The Canon EOS R8 is an excellent performer that delivers good exposures (guides by the accurate preview in the viewfinder sea screen), colour and detail. A 24MP sensor is a popular choice that balances image size and noise control very well.
Canon R8 Image Quality
The Canon R8 has a maximum native sensitivity setting of ISO 102,400, and the results actually look good for such a high setting. However, they won’t pass muster aesthetically in many situations. They are fine for recording events, or evidence for instance, but it’s unlikely that you’ll want to make large prints of them. Generally, I’d be inclined to keep to ISO 25,600 or lower whenever possible.
At ISO 51,200 the R8 produces raw files that look quite grainy at 33% (around 8×12 inches) on a computer while ISO 25,600 raw files have a similar gritty look when viewed at 100% on screen, and there’s a hint of smoothing in the Jpegs. Dropping the ISO 25,600 files to around 50% magnification, which is the point at which the files fill a 27-inch monitor, improves their appearance and they look very good. However, images captured at ISO 12,800 are sharper and have more fine detail.
Colours from the R8 are typically Canon, by which I mean pleasantly but not excessively vibrant in the default settings. That means that Jpegs are generally share-ready while raw files give scope for taking and personalisation. There’s also good dynamic range, which means that shadows don’t turn completely black nor the highlight burn out too quickly. Should the need arise, you can also expect to be able to brighten low ISO images by 3EV or a little more if necessary.
Autofocus
Even in gloomy conditions, the Canon R8 is quick to focus, and generally the subject detection system, which can track Humans(Eye, Face, Head, Body), Animals (Dogs, Cats, Birds and Horses) or Vehicles (Racing cars or Motor bikes, Aircraft and Trains) works well. However, the subject detection isn’t infallible. There were several occasions when it picked a non-existent subject, for instance, and when photographing my dog it occasionally decided his nostril was an eye when both his eyes were in the frame. Similarly, when photographing ducks it could detect their eyes, but sometimes would latch onto their rear feathers instead.
Canon’s subject detection system can be combined with its AF Area modes and in most situations, if the selected subject type isn’t in the frame, the camera defaults to focusing on the subject under the AF area. If the camera doesn’t detect a subject in Whole Area AF mode, it can usually be persuaded to by using one of the smaller AF area options. When a smaller area such as Expand AF Area is selected, the R8 usually picks up subjects under or closely surrounding that area. However, it can still throw in a curve ball now and then, either not spotting the subject or jumping onto something else. In these situations, the solution is to turn off the subject detection and rely on the selected AF Area instead.
The R8’s ‘standard’ autofocus system works extremely well, getting subjects sharp quickly and keeping them in focus if they move and it’s set to in Servo mode.
Canon R8 Video performance
The video specifications of the Canon EOS R8 are remarkably extensive for an entry-level full-frame Canon camera. The footage it captures is also excellent with the 4K video downsampled from 6K particularly impressing.
I shot with the Canon RF 24-50mm f4.5-6.3 IS STM, which is widely sold with the R8. While this is a stabilised lens, there’s still some shake visible in much of my handheld footage. Activating the in-camera Digital IS, however, deals with it very well albeit at the expense of a significant crop.
The focus system performs as well in video mode as it does when shooting stills, and the exposure and colours are consistent in the two modes.
As usual, the onboard mic does a decent of recording ambient sound provided that there’s no wind, but the first hint of wind reminds you that you really should use an external mic with a wind muff.
Canon R8 Battery Life
On paper, the Canon R8’s battery life is disappointing at just 220 shots when using the viewfinder. Having shot with the earliest mirrorless cameras, I have developed a habit of turning a camera off between shots. Sometimes it drives me mad that I do it, but it’s a reflex. This put me in good stead with the R8 because after shooting 272 images (raw and Jpeg so 474 files), the battery life icon had only dropped by one bar. Another 86 images (172 files) later, and the status was down to half. Then just 30 more shots saw th battery indicator drop to zero and flash red. This gives a total life of 361, not huge but significantly higher than the CIPA rating.
CIPA’s rating often don’t reflect the real-world battery life, but I would still recommend buying at least one spare battery to go with the R8.