CANON R7 Long Term Review: It's Complicated

The ISO button, which is indeed a strange choice by Canon, is irrelevant: just assign something more useful to it.

I really appreciate your “R5/R6 user” disclaimer. That explains your disappointment in form factor and buttons disposition. on the opposite, I am a Sony user, and when I used to shoot with R5 it was me to be disappointed for button. But with the R7 I really feel comfortable with buttons disposition, they’re more logic to me.
Nice video, hope you’ll be healthy

Thank you very much for this long term review.

The R7 is a good camera. Just forget about the headline specs. The layout is a bit of a weird choice by Canon in some ways, but you can get used to it.

I have the Nikon P1000, I already had the 90D and I'm tired of the APSC and its limitations, I'm going to buy the R8 or the R6M2, these noise reduction software are good, I agree with you but they have a price, less quality. Full sensor gives me more satisfaction! The R7 is just a 90D decorated with the same mechanical shutter problems as the 90D with improved iso worked internally by digic X but I see lifeless images! Thank you for your review, I completely agree! You were even kind to R7.

Thanks for your insights. I was just at the Tucson Audubon Birding Festival and am looking to move on from my Canon 5D Mark III to a mirrorless. I've been trying to make the decison on what to go with as I'd also like to save money and be able to use my existing EF lenses for a while. I'm also not looking for a "one to one" replacement as I found out I wasn't making money doing photography and need to go less expensive. As I'm looking at a replacement to be able to take wildlife photos more for fun and myself....I've been considering the R7. I know I'm going to give up some features, etc. by going down from the 5D Mark III to the R7, but they are differences I can live with.

I had the R7 since it launch on retail week. It was an upgrade from 7DmkII that I had for many years and I was very happy with the purchase since I never owned a full frame camera. I wanted the R5 but with the older tech inside made me reconsider and I was already over budget by buying the RF100-500l with the body which wasn't planned. But then I I discovered wild photography few months later and I encountered the issues you have with the last segments of the Autofocus system. It is janky. I thought first it was me, but it took many weeks to discover that most of that was from the camera's faultiness, so now I'm disappointed much later on my purchase of these issue now that I know it is common issue for this particular body. And I too put settings to be the stickiest as possible and it has little to no effect. I'm still taking great pictures but like you I am nervous before taking pictures because I have to think all of the wrongs that can happen. My last resolve on how to use this camera is to use it like older DSLR by turning off everything that is related to tracking like eye detection and subject tracking, they just don't work for me.

i bought a R7 8 months ago,,,so far i love it...sigma 150x600 ,100x400 canon...i shoot wildlife best i have owned...

Appreciated this vid. The qualified negativity was perfect for me, because I am coming from an R5. Hearing your negative perspective gives me a better idea of how this lens functions in my bag. IF it makes it in, it's purpose would be the second body, likely with the RF800, when we are exploring Yellowstone this fall. IF it works well in that roll, then I likely keep the RF800 on it all the time and use the R5 with everything else. I am hesitant to pull the trigger on an R7 because of the focus issues and the layout issues. I know others are jazzed by the 'reach' it creates with the APS-C sensor, but part of me is arguing that an R6 might not be a better solution. Put the RF800 on the R5 and crop in as needed and run whatever second lense is appropriate on the R6. Anyway, appreciated your observations; hope you are healing up by this time.

Since the R7 should be positioned as a professional level APS-C camera which is going to be used by photographers who shoot auto racing and birds in flight, the controls should be the same and in the same positions on the camera body as the full frame cameras. Most of the camera manufacturers can't seem to get this right. The one exception is Nikon. I can move from one body to the next and everything is familiar. That's what I like about the D5 and D500 and even the D850. All about the same. Then the buffer. Again, Canon is thinking wrong. This crop sensor camera should be the exception to the normal amateur purpose of a crop sensor camera. It should be positioned as a professional crop sensor camera and using CFExpress and large buffers as well as a much better EVF should have been the approach. Then the need for a battery grip to balance the weight as well as provide longer battery life. Today, sports cameras need stack sensors. Fujifilm did it, Canon should have done it.

Thank you Brent, I'm using 7D M2 since 2017, now i'm having focus issue with Tamron 150-600 G2, I'm planning to switch to mirrorless since last year but as it coast too much for me, my few years saving worth half after devalue of our currency against US$, since last few months I'm watching/reading the reviews before spending much money on body, your review is eye opener for me, I'm planing between R7 and R8. I do lot of walk in dry habitats and here birds are very shy due to hunting practices, I can't afford two body/lens at all, I travel via motorbike, so it have problem of carrying more weight.

I had the same experience as you with the R7. Sometimes it will work ok, other times I will only get one out of a hundred perfectly sharp shot. It happens with up close stationary birds with camera well stabilized, should be an easy shot. I am not going to use eye detect with it unless I cant possibly get the shot without it, shooting by manually putting the focus point has resulted in much higher keeper rate for me, but that defeats it's most attractive feature. I have an R6 also and it nails focus 95 percent of the time. Canon had successful eye detect autofocus with the R6, R5, and R3 before the R7 so it makes you wonder why the R7 shouldn't be at least somewhat close to them. I posted this issue on DPreview with most saying that settings are wrong and that eye af is complicated when the opposite is true. Many on there claim the R7 is their best focusing camera. I dont see how that is possible unless they use high aperture lenses from a distance where focus is less critical. I tend to shoot near min focus distance on a 500 f4 II and out of focus shots are very pronounced. I am sorry to hear of so many others having the same issues, but glad to know I'm not the only one. I too wished they put th R7 sensor in a R6 body with R6,R5, or R3 focusing, with the R6 shutter as well. I would have paid anything they asked for it. I even contemplated getting a Fuji H2 and adapting my Canon glass with it, but see alot of people having focus issues with those too. I would like a reliable focusing crop camera at some point.

Wonderful effort! I'm late to the party here, but sympathize with your dilemma. Coming from the R5/R6 MkII, the R7 would present aggravations, and to try to explain them can seem trivial to some, but when you're trying to get the shot for your profession, it's more than trivial. But as an average shooter, I assumed my focus problems were due to my lack of skill, and no doubt most were. But when I was right on the bird and it was just a bit out of focus shot after shot, I really couldn't explain it. Maybe it wasn't me after all! I do love the reach with the R7/100-500, and have addressed the exposure issues of the "dark bird in the bright area" by using the control ring on the lens to adjust the exposure compensation. It's worked very well. I'll sell my R6 and add the R62 one of these days!

Hi Brent, I fully agree with all your points in this video and it completely echoes my thoughts on the R7. I have a R5 and had a R6 so for me the tactile aspects of the R7 are lacking. Shutter sound, different dial and joystick placement, lower resolution (and darker) evf and erratic focus all are detracting from my enjoyment of the R7. It it works, the results are absolutely fantastic, and, to be fair, it has some great features too, but the fact that it is erratic makes me nervous about losing the shot. I am contemplating getting the R6 mk2 as a second body based on all the positive reviews but my questions are: Do I need another camera that will do almost the same as what I get from my R5 and am I willing to forego the different effective focal length that the R 7 provides? If the R7 was less erratic and if the dial placement were the same as R3/5/6 and if the mech shutter was less harsh, I would not be contemplating getting rid of the R7.

Had the R7 since release date and sold
It for an R8 when it released and now I’m torn because I miss the extra reach

have you used any EF lenses on it ? and if so how fast is the tracking ?

The earliest attestation of "overcom(e)able" is from 1452 in a manuscript in the British Library (according to the Middle English Dictionary). So, yes, it is a word and it has a respectable history. 🙂

Hi. Just saw your video about your love and hate about the R7. Have you ever thought that some of your out of focus shots are the lens causing this? I had an 24-105 f4 L and my wife has the same lens. 95% of her photos are tack sharp maybe even higher. With my copy of the same lens and same camera bodies, I was lucky to get 50%. So needless to say I sold mine. 
I have an R6 which I bought to replace my 5D MK iii which in my case was making me thinking about switching brands completely. I absolutely love my R6 for ergonomics and picture quality. I never use my cameras for video as most people do. I would even buy a camera without video capabilities that is comparable to my existing bodies. Then I got my R7 to accompany my R6. Now I use the R7 about 75% of the time. My only complaint with my R7 is the overall size. I wish they would have made it the same size as my R6. It just feels so good in my hand. I never use the rate button so I don’t miss it. All my other features I use regularly are remapped to the 4 way toggle. So I absolutely love this camera. Photo quality is 100% better than my 5D MKiii. Maybe I got a crappy copy of it but I’m glad I got rid of it.
So I’m looking forward to watching another of your videos in the future.
Cheers

Question ? Need one help -- Planning to get a refurbished R5 from canon --wanted to check if shutter count at all matters in mirror less cameras ?

Really depends on what and where you are shooting as well as personal preferences and experience. I'm using my R7 out of preference to my R5 maybe 90% of the time. Main reason being the detail that I'm able to pull out of that very high linear resolution sensor in most lighting conditions. The rolling shutter/loud mechanical shutter 'trade-off' is handled by assigning the DOF button to instant electronic/mechanical switch. So I shoot electronic most of the time, but if I lock on to a fast moving bird I can switch to mechanical instantly 'on the fly'. Can't do much about the noise, but since the bird is already airborne spooking it isn't an issue. I think that my leaning to the R7 probably has something to do with the fact that I've been a Nikon shooter most of my birding life. Most late Nikon DSLRs and all (?) Nikon mirrorless have no optical low-pass filter and the retention of detail compared to the R5 (which has one) is noticeable. For me, the gorgeous images that I get out of the R7 when used with the 'workarounds' for the negative aspects of the camera make it preferable to the R5. I use a Canon 300mm 2.8 MkII with 1.4 TC to give me an effective FOV of 670mm at F4. It's a super-sharp combination. I haven't noticed any focussing issues with the R7 that aren't also a 'feature' of most other mirrorless cameras, fewer in fact.

I had an r7 on order, cancelled it and bought an r62. Really like the r62. First mirrorless for me but also first full frame. One wheel for iso, one for aperature one for shutter, and a histogram in the viewfinder to supplement viewfinder brightness. Makes shooting in manual really much much better, plus the autofocus. I would buy an aps version of an r62 in a heartbeat. Make the camera identical except for the sensor size and pixel density (24 or 32 mp on an aps sensor). I like to carry 2 bodies, but if they could have IDENTICAL controls life would be so easy. It is not easy to switch back and forth. Iso buttons suck no matter where they are. Good review

Nice video Brent. I am finding similar floors with the autofocus system but mainly with birds in flight using the RF800. It is frustrating at times.

Excellent video. I’m not sure if this is a dumb question but will ask… I am still using my 7D Mk2 and was wondering about the shutter shock that you mentioned - will it be just as bad on the 7D MK2 as on the R7?

Thanks for speaking up about the R7's inability to hold focus! I tracked a lifer for five hours this week. I finally got my shot . . . I was on electronic shutter (use case 2, under forest canopy, and 50' away) and all I got before the bird flew was THREE (3) images. Fortunately, the red box showed that "focus" was exactly where I wanted it on all three images. BUT . . . first image was, I would rate, a 95% sharp image. The second image was really bad. I would rate it 75% -- the bird and species were recognizable, but it was a bad photo. Third image was the best of the three -- probably a 97% sharp image. None of the three is usable on my website. None of the three is close to being usable for prints. My R5 would have locked focus and held it. I'm very disappointed with the R7. From now on, I won't use it unless there's a ton of light, the subject is a long way away, and the subject is stationary.

32mp on a apc means every little shake Will give a photo out of focus. You have to shoot at higher shutterspeed than you are used to. For me i have to shoot at 20% higher shutterspeeds to get sharp photos.

Great comprehensive review. It really confirms a lot of what I feel about my R7 vs my R5. When it’s good, it’s very good, but the focus issue is the thing that frustrates me most. Soft images when the camera is telling me it’s locked on is the most maddening thing for me. It drives your keeper rate way down. A lot of folks say the R7 focus system is better than the R5’s. It may be slightly more advanced, but in my experience the R5 is still a more reliable, accurate system.

That focus issue is the exact reason I sold my 7DMKII. Could never get correct focus, no matter calibration etc. Sometimes front focus, sometimes back focus. Just took the fun out of photography.

Nice review! I ordered the R7 and got it the day after they started shipping. I was blown away by it’s IQ on day one with the 100-500 lens. It focused quickly and I loved some of the images I was getting. I used it for 6 months. The more I used it the less happy I was with it. In the end I sold it and went with an OM-1 as my primary body. I sold all my Canon gear mainly because I was annoyed with the choices Canon made on the R7. I wanted crop sensor reach in a premium body. It hurt me to sell the 100-500. Had the R6ii been out at that time I might have held on to my RF lenses. Canon could have easily made a pro crop sensor body for $2500. I would have bought 2 of them.

Hi brent. Hope you feel better soon. Enjoy your trip . Best regards from james in scotland.

Finally an Honest review

Great video, Brent and spot on. I've had the R7 since it came out and reach with the RF100-500 sold me. 800mm at F7.1 isn't too bad. Yes, the AF jumping around has been an (unpredictable) issue, but when it does work, it's spot-on. Like so many others have said or implied, the small buffer all but forced me to change my way of shooting and being conservative on the shutter button. No more 'spray and pray'. More like 'spray sparely'. Anyway, I have most of the same gripes as you and maybe a few more likes, which is why I still have it for wildlife. With 3rd party software, the noise isn't an issue with most of my keepers, so I go back to the 800mm and how much closer it brings me. When it captures an image, they're very sharp as well, but that lens (RF100-500) is part of the equation. Nice and sharp.

I like the FV mode on the R7 because you can change all the exposure settings with only two controls wheels. I was use to three wheels on the 5Ds and R6 I still use.

Hi Brent, enjoyed the video. Thank you. With regards to your shoulder, don't know if this applies but I had a massive problem with mine a few years back. Buying a fully adjustable desk that I could lower so my shoulders were never raised took care of the issue for me. I was lucky though as it was just at the first lockdown and offices were selling very fancy desks extremely cheap. Before that I was on various types of menthol creams to try and alleviate the pain. Just a thought.

Seems like most people still love their R6s and R5s :-) Same here, love my R6 though I also got the R7 for the extra reach. Some of the waterbird stuff I do I simply cannot get quite close enough. So willing to overloook some of the faults of the R7. The R6 is still the love of my life though (don't tell the wife)

Why did uou buy the R7 when you already have two "better" cameras?

I own canon 7dii, R7, Sony A6600 and for me the reason why I purchased the R7 was eye AF !
It is alien technology in a very compact design and the keeper rate over my 7Dii is massive. I did not buy an R5 because I can not spend £4,500 on just a body alone, my wife would want a new car, or 2 week holiday in Japan for what I would spend on R5, new memory cards, adapter and RF 70-105 !
For me the R7 has quite a few faults, however the price of £1,350 is justified for the AF technology. I would have a few hundred more to have the 7Dii build and few more features as us 7Dii owners wanted a mirrorless version of our beloved 7Dii !

Injuring my thumb a while back forced me to reduce my use of back button focussing. So I leave "single point" on the shutter release and only use the back button to engage animal eye/tracking. So R7's ergonomics wrt back button placement wouldn't bother me. Shutter noise would. I read somewhere that it helps with the warped images if you turn off auto level?

I bought an old Zenit 12 XP with a Helios 44M-4 58mm f2.
Unfortunately the aperture blades are sticky so it's only usable at f2. But it's a lot of fun in a limited way on my Canon RP. And of course it's a Valdai manufactured one. But I think that is a non issue for me because I like the flares and hazy low contrast look sometimes. The swirl needs f2-f2.8 frequently but I love it😂 $20 lens and camera😮

Brant, talking about being budget restricted , the R7 and the R8 are at the same price level, and I just saw Canon had a promotion on the R. I am not to keen going to the R because is older generation of processor, and other things. But what would be your recommendation between these 3 cameras if you are constrained by budget and cannot get to the more expensive ones?

Which is good R7-R8 camera for hybrid use and potrait and sport photography

Great review

Thanks for the update! We lived in Tucson for a short time and loved taking pictures of birds and planes there.

I'll add my thanks to the group for this thoughtful video! I think a good comparison to make would be between the R6II with the 100-500 plus 1.4 extender to the R7 without the extender. The reason I say this is I need the reach these two setups provide, but up here in Canadian latitudes the light is dimmer and at F10 on my R6II with extender, I'm often pushing ISOs of 6400 where I find the autofocus experience on my R6II with extender is causing all the frustration and lower hit rates that you described on your R7. I'm thinking therefore that the R7 without the extender would be a lighter setup with even more reach than I currently have on my R6II and unlikely to be more frustrating, especially since I'll also be able to zoom out without the extender obstructing the range. I suppose another fair comparison of the autofocus systems would be between the R6II at F7.1 and the R7 at F4.

Having an R6 and an R7, of course the 6 is the better camera, but it costs 1,000.00 more, is full frame (meaning less noise) and autofocus is stickier. Having said that, the R7 is a great camera, has some improvements in the AF (even though it's not as sticky), gives me that vital extra reach when I need it (and more pixels on subject for cropping), is lighter carrying around, which makes it a great hiking camera. The two things I would like improved are the delay waking up when tapping the shutter (this is the big thing), and the buffer (a small thing). Keep in mind, however, that the buffer is actually larger than on the 7d ii, and it improves dramatically with faster cards. Overall, I am very happy that I traded in the 7dii for the R7. It's a big upgrade.

G rest video as usual, I thought you were talking about me in this video, I came from a dslr and and RP I ve had all the same problems you’ve had but with a lot of practice have overcome most, I’ve learned to feather the shutter, and have never hit the buffer, have had maybe I rolling shutter shot. Eye tracking problems I have noticed have been sporadic but when they happen very stubborn especially in a cluttered background even going to spot focus didn’t always correct it. Thanks for the video learned a lot. Am thinking of getting the R6MII and I think you’ve sealed the deal for me.👀👀

The same issues with AF on R7. I tried different settings (cases, sensitivity), but AF consistancy remains insufficient. I hope the AF inconsistency will be fixed in future firmware updates.

Comparing cameras that have a big difference in functionality and especially price point is inherently unfair. As far as using it as a backup camera to an R5 or R6 Mk II, if you’re being paid to get “the shot” then I would use a second R5 or R6 Mk II so that you can rapidly switch bodies if you have an issue.

Really good overview Brent! I couldn't agree more with you regarding the video switch button positioning on the R6 mark II, I really don't like it, it would be much better if on/off and video switch buttons were position vice versa. I hate that I have to move my left hand from supporting the big lens just to flick a switch which really ruins the workflow in the field, this is probably not a problem for wedding photographers etc. when using smaller lenses, but in wildlife scenarios it really sucks, especially when you think that every Canon DSLR (even the consumer models) in the last 15 years or so, had a great video switch button on the right side of the camera which made transitioning between video and photo modes seamless for hybrid shooters and operable by just one hand.

Funny I have R5 and R3 and I reach for my R7’s the majority of the time. Shot full time in Kenya with it last safari and have been shooting BIF everyday for months with it. I’m getting some fantastic, sellable images. Yes it’s different from the R5, and it’s prosumer in a lot of ways, but with the right glass it’s an exceptionally good wildlife camera. If you can afford some decent glass and want that extra bit of crop factor, couple it with noise reduction and you’re hard pressed to beat to. I’ve got a couple of natgeo images and a lot of contest entries with the R7 so a bit surprised with how you feel overall.

R7 is crippled but it's not a tard

Thanks for a great video. It was good to learn that others have the same problem as me with the autofocus. But I have found a way to improve this for static motives like a bird sitting relatively still, and that is to not keep the autofocus button in for more than a split second. As soon as the blue square marks that the eye or the bird has been focused, I let go of the button, and then all the fotos in that series will be sharp. I may repeat this a couple of times to be sure, but in total this has improved my keeper rates drastically.