, new processor

The camera uses the same 24MP image sensor as many other Canon cameras like the M5, M6 and M100, as well as the EOS 80D DSLR. But the M50 uses a completely new Digic 8 processor, which gives the camera a number of advantages over other Canon cameras.

The faster burst speed is one of the benefits of the new processor. With autofocus, the M50 can shoot at 7.4 fps and 10 fps with fixed focus. That's a big jump from the M100's 4 frames with autofocus, and even faster than the 80D's 7fps with AF. Although there is a fly in the ointment. The memory buffer fills up in just one second.

Another major benefit of the new Digic 8 chip is the ability to shoot Ultra High Definition Video, making the M50 the first Canon mirrorless camera that can shoot 4K. But…

He shoots 4K, but...

Do not rejoice ahead of time, because the implementation of 4K leaves much to be desired, due to a number of limitations.

The most notable limitation is that you can't use Dual Pixel's excellent autofocus when shooting 4K, which is a shame for Canon. Dual Pixel AF is the only advantage of Canon cameras when shooting video. The M50 can use autofocus in 4K, but with contrast detection, so the camera will focus slowly, hunting for the subject for a long time.

Other great limitation applies to 1.6x crop when shooting UHD video. It is worth considering that the APS-C sensor has a crop of 1.6x relative to the full frame sensor. Thus, 22mm F2 becomes equivalent to a 56mm FOV.

But that's not all news on the video front: the EOS M50 can shoot 1080/60p and 720/120P with Dual Pixel AF. And there's no pesky extra crop if you don't use digital stabilization.

New CR3 Raw format with better compression settings

The M50 is Canon's first camera to offer latest format RAW CR3, which was realized using the new Digic 8 processor. Why add it to an entry-level camera? Because this format includes a new and improved compression option that will be useful to users who want to use Raw, but who are put off by large file sizes.

The old CR2 format is also available. There is a possibility of "small" and "medium" compression, which leads to a decrease in resolution compared to a regular CR2 file. Compressed CR3 can be half the size of a full CR3 file.

Dual Pixel AF Coverage Zoom, Eye Detection Mode

The M50 has received several autofocus improvements. There are currently 99 selectable points, up from 49 on previous M-series cameras. AF point coverage is 80% of the frame with most M lenses. Users now have higher focus accuracy.

However, with some lenses, notably the 18-150mm, 28mm Macro, and 55-200mm, autofocus coverage increases to 88% x 100%, and the number of selectable points increases to 143. Canon representatives did not provide any details as to why this is happening. However, we hope that any new lens will offer wider autofocus coverage.

The M50 also received a new "Eye Detection AF" setting. A similar autofocus mode for lasers has long been used in Sony cameras and photographers are very fond of their cameras for this feature. Unfortunately Canon's implementation seems less useful as this mode cannot track the eyes of moving subjects.

Enhanced Wireless

It's not Canon's first mirrorless camera with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and NFC, but it's the first to offer the option to send every shot to your smartphone as soon as it's taken. The Canon M50 has a dedicated Wi-Fi button.

High resolution articulated touchscreen

The 1.04MP touch screen can be fully flipped up for taking selfies. This is very useful for those who make vlogs or just like to shoot self-portraits. It can also flip over to the camera, which will protect the display when transporting the camera.

There aren't many controls on the camera body, but the touch screen gives you easy access to settings. You can use it to change quite a few settings, access the quick menu, and move the AF point. In addition, the implementation of the touch screen from Canon was a success. The display is responsive and all gestures and touches are fast and accurate.

The electronic viewfinder has a resolution of 2.36MP. It is very bright and clear. It is convenient and pleasant to use it.

Satisfactory battery life

The battery life is not too great. On a single charge, the camera can take 235 frames according to the CIPA rating. When traveling and hiking, you will definitely need a spare battery. You can use the "Eco" mode, which reduces power consumption and increases battery life up to 370 frames. As usual, in real conditions you will be able to take much more pictures.

The M50 uses the same LP-E12 battery as the M100. A spare battery will cost about $50. It's not cheap, but you can always buy a battery from a third party manufacturer.

Ports, hot shoe and pop-up flash

In terms of connectivity, the M50 offers a 3.5mm mic jack, which is rare in entry-level products. There's also a Micro-HDMI and Micro-USB port, the latter doesn't support charging.

Photographers liked the M100's pop-up flash because you can use your finger to aim it at the ceiling. The M50 lacks this feature. It can only be aimed at the subject. However, unlike the M100, the M50 offers a hot shoe for using an external flash.

More buttons than M100 and new silent mode

We've already mentioned that the M50 doesn't have a lot of buttons, but it does have more controls than the more affordable M100. Additional buttons include exposure lock, AF frame selector, and a custom function button.

The EOS M50 has a built-in user manual that explains the functions and how to use them. This guide isn't in the M100, and it's good that Canon is bringing it back to entry-level cameras.

The M50 also gets a new silent shooting mode that will come in handy in many situations, like photographing sleeping babies or shooting at lectures, museums or libraries where you don't want to create extra noise. You won't be able to control exposure settings when using silent mode, as with all scene modes, but this good features for newbies.

What do you think?

The EOS M50 is Canon's first mirrorless camera with 4K and auto-send photos to a smartphone. It is also the first Canon camera to use the new Digic 8 processor and the updated CR3 Raw format. On top of that, Dual Pixel autofocus has been expanded and improved with the addition of eye focus. This is a great set of improvements for an entry-level camera.

Do you think the EOS M50 is a sign that Canon is serious about developing mirrorless cameras? Are you frustrated by the limitations of 4K video? Also limited at the moment by the small family of M-series lenses, of which there are only 7 at the moment, especially when competitors Fujifilm X or the Micro Four Thirds system offer a very wide range of lenses.

I'll start traditionally. Have something to say about Canon EOS M Canon's first interchangeable lens mirrorless camera, introduced in July 2012. I like the little thing - it shoots (in terms of quality) like a SLR, fits in a pocket, can use older EF and EF-S optics and its EF-M optics, more compact, with a short working distance. The same thing that I expected from the Canon G1X, but not received. In fact, the camera kills two birds with one stone - it can shoot like more serious DSLRs, but, unlike them, it will still fit into your pocket if necessary. Which is perfectly normal in the mirrorless class.

Canon EOS M, EF-M 22mm f/2.0 STM lens and stock EF-M 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM

Someone considers "all these mirrorless" either the machinations of the devil, or the nonsense of marketers. I believe that the class has the right to life, these cameras sell well, I see many with this kind of equipment. Not everyone needs a tractor to plant potatoes - for some, a walk-behind tractor is enough. Canon EOS M is the same case.

But in an environment unaccustomed to Canon mirrorless professionals, the camera is brain-bending, including due to Canon's pricing policy. EOS M immediately after the announcement caused a lot of controversy in thematic forums, publics and blogs, provoked a predictable ambiguous reaction. With a recommended price of $900 for a kit with a Canon EF-M 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM ($800 for a kit with a "pancake" 22mm f/2.0), it is extremely close in price to and , and turns out to be more expensive than the Canon 1100D and , while not being a "reflex camera". It would seem strange, on the one hand, to choose between a DSLR "for the widest range of optics and accessories" and a non-DSLR, which is only a few hundred grams lighter. On the other hand, obviously, playing in the same price range with / this camera can take up much less space in the bag and pull the shoulder much weaker. It even fits in your pocket. It is controlled differently, not with buttons, but on the screen, but it also shoots. And not everyone, I'm sure, is so confused by the possession of the widest fleet of optics, by applying the camera to the eye and other "mirror" subtleties.

The manufacturer is positioning Canon M for "compact upgraders", that is, for owners of all kinds of IXUS and PowerShot, who decided to go higher, into the field of more controlled cameras with a sensor that gives a better picture, the ability to separate the subject from the background with a shallow depth of field (strongly blur background), etc. There are the latest trends in management - on-screen menu, multi-touch. When I first tried it on, I got the impression - this is it, combining an iPhone with a camera.

Canon EOS M in white

UPD1: Posted in a separate post.
UPD2: Posted a lot