I do like your idea of having an assignable button to enable Pre-Continuous Shooting. However, that requires the shutter to be set the Electronic. Not sure if possible, but would be neat if assignable buttons could perform a "macro" operation (i.e. two or more functions). e.g. first set Shutter to Electronic, then enable Pre-cont shooting. What I plan to do is to either set up two custom modes (one for studio work where I'll always be using Mechanical shutter; and another for misc work where I'd most likely be using Electronic). Or perhaps place the Shutter mode setting right next to the Pre-cont. shooting in My Menu.

Fantastic Video Bob. I recently upgraded from my Canon EOS 5D MK II to the Sony A7R III however I found this video quite helpful. I started out with the Canon Rebel T1i many years ago and will probably be considering upgrading to a Canon Mirrorless at some time. Thanks for sharing.

The problem with activating "Silent Shutter on" on R5M2, is that on R5M2 it exposes your shutter that now does not close when you change lenses. It stays open, even if you turn off your camera. This is in Canon R5M2 advanced manual so it is not a bug but how Canon decided to operate R5M2. So if you like to have your shutter closed when you change lenses, you should not use this function. Instead, I would suggest to go to menu and do "Beeping sounds off". That way, the camera operates silently, but your shutter still protects your sensor at the shut off when you change lenses.

Good timing, Bob! Mine arrives tomorrow (from B&H). Really appreciate your detailed information. So much to do now this coming weekend!

Thanks for explaining the "pad locked" focus points, I now know what they are for and when to use them 😃

With the Canon R5 II and Canon EL-5, I’m consistently getting underexposed images of couples/speakers at events. Previously with my R5 and Godox V1, I didn’t have any issues. It feels like the metering or TTL is off with the new R5 II and EL-5. Any suggestions?

Thank you Bob for a great video. I'm looking forward to the video you mentioned using third party flashes. Currently I'm in the Profoto ecosystem.

Good stuff, thanks. Can you offer any advice on the lens IS switch settings on the 100-500mm lens for bird photography? I just purchased an R5 Mark II, (arriving in a couple of days!) and the 100-500mm lens, and I am confused as to which IS setting to use. Most birds I shoot are still or slowly moving, with occasional birds in flight when I get lucky, and I know I will not be able to switch modes on the lens. I am not concerned about whether the IS is active when I am just looking through the camera as long as it stabilizes correctly when I take the picture. Having it stabilize when I press the shutter half-way as I am used to on my current camera (an OM1) would be a plus. Thank you.

I would like to be able to see where my focus point was on my shots but Lightroom doesn't do that. Is there a program that does??

Thank you for this detailed account!

I've put the older BG 10 on the R5 mk 2 and it seems to work although all the info suggests it shouldn't, can it damage the camera

great job Bob best big boy video out there , it makes you feel like you were there

When are you going to do a complete review of thr R5 Mark ii?

When are you going to do a thorough review of the R5 Mark ii camera?

Heh, I love your "organic" style. You communicate a lot better than all the other folk who are wannabe actors...

The pre-capture on the R5 MKII is amazing!!

Apologies, another question, this one about connecting the camera to a computer. I know you can use Canon's Utility software, or take out a card and put it in a reader, but can I connect directly to my computer via a USB-C cable? I am planning on migrating from an OM1, which allows you to plug the camera into the computer, turn it on and select a special "Storage mode" from the menu, and the camera's memory cards appear as external storage drives on the computer, allowing you to directly access them with your editing software. Can the. R% Mark II do this? Thank you,

Thanks Bob, I'd recommend powering off the camera before ripping the battery tray out so it can shut down properly?

Super recording and material! Thank you for the review of the R5 Mark II. The R5 Mark II is already on its way to me. I am mainly afraid of the ventilation holes when taking pictures in the forest, meadows, on the beach, etc. (small bugs, midges, sand, dust and other dirt). What can you say about it? What is your opinion? Nikon Z9/Z8 and Sony A1/A7xxx / A9xxx do not have such holes. These holes seem to be isolated from the electronics. However, I am wondering about cleaning it, e.g. removing dust particles, small flies, dirt, etc.

wow. Professional of professionals Will the “slave” camera AF before the shooting?

Ok, this is clearly more than a BG-R20 video. All of the platypod stuff deserves its own video as I am a user of that and would never look at a video with only BG-R20 in the title for information ion the platypod. Anyway, I do have a question for you with regards to the R5M2. I noticed that to do what you did you enabled to the silent shutter on your mark 2. In doing so, you exposed the sensor to the air which will force you to clean your shutter to get the dusk off. I understand why you want your camera silent for the application that you have, so here is the question: Could you have achieved the same thing using only the electronic shutter? With that, and using the setting to close the sensor certain when you power down the camera, the shutter makes no sound until you power down the camera. So it is essentially the same (I think and from everything I've seen in using both) as the silent shutter except that with the electronic shutter your sensor would not be exposed as long as you 1) turn the camera off before putting the lens on and 2) you don't turn the camera off in the field, which you won't because you will be remote shooting. The main reason I'm asking is because I see very little difference between the silent shutter and the electronic shutter (in fact, the silent shutter uses the electronic shutter) except for the sound of the shutter closing when you power down the camera (this happens if you set your camera to close the shutter upon power down AND you use the electronic shutter). The silent shutter just keeps the curtain up always to avoid making any sound. I like to keep my sensor free of dust 100% of the time. I have no problem cleaning a sensor but I do find that sometimes getting a perfectly clean sensor is not so easy because dust just gets moved around on the sensor during cleaning. If you never get dust on it, then you don't need to remove it. Hence, working in a way that keeps that curtain down when you power down the camera is a desirable thing to do (and it's not hard). Finally, that platyball does not appear to be a thing I want. You spent quite a bit of time trying to get it adjusted and tight in this video (and your camera nearly fell over). Thanks for the review of that! Take care and happy shooting!

Excellent video. Can you clear up a question for me regarding "Preview AF". I thought I heard you say that "I want an AF preview in the viewfinder. I want it to shoot when I pick up on something that's moving, and capture the moments" [sic], but in the end you left the "Preview AF" disabled? This sounds backwards to me, but then again I am coming from an OM1 and have never handled a Canon before (making the change because I am not happy with the optical quality of the 100-400 lens, and the upgrade to the pro lens costs more than the R5 II plus the 100-500 L lens, which I know from observing the results of several of my birding buddies is an excellent lens). Thank you,

Great video Bob, thanks!!

many thanks for a detailed video! Appreciate the effort taken and the details provided. Thank you

Thanks for all the great info. I appreciate all the work you put into this.

Bob, that's top video-🤓

AdobeRGB in RAW? :))

Bob! Can I sync EL 5 with Older 600ii? For off camera flash. I cannot get them to sync even on the same channel and master (el-5) to slave multiple 600 ii? Great seeing these videos as always! XO

The R1 is such a letdown...SMDH.

Wow, I had missed this review but so glad to see and I agree completely. The lens is amazing good! Thanks for the positive review Bob.

thank you

I ordered a R1 and an R5II. I have always shot on 1 Series bodies and none of them have come close to the feel and focus speed. I just wish the mp was higher. The R5 misses a lot and is a great camera but I never missed shots and focus with the 1 series. I print very large images up to 12ft and looked back and one of my best selling images which was photographed on the 1D Mark 4 which was only 16mp. Looks great at 58x144.

Would older speed lights work on the new multi function hot shoe?

Is “Deep Learning “ a Cannon term for Ai?

I apprenticed with and assisted Monte Zucker back in 1972-74. He was the wedding photographer who popularized the use of two speedlights to solve the problem of capturing the full range of tone and detail in flash photos of bride in huge white dress and groom in black suit on color prints. For context, that had never been a problem with B&W wedding photos because negative development can be altered to fit any range scene to the range of B&W print paper. But color paper has three different emulsion layers that prevent changing development time to match scene range because the color balance would shift so it is necessary the change the scene range in the foreground with TWO flashes: one centered on the camera axis called FILL to raise the entire foreground until detail is recorded in the black suits, and a second 2x the strength of the fill at a 45° angle to the nose for ideal 3D modeling to correctly expose the highlights. What made Monte such a popular teacher at PPofA conventions and it’s Winona school was the clever system he devised based on the inverse-square law for controlling ratio and exposure buy using shooting and off camera light distances similar to f/stop numbers when using single power flashes. If shooting from 11 feet putting the identical off camera flash 8 feet from the subject will make it 2x brighter, the ratio needed to fit a scene containing groom in black suit and bride in white dress to the range of a color print AND A DIGITAL SENSOR! When we move in to 8ft for a tighter crop the off camera flash moved to 5.6 feet to keep it 2x brighter than the FILL over the camera on a bracket and closing the aperture one f/stop kept the exposure the same. Systematically shooting from distances of 16, 11, 8 and 5.6 feet with off camera light moving from 11, 8, 5.6 and 4 feet with one stop changes in aperture made it possible to easily capture optimally exposed images with realistic 3D modeling. What made it practical to do single handed was another clever innovation by Monte. Unable to find a suitable rolling light stand he purchased and modified a medical IV pole which had a compact cast iron base with casters to hold the off camera flash which was easily rolled around with one hand while shooting. I didn’t stay a ‘professional’ photographer because I got offered a job working in the National Geographic photo labs and then wound up teaching photo-lithography (halftones and color separations) on the side and didn’t need the money or the hassle of running a business, but I continued to use the dual flash technique and adapted it to Canon’s ETTL-II flash system when buying a Canon 20D and pair of 580ex flashes with the accessory cord so I could mount the master flash on the Stroboframe ‘camera flip’ bracket I and used with my film cameras (35mm and 645) and Kodak DC290 and Minolta D7Hi digitals. Since Canon designated the Master flash connected to the hot shoe directly or via the accessory cord as Group A and I was using it as centered “neutral” Fill the lighting ratios were backwards from convention. With testing using white and black 3D objects I found that an A:B ratio of 1:3 produced a full range of detail. 1:2 resulted in slightly overexposed shadow values in the foreground when FLASH COMPENSATION based the OVEREXPOSURE WARNING the playback on the draped white wash rag I was using as one of my test objects which I used most of the time, adjusting the shadows darker in post processing with LEVELS or selective ‘burning in’ as I had for years making prints on an enlarger. Because the ETTL-II system was new I started explaining it to others on the lighting forum of DPR and Fred Miranda and the most difficult thing was convincing photographers who had previously only used one flash that keeping one over the camera lens on a bracket was the best strategy for fill because there it casts its shadows back and down almost entirely out of view of the camera reaching every nook and cranny the camera sees. Artificial fill sources placed off axis will ALWAYS create UNFILLED SHADOWS which become very dark and distracting dark voids in the lighting pattern. Centering Fill on a bracket over the camera also means you don’t even need to think about it or decide how to position it, instead focusing on how the KEY light and 3rd flash used a RIM light are creating the 3D. The Canon ETTL system made using 2 and 3 flashes much simpler. All one needs to do with Fill over the camera on a bracket is keep the A:B ratio set to 1:2 and then adjust exposure with FEC based on the highlight overexposure warning in the playback. When shooting portraits of multiple subjects with the same lighting set-up, which I did as a volunteer at my church, it is much easier to use the flashes in M mode because differences in the reflectance of clothing and skin tones will require different FEC adjustments for each if using ETTL. What I do for portrait sessions is drape white and black hand towels over my gray card WB reference on a stand where the subjects will stand then adjust Group A Fill over the lens in M mode until detail is seen in the folds of the black one and the off axis Group B Key light until the white towel is 1/3 stop below triggering the highlight warning, a process that takes about a minute and few test shots. Then any subject in any clothing stand on the same spot will be optimally exposed with smooth front-to-back shadow gradients created by the centered fill and realistic 3D modeling created by keeping the KEY light 45° from the nose and high enough to simulate mid-day modeling but not so high the brow shades the Key light from the eyes - the strategy I learned to take flattering dual flash “candid” portraits ‘on the fly’ from Monte 50 years ago . Equipment has changed but the lighting strategies which flatter subjects haven’t and his were based on what is seen in Old Master paintings 😊

Amendment to my thoughts on the perfect flash ecosystem! The latest firmware update to the Profoto A10 - A1 flashes now provides two-way communication to know the flash power on the remote flashes and allows the transmitter flash to see and control all flash groups from A - F.

Hello Bob. I just purchased the EL-1 and watched this tutorial. Excellent!!! Much of it was WAAAAY beyond my understanding, but very interesting and heightened my awareness to many things I've never even considered. I found your perspective on higher ISO tradeoffs particularly interesting as well as the "strobing" technique which I have never understood ... DUH??

Your audio on this video is terrible. I'm glad you did this video. Now I know not to buy this system.

Thank you

😂 "Promo sm"

I'm hoping someone sees this. This type of photography is way out of my comfort zone. I practiced today and it's so hard to see anything with that filter on. Do you keep the same setting for all the shots, or keep changing as the time goes on? I can't see the exposure meter when in the bracketing mode. I really want to get something good on Monday, weather permitting, but I'm confused as far as auto focus or manual focus, and whether to change exposure settings.

A gimbal makes it supremely easy to track the sun manually if you are not using a star tracker. Properly balanced, you don't even have to lock it. This worked beautifully for me in October 2023 for the annular.

Yes to the bracketing progression. Under, proper , over. Makes it much easier! For totality, my old Eos 7D can only shoot 3 bracketed images so I set and registered mode dial C1, C2, and C3 to get 9 exposure values. And already practiced it to make sure I know how to do it and it works.

Thanks for the great information. Your tips on capturing the eclipse is very helpful. One question would you use 600 f4 eclipse with 2x or 1.4x for this eclipse?

Wish my wife will be more supportive in my work. :(

LOL! What kind of light are you using, Canon? It’s not the same as what you’re selling us, is it?

I remain puzzled why Canon cannot solve the sync problem? Is there any hope that the announced Ver3 trigger will address the issue?

Hi Bob, it's been quite a while since your Need Light Speedlite workshops many year ago. Sadly I have since moved away from using Canon Speedlites due to dropped communications that started around 2022. Near the end of 2023, sometimes the signals would drop as often as once per minute. I've since moved on to Profoto monolights, but from 2014 through 2022, it was indeed enjoyable to use Canon Speedlites. I had ended up with six of the 600-EX RTs over those years.

The WiFi reliability issues with the Canon RT flash system are quite prevalent. Given the many reports on Canon's own user website and based on personal experience it's hard to imagine a venue where the system will stay reliably connected. This needs to be addressed.

Bob, nice video. Curious if the EL-1 actually shows if remote flashes are connected. I've done a bunch of testing with 600EX RTs and EL-5 and when the slaves go offline the Master still shows a Green light, acting like it is still connected. Also, do the remotes every reconnect on their own, or do that have be be powered off and on to get them to reconnect?