Canon R6 MKII Review - Is it a good Wildlife Camera?
Вставка
- Опубліковано 15 гру 2022
- We review the Canon R6 MKII to see if it's a good bird and wildlife camera.
We see how it performs photographing some of Alaska's wild residents in the cold and snow.
Is it good for wildlife?
What type of wildlife is it good for?
Should you upgrade fro the R6?
R6 MKII Autofocus Setup Video ~~~ • Canon R6 MK II - Autof...
Canon RAW BURST MODE How-To Video ~~~ • Canon R7 - RAW BURST M...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vello BG-C18 Battery Grip amzn.to/40wJt9f
Canon EOS R8 amzn.to/3MNERbt
TERRAMASTER D5 Thunderbolt 3 amzn.to/3ofee54
Ironwolf 8 TB HDD amzn.to/40mhBEH
SmallRig AP-10 Carbon Fiber Tripod amzn.to/3Z5Ci86
Benro GH5C Gimbal. amzn.to/3X0RxNM
Accsoon SeeMo amzn.to/3PCNVzi
easyCover Camera Case for Canon R5 / R6 amzn.to/3i0s3kJ
Canon EOS R10 amzn.to/3nlJ8IX
Canon EOS R5 amzn.to/3xbg48A
Canon EOS R7 amzn.to/3ARWbow
Rode VideoMic GO II amzn.to/3DcKKtJ
SmallRig Black Mamba Cage. amzn.to/3Vs3f4j
Atomos Ninja V amzn.to/3DdzJZl
IFOOTAGE Cobra 2 C180-II amzn.to/3B53E31
Peak Design Travel Tripod amzn.to/3RqYlC6
DJi Pocket 2 Creator Kit. amzn.to/3RCrnPe
WANDRD PRVKE 21L Photography Backpack amzn.to/3BcYVg0
Canon RF 14-35mm f/4 L IS USM Lens amzn.to/3p9JMtC
Canon RF 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1 L IS USM Lens amzn.to/3VtBlFk
Canon RF 16mm f/2.8 STM Lens amzn.to/3nrI2va
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS III USM Lens amzn.to/3Lto4rO
Canon RF 100-400mm f/5.6-8 IS USM Lens amzn.to/3AROFdm
___________________________________________________________
Affiliate links mean I earn a commission from qualifying purchases. This helps support my channel at no additional cost to you.
_____________________________________________________________
SOCIAL MEDIA & WEB
Instagram: / sdwest11
Facebook Page: / sdwest11
Website & Shop: westakphoto.com/
WHO I AM.
My name is Scott West and I am a nature and wildlife photographer located in Alaska. I am very lucky to live in a place surrounded by amazing landscapes and even more amazing wildlife.
☊ MUSIC
All music licensed through Music Vine. musicvine.com/
“Acquiescence” licensed via Music Vine: SPRMDIBVMQC1TAN2
Best Wishes
Scott
Sorry for the iffy audio. The studio mic got unplugged and the audio is from the camera 12 feet away and I didn't want to shoot this for the 3rd time ;) The original was shot outside but due to the cold making y breathe cause a constant fog layer it made the video unusable.
Thanks again Scott for another great video! Enjoy both studio and real life outdoor explanation. Thanks again and take care
Anytime. I recorded this first outdoors, but my exhales caused the so much fog it ruined the shots as I was talking lol. SO I had to come back to the house and start all over.
Thank you for sharing ! the photos and sequences on the Foxes are magnificent!
Glad you like them!
Well, seems like I'm the first person to watch this! Great video and coverage of the R6 MKII.
yup
Great video as always, Scott! I'm looking forward to the new features ported to an R5 MKII next year. Sold my R6 for the R7 for the extra MP and reach.
Very cool. Yeah they keep adding very nice stuff to the kit and the r5MKII and the R1 will be interesting offers.
my r6 mk2 just arrived! im super excited to use it!
grats
Thank you. Great effort and review. I am thrilled, but I also understand your concern about the MegaPixels.
My pleasure!
I've taken side by sides with the R6 and R5 with the same lenses (RF 85 1.2 which is arguably the sharpest lens you can buy) and if I output the R6 files to 45 MP in Adobe Camera Raw, it's VERY difficult to see any difference between the files... viewed at 100% on a 5K screen. If I use the ENHANCE feature of Adobe Camera Raw on the R6 files then output to 45MP, the images actually look better. I'm not sure if it's a matter of diminishing returns over 20 MP or if the R6 files are just that good but anything I can crop or print with the R5 I can also crop or print with the R6. Actually I have the R6 II and it's even better in this regard.
This is a fantastic review! I got my R6 Mark II a couple weeks ago and took it out in -20 temps here in Canada and it was perfection. I love how great your 180 FPS video of the moose looked as well!
One thing that confused me a bit is having the single point AF selected but then having boxes being drawn around other things too that sort of overrides my single point (in photos in one shot mode). To prevent this I guess you have to turn off the subject tracking in the menu?
yes. Go check out my autofocus video and the R7 one also. I explain why in this videos.
Ok Scott, you’ve convinced me that it’s time to start saving for this camera. Excellent video and you and your family have a Merry Christmas.
Thanks. Go rent it first to see if it suits your shooting needs also ;)
Hi Scott. Love your work and content. I've been getting into photography in my retirement. Currently shooting a Canon 250D. Nothing special. Will be upgrading this year. Intrigued by the possibilities of what my be in the R5ii so holding off to see what comes of that. I do primarily landscape, but love wildlife. We enjoy our trips to the Tetons and Yellowstone. I want to expand more on the birds here in Idaho. Lots of raptors and waterfowl. For a secondary body, would you recommend the R6ii or the R7 to go with the R5 or R5ii. Wishing you a blessed New Year.
Thanks.
R5II or I for landscape,video, and wildlife. R7 as backup for birds and reach.
One odd thing the R6 mkII does that I didn’t expect. If you put an RF 600 or 800 mm F11 on it the focus area becomes about 85 or 90% of the of the viewfinder. Which is much larger than other Canon full frames.
yes I saw that. Pretty cool
Great review, how does the r6 mk2 image quality/autofocus work with respect to Nikon Z9 with z 100-400 or 400mm f4.5 native Nikon lenses in same conditions / same kind of subjects as well ??
Ill do a comparison of focus and subjects at a later date, but their autofocus systems are completely different beasts. They work so differently that its not a easy a/b comparison if that makes sense.
The Canon AF on the R3,5,6,6II,7, and 10 are much fast to hit on a lot of farther reaching and odd animal types (Dall Sheep, etc) than the Z9. But animals such as Fox, wolves, moose, elk, and most birds they work close to the same. BIF is very different also.
What a lovely foxes in the snow movies. Alaska this time of the year is an almost magical world of snow. What I love about the snow is the reflectons it gives on the big furry animals you're shooting with your camera. Must be cold outside as I've seen on your earlier video. Have you ever considered those gloves Henry Turner is using leaving room for your fingertips? You're not the first to get a big smile in using the autofocus of the Canon R6 mark 2. Know you love the use of that lovely Canon EF 500mm f4 on your Nikon Z9. For many bird photgraphers It's a favourit. Living in a wonderfull snowy white world. Days are short in terms of daylight. The thickness of snow and the cold outside are tough conditions, but what a lovely pictures. The animals you're filming and photographing looks so at ease. Is it because of your natural appearance that fits perfectly well in those rocky snowy environment (lovely beard, I'm a little bit jealous) ? Summertime nice long days in Alaska but what about those long dark nights. The perfect time to test dark light conditions on your camera's. Or is it the snowy bright that lightens the days. Thanks for sharing your your lovely photographs and video's. Warm feelings in cold days. Have a good time.
Shooting in Alaska is entertaining with daylight times.
Summer is just go go go, but the light can be harsh at times.
Winter is get ready set go. Ok times up lol. But the good thing is you have golden hour for 6 hours as the suns just at sunset al day ;)
The next video coming out talks a bit about shooting in the winter
I finally decided myself to renew my gear, switching from a 10 years-old 70D and a rusty Tamron 150-600 G1 for a R6 MKII and a RF 100-500. Based on the test videos I see here and there I feel like I'm about to move into another world !
Yes you are.
Thanks you very good infromation ... so the R7 its better ... but i still want the R6 for the avatage of the Full frame ... will see tanks again
So not better but better for my shooting needs would be better way to sum it up. MP and crop reach is my needs. Now if I needed a more video vs stills camera the R6 MKII would be my choice but the R7 shoots great video also.
Also if you are shooting fast eratic then r6 mk iii would be better as long as you didn't need to crop due t rolling shutter performance is great on the r6
I’m still using my 50D with 70-200mm 2.8 L IS mk 1 from 2005 with a 2X extender and recently got back into wildlife shooting along the Intracoastal Waterway in NC - birds and small animals - and can’t decide between R6mkII and R7. Like you I’d like to do stills and videos.
If going with the R6mkII I’d likely get the RF800mm f/11 and with R7 the RF100-500mm since I understand the AF and other functions of the newer cameras don’t work with the mk1 70-200mm 2.8 L IS. Which would you suggest? I have a couple videos on my channel showing the results I’m currently getting.
The MK I will work, maybe a touch slower but should work.
The R7 to me is better for wildlife with the higher MP and crop.
R6 MKII is fantastic, but the 24 mp hurts for detail on smaller in frame subjects.
My suggestion is to rent both and see what works for how you shoot.
Hi Scott, thanks for this beautifully illustrated review ! Because Canon takes more time to bring the R5ii, we must assume they are preparing an even nicer upgrade for that one. I did love my R6, but I recently swapped it for an R5 due to the need for reach and mp, so going back to the R6ii will not be a smart option.
How do you compare the usability of the 40 fps in the R6ii against the 120 fps in the Z9 ??
the 120 fps on the z9 is jpeg so I haven't used it. the best currently the Z9 does is 20 fps. Rumor is that an upcoming firmware will bring it to 30 FPS. wells see ;)
@@WILDALASKA I knew the 120 fps was more aimed at sports, and rather a gimmick for us birders. But I thought it was already able to shoot 30 fps raw. Surprised to hear this is so far only true in Rumorland ..
of course it's a good wildlife camera i have the mark 1 which is excellent with the right lens
👍
Hi. I have the R7 with the R100-500 and the R200-800. Also using the ext 1.4. Doing most small birds (sometimes from far), BIF and birds nearby. Both in good and sometimes is less light conditions. So to say: several/all kind of bird photography. Mostly I crop in LR in the post proces. I'm in doubt or the r6 MII can give me an added value, is it a valuable supplement in my hobby you think? Or is it a waste off money? Pls some advice/tips. Thanks!!
Check out the R8
Finally a Canon full frame camera not in the 1 series that also can do action photos.
👍
For the video-during-buffer-clearing thing, does the record button have the same delay if you don’t switch to video mode?
Yes
Thanks a lot for this video, i mostly shoot mammals so my r6 is just fine for me and i find they upgrade too fast...cannot afford to switch every 2-3 years :) I will keep my r6 for a few years.😉
Yes the upgrade windows are like 3-5 years usually, but the R6 came early.
Theres nothing tat the new camera does that the old can't for bigs really. So good call.
But if it does enter your mind, go rent it first and see for yourself if its worth the upgrade.
Great review and advice. You got some really nice images and videos with the camera.
I am tempted to sell my 6D MKII and get the R6 MKII. The R6 MKII would pair with my R7 better. Or, I may just wait for the R5 MKII. 😀
If your budget agrees with it, id wait for the R5 MKII. I mount it will be BSI, but they will have to do something interesting with the sensor. Plus more MP.
but this little r6 refresh was nice.
@@WILDALASKA tentative release date of r5 ii?
@@soumyasasmal2268 no clue
@@WILDALASKA is r6ii is a general purpose camera? Like can i do weddings, street photography, crispy sharp portrait with it? In case wedding, printing them into album,
@@soumyasasmal2268 yes
Hi, can I ask, does this camera have a pixel shift function, allowing for a higher resolution - thanks
Do not believe so.
like the camera except when the lens screen goes white or black in daylight did not get the manual with it and have struggled with how to set it right in doors the colour goes black and white out doors the ra goes better even though the batteries ar crap
🤷♂️
Nice video but what about against that beauty on your desk? I'm a Nikon shooter and was thinking of moving to Canon but I'm not sure yet.
Good eye. Its my Z9 which I love. I have a few videos on this guy and using Canon lenses with it.
Between the r5, r6ii or the r7 STRICTLY for photographs, mainly wildlife, macro and portraits which would you go with? Thanks in advance!
r5
@@WILDALASKA thank you 😊
I haven't known for months whether to choose the canon r6 or the Nikon d850. And now the canon r6 Mark II has come out.... Do you have any advice?
go rent both and see what fits your shooting needs.
Great video I’ve just got rid of the r7 as for starters I hated the button layout I was always fumbling about with it after shooting the r6 which I love that layout it’s like a true canon camera layout from 7dmk2 and previous canon bodies so the r6 feels like it should but a couple of things I did love on the r7 was a the preshoot burst yeah it’s a faff getting the pics out of that but no biggie and then for landscapes the panoramic feature that’s awesome saves faffing in post but the rolling shutter on the r6 then even worse on the r7 spec in the preshoot mode that I loved made me get shut and look for a stacked camera I was tempted moving ship Nikon or Olympus but after borrowing a friends z7mk2 just to see how I got on with a Nikon that was a big no my muscle memory of 20 years shooting canon nah so that made me hold on to canon and wait for a nice stacked camera but after watching loads a vids on the r8 which I was tempted for to run alongside the r6 but then the smaller battery and smaller body a bit of a big deal as even the r6 I find a little small so have a L bracket on just to make it a lil bigger so my pinky not hanging off .
Well now I’m thinking just get the r6 mk2 for now as it’s got the pano better rolling shutter and great preburst and another bonus is with the rf 800 f11 which I got that other year when I 1st got the r6 but couldn’t get on with its small focus area so got shut for a ef 500 f4 mk2 then upgraded to the rf100-500 to save weight well the r6 mk2 has that bigger af area with the rf800f11 so that may be worth getting again for mor reach
After all this waffle great video and I think I. Now gonna take the plunge and upgrade the r6 to the mk2 and my aim is to keep that then as a great all rounder then wait till canon release a proper stacked pro grade replacement to the 7Dmk2 👍👍👍👍then have that as my wildlife body and the r6 2 as landscape
Check out the R8 with the Vello battery grip which makes the body feel better and more battery life. I have a couple videos on the channel about the grip and the r8
@@WILDALASKA nice one yeah seen that I was tempted with the R8 as a second body until canon release a better 7dmk2 replacement then that would be my wildlife body and the full frame body would be my landscape body but for my landscapes the ibis of the r6 mk2 would be awesome as seen handheld 5 second shots no problem so for waterfall and flowing streams hand held landscapes a bonus with no tripod needed that be great 👍
Nice video! Have you ever run into any camera freezing issues?
No and I have been in some very cold environments -30 F a few times with aurora.
@@WILDALASKA thanks. Appreciate the reply.
Your 500 f4 version i or ii? Just wondering how this lens works on the new mirrorless bodies. I have an opportunity to pick up a 600 f4 is version i which I will use on my r5.
I have same question
Its the MKII. The MKI will work but it will reduce the FPS just a hair on all the R series cameras.
I have used the 300 2.8 version 2 and it works with full capability also.
@@WILDALASKA thanks for the response. I will probably pick up the 600 is v1 if it’s in good shape - looking at it tomorrow. If I need the full fps I will use my 100-500. I’ve always wanted a big f4 so this is my chance without breaking the bank. Going to head out Sunday and try and get some short eared owl shots - we are getting some cold weather down in southern BC from your neck of the woods. Won’t be cold by your standards but we will be dropping to -10c at night.
Thanks again,
Scott
@@scooter5193 Yes the Big white F4 lenses make for some of the best foreground and background blurs and bokeh..just amazing lenses
I find my own R5's rolling shutter too annoying to even use electronic shutter. So any improvement in the R6 Mark II is welcome. I will personally wait for the R5 Mark II and maybe trade in my R6 for that. Still. I'm glad to see Canon responded to their users and upgraded the R6 as much as they did.
I hate to tell you the R5 rolling shutter is almost non existent in stills. you have to look real hard to find it (same ion the r6mkII). now video it crops up in wide lenses for sure.
I shot hundreds of thousand shots with the r5 and rolling shutter never hurt an image im my experience. Its interesting to hear that it has in someone else's images.
Can you send me an image with r5 bad rolling shutter? id love to see and will see if I can work up a video demonstrating it.
@@WILDALASKA it's basically in high burst mode that I noticed it, like in the sequence you showed with the foxes. From frame to frame you can see the warping. Once I shot birds at a feeder, which is obviously not moving, and a number of frames showed warping in the feeder. I was handholding the R5 with the 100-500 and 1.4x extender. It's possible there was some camera shake, but it shouldn't have been to that extent.
This is a case of "your mileage may vary", I guess. Or, my tolerance for image warp is low. It just put me off using ES in general. I'll see what I can do to send you some samples.
@@JohnDrummondPhoto Good info. Thanks and yes id love to see the image.
Even the one I had in the video both images were very usable and no-one would know it had any rolling shutter.
@@WILDALASKA thank you, sir. Check your email (from your website) for some sample images.
Hi quick question , how foes the canon 300 mm f4 wrk wth r6 or r5 ( mirrorless) im thinking to buyit as a sharp 300 mm but smone told m that it ds nt perform well wth it
I also have the Canon EF 300mm F4 and have the same question.
Its the MKII lens. The MKI works but the FPS is reduced. I have used the 300 2.8 MKii before and it works with full camera features
Thanks Scott, although I’m very happy with my R7, but if I ever get the bug to upgrade I have the info thanks to these videos.👀
Great to hear!
The odd thing about this AF system is that you can keep eye detection turned on, but turn off subject recognition... The camera will still detect eyes, but its not consistent.
🤷♂️
Hey there scott, wanted to get your advice. If you had to pick a setup, would you go with the
R7 w/ rf100-500 or
R6mii w/ rf100-500 + 1.4 tc
For my photography the R7. More mp on subject and reach. But rent and play with both to decide what's good for what and how you shoot.
I have the original R6 and love the camera. I purchased the R6 Mark II and it froze up on me the first time I used it. I had to remove teh battery to reset it and it still stayed on. The camera rattles. I sent it back for a new one. The second one was worst than the first. The camera kept freezing up and started to click click click even in the off position again I had to remove the battery to get it to stop. It happened time and time again. I sent it back for a refund my 6R is a great camera the 6RII a huge disapointment.
Don't go to Vegas with that luck ;)
Would you upgrade from an R7 to a R6 mark 2?
Depends on your shooting needs.
For me? No.
The 24 mp is too low for what I do. Plus one of the bigger reasons for me to have the R7 is the crop. If you watch the Merlin video, I couldn't have got that without the crop factor. Well I could have dropped the 2x converter on, but still would be a hair short than the R7 + the 1.4 of about 120mm.
The great thing about Canon's button layout is, if you don't like it, just wait for the next release - it'll be different again 😉
LOL very true
Lol….facts!!!
You actually don’t need to use the switch to go from photo to video. All you gotta do is press the red record button by the shutter button. So you can switch back and fourth in a second.
If you leave it in stills and hit that button you're in an auto record. mode. By Switching to video you are in whatever mode you are shooting for stills and for me that's manual and saved settings under manual for how I want to record.