Everyones Different

[Photofarmer]

A chap I know mid 60s loves his canon r5 more camera than he will ever need he reckons complicated but not to complicated.

Anyway he took a R5II for a spin was non plussed.

His comment what do I get in 5 years time when my r5 dies camera will be to fancy and techy for me by then someone suggested well buy another r5 and store it for later use he went away thought about and he did.

Canon will be out of new r5s eventually still available here in oz at good price

 

[esheato]

I’ve considered the same with the R6II. I can’t miss eyes and jets are stupid easy. The only thing it’s missing is more megapickles. I’ve played with the R5II, and while the EVF is significantly better, and the eye focus would be great, those aren’t things that I necessarily NEED.

 

[Dean Wilson]

Personally, I can't imagine me staying with my R and getting another R for safekeeping for future use.

So far, I haven't seen anything in the R5II that would convince me to "move-up" for my photography style.

 

[TwoWheeler]

I took a good long look at the R5ii when it came out...and didn't see anything compelling. In Mel Brooks "History of the World" there's a scene where the Roman generals bring Caesar their spoils of war, in tribute. He looks the stuff over, kind of shrugs and says "Nice......not thrilling, but nice..." That was my take on the R5ii.

My wife OTOH, did, ditched her Nikon gear and came over to the dark side.

 

[ShipleyNW]

At some point after the R5iii comes out I'll consider a used R5ii. That's the way I roll; used gear, one generation old.

 

[MikeZ]

Right now the R5 provides everything that I need, and the R5ii seems like a very short step forward. So, I wonder what an R5iii would look like? Aside from improvements to the current set of features (better focus tracking, speedier processor, better video features, etc.) what features would make you salivate and seriously consider upgrading. Perhaps a 60MP sensor or some features from the R3? Perhaps, though I'm not so sure about more pixels. I suppose that I'm just not so sure about additional features, though I may have little choice as the R5 ages-out and a new camera becomes a necessity.

 

[Photofarmer]

Any one had luck with eye control focus not needed by me but read its a finicky beast to setup and conquer

 

[ShipleyNW]

I'm on another forum where someone asked, "Did mirrorless cure your GAS?" For me, it kinda did. I cycled through dozens of EF lenses and tried a bunch of bodies, all Canon. A couple of years ago I sold it all and gathered a bunch more cash on top of that to put together a mirrorless kit anchored by a couple of R5 bodies. Since then I've looked at other gear, mainly lenses, but what I have now is pretty darned awesome and my basic kit hasn't changed. The R5ii launch came and went and I barely noticed. I'm not interested at all right now.

I think a lot of that is just because I learned what I need from my gear by trying everything EF. Turns out I don't stress my gear much at all. Almost everything I shoot falls squarely into an R5's enormous sweet spot. I rarely run out of room at the margins, and new gear is mostly marginal. Right now, if I can't pull off a shot, it's never the camera's fault. But I've been saying that since my first 80D.

I am kind of a build-quality snob. I want pro-level durability. That's why I use flagship bodies and 'L' lenses. It's gear I don't have to think about when I'm gathering images. Plus I buy used gear so I have to price in at least a little abuse from a previous owner. Pro gear is built for abuse.

I mentioned earlier that when the R5iii comes out, I'll consider an R5ii. Part of that consideration is learning what the R5ii does that my R5 doesn't. I bet there's something it does that I can talk myself into believing I need. Then I'll wait for a great deal on a used R5ii. I'm good at finding those when I'm in no hurry. An upgrade like that's net cost shouldn't be more than $500. At that price it's worth it just to get a younger machine.

 

[TwoWheeler]

So, I wonder what an R5iii would look like?

Highlight blinkies for stills? A completely user configurable UI that lets you hide unused menu items and assign any button to any function? (I'm looking at YOU "Rate button"). A macro stacking function that makes sense and isn't based on sacrificing a chicken and reading the entrails? Smartphone pairing that works all the time, not just during certain phases of the moon, while you're standing on one foot? Software that wasn't written by Martian Chimpanzees?

These are the kinds of things that would move me to a new camera. They're all "quality of life" improvements and they're not sexy, so they'll never come to fruition. Canon's software and UI department will continue to be one part time guy in a corner of the sub basement, so I'll keep my "old" R5 until it dies...or I do...

I think a lot of that is just because I learned what I need from my gear by trying everything EF.

For me, I learned my lesson by jumping in to the Fuji system, based on my initial impressions...and after actually living with it for a while, I realized it was a mistake. (Not to knock Fuji, but it turns out that it just wasn't for me, Plus, being newly returned to the hobby I didn't yet have a grasp on what I wanted to DO.). When looking for its replacement, I RENTED the candidates in question. A week isn't the same as a lengthy trial, but it helped narrow the field.

I've taken the same approach to lenses - rent first. It's saved me a bunch of money.

Turns out I don't stress my gear much at all. Almost everything I shoot falls squarely into an R5's enormous sweet spot.

Hell even my Fujifilm XT-30 was capable of far more than the operator!

Right now, if I can't pull off a shot, it's never the camera's fault.

Nooooo! It's always "the damned camera"!

I am kind of a build-quality snob. I want pro-level durability.

I have made my living with tools for 45+ years and I have no patience for cheap, poor quality tools. None. I also don't skimp when it comes to bicycles - I have some fairly high end stuff not because I'm worthy of it, but because I like and appreciate the good stuff.

Having said that, I am very happy with my non-L RF100-400 and my non-L 85 macro. If I ever get to the point where I think they're not good enough, then they go, but for now, they'll do.

Plus I buy used gear so I have to price in at least a little abuse from a previous owner.

Every time I consider buying something, I look at used...and the prices are so close to new, I disregard used.

 

[ShipleyNW]

Every time I consider buying something, I look at used...and the prices are so close to new, I disregard used.

That's why I wait until it's one generation old. I paid $2700 for my first used R5, while it was still in production, and felt stupid for paying that much, but hey, mirrorless. Once the R5ii was launched, I got a second R5 for $2000. Both live happily in my bag and they're interchangeable.

 

[TwoWheeler]

That's why I wait until it's one generation old.

You're more patient than I am.

Used
Refurbished
New

A hundred bucks? I'll take new.

Used
Refurbished
New

Again - a hundred bucks...?

 

[ShipleyNW]

A hundred bucks? I'll take new.

I paid $700 for my RF 24-105/4

Again - a hundred bucks...?

Get back to me on the R5ii when the R5iii comes out. We can check used prices again then. I will. I'll probably buy the first one I find for <$2500.

You're more patient than I am.

Apparently.

 

[Archibald]

Gear keeps getting better. No need to store current stuff to use in the future. In the future it will be better. (Usually.)

I know that we love our stuff, we get used to it, we don't want change.

Everybody wants vinyl records now, but they sound like crap after a couple of plays. Tube amps are a maintenance nightmare. Film is a chemistry miracle but film photography is tricky to get right. Quality enlargers are space hogs and very expensive. Reliving the past with these things can be fun and educational, but they are nowhere near as good as modern stuff.

The R5 II has better AF, but IMO its advantages are mostly for wildlife/sports photography. I use my R7 for that. So no R5 II for me. It's better, but the advantages are insignificant for my uses.

 

[TwoWheeler]

Gear keeps getting better. No need to store current stuff to use in the future. In the future it will be better. (Usually.)

Unless we’re talking appliances… I pine for my 20 year old dishwasher, TYVM.

Reliving the past with these things can be fun and educational, but they are nowhere near as good as modern stuff.

in 1979, I bought my first new bicycle - a Lotus Unique. It was my dream bike and I rode and loved it for years.

In the mid 2000’s we bought a new tandem and I came to really, really like integrated, indexed shifting and picked up a new road bike with the newer shifting, newer geometry and brakes. Every so often, I’d drag the Lotus out and take it for a ride…and go “…ewww…”, hang it back up and go back to the new bike. Eventually, the Lotus got sold. It was great in it’s day, but that was then this is now.

I just shake my head when I hear people raving about vintage bikes. Nostalgia is for people with bad memories.

Thus it is with camera gear. Had I not already had the R5, I probably would have gone with the II. If they come out with colossal improvements that are relevant to what I do, I’ll pick up the R5XII. I’m surely not going to hoard R5s against some imagined camerapocalypse.