Interview With Canon Engineers About the Canon EOS R

September 17, 2018
Canon News, Tech
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Dave Etchells of Imaging Resource had the chance to talk to Canon engineers about the brand new Canon EOS R.

Some excerpts:

Does the Canon EOS R really have 5,655 AF points?

[…]what’s being referred to are the number of AF point positions you can choose from, when in single-point mode and using the rear-panel arrow keys. When you press one of the arrow keys, the box showing the single AF “point” moves a small step in the chosen direction. Adding up the number of steps in each direction, you’d likely come up with the claimed 5,655 points.

Does AF coverage change with EF-mount lenses?

Since EF-mount lenses used via the adapter are so much further from the sensor surface, it seems likely that they wouldn’t be able to support as large an AF area as native RF-mount ones. I asked, and it turns out this is true. It will vary some based on the specific lens design, but some EF-mount lenses won’t have quite as wide AF coverage as the native ones. Native RF-mount coverage is 100% vertically and 88% horizontally, but some EF-mount lenses will only have 80% horizontal coverage (again, depending on the specific lens design).

How does EOS R autofocus compare to cameras like the 5D Mark IV?

[…]relative AF performance depended on the subject; that the EOS R would win sometimes and the 5D IV or 1D X II other times. They didn’t elaborate on what subjects they thought each would be best at, but I thought it was significant that it wasn’t all one way, and that the EOS R in fact would win some AF matchups, even against some of Canon’s top SLRs.

The entire interview can be read at Imaging Resource.

Pre-orders for the Canon EOS R are live. Shipping is expected to start in October 2018.

Pre-order in the USA, Canon EOS R: B&H Photo | Adorama | Canon USA | Amazon

Pre-order in the USA, Canon RF mount lenses: B&H Photo | Adorama | Canon USA | Amazon