Canon Flagship EOS R1 Announced

Along with the EOS R5 Mark II, Canon has also officially unveiled its flagship EOS R1 which they teased back in May. The EOS R1 features two processors, the ability to internally record 6K RAW up to 60p, a host of new AF modes and upgrades, and it can simultaneously record video and stills.

A lot of the core technologies that are found in the EOS R1 can also be found in the EOS R5 Mark II. The R1 won’t start shipping until November.

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It has taken a long time for Canon to release a flagship mirrorless hybrid, and for almost 3 years the EOS R3 has had to fill that roll.

It has been 35 years since the introduction of the original EOS-1, and the EOS R1 follows the legacy of cameras that have proved to be good options for professionals worldwide, thanks to their autofocus, speed, reliability and durability.

Canon has arguably been a bit quiet over the last couple of years, however, that is because the new technology that is featured in the R1 and R5 Mark II wasn’t available until now.

According to Canon, the R1 is suitable for the following applications:

• Sports
• Photojournalists
• News Gathering
• Government & Industry

What core technologies does it share with the EOS R5 Mark II?

Canon developed the EOS R1 and the EOS R5 Mark II at the same time and that is why they share a lot of common core technologies. Below you can see what they share:

• Back Illuminated Stacked Sensors
• DIGIC Accelerator
• Next Generation AF
• Eye Control AF
• In-Body Image Stabilization
• Pre-Capture (Stills & Video)
• Cinema EOS Compatability
• Dual Recording (Stills & Video)

New Sensor

The EOS R1 utilizes a full-frame 24.2MP Back Illuminated Stacked CMOS sensor that was designed and manufactured by Canon. This looks to be very similar to the one used in the R3.

Canon is claiming that this new sensor has ‘Incredible image quality and dynamic range’, and that it has a high-speed sensor readout to help reduce rolling shutter and improve autofocus performance. Canon told me that the rolling shutter performance has been significantly improved from cameras like the EOS R5 and EOS R6 Mark II.

One of the reasons a lot of companies are now utilizing back-illuminated stacked CMOS sensors is that they allow for better AF performance. Canon also uses a back-illuminated stacked sensor in the R3, R5 Mark II, and the new C400.

The Back Illuminated Stacked sensor in the EOS R1 allows light to be captured more efficiently with the added benefit of achieving a much wider AF coverage area. It also allows Canon to increase the readout speed.

The new sensor in the EOS R1 features circuitry on its rear, instead of its front, so it can gather more light, which reduces noise. Two layers of circuitry are ‘stacked’ together, transforming the speed at which the sensor can send image data to its DIGIC processors.

Canon claims that the EOS R1 has 16 stops of dynamic range. This claimed figure is 1 stop more than the C500 Mark II and on par with the R5 Mark II, C400, and the C300 Mark III which utilizes a DGO sensor.

The sensor produces a 6K Bayer image and then it can also be oversampled to produce a 4K DCI or UHD image.

The camera uses the DIGIC X processor which is found in the 1DX Mark III, and an additional DIGIC Accelerator. This is the first time, at least to my knowledge, that Canon has utilized dual processors in a mirrorless hybrid.

The DIGIC Accelerator helps improve capture performance by giving the EOS R1 additional processing grunt. It allows large volumes of data to be captured and analyzed quickly. The benefit this provides is that it enables high-speed continuous shooting, faster AF processing, and reduced rolling shutter.

The DIGIC Accelerator provides what Canon is calling Accelerated Capture & Deep Learning. Now, these are just marketing terms, so don’t read too much into it. The most important thing to take away is what they actually enable.

Accelerated Capture, enables faster continuous shooting and read-out speeds as I previously mentioned, along with the ability to simultaneously capture both video and stills, and faster communication performance.

Deep Learning enables improved image quality and improved AF accuracy in difficult situations.

When Accelerated Capture and Deep Learning are combined they allow for AF with high-speed analysis, improved tracking accuracy, and the ability to use Action Priority and Register People Priority which I will talk about further down in the article.

The ISO range for shooting video is 100-32,000 (expandable to 204,800), and for stills, it is 100-51200 (expandable from 50-409,600).

Dynamic range & Base ISO

Canon doesn’t officially list dynamic range or base ISO when shooting video for any of its mirrorless cameras. From sources within Canon that I have spoken to, the best results will be obtained at 400 ISO, and the dynamic range of the R1 is claimed to be 16 stops, which is a lot more than the claimed 12 stops of the original R5.

In theory, the should have a similar dynamic range to cameras like the Canon C300 Mark III, Canon C400, and C500 Mark II.

Video Capabilities

The R1 arguably isn’t a gigantic leap over the R3 when it comes to video recording capabilities, but there are some improvements.

Canon also told me that the R5 Mark II and the R1 are the closest mirrorless hybrids to the Cinema EOS range when it comes to matching and video functionality.

The EOS R1 can record 6K RAW (up to 59.94fps), oversampled 4K up to 59.94fps (this oversampling is done from 6K), and pixel binned 4K up to 119.88fps.

The 6K DCI RAW is done in 12-bit CRM or Canon RAW (Light). The RAW recordings can only be done to the CFexpress card. You can record 6K RAW while simultaneously recording to both cards in MP4, providing a fail-safe backup of vital footage

The 4K 120p is not oversampled, but you can shoot in full-frame without a crop.

These file sizes will be fairly large and you need to take this into account if you are planning on shooting 6K RAW. You also need to factor in computer processing power.

When shooting 6K DCI RAW you are looking at a data rate of up to 2600Mb/s. You can, however, record 6K 60 in Light RAW to reduce the data rate to 1800mbps.

• 6K 60p Standard RAW – 2600mbps
• 6K 60p Light RAW – 1800mbps
• 4K 120p XF-AVC S YCC422 10-bit Standard Intra – 1800mbps
• 4K 120p XF-AVC S YCC422 10-bit Light Intra – 1200mbps
• 4K 120p XF-AVC S YCC422 10-bit Standard LGOP – 500mbps
• 4K 60p XF-AVC S YCC422 10-bit High Quality Intra – 1200mbps
• 4K 60p XF-AVC S YCC422 10-bit Standard Intra – 900mbps
• 4K 60p XF-AVC S YCC422 10-bit Standard LGOP – 250mbps
• 2K 60p XF-AVC S YCC422 10-bit Standard Intra – 300mbps

How do the RAW data rates compare to other Canon cameras? Below you can see:

	EOS R5 Mark II	C500 Mark II	1DX Mark III
Data rate	2600Mb/s 8192 x 4320	2100Mb/s 5952 x 3140	2600Mb/s 5472 x 2886

	EOS R5 C	C400	EOS R3
Data rate	2570 Mb/s 8192 x 4320	2130 Mb/s 6000 x 3164	2600Mb/s 6000 x 3164

For those who don’t want to record RAW, you can also record in 4K, 2K DCI, and HD.

You can record in full-frame without any crop when shooting the following:

• 6K DCI RAW (6000 x 3164) in 23.98p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p, 50p, 59.94p
• 4K DCI SRAW (4096 x 2160) in 23.98p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p, 50p, 59.94p
• 6K DCI MP4 (6000 x 3164) in 23.98p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p
• 4K DCI MP4 (4096 x 2160) in 23.98p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p, 50p, 59.94p*
• 4K UHD MP4 (3840 x 2160) in 23.98p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p, 50p, 59.94p, 100p, 119.88p*
• 2K DCI MP4 (2048 x 1080) in 23.98p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p, 50p, 59.94p, 100p, 119.88p, 200p, 239.76p**
• HD MP4 (1920 x 1080) in 23.98p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p, 50p, 59.94p, 100p, 119.88p, 200p, 239.76p**

*6K oversampling only available when shooting in 23.98p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p

**4K oversampling only available when shooting in 23.98p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p

Maximum recording times

High Frame Rate: Off

• 100.00fps or more = Max 2 hours
• 59.94fps of less = Max 6 hours

High Frame Rate: On

• 239.76/200fps = Max 45 mins
• 119.88/100fps = Max 1hr 30mins

The above maximum continuous recording times don’t factor in any overheating.

Canon gives you greater freedom than what is possible when using the EOS R3 and R5 in color sampling, bit depth, and codec settings. You can select from 4:2:2 10-bit / 4:2:0 8-bit / H264, H265 (HEVC) in settings other than RAW (Picture Style, Custom Picture).

H.264

GAMMA	Color sampling	Bit Depth	Codec
Standard (SDR)	4:2:0	8-bit	H.264
Standard (SDR)	4:2:2	10-bit	H.264
Canon 709	4:2:0	8-bit	H.264
Canon 709	4:2:2	10-bit	H.264
BT 709 Standard	4:2:0	8-bit	H.264
BT 709 Standard	4:2:2	10-bit	H.264
HDR PQ	4:2:0	8-bit	H.264
HDR PQ	4:2:2	10-bit	H.264
Canon Log 2 Canon Log 3	4:2:0	8-bit	H.264
Canon Log 2 Canon Log 3	4:2:2	10-bit	H.264
PQ HLG	4:2:0	8-bit	H.264
PQ HLG	4:2:2	10-bit	H.264

H.265

GAMMA	Color sampling	Bit Depth	Codec
Standard (SDR)	4:2:0	10-bit	H.265
Standard (SDR)	4:2:2	10-bit	H.265
Canon 709	4:2:0	10-bit	H.265
Canon 709	4:2:2	10-bit	H.265
BT 709 Standard	4:2:0	10-bit	H.265
BT 709 Standard	4:2:2	10-bit	H.265
HDR PQ	4:2:0	10-bit	H.265
HDR PQ	4:2:2	10-bit	H.265
Canon Log 2 Canon Log 3	4:2:0	10-bit	H.265
Canon Log 2 Canon Log 3	4:2:2	10-bit	H.265
PQ HLG	4:2:0	10-bit	H.265
PQ HLG	4:2:2	10-bit	H.265

As far as resolutions, frame rates, and internal recording are concerned, the direct competition arguably comes from cameras like the Nikon Z8, Nikon Z9, Sony a1, Sony a7R V, and Panasonic S5 II, etc.

It is important to note that while the R1 is a mirrorless hybrid, it is first and foremost a professional still camera. It is not being targeted at the same user base as the R5 Mark II.

LUTs, Picture Profiles & Monitoring Assist Tools

On the EOS R1, you can load up your own LUTs.

LUTs can be applied to viewing, playback, and HDMI output and you can also choose to burn a LUT into your footage if you need to. A LUT can be applied to any of the Custom Picture profiles.

There are also Custom Picture profiles that were designed to better help the EOS R1 match Cinema EOS cameras. This is the first for the EOS R series camera.

The EOS R1 has Canon Log2, as well as Canon Log3. Canon Log2 hasn’t been seen before in an EOS R camera and even the R5 C doesn’t have it.

There are also the following new Custom Picture profiles that you can choose from:

• Canon 709 (BT 709)
• BT 709 Standard (BT 709)
• PQ (BT 2020)
• HLG (BT 220)

As I previously mentioned, a LUT can be applied to any of the above Custom Picture profiles.

As far as monitoring assist features go, there are only zebras, a histogram, peaking, and focus magnification.

Dual Shooting

With the increased horsepower under the hood, the R1 is capable of simultaneously recording both video and stills at the same time.

Now, this only works when you are shooting HD video and you can only capture 33.2MP 16:9 JPEG still images at up to 10fps.

The way it works is that when the camera is recording video, you can press the shutter button to capture still images.

While this is a nice feature, if you are shooting video at traditional shutter speeds, taking photos may not be ideal, especially if the subject is moving. Unlike the R5 Mark II, the R1 only supports HD up to 30p.

Canon does allow you to take stills when recording video by using a cabled remote controller, the Camer Connect App, or by using the BR-E1 wireless remote control.

Proxy Recording

The R1 is capable of doing proxy recording. You can record a full-sized RAW file to one card and a lower-resolution proxy file to another.

The proxies are done with industry-standard file naming and structured folders.

No Anamorphic Modes

Not many mirrorless hybrids have anamorphic shooting modes, so it’s no real surprise that the EOS R1 doesn’t.

What about the heat?

Canon certainly copped a ton of criticism online because of the overheating issues the R5 had, and arguably, rightfully so. Having a professional camera that overheats when recording video is hardly ideal.

I am sure Canon doesn’t want another repeat of the PR disaster that occurred with the R5 overheating issues.

An example of movie recording times from a cold start until shutdown is as follows:

Movie Quality	File Format	Auto power off temp set to High
6K 60p RAW + 2K 60p LGOP (Proxy)	RAW+MP4	120 mins or longer
4K 120p LGOP	MP4	15 mins
4K 60p LGOP (Fine)	MP4	109 mins
4K 30p LGOP	MP4	No restrictions due to overheating
Full HD 240p	MP4	46 mins

Measurement notes:

・According to Canon measurement conditions when using  CFexpress Cards conforming to Canon testing standards.

・ Measurement conditions   Temperature: +23℃, Type of recording: On-screen recording, Wi-Fi: Not used, No USB power supply

・The maximum duration of shooting may be shorter under some circumstances even if recording begins from “cold start,” due to a rise in temperature inside the camera caused by pre-shooting camera setting operations or by prolonged use of the Live View mode. When the card is full, movie recording stops automatically. In this case, duration time when you erase the data and restart shooting.

Now, please remember that the quoted recording times were done in a controlled environment by Canon, and in the real world you may find that your recording times could be a lot less depending on the conditions you are working in.

Basically, if you are shooting 6K RAW up to 60p, or 4K in frame rates up to 30p you should be ok (according to Canon). Even with 4K 60p you can get up to 109 mins which is a lot.

What isn’t mentioned anywhere are the recovery times for the camera once it does overheat. In my personal opinion, this information is very important to know and I am surprised Canon hasn’t included any information on this.

Again, as I always say, if you want a video camera buy a video camera. If you want a small-sized mirrorless hybrid then you have to live with its strengths and weaknesses.

6K RAW, advanced AF features, Dual Recording, Pre-Recording, etc, require a lot of processing power and in turn, this generates a lot of heat. So how is Canon cooling the camera given it doesn’t utilize a fan like the Panasonic S1H? Well, according to Canon it is keeping the heat under control through the use of the new Back Illuminated Stacked sensor in combination with the DIGIC X and DIGIC Accelerator processors. This combination means less buffering as data can be transferred extremely quickly from the camera to the card. This, in turn, is claimed to help reduce heat.

I am sure in certain modes like Dual Image Recording, and Pre-Recording, you may encounter some overheating issues.

With the dual DIGIC processors, and increased capabilities of the R1, Canon was always going to have to make a compromise when it came to heat. By going with a fully weather-sealed body and not including any type of in-built fan heat was always going to be an issue. You can’t have your cake and eat it too. There is a reason digital cinema cameras have large cooling systems. In saying that, the larger sized body of the R1 is undoubtedly helping.

Look, heat limitations are clearly not great, but as long as you understand the limitations of the camera and use it appropriately you shouldn’t run into too many problems.

The camera is clearly capable of being used in certain professional environments and anyone who knows what they are doing won’t try and use it in situations or environments it shouldn’t be used in. In saying that, real-world testing in a variety of different shooting scenarios and situations needs to be done to determine if those heat issues will be something that affects the way you work. If you need long record times and you are going to be working in hot environments this isn’t the right camera for those jobs.

Don’t buy an R1 and then complain about these problems. You should clearly know what the limitations of any camera are before purchasing.

Pre-Continous Shooting

You can set up the EOS R1 so that it will automatically capture images or video before you start recording. You need to pre-select this mode in advance to be able to use it.

In video mode, as long as you have your finger half-pressed on the start/stop button, the camera will be able to capture between 3-5 seconds of footage. Now, you can’t use this mode when shooting RAW, high-frame rates, or time-lapse recording modes. Canon also states that it is best to stick to HD resolutions if you intend on using it for long periods of time as using pre-recording tends to increase the temperature of the camera.

In stills mode, if you have your finger half-pressed down on the shutter button the camera is capable of capturing up to 20 shots (40 shots/second at 0.5sec intervals, or 20 shots/second at 0.67sec intervals). According to Canon, this works when shooting RAW or JPEG.

AF

Canon cameras have arguably always had good auto focus capabilities, and they look to have ramped things up to the next level with the EOS R5. The camera features a host of new AF modes and improved tracking capabilities.

A lot of the autofocus technology that is incorporated in the R5 Mark II is also in the EOS R1.

Improved Tracking Accuracy

The R1 is claimed to have improved tracking accuracy and it can track subjects consistently even when similar subjects cross in front of each other.

It also has the ability to avoid obstacles by using AI to estimate where someone’s head and eyes will be even if they are moving around and objects go in front of their face. I saw a demonstration of this and the results were pretty impressive. They had a dancer who was holding a veil, and even when she moved it in front of her face and was changing her body position, the R1 was able to lock onto her face and eyes. This improved tracking performance is available in both video and stills.

Action Priority

Another new AF mode in the camera is Action Priority. This is mainly for people shooting sports and according to Canon it supports 3 sports:

• Basketball
• Soccer
• Volleyball

More sports are likely to be added in the future.

Action Priority uses AI to automatically target the main subject during sporting events. It was designed to work with sports that use large balls, hence why soccer, basketball, and volleyball are supported.

It can automatically track the ball, and subjects near the ball, and then combine that data to intelligently lock onto the main subject. It can also automatically switch from one subject to another very quickly as the action develops.

I saw a demonstration at a soccer match where a bunch of players were jumping up in the air to head a ball and the camera was able to switch automatically to whoever was the closest to it. This may sound a little confusing, but in fast-paced action, it worked really well. It was also being done on a 300mm prime lens at F2.8.

This function can be turned on or off by pressing the AEL customized button. It can also be used in conjunction with pre-continuous shooting which is another new feature.

Unfortunately, this feature only works when shooting still images and not when capturing video.

Register People Priority

Register People Priority is an interesting mode and it makes a lot of sense for people who need to focus on important people. You could use this mode for weddings, event coverage, sporting events, etc.

The way it works is that you can either take a picture of a person or load one up from a memory card and they register that person as a priority for the AF system. Using AI, the camera is claimed to be able to pick out that person and only focus on them.

Now, you can register up to 10 people on the camera itself, but you can also have 10 groups of 10 people (so up to 100) saved to a memory card that you can load up.

If you have more than one person registered, the camera will prioritize the order in which you have set. So, for example, if you have four people registered, it will prioritize them in order from 1-4.

In the EVF or on the back screen of the camera you will see a little person icon that will be shown next to the subject that is being tracked by the AF. It doesn’t matter who else comes into the frame, the focus will stay locked on that person.

This looks to be a handy feature if you were shooting a sporting event or a wedding, etc. You could register the main player you will interested in covering during a sporting event, or if it was a wedding, the bride.

If you have multiple people registered, the camera will prioritize whoever the highest is in the order that has been set.

This feature works in both still and video capture.

This looks to be a very useful feature, and at least to my knowledge, no other camera company has this technology. It will be interesting to see how well it works in the real world.

Cross Type AF

Cross Type AF provides reliable distance measurement performance that is not affected by subject patterns or obstructions. This is the first time Cross-type AF has been included on an EOS R series body.

The camera is claimed to be able to capture subjects more accurately than previous models, even when shooting wild birds in which the subject is in horizontal orientation, volleyball in which a thin line of net is drawn across the face of the subject, or when the contrast is low.

Eye Control AF

Just like the R3, and the R5 Mark II, the R1 also gets the ability to use Eye Control AF.

Everything old is new again. Also making a comeback is Eye AF control. This is something we haven’t seen in a Canon camera for a very long time. This technology was first introduced in the EOS 5 (or the EOS A2 and A2e if you were in the US) back in 1992 and then it came to the EOS R3 a few years ago.

The EOS 5 eye-control focusing allowed the user to select from one of five focus points by looking at it through the viewfinder as well as activating depth-of-field preview by looking at a sixth point marked in the top-left corner of the viewfinder. At the time, this feature was unique to Canon.

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The EOS R1 Eye AF works in conjunction with other AF tracking modes. When it is activated users will see a round yellow target that they are able to shift by simply looking towards a different point in the EVF. This then shifts the AF point. You can use it to change focus between the foreground and background, and change the subject tracking between two people or animals, etc.

The version in the R1 is stated to be significantly better than the one used by the EOS R3. The eye detection can be done further away from the EVF than what is possible using the EOS R3. The faster processing in the R1 also means that it can track your eye movement 2x faster than could previously be done.

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Now, there are quite a lot of caveats when using Eye AF. Canon states that you need to calibrate the system for use with your eye and it should also be calibrated depending on what you happen to be shooting.

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Canon also is clearly stating that Eye Control AF may not be usable depending on such factors as users’ wearing of sunglasses, hard contact lenses, or glasses for vision correction. It may also not work depending on an individual’s characteristics such as eye size, eyelid thickness, and eyelash length. Although, it is claimed to work better when you are wearing glasses than it did on the EOS R3.

In-body Image Stabilization

The R5 was Canon’s first camera to feature In-body Image Stabilization. The R1, just like the R5 Mark II features up to 8.5 stops of shake correction in the center and 7.5 stops on the periphery. These 8.5 stops of shake correction are only possible when using the R1 in conjunction with certain Canon R mount lenses. 8.5 stops is slightly more than the 8 stops that the original R5 has.

The In-body Image Stabilization will still do a pretty good job with any lens you use, regardless of whether it has IS. From the examples I have seen, the In-body Image Stabilization works very well.

The In-body Image Stabilization works through a complex series of sensors. The Gyro Sensor reads the angle speed, the Acceleration sensor reads the acceleration, and the Imaging Sensor reads the Motion Vector. All of this information is then combined and processed by the DIGIC X and DIGIC Accelerator processors.

If you combine the camera with an IS lens there is communicated coordination between the DIGIC X/ DIGIC Accelerator processors and the lens CPU which gets its own data from a Gyro sensor that reads the angle speed and an Acceleration sensor, that is reading the acceleration. By combining all of this information you get the best of both worlds.

You can turn the IBIS off, but if you have an IS lens attached you can’t. There must be a reason for this, but when I spoke to canon they couldn’t tell me what that was. The other thing to note is that the IBIS automatically turns itself off when a camera is placed on a tripod or stationary service. It doesn’t turn off if you put the camera on a gimbal.

When using a lens with IS you will get a slight image crop when shooting video.

In-Camera Upscaling

The R1 along with the R5 Mark II, features In-Camera Upscaling. This feature doubles the number of horizontal and vertical pixels to create higher-resolution images.

The R1 is capable of upscaling a 24MP image to 96MP.

The way it works is different from pixel shift technology as you can go back to any photo you have previously taken and do the In-Camera Upscaling.

You can do both cropping and In-Camera Upscaling to achieve what look to be pretty impressive results. Cropping and In-Camera Upscaling can be done in camera at the same time after you have taken a picture.

Neural Noise Reduction

With the added grunt of the dual processors in the R1, you can do what Canon is referring to as Neural Noise Reduction.

This is a feature that you can apply in camera after you have taken an image. Just to be clear, it isn’t applying noise reduction when you are shooting.

By utilizing AI it can generate images with lower noise when processing RAW images in camera without the need for a computer.

You can combine both the Neural Noise Reduction and In-Camera Upscaling.

The images I saw looked pretty decent, especially when trying to clean up an image that is shot at a high ISO.

Stills Performance

The EOS R1 is capable of capturing up to 40fps (electronic shutter) and up to 12fps (mechanical shutter).

The camera also offers a choice of controls with both a multi-controller and a smart controller. There are three customizable dials on the body, plus a Lens Control ring on each RF Mount lens. This allows shutter speed, aperture, ISO, and exposure compensation all to be adjusted while the camera is at the photographer’s eye.

There is also a dedicated Video/Stills switch on the back of the camera.

Vari-angle LCD

The EOS R1 has what Canon calls a Vari-Angle screen, which folds out to the side and rotates completely around. The Vari-Angle touch screen is 4.1-million dots.

In a nice touch, you can use two fingers to swipe and enlarge the screen.

New Electronic Viewfinder

The high-brightness blackout-free electronic viewfinder on the R1 features has 9.44 million which is significantly more than the 5.76 million dots that the EOS R5 Mark II has.

It features an anti-fog design and a wide viewfinder eyepiece to make it a comfortable camera for shooting sports over long durations.

Body

EOS R1 features a newly designed weather-sealed body with renewed outer texture and integrated vertical grip.

The body of the EOS R1 is completely dust and weather-sealed and it looks very similar to the R3. The EOS R1 features a tough, magnesium-alloy body and the dust and weather resistance are up to the same level as Canon’s EOS-1D X series and the R3.

The R1 weighs (body only), which makes it just 24g lighter than the R5 C. As a comparison, the original R5 weighs 650g.

The R1 has physical dimensions of 138.5 x 101.2 x 93.5mm. The original R5 has physical dimensions of 138 x 97.5 x 88 mm.

Controls & Layout

The camera also offers a choice of controls with both a multi-controller and a smart controller. There are three customizable dials on the body, plus a Lens Control ring on each RF Mount lens. This allows shutter speed, aperture, ISO, and exposure compensation all to be adjusted while the camera is at the photographer’s eye.

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There is also a dedicated Video/Stills switch on the back of the camera. The EOS R1 control layout does take some cues from the EOS R3 and it looks fairly similar.

A newly added two-stage AF-ON button allows the quick activation of two programmable functions within one button allowing photographers to rapidly respond to changing action in front of them.

It does have a 3.5mm mic jack, a built-in mono microphone, a headphone jack, and most importantly, a full-sized HDMI.

As far as what is coming out over HDMI, you can record clean 4:2:2 10-bit up to 60p.

You will be able to use select Atomos products to record externally over HDMI if you choose.

I still personally think that it is counterintuitive to use an external recorder with a high-end mirrorless camera. By the time you add a monitor/recorder, professional audio, etc. you may as well just buy a digital cinema camera.

Dual card Slots

The EOS R1 has dual card slots. Both are CFexpress Type B.

CFexpreess cards have come down considerably in price over the last year or so and the capacities have increased.

Battery

The EOS R1 utilizes LP-E19 batteries. This is the same battery that works in the EOS-1DX Mark II.

There is also a USB-C power adapter that can charge or power the camera, as well as a DC coupler.

Audio

Audio features are rarely talked about, but they should be scrutinized carefully. The R1 has a single 3.5mm stereo input.

What I personally find quite astonishing is that Canon still doesn’t have any type of audio module available for any of the R-System family of cameras. Panasonic and Sony have had good solutions for many, many years. With the R1 having a Multi-interface hot shoe, Canon really should have come up with a solution.

Canon does have the MA-400 Microphone Adapter for the C300 Mark II and the XC15 ($499 USD), but it doesn’t work with any of the R-System cameras.

Panasonic and Sony both offer professional audio adapters that interface through a hot shoe connector. This is where they have a serious advantage over Canon.

You could use the TASCAM CA-XLR2d-C XLR Microphone Adapter Kit for Canon Cameras, but I have tried this with the R5 and it has serious issues. I am not sure why Canon continues to promote this product when it doesn’t”t work well due to issues when using their cameras.

Canon is massively behind the competition when it comes to audio solutions for use with its mirrorless hybrids.

News Metadata (NewsML-G2 standard) support

News Metadata is a standard XML-based format that enables integrated presentation of news content, metadata, structures, and context. By adding metadata compatible with the NewsML-G2 standard to a movie file, it supports workflows for news TV broadcasters.

News Metadata editing and export can be done before shooting with a computer or after shooting using Content Transfer Professional.

Connectivity

The R1 has built-in Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, MIMO, and Wired LAN (Ethernet). The camera has 6GHz Wi-Fi and it can be easily connected to a smartphone and networks allowing high-speed file sharing and FTP/FTPS transfer.

This functionality also allows for the camera to be remotely controlled using the Camera Connect and EOS Utility apps, tethered to a PC or Mac via Wi-Fi, high-speed USB-C, or Ethernet.

With content delivery just as important as image and video capture, the EOS R1 supports the automatic transfer of image files from the device to the www.image.canon.com cloud platform so you can easily share and print images or integrate with Google Photos or Adobe Cloud workflows.

Collaboration between Cine & Stills Departments

For a long time, the Canon cine and stills departments didn’t really do much collaboration. Well, that has now changed and Canon is very keen to stress to consumers that both departments have been working closely together.

Canon views the EOS R5 Mark II and the EOS R1 as important B and C cameras that can be used in conjunction with the C500 Mark II, C400, and C300 Mark III.

With the new inclusions, the R1 has certainly been positioned to be used in that capacity, however, just how well it matches the Cinema EOS cameras remains to be seen.

Timecode

An important capability for any camera that is intended to be used with other cameras is the ability to jam sync timecode.

While the R1 does support timecode, there is no way of jam syncing timecode and having that timecode is embedded in the metadata. You could still use an audio-based track recording timecode sync system, but then you lose one track of audio and you then need to convert that recorded signal using software.

Who is it aimed at?

The EOS R1 is primarily being targeted at professional sports and news photographers who want a very robust and reliable solution.

While the EOS R1 is certainly a capable mirrorless hybrid it is primarily a high end stills camera with the added versatility of being able to shoot video.

Price & Availability

The EOS R1 will cost $6,299 USD (body only)

The camera is scheduled to start shipping sometime in November.

As a comparison, the Sony a1 retails for $6,498 USD and the Nikon Z9 costs $5,496.95 USD.

Specifications

Thoughts

On paper at least, the EOS R1 ticks a lot of boxes for professional sports and news photographers. It has a host of impressive AF technology and fast continual shooting speeds. The video capabilities are also pretty strong. As I mentioned earlier, specifications don’t tell the full story of any camera, so it will be interesting to see how the R1 actually performs.

The new AF functions, ability to shoot stills and video simultaneously, pre-record functionality, in-camera upscaling, and the ability to shoot in Canon Log 2, Canon Log 3, and other picture profiles that are found in Cinema EOS cameras certainly make it an appealing prospect.

With a new sensor and dual DIGIC processors, Canon has been able to give the R1 increased capabilities.

What do you think about the Canon EOS R1? Let us know in the comments section below.