Canon EOS R6 Mark III against a wooden background.
While everyone know that the Canon EOS R6 Mark III was coming, I don't think anyone was prepared for what an incredible proposition it is.
Like most people, I'd seen all the camera rumors before I got the R6 Mark III in my hands – and still, once I started using it, I was blown away at just how many uncompromisingly high-end features are packed into what is ostensibly a midrange hybrid camera.
My initial hands-on wasn't enough to try out all the features exhaustively, but it was enough to try out many of them. For a camera like this it's particularly important to test out the animal autofocus, as this is going to be popular among wildlife shooters.
As noted in my Canon EOS R6 Mark III review, the AF is noticeably "stickier" for birding than it was in the R6 Mark II – especially when it comes to birds in flight, where it locks on like a padlock throughout the entire 40fps burst. And the image stabilization, now rated at 8.5 stops (up half a stop from the Mark II), also feels reassuringly improved.
It wasn't long lenses and wildlife where I experienced this, though; it was when shooting macro images.
Stopping down the aperture (to achieve greater depth of field) and shooting in less-than-ideal light is one sure way to test a camera's stabilization. And as someone who's shot far too much macro in far too little light, that extra half-stop of shake compensation was something for which I was very grateful.
Anyway, you can read the review for my thoughts on the R6 Mark III's performance. I wanted to share some of the shots I took during my first test so you can see its real-world performance…
Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 35mm f/1.8 Macro IS STM (1/25 sec, f/1.8, ISO320) (Image credit: James Artaius)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM (1/200 sec, f/2.8, ISO100) (Image credit: James Artaius)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 45mm f/1.2 STM (1/25 sec, f/1.8, ISO320) (Image credit: James Artaius)(Image credit: James Artaius)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 35mm f/1.8 Macro IS STM (1/25 sec, f/7.1, ISO4000) (Image credit: James Artaius)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM (1/1000 sec, f/2.8, ISO100) (Image credit: James Artaius)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 35mm f/1.8 Macro IS STM (1/13 sec, f/1.8, ISO200) (Image credit: James Artaius)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM (1/200 sec, f/2.8, ISO100) (Image credit: James Artaius)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 35mm f/1.8 Macro IS STM (1/8 sec, f/5.0, ISO800) (Image credit: James Artaius)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM (1/200 sec, f/2.8, ISO100) (Image credit: James Artaius)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 35mm f/1.8 Macro IS STM (1/13 sec, f/1.8, ISO200) (Image credit: James Artaius)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM (1/200 sec, f/2.8, ISO100) (Image credit: James Artaius)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 35mm f/1.8 Macro IS STM (1/13 sec, f/2.8, ISO500) (Image credit: James Artaius)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM (1/1000 sec, f/2.8, ISO100) (Image credit: James Artaius)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 45mm f/1.2 STM (1/100 sec, f/1.2, ISO320) (Image credit: James Artaius)(Image credit: James Artaius)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM (1/1000 sec, f/2.8, ISO100) (Image credit: James Artaius)
And, for good measure, here are some of the samples taken by my colleague Chris George, who was also on hand to put the camera through its paces.
As a bonus, these shots were all taken on the new Canon RF 45mm f/1.2 STM – which isn't a lens Canon particularly intends to be used with the R6 Mark III, but nonetheless you can see some of the shallow depth of field opportunities provided by that superfast f/1.2 aperture.
Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 45mm f/1.2 STM (1/1250 sec, f/1.2, ISO160) (Image credit: Chris George)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 45mm f/1.2 STM (1/3200 sec, f/1.2, ISO100) (Image credit: Chris George)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 45mm f/1.2 STM (1/1000 sec, f/8.0, ISO400) (Image credit: Chris George)Canon EOS R6 Mark III + Canon RF 45mm f/1.2 STM (1/250 sec, f/1.2, ISO160) (Image credit: Chris George)(Image credit: Chris George)(Image credit: Chris George)(Image credit: Chris George)(Image credit: Chris George)(Image credit: Chris George)(Image credit: Chris George)(Image credit: Chris George)
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See how the Canon EOS R6 II as well as the OG Canon EOS R6 hold up against the new kid on the block. If you're a video-first shooter, check out the Canon EOS C50 (the R6 Mark III's video-oriented sibling).
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