10 things you need to know about the Canon EOS R5

If you've been searching for one camera that can do it all, look no further: the Canon EOS R5 is a professional full-frame mirrorless camera with cutting-edge specs for both stills photography and video – making it ideal for anyone wanting to switch between the two disciplines quickly and with ease.

"The Canon EOS R5 can pretty much do it all," says Mike Burnhill, European Professional Imaging Product Specialist at Canon Europe. "It delivers high-speed shooting, high resolution images and 8K RAW video – specifications that would have been deemed impossible just a short time ago."

Here, we examine 10 of the Canon EOS R5's most important features, and look at its groundbreaking capabilities in more detail.

The Canon EOS R5 can shoot full-frame 8K 30p 12-bit RAW and full-frame 4K 120p (4:2:2 10-bit) video footage, internally. Additionally, a 4K HQ mode uses a high quality debayering algorithm for 8K oversampling, generating individual full 4K Red, Green and Blue channels from the 8K RGB Bayer pattern filter on the sensor. This effectively suppresses moiré and reduces noise, resulting in a superior quality 4K image compared to standard 4K cameras.

Not everyone needs to output in 8K, but everyone will benefit from the 8K functions of the Canon EOS R5, such as the ability to crop the footage during editing and still retain 4K resolution, or more detailed (oversampled) 4K HQ mode footage.

The Canon EOS R5, and its sister camera, the Canon EOS R6, are the first EOS cameras to feature an in-body image stabilisation (IS) system for shake-free images and films. The 5 axis image stabilization system is capable of 8-stops of stabilization with selected lenses. When the camera is teamed with an IS-equipped RF lens, more types of vibration can be corrected, for improved real world performance, which makes the camera a game-changer when it comes to shooting handheld and in low light. Movie digital IS gives extra stabilisation when recording movies.

The Canon EOS R is renowned for having the fastest AF of any full-frame mirrorless camera, able to focus in 0.5ms (0.05secs). The Canon EOS R5 retains the same AF speed, despite the dramatic increase in megapixels. So, not only is the Canon EOS R5 a high-resolution, high-frame-rate camera, it has the AF to match. The Canon EOS R5 also offers an increase in the area covered by the AF – up to 100% vertically and horizontally using the Auto AF area selection.

The Canon EOS R5 features deep learning AF tracking for people and animals, which works in all AF modes and can recognise all kinds of situations. As with the Canon EOS-1D X Mark III, the Canon EOS R5 has improved face detection, able to detect someone's face from a great angle on the side, and it's the first EOS camera to feature Animal tracking AF for cats, dogs and birds (including face and eye tracking).

Up until now, AF in video has never been very good – in operation or control – but Canon's Dual Pixel CMOS AF technology has changed that. "Those who have tried it, love it – either for making their life easier in full AF/tracking mode, or as an aim to manual focusing with the innovative Dual Pixel Focus Guide feature," says Mike.

The Canon EOS R's electronic viewfinder (EVF) provides detail of 3.69m dots at 60fps, but the Canon EOS R5 pushes this even further. "The EVF now has a resolution of 5.76m dots and a 120fps refresh rate, giving much more detail," explains Mike. "This makes it closer to the optical viewfinder on an SLR camera."

Canon has made a point of listening to its customers and incorporating their feedback into the new camera's design. "You can now have it so the eye sensor on the Canon EOS R5 is deactivated when the LCD screen is folded out. This is something users have fed back to us, and it makes sense – if you flip out the LCD screen, you're probably not using the viewfinder."

The Canon EOS R5 features a new function for Dual Pixel RAW images: a Portrait relighting feature.

"Dual Pixel RAW images can be edited in-camera," explains Mike. "This feature uses the depth map information stored in the Dual Pixel RAW file to allow a secondary light source to be applied to an image [as the name suggests, it only works with faces].

"The brightness, direction, and degree of coverage can be altered – all on the back of the camera. It's like having a virtual reflector in your camera that enables you to lift or increase the shadows on your subject's face, all after you've shot it."

The Canon EOS R5 builds on the heritage of the Canon EOS R, while adding features that users have requested. The multi controller (joystick) for selecting AF points has been reintroduced, but with a speed control to set its responsiveness.

Canon listened to a lot of feedback about the lack of dual card slots on the Canon EOS R, but dual card slots were always part of the plan for this pro-level model, which features two different types of cards.

"The Canon EOS R5 will appeal to a wide range of photographers and filmmakers, many travelling the globe, so it was important to go for maximum performance and flexibility," explains Mike. "We've included one next-generation performance CFexpress memory card slot, but these are not widely available outside specialist stores, so for the other we went for an SD card, the most popular memory card on the planet, which means you should be able to get a compatible memory card pretty much everywhere you go."

The Canon EOS R5 benefits from impressive connectivity when it comes to cross-device communication. In addition to traditional 2.4Ghz Wi-Fi support, the Canon EOS R5 is the first EOS camera to have 5Ghz Wi-Fi built in. The Wi-Fi supports FTP and FTPS and settings can be configured offline or using the EOS Utility software – with the ability to store up to 10 networks for easy access.

Network menus and transmission options are like those found on the Canon EOS-1D X Mark III, including the ability to voice tag images or send tagged/rated images. It's possible to connect to a compatible smart device via the Bluetooth Low Energy protocol, which provides a constant connection while using minimal battery power.

Stuck for somewhere to store your files? The new image.canon service provides unlimited cloud storage, including RAW files, for 30 days. And the Canon EOS R5 is the first camera to allow automatic cloud uploads when connected to the internet – the images are then synced to your computer so they're immediately available when you return from a shoot.