The Canon EOS R3 has finally had its official, full specifications unveiled, and they are indeed quite impressive. (As they should be, for a price tag of $5,999!) Could this be the flagship camera that serious action sports and wildlife photographers have been waiting for? With its integrated vertical grip and the Canon-exclusive feature of eye-controlled autofocus points, it sure is an exciting camera at first glance.
It almost seems like this is the flagship camera that we’ve been waiting for this whole time, with its 30 FPS framerate, impressive (but not ridiculous, like 8K RAW) video specs, and let’s not forget, the fact that Canon is the only full-frame mirrorless system that will allow users to combine both IBIS (sensor stabilization) and IS (optical lens-based stabilization) that both photo and video shooters are likely to be attracted to.
My big question is, how will this Canon flagship stack up against the Sony A1, a nearly $6,500 camera? Both cameras boast a blazing fast 30 FPS (frames per second) with full autofocus capabilities, but the Sony’s sensor is a whopping 50 megapixels.
Honestly, I am willing to bet that the main, most important feature, autofocus performance, is almost on par, and that will probably be what matters to most action sports photographers.
But, then again, the Canon EOS R3 has “only” 24 megapixels, which puts it almost in the realm of the Sony A9 II, which shares the megapixel count, but costs “only” $4,500. Actually, though, the Sony A9 II is definitely behind the Canon EOS R3 in almost every way except resolution. Without a doubt, the A1 is a more current comparison to make. However, the question remains: Does Canon still have a 40-50-megapixel flagship yet to come, in the next year or two?
Personally, for high-speed, high-framerate action sports, and any sort of event photography, I prefer 24 megapixels. I just don’t need that much resolution. However, for other things like wildlife photography, where I might be making very big prints of my images, the resolution can always be useful. Thus, I am torn.
Either way, the Canon EOS R3 is a truly exciting, mouth-watering camera to think about, and I can’t wait to review it! I think I’ll try to get my hands on the R3 at the same time as the new RF 100-400mm, and also the exciting, unique Canon RF 800mm f/11! Stay tuned for more in-depth gear reviews coming soon.
Canon EOS R3 Specifications
- SENSOR: 24 megapixel, stacked CMOS full-frame sensor
- LENS MOUNT: Canon RF mirrorless
- VIDEO: 4K 120p, 6K RAW 10-bit, C-Log 3, PQ HDR
- ISO: 100-102400 native (expands to 50-204800)
- AUTOFOCUS: 1053-point hybrid AF Eye/Face tracking, wildlife, cars/motorcycles, Eye Control AF
- SHOOTING SPEED (FPS): 30 FPS (with full autofocus/metering)
- SHUTTER SPEEDS: 30 sec to 1/8000 sec (mechanical) 11 sec to 1/64000 (electronic)
- STABILIZATION: Yes, sensor-based, combines with lens-based optical stabilization
- VIEWFINDER: 5.76M dot OLED (120 fps) 0.76x magnification
- LCD: 3.2 inch, 4.15M-dot TFT touchscreen LCD
- CONNECTIVITY: USB 3.2, (10 GBit/sec) PD (power delivery)
- STORAGE: 1 CF express Type B, 1 UHS-II SD
- BATTERY: LP-E19, 760-shot CIPA rating
- BODY CONSTRUCTION: Metal alloy, fully weather-sealed
- SIZE: 150 x 143 x 87 mm (5.91 x 5.63 x 3.43 in)
- WEIGHT: 1015g (35.8 oz)
- PRICE: $5,999
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Canon EOS R3 Press Release
The EOS Revolution Continues: Canon Officially Announces the Company’s Most Technologically Advanced Full-Frame Mirrorless Camera, the Professional-Grade EOS R3
MELVILLE, NY, September 14, 2021 – Building on the success of the EOS R camera series, Canon U.S.A. Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, today announced the next leap forward in full-frame mirrorless cameras – the professional-grade Canon EOS R3. The new camera leverages the advancements in technology that Canon has developed since the original EOS R launch in 2018 and bridges the gap between the immensely popular EOS R5 and the world-renowned Canon flagship EOS-1D X line. The EOS R3 is the first “3” series camera from Canon since the widely used EOS-3 film camera launched in 1998.
The EOS R3 camera’s features greatly emphasize superb AF performance and speed with fast-moving subjects. It was designed to meet the reliability and durability demands of professionals, even when working in some extremely challenging conditions.
“The launch of the EOS R3 sets a new benchmark for the Canon EOS R camera system. Canon listened carefully to the voices of professionals when developing a camera to meet their standards,” said Tatsuro “Tony” Kano, executive vice president and general manager of Canon U.S.A.’s Imaging Technologies & Communications Group. “The EOS R3 is a monumental evolution in digital imaging technology. I look forward to seeing the camera in action on the sidelines of sporting events and in the hands of nature and wildlife photographers across the globe.”
The core of the EOS R3 features a Canon designed and manufactured 24.1-megapixel back-illuminated stacked CMOS sensor. The sensor is the first of its kind from Canon, and when combined with the DIGIC X processor, delivers a high-speed readout allowing for continuous blackout-free shooting1 at up to 30 fps in electronic (silent) shutter mode and up to 12 fps in mechanical shutter, with minimum rolling electronic shutter distortion. The combination also increases the high sensitivity, light-capturing efficiency of a native ISO range of 100-102400, expandable up to 204,800 for still images. Like the EOS R5 and R6, the camera features the improved Dual Pixel CMOS AF II with 1,053 AF Points and evolved EOS iTR tracking down to EV -7.5 for subjects such as eye, face, head, animals2, and select cars and motorcycles. In addition, the camera features up to 8 stops3 of in-body image stabilized (IBIS) shake correction.
Leveraging technology and performance feedback from the popular EOS R5 and EOS R6 cameras, the EOS R3 uses Deep-Learning technology to further enhance eye and body detection for even better performance during portrait and action-type shooting. Featuring a new 5.76-million-dot and 120fps blackout-free1 Electronic Viewfinder, the EOS R3 camera will provide photographers with the ability to select the initial area for AF tracking by simply looking directly at the viewfinder location where they want to begin AF. With Eye input AF2 and Servo AF activated, the camera will focus on and track moving subjects at that location in the frame. When Face Detect + Tracking is active, the camera will continue to follow moving subjects around the entire active AF area.
The EOS R3 camera doesn’t just capture spectacular still images, it also packs impressive video specs as well. The camera is capable of shooting 6K 60p RAW and 4K 120p 10-bit uncropped video with Canon Log 3 support, in addition to the possibility for oversampled 4K and RAW movie internal recording. Canon Log 3, which is frequently used in cinema production, helps to reduce the possibility of highlight blowouts. What’s more, the features such as industry standard BT.709, BT.2020 color gamuts, and cinema gamut help to maintain color and tonal consistency. Coordinated 5-axis IBIS helps to correct operator motion or shaking providing dependent video capturing even when using a lens without built-in Optical IS.
Additional features of the EOS R3 Full-Frame Mirrorless Camera include:
- Canon’s next-generation Multi-Function Shoe that is compatible with a variety of accessories including the Speedlite EL-1, and new accessories such as the ST-E10 Speedlite Transmitter, External Mic and Smartphone Link Adapter
- One-piece magnesium alloy design, integrating the body with a vertical grip section
- Weather and dust resistance equivalent to EOS-1D camera models.
- Mobile File Transmitter application for iOS® and Android® devices allows photographers to transfer their images quickly and easily without the need for wired LAN equipment
- Built-in Wired LAN, 5GHz Wi-Fi®, USB and Bluetooth® technology
- Dual-card slots, supporting one CF express and one UHS-II SD
The Canon EOS R3 Full-Frame Mirrorless Camera is scheduled to be available in November 2021 for a suggested retail price of $5,999. For more information, please visit usa.canon.com.
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