Canon R3 Long-term Review for Filming Wildlife

[@pajaroaustral7000]

Hi Ryan, I have been watching your videos for some time and I always appreciate the quality of both content and image in each one. What made you move from Sony to Canon? I'm thinking about it mainly for the convenience of having a wider range of wildlife lenses to choose from. The only thing holding me back is Canon's lower quality at 4k 120fps. Would you say it's still good enough?

[@EGC444]

With the new fw update u can record 240fps in 1080p

[@dglatz01]

OK this was excellent. Well done. Using R3 for video B cam and hybrid shooting. Agree with your take on the R3. I have programmed C1 and C2 to switch “quickly” to Raw and 120 fps shooting, but yes I wish we could program 1 button to slow/fast shooting. Also agree re LCD screen - I also use a monitor most of the time and appreciate the waveform vs crappy histogram which, of course, disappears when you press the shutter. Thanks for sharing your insights and your footage.

[@RyanMenseWildlife]

Thanks, David! A waveform would be an excellent addition too but I came into it with zero expectation that would be here. I wish they would take more advantage of the fact they are building really good cameras that can do both photos and videos at such a high level. The software of hybrid cameras in a lot of cases feels stuck in the age where the video side was just an afterthought.

[@BenjaminSmail]

Very nice points you bring up. Think the IS and IbIs looks crazy good on the R3. Apart from with the wide lens wobble. Do you prefer the R3 or A1? I know they each have there ups and downs. But for your workflow and needs which one to you get pulled to more.

[@Jessehermansonphotography]

We can always count on you to give an honest review.

[@RyanMenseWildlife]

Thanks Jesse

[@experienceawaits]

I found this video to be very helpful. Not sure if someone already asked this or not, but with the ef 100-400, do you find 400 to be long enough or do you sometimes wish you had that extra 100mm reach in the RF 100-500? I'm asking because I am considering one of the two lenses. I have the VND adapter, but I also have front element VND that would fit the RF. Yes there is a price difference to consider as well. I'm curious to know if you find the 400mm length to be enough for the majority of filming, or if the increased length of the 500mm is worth the cost difference?

[@mirko.jankovic]

@2:45 you can do it (ad it to favorite/personal menu tab).

[@heymikeriley]

Love this video! Can you give some info as to why you use the camera on rails vs just using the tripod foot? I’ve been debating which option to go. The foot seems fine, but I wonder if I’m missing out on improvements?

[@rogerlee440]

Nice footage You don’t seem to be happy with the R3..??

[@HappyHubris]

Gorgeous Curlew footage!

[@BryanBenoitPhoto]

Maybe try the custom settings C1, C2, and C3 to set one of them for the 120fps settings. Not ideal but saves a few clicks when compared going into the menu. Great and to the point review

[@RyanMenseWildlife]

Thanks Bryan!

[@MySpace777]

Great review! Can you shoot stills while filming on video mode without switching the dial?

[@KuboriKikiamShow]

Does the EOS R3 enable touch-auto focus (on it's flip -out LCD screen) even if you have an external monitor connected to the unit during video recording? If my memory is correct, you could do this with the Canon R. Thanks!

[@leventebaumann6001]

Thank you for this video.

[@HarryCollinsPhotography]

Great video!

[@RyanMenseWildlife]

Means a lot coming from you! Thank you!

[@mbismbismb]

Dangg the Canon's colours 😍😍

[@ReyhanHamdi]

When shooting wildlife, how long do you usually shoot without stopping? Do you shoot short videos or do you shoot for a very long time and then choose?

[@RyanMenseWildlife]

That depends on what I'm going for. Overshooting can definitely become a problem if you don't constantly remind yourself you in fact don't need 20 minutes of the same-looking shot. Instead of spending that 20 minutes filming the same thing, it would be better to film it for a little bit, then change angles or focal lengths and film it more if you really need to. That way you have options in the edit and are also building a sequence of shots. With the R3 that doesn't have a pre-roll function, I'm forced to play it a little looser so that I don't miss something that I think is about to happen. One thing that helps figure out what you need in the field is to edit your own videos and learn what footage you are actually using there. That shapes the way you think while capturing it. There are plenty of times I'll think "ugh I should have done this instead while I was out there" and I remember these things later on.

[@ReyhanHamdi]

@@RyanMenseWildlife Thank you so much :)

[@garfieldirwin]

Very informative "to-the-point" review Ryan! Much appreciated. I'm still shooting the A1 but am always looking for something better for wildlife. I'm still torn, trying to decide whether to stay with a hybrid or make the jump to an FX6 for the cine experience, picture cache and built-in NDs. Hmmm...

[@RyanMenseWildlife]

Thanks for watching. Saw the a1 was just updated yesterday with 10 bit 422 8K which is kinda cool for certain things.

[@garfieldirwin]

@@RyanMenseWildlife Yeah, co-incidently I'm just loading the firmware now. Probably won't be able to edit 8k 10-bit 4:2:2 on my Intel mac though, but 8k 10 bit 4:2:0 works well enough. But the biggest thing I want is better AF. As you intimated, we're really in the early stages of video autofocus development -- can't happen fast enough for me. The A1 is behind the R3 in that regard, but I've learned to quickly switch from C-AF to manual and back again while recording in real time...a skill that will be long-lived when videoing wildlife I think.

[@TimSiggs]

Hi Ryan, I have a loan Z9 but am really intrigued by the R3 and would consider it as I mostly shoot Video. Do you think that the 24 MP sensor has any real limitations? Also, I doubt if one can tell 6K from 8k Oversampling!

[@imagesbyrina]

Nice and fair review! It is a stills camera that can do video after all. Not really as hybrid as they want it to be, but it handles surprisingly well and has a lot going for it, as you described… which is fine for me as I’m a forever video n00b! I’m interested in what you think of the R5C actually! Literally the *true hybrid*!!

[@RyanMenseWildlife]

Without having used the R5C, I feel as though the R3 would be more of a true hybrid than that camera. I have a hard time picturing someone doing "serious" photography with the R5C, and would be something more incidental when filming to get a few stills. They took out IBIS (which would keep the stills end of things on higher ground) and didn't even replace it with internal NDs? On the other hand, the R3 can obviously be full-on stills beast without caring about video. And since I've been using it a majority of the time for video, hopefully I've shown that it's totally serviceable as a video camera as well.

[@jaimejrking]

The R3 only can shot 10 Bit on Log profile? No standart?

[@ADof28]

Hi Ryan, thanks for another excellent video. I’m wondering will you be interested in making a video about tripod and head combo for wildlife filmmaking? I’ve been practicing panning and tilting for a while and still get get the real smooth shot. Not too sure whether it has to be post edited or I’m using the wrong technique or gear. Many thanks.

[@RyanMenseWildlife]

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll see what I can do.

[@framingthewild]

Great video, Ryan. I have delved into filming wildlife myself recently with my R3s and so far it has been fantastic, with some learning curve of course as I am primarily stills shooter. I would love for Canon to enable 1080p 240fps mode as well as make 6K available in 10bit H.265 codec instead of just RAW only. I have set C1 and C2 modes for super quick switching between 4K-D 30fps and 4K-D 120fps with pre-set shutter speeds for each.

[@RyanMenseWildlife]

Thanks for checking it out. 6K non-RAW would be a good idea too, I agree.

[@Woodyyes--]

But now the R3 can shoot 1080p 240 fps on the website it says yes… ???

[@framingthewild]

@@Woodyyes-- Yes that's correct! I have used it few times already and the quality actually looks pretty decent in comparison to the other cameras that offer 1080p 240fps. Once upscaled to 4K it looks great.

[@Makta972]

You need the next best thing : a Canon C70.

[@hawaiifreespeechnews]

I got a defective R3 that overheats too quickly, the canon repair center sent it back to me and told me there was nothing wrong with it. I’m so upset with the way they handled it, it overheats in seconds when using 4K 120 fps

[@RyanMenseWildlife]

Wonder if it’s a card issue? Mine really heats up recording, and maybe a defective card would heat up the area so much that it trips the temp sensor (if it uses one?) faster? Sorry to hear that though.

[@hawaiifreespeechnews]

@@RyanMenseWildlife I wish that were the case and now I have multiple cf express cards including and Angel card and the camera overheats the same no matter what continuously recording 4K 60 fps for 30 mins or using 4K 120 fps when the camera has already hot from recording causes it to black out and overheat in seconds. Such a shame for a camera that costs 6k

[@genxtechguy]

Great review. Question: Does the 120fps automatically record the slowed down footage? I’ve heard it will only slow it down to 30fps without an option for 24fps.

[@RyanMenseWildlife]

Yes, 120 is slowed down in-camera to 30. In my experience, taking the slowed down 30 fps and slowing that down 80% to 24 fps isn't a big deal.

[@rodrigodeantonibrito]

There’s no clog2 in the R3. Right?

[@randomdood414]

Amazing presentation..

[@johnhaynes9910]

Good review and as you say, most people don't review cameras like this from the video perspective. Whilst I think all your points are likely very accurate and fair, in some ways it seems like you have got the wrong body for your needs, perhaps a R5C would be a better fit. Nice video :)

[@justonbrazda3846]

@12:58 are you sure the a1 has eye af during video? I am pretty sure it does not. Only humans.

[@RyanMenseWildlife]

Oh ok. I know the a7 IV did it for animals and birds when I reviewed that so probably misremembered thinking the a1 was just animals and not birds.

[@justonbrazda3846]

@@RyanMenseWildlife yep a7iv does both. The A1 Actually got a firmware update today, they did not add this feature unfortunately. I really wish they would let you track with the push of a button instead of touching the screen on the a1.

[@JerrysCinematicvideosJerry]

Any plans on selling R3 body

[@RyanMenseWildlife]

Not in the near future

[@RogerZoul]

Don’t buy Anglebird. The casing will fall apart and Anglebird support will ignore you.

[@RyanMenseWildlife]

Haven’t had any issues

[@RogerZoul]

Nice video!

[@kapilesh14]

I really want Sony to release a9iii as a sony shooter, Canon R3 absolutely looks amazing.

[@RyanMenseWildlife]

Can't wait to see what Sony puts out next!

[@colintraveller]

The R3 Isn't a purpose built VIDEO CAMERA and Consider the fact it doesn't even have an ANAMORPHIC LENS . The main function of the R3 is to take PHOTOGRAPHS .. FFS