KEEP or SELL? | Canon R7 The Final Verdict | Findings & Frustrations After One Year

Whew! Happy to know you are keeping the R7. For those photographers who choose not to spend twice the price, or don't have the need or resources to own multiple high end cameras, it is very helpful to learn from your experience. Many of us are not professionals, and can accept that each piece of photographic equipment has its quirks and limitations. Please continue to share your thoughts and experience on the R7,

Probably the best hands-on R7 review on the web that really gets to the heart of the matter in all relevant areas. Fortunately, the frustrating moments are much rarer for me, but that doesn't change anything regarding your detailed and accurate review.👍

I really like the R7 with the RF100-500 as light walk around combo with extra reach. It really shines in good light. At low light I prefer the R5.

A great review - thanks. I've used the R7 for just over a year and I agree with all the points you've made. I bought the camera as a stepping stone to the mirrorless system while I wait for Canon to release a full frame, stacked sensor body with around 40 megapixels. I'm still waiting! In the meantime, I've used the R7 a lot to learn the mirrorless system and I think I'm now quite proficient with it. You were absolutely right when you said it's a great little camera that can drive you nuts at times - that's exactly my experience with it. Like you, I was quite surprised by how well it handles noise, which was my main concern at first. Other issues like the small buffer and awful rolling shutter in electronic weren't a surprise to me - the camera specs on release made me realise these would be issues. I was disappointed by the mechanical shutter though - I didn't expect it to be so bad. As you've said - it's loud and introduces softness through shutter shock and I find it useless most of the time. Another issue I wasn't really expecting was the inconsistent AF - I can go down to about 10-20 per cent keeper rate if light is low. I've tried everything I can think of to improve this but I've come to the conclusion that the AF is not 100 per cent reliable and so I shoot bursts of everything and usually get at least one or two keepers. When it hits focus properly, the images from the R7 can be razor sharp - but doing it this way does create a lot of work sorting the soft images from the sharp ones. Things like the lack of a third wheel and only 2 AF programmable buttons also frustrate me at times, but at this price I wouldn't complain too much about those. I find Fv mode is very useful on this camera, although I would prefer full manual with a third wheel. Like you - I will keep my R7 when I finally get my hands on the full frame main body I've been waiting for. I love having the extra reach without the need for an extender, and it also gives me a nice walk-around set up when I don't want to carry a 600mm prime lens around. Over time, I've learned to live with or work around most of the R7's failings and I've enjoyed using it, so it'll stay in my bag as a back-up/second body.

This was such a good video. Makes me feel better knowing I am not the only one struggling at times with this set up. It can be amazing at times and I am happy with it. Thanks for the info.

Beautiful video Jan. I took your advice and did some research into the R7, and combined with the rf 100-400mm lens, it seems to be the perfect, budget-friendly (at least by photography standards) choice for me. I love these videos; you make things so clear.

as always, great vid, great insight provided clearly and in a straightforward way. thank you.

Very nice summary: it reflects my experiences as well. I primarily use the R5 + 100-500mm but there are enough times when I need the extra reach that I always have the R7 along. I've even had good luck with the R7 + 800mm. But you have to know what you're doing. Your video provides pretty much everything anyone would need, so thanks for sharing.

Thank you for your review, which completely reflects my experiences with the R7. It is a great camera and I will keep it alongside my R6 II

I love the button layout on the R7. I use it alot in Fv mode, which works very well with the wheels at the thumb and index. I almost exclusively use it with E 1st curtain, especially since that has a shorter flash synch than the mechanical.

Its my 1st mirrorless camera, and as a beginner i love it with my sigma 150-600 C

Great review of the Canon R7 from a wildlive photographer using this camera to photograph birds in flight. This review gives a great impresion of the capability of this camera for this particular scenario.

Really informative - at last I understand the three shutter options on my R7!

Dear Jan, I completely agree with everything you said about the R7. What I found to be the most consistent predictor of good photographs is (as you also stated): light conditions. That really makes all the difference when it comes to the autofocus system. What also really helps is with the RF800 that the subject is larger in the frame, which makes the autofocus system perform al lot better. Greetings!

Wow - thanks for the well covered video on the R7! My R5 backs me up for low light but my primary birding run and gun is the R7+100-500 for all the reasons you mentioned. Great & practical tips on improving keepers! I never use mechanical only but go between Electronic and EFCS too! As for having 2 dials, it's perfect for Fv mode. I assign the lens control ring to ISO regardless of which R body I use. I am still holding out (hoping) for Canon to address some of inconsistencies. Glad to hear you are keeping it!!

Thanks for another excellent video, which addresses important issues. Personally, I'm delighted with my R7 and RF 100-500 for birding, but the shutter shock with mechanical shutter does have a significant effect on image sharpness. In fact, I am surprised by how little attention this receives from most reviewers. As you point out, the electronic shutter makes for much sharper images as long as rolling shutter is not an issue. I generally use the electronic shutter and switch to mechanical if rolling shutter is a problem (e.g. birds in flight). It works well, as long I pay attention to the shutter speed. I really only use the first curtain electronic shutter for slow shutter speed (e.g. low light), but you're persuaded me to give it more of a chance. I agree that 3 programmable wheels would be welcome, to more easily access all 3 elements of the exposure triangle (Av, Tv, ISO). Although I assign the lens control ring to aperture, I find it awkwardly placed at the rear of the lens - my fingers just don't go there naturally. So I often prefer to use the ISO speed button, which is slightly less convenient. Nevertheless, I am thrilled with this set-up for birds and wildlife.

I have R7 and R5(new). I agree from experience 100% about all your R7 comments. Thanks for the reinforcement.

Thankyou very much for your considered and honest review, and the setup guide for the R7. To date my experiences with the R7 have been excellent and compared to the dslr’s this is a step ahead. Li,e you I appreciate the crop sensor to gain focal length. And yes while there are limitations it is a great little camera. Regards and all the best for the festive season.

Thanks for all your videos. I just finished a 6 month photo contest with the R7. All in all a great camera. I moved into mirrorless from a 5D4. I had many EF lenses and with the adapter, I used those exclusively on the R7. I finally wound up using the EF 100-400II with a 2.0 III extender. The autofocus was still surprisingly fast. Another thing I found was that closefocus for macro with this lens and extender was amazingly close and sharp. There were a few problems mainly with the Jeckel and Hyde autofocus. Sometimes it just refused to focus on something close and I had to use the focus ring to get close enough to proper focus for the camera to lock on. In addition to the settings you recommend, (I got your R7 settings) I also used the ring on my RF to EF adapter to set different focus areas so I could change from closeup to action quickly. It was nice to sit in my hide and take shots of insects on flowers beside me and instantly move to shorebirds crossing in front of me. I’m certainly going to keep the camera no matter what other mirrorless I eventually get. Thanks again for all you do.

Great, simple and 'to the point' feedback thanks!!!