Canon EOS RP and Lenses – First Look

Canon announced today a new mirrorless full frame entry level camera below the EOS-R announced last year to be called EOS RP. This new camera is going to be the least expensive full-frame mirrorless to date but as we will see it does come with a number of significant drawbacks.

Canon really surprised a lot of people with the EOS RP. The camera itself and most of its specs were leaked some time ago but probably the most surprising thing is the price. For $1300 (body only) this is by far the least expensive mirrorless full frame on the market (at least a new or newly released model).

Of course, the price is just part of the picture (pun intended), you need to look at what this camera can do and see if it has what it takes in the very competitive 2019 camera market. On paper it uses the EOS 6D MKII 26MP sensor, has a super small body (more in line with an APS-C DSLR than a FF camera), a 3 inch articulated touch display and dials and buttons which are similar to what many Canon APS-C users might be accustomed to (including two dials but no top screen – unlike the EOS-R).

Like the EOS-R it has a single SD card but it uses a small battery (270 images official per charge although some reports say that you might get more in actual use). It can shoot 4K video at 24p but it has an APS-C crop and possibly the biggest drawback for video shooters – it doesn’t have dual pixel AF when shooting 4K so the AF in this mode is not going to be very good in some situations and for some reason, it doesn’t have 24p in 1080p) it also has no IBIS just like the EOS-R.

Even if you don’t care about video – you might want to know that the shooting speed of the EOS RP is slow – slow actually or around 5 FPS in single drive and only 4 FPS in Servo AF – so this is certainly not a camera for sports and maybe not even for shooting those kids running.

Above you can check out Dan Watson’s hands-on video with the EOS RP and below are some of the specs for the EOS RP – just keep in mind that these specs don’t tell you the full story:

  • Sensor: 26.2 Megapixel CMOS.
  • DIGIC 8 processor.
  • Dual Pixel CMOS AF technology  (limited to 1080p shooting).
  • 4,779 Manually Selectable AF Points
  • Single SD card slot
  • Built-in 0.39 inch, 2.36 million OLED EVF (with Touch-and-Drag AF).
  • LCD: 3.0-inch touch articulated screen.
  • video: 4K @24p/1080p@60p.
  • Battery Pack LP-E17 (up to 270 images per charge).
  • Extension Grip (in 3 different colors: black, red, blue).
  • Connectivity: WIFI & Bluetooth.
  • Price: $1300 body only ($2200 with the RF 24-105mm f/4 lens).

B&H look at the EOS RP

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EOS R vs. EOS RP by Canon

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Besides the EOS RP Canon also showcased several exciting lenses

  • RF 85mm F1.2 L USM – a fast portrait prime lens.
  • RF 85mm F1.2 L USM DS – this is a second 85mm f/1.2 but with Defocus Smoothing lens technology for smooth defocused bokeh (Fujifilm and some other manufacturers have similar modern lenses).
  • RF 24-70mm F2.8 L IS USM – one of the three main pro zoom lenses announced.
  • RF 15-35mm F2.8 L IS USM – The second (wider) pro zoon with a very similar external design.
  • RF 70-200mm F2.8 L IS USM – The most interesting design of the three zoom lenses, this one is very compact and is said to be the fastest in terms of AF.
  • RF 24-240mm F4-6.3 IS USM – a compact superzoom lens.

There are no prices or exact release dates for these lenses but they will all be available by the end of 2019 (some earlier of course).

Iddo Genuth
Iddo Genuth is the founder and chief editor of LensVid.com. He has been a technology reporter working for international publications since the late 1990's and covering photography since 2009. Iddo is also a co-founder of a production company specializing in commercial food and product visual content.

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