The Canon EOS R8 is Canon’s latest full-frame mirrorless camera aimed mainly at the up-and-coming video or photo enthusiast.
It features the same 24-megapixel sensor, Dual Pixel AF and DIGIC X processor as the Canon R6 Mark II but housed in a lighter, more compact body.
The deep learning AI subject recognition tracks people, animals, and vehicles and a new Auto Mode allows the camera to automatically select the type of subject having to switch the Subject Detection setting in the menu.
Built-in image processing has also been added, allowing for in-camera compositing including Moving Subject HDR, Depth Compositing, Panoramic Shot, HDR Night Scene, and HDR Backlight control.
The R8 has ample features for video creators capturing 6K oversampled uncropped 4K footage at up to 60 fps, as well as Full-HD High-frame rate movie recording at up to 180 fps.
10bit HDR PQ and Canon Log 3 recording is also available right out of camera with HDR PQ recording a 10bit colour file that is compatible with various HDR displays such as TVs, monitors and smartphones.
For those who like to edit their video files, Canon Log 3 creates a 10bit log file which provides more information if you need to recover highlights and shadows or do any colour grading in your favourite editing suite.
As with most newer cameras, the R8 can also be used as a webcam thanks to its UVC/UAC compatibility. This allows for streaming of live video in Full HD, without additional computer software, to your streaming site of choice.
The R8 also allows you to set Movie rotation information during or after recording video, allowing videos to be played in vertical composition when viewing on a smartphone.
There is also an Aspect Markers Function that displays visual markers for the different aspect ratios required by various social media sites allowing you to make sure your videos will appear correctly on them.
For photographers, the R8 captures stills in JPEG and HEIF in addition to RAW, C-RAW and Dual-Pixel RAW file formats.
It has a maximum burst rate of up to 40 frames per second using the fully electronic shutter (there is no mechanical shutter) mode with no shutter noise, and up to 6 frames per second when using the electronic first curtain shutter.
The 2.36-million dot OLED viewfinder supports a refresh rate of up to 120fps with 100% view coverage and the 3.0-inch, 1.62 million dot Clear View LCD II Vari-angle Touchscreen allows for touch and drag functionality when changing settings.
Lastly, the R8 supports both wire and wireless communications via the USB Type-C port as well as built-in Bluetooth and Wi-Fi capabilities.
