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- Dave Williams
I decided 2022 would be my year of travel to make up for the lockdown years that preceded and consequently in my pursuit of wildlife photography I have already visited Cuba,Cyprus, Spain and Bulgaria so far this year. The latter two were largely 'pro hide(blind)' set ups with extended periods of sitting around waiting for the action. As the weather warmed up so did the camera...my R5.
To me, the biggest weakness of the R5 is the wake up time. From hitting the shutter button to being in a position that the camera can autofocus takes an age and there is every chance you will miss the action in the process. Consequently keeping the camera awake is important.
Much has been said about battery life but I have found it not to be of any real concern. I maximise the life of each one I own by having the LCD closed and using the EVF for virtually everything in addition to turning off some power consuming features within the menu systems. I have rarely needed a third battery during a days shooting using electronic shutter which produces far too many images on occasion but continues at 20fps right to the end of the battery before it is dead.
To reduce weight when I travel I only took my heavy Gitzo tripod and Wimberley head on one trip, and likewise my EF 500f4 and didn't use it much when I did. The RF 100-500 is my go to lens now and you don't need a tripod for that by and large. The only exception is when stealth is important and any movement of suddenly sticking a lens through an opening might cause your subject to take flight! The longer length of the 500mm f4 was also needed to protrude slightly beyond the opening of the floating 'Hydro Hide' I used in Spain and the Wimberley head alone was used to mount the camera lens combination.
So, back to the main issue. The camera overheating which it did with alarming regularity especially as the weather got warmer during my last two trips. It tended to happen later on during the day, during enclosed hide photography and hand holding the R5/lens combination. It's a frustration having to stop shooting, remove the battery and wait for a while in the hope the camera cools down.
I'm wondering if shutting the LCD screen exacerbates the heating as well as holding the camera for much of the time. That combined with keeping the R5 almost constantly awake and taking shots at 20fps doesn't help although I have a feeling that using CRAW rather than full RAW reduces the heat from image transfer to the camera card.
My next trip is to a likely chilly Scottish island for a week, all outdoors and no hides. it will be interesting to see how I get on.
After that I am off to Africa for a few weeks and that is likely to me much warmer despite it being winter there.
I really don't want to miss the shots but have this dilemma about overheating. I really need a back up camera which I have always had in the past. I regret selling both my 1DX2 and 5D1V within a short space of time as I decided I can't happily switch from one format to another.
I was hoping the R7 might be the answer but looking at the layout of the camera it's not as intuitive once you are used to the three dials on the R5 which control the three main features I use in M mode.
The R3 is both expensive and lacking in MP's. The R6 I worry about resolution too. Another R5 just seems a ridiculous expense to be a stand by camera when the first one gets hot!
Decisions, decisions!
In the meantime any suggestions to avoid heating are ironically warmly welcomed!!
To me, the biggest weakness of the R5 is the wake up time. From hitting the shutter button to being in a position that the camera can autofocus takes an age and there is every chance you will miss the action in the process. Consequently keeping the camera awake is important.
Much has been said about battery life but I have found it not to be of any real concern. I maximise the life of each one I own by having the LCD closed and using the EVF for virtually everything in addition to turning off some power consuming features within the menu systems. I have rarely needed a third battery during a days shooting using electronic shutter which produces far too many images on occasion but continues at 20fps right to the end of the battery before it is dead.
To reduce weight when I travel I only took my heavy Gitzo tripod and Wimberley head on one trip, and likewise my EF 500f4 and didn't use it much when I did. The RF 100-500 is my go to lens now and you don't need a tripod for that by and large. The only exception is when stealth is important and any movement of suddenly sticking a lens through an opening might cause your subject to take flight! The longer length of the 500mm f4 was also needed to protrude slightly beyond the opening of the floating 'Hydro Hide' I used in Spain and the Wimberley head alone was used to mount the camera lens combination.
So, back to the main issue. The camera overheating which it did with alarming regularity especially as the weather got warmer during my last two trips. It tended to happen later on during the day, during enclosed hide photography and hand holding the R5/lens combination. It's a frustration having to stop shooting, remove the battery and wait for a while in the hope the camera cools down.
I'm wondering if shutting the LCD screen exacerbates the heating as well as holding the camera for much of the time. That combined with keeping the R5 almost constantly awake and taking shots at 20fps doesn't help although I have a feeling that using CRAW rather than full RAW reduces the heat from image transfer to the camera card.
My next trip is to a likely chilly Scottish island for a week, all outdoors and no hides. it will be interesting to see how I get on.
After that I am off to Africa for a few weeks and that is likely to me much warmer despite it being winter there.
I really don't want to miss the shots but have this dilemma about overheating. I really need a back up camera which I have always had in the past. I regret selling both my 1DX2 and 5D1V within a short space of time as I decided I can't happily switch from one format to another.
I was hoping the R7 might be the answer but looking at the layout of the camera it's not as intuitive once you are used to the three dials on the R5 which control the three main features I use in M mode.
The R3 is both expensive and lacking in MP's. The R6 I worry about resolution too. Another R5 just seems a ridiculous expense to be a stand by camera when the first one gets hot!
Decisions, decisions!
In the meantime any suggestions to avoid heating are ironically warmly welcomed!!
