Canon EOS R1 :: Is this really a Flagship Camera?

Today Canon has finally announced its mirrorless flagship. This is the EOS R1. We have a new 24 megapixel, BSI stacked CMOS sensor. We also have the DIGIC X processor of the R3 as well as a dedicated accelerator for the processor that enables not only high speed shooting, but high speed analysis of any given scene for both metering and autofocus.

As good as the autofocus is in this camera, is it good enough to be called a “flagship” or is this an R3 Mark II? Let’s take a look and find out.

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Ted Forbes
The Art of Photography
2830 S. Hulen, Studio 133
Fort Worth, TX 76109
US of A

[vinnym]

If Jared Polin were a chef, he’d wear shirts that say: “I Use Butter”

[melvinjohnson]

What a letdown after such a big buildup!

[ColtonMatocha]

The size of this camera is humourous. Remember when camera brands tried to tell us that mirrorless cameras would be smaller and lighter?

[falxonPSN]

For all the people saying "No, Canon didn't rebadge the R1 as the R3 before its launch, after Sony launched the A1, " this pretty much proves that theory. This is basically an R3 Mark II. Or perhaps the R3 was the R1 and this is the R1 Mark II.

[sergeserenkov]

Now all they need is to add mirror in that camera and we’re golden

[soumyadipdey]

Ahh, very suitable camera for street photography or daily vlogging.

[ThroughJoesLens]

A lot of comments from people that have never shot extensively with a Canon 1 series camera. I’m a long time Canon shooter and, DSLR-wise, have owned and used the 1Dm3, 1Dm4, 1DX, and 1DXm2. None of those cameras were about megapixels. The users this camera is for will know if it is right for them or not. I quite shooting sports and no longer need the beast. The R5m2 will be my next purchase. Thanks for a good, non biased preview of the camera. 👍🏻

[skyscraperfan]

In Germany a brand new R3 costs 4999 Euros, while the R1 costs 7499 Euros. That is 2500 Euros more. Quite a crazy price difference for such small spec differences.

AI upscaling could be a problem for editorial use.

[Old-School-Liberal]

LUMIX still haven’t released their flagship cameras yet!

[TA-dxqn]

It could just as well have been called the R3 Mark II. For its target audience, this camera will deliver what it needs to deliver.

[michaelcliffordphotos]

I think it makes more sense to say that a camera is optimized for a certain type of photography, or for the needs of a certain type of photographer, rather than to call it a "flagship".

[TeddyCavachon]

I started shooting with Nikon F SLRs in 1968 and it and every top-of-the-line camera body / system has been designed to meet the needs of sports photographers with an emphasis on on maximum frame-per-second recording of action. For example the Nikon F was designed to with a removable back so it could be used with a motor drive and high capacity film magazines.

My career included working as professional photographer, lab tech at National Geographic and manager of color separation and offset printing spanning 1972 - 2010. I did analog color separations with litho film and contact screens, digital scanning of transparencies for magazine printing and the transition to using digital photos in the early 2000s. Back then the rule of thumb was 300 ppi to create 2x oversampling for 150 dot-per-inch offset printing and being able do 16.5” wide x 10.75 high two-page spread in a print magazine. 24MP is more than adequate for that.

The R1 isn’t a camera anyone other than a pro sports photographer really needs. All things considered I thought the R6mkII ideal for my non-professional needs, so much so I recently purchased a second body when Canon dropped the price to $1999.00 😊

[Chris-NZ]

It would be really good if a reviewer spoke of build quality, I always felt the “R1” tag came with a very tough body for working pro’s who need their gear to stand up to a beating. Why is nobody even mentioning this in passing ?

[tocatlian]

Hey Ted, thanks for another fantastic review! I really enjoyed your take on the new Canon R1. The term "flagship" is fascinating but feels a bit outdated, don't you think? A flagship camera would boast the best tech across the board for a manufacturer. However, with today's more specialized cameras, it's tricky to label any one model as the ultimate all-rounder. Perhaps we should call the R1 a "flagship sports camera"? It's certainly not the go-to for portraiture or landscape. The autofocus capabilities sound outstanding—hope other manufacturers are taking note! Thanks for sparking this thought—looking forward to more of your insightful reviews!

[mmatt]

That lens is an absolute monster! The Big Gulp of lenses 😂

[Drums]

Flagship is not an outdated term. Every industry uses it. If this was called the R3ii nobody would be having this conversation. People just had certain expectations that didn’t happen with this camera.

[Running-withscissors]

Ive been saving for years for the R1 with high expectations. I already own an R3, and don't feel the R1 is the "big deal" I expected. Guess I should redirect that money to a new car now.

[gunnarlade]

I'm a Nikon shooter and I was very interested in the new Canon R1 and the features she would bring. I'm not disappointed, but surprised. "Only" the AF should has made a big jump ahead. That's a big point, but not enough to define a "Flagship Camera". And I think, my Z9 is still state of the art...and it's 2, 5 years old.

[DaveGershon]

Nice review! I shoot lots of High School and College Sports in Northern California. The new AF sounds very impressive! I would like to see how well the R1 deals with noise in high ISO shots (25600) on dark football fields, or dark gyms for basketball/volleyball. 45MP (which Nikon has in their flagship camera) would be nice, but sacrificing too much noise would be an issue. I would be happy with 24MP on the R1, choosing better noise reduction than image MP size...

[aamsergie]

I think you chose the 85mm lens to make the R1 look scaled. If there was a smaller lens, it would look even more cartoonish.