We think this camera is going to be a slow burn sales wise with its new ergonomic design and the fact that it's $1899. The EOS R8 is a beloved camera for shooters that have no interest in $10,000 kits and with the launch price bump for the EOS R8 Mark II.

The Canon EOS R6 Mark II is still a current product and is only $100 more currently and we think there is going to be a lot of cross shopping between the two cameras. On the surface, I'd take the EOS R8 Mark II for what I'd use it for, but for people that want or need a mechanical shutter, the EOS R6 Mark II is going to be the better choice.

Features like pre-shooting don't matter to everyone and there are a lot of other software tricks that may be of no interest to a lot of consumers.

The EOS R8 Mark II does not have the same video chops as the EOS R6 Mark II, so that will be a consideration for some.

Full-Frame Hybrid

Canon EOS R6 Mark II

Full-Frame24.2MP4K6040 fps

• 24.2MP Full-Frame CMOS Sensor
• 4K60 10-Bit Internal Video, C-Log 3
• External 6K ProRes RAW Recording
• Dual Pixel CMOS AF II
• 12 fps Mech. Shutter, 40 fps E. Shutter
• Sensor-Shift 5-Axis Image Stabilization
• 3.69m-Dot OLED EVF
• 3″ 1.62m-Dot Vari-Angle Touchscreen LCD
• Dual UHS-II Memory Card Slots
• Multi-Function Shoe, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth

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Compact Full-Frame

Canon EOS R8 Mark II

Full-Frame24.2MP4K60p5-axis IBIS

• 24.2MP Full-Frame CMOS Sensor
• 4K60p 10-Bit Internal Video, Canon Log 3
• 40 fps Electronic Shutter, Pre-Capture
• 5-Axis In-Body Image Stabilization
• Dual Pixel CMOS AF II with Tracking
• 2.36m-Dot OLED Electronic Viewfinder
• 3.0″ 1.62m-Dot Vari-Angle Touchscreen
• Multi-Controller Joystick for Navigation
• Microphone Input, Headphone Output
• Multi-Function Shoe, Wi-Fi & Bluetooth

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I am not a reviewer and I have zero desire to be one. The zero day reviews for the EOS R8 Mark II all kind of said the same thing. There was a lot of focus on the design language and I think that had a lot of influence in the tone of the reviews.

There was also the whole “retro” thing that we started. Canon says it's retro inspired, and with the EG-E2 ergonomic grip, there is some visual cues that look like a throwback to yesteryear.

Zero day reviewers do not have gear for more than a week or two in a lot of cases, even less time sometimes, so they have to get things out there as best as they can. The reviews that are going to come a month or 6 months from now are going to paint a different picture I think. Whether that's in a positive or negative way, we'll see.

There will also be a demographic of people that hate big change in the way a camera is physically designed, and that's ok.

As for our initial impressions now that we have the camera?

I much prefer the new design language over the R8, and the camera feels a bit more premium. The grip material feels a lot better than the EOS R8. Overall the new 8-series camera feels a notch higher than the R8.

I also ordered the Canon EG-E2 ergonomic grip and it is really well executed and makes a significant difference for me.

At $1,899, the price doesn't feel entry-level, full-frame or not.

I can assure you that this won't be Canon's entry-level full-frame camera at some point in time over the next year. For now, we're calling the coming entry-level camera the EOS R9.

There is going to be hardware they'll be able to remove from an entry-level camera to bring the price down significantly from $1899.

If the price of the EOS R8 Mark II is too steep for you, I think we're going to see it appear at the Canon USA Refurbished store a bit earlier than most other cameras. This may be a camera worth waiting 6 months to save some money.

I look forward to putting the EOS R8 Mark II through its paces alongside the EOS R1 this weekend. I'm not a fan of iPhone vs ARRI camera nonsense but I do enjoy seeing what the “normal” consumer buys vs the flagship professional products.

Yes, the EOS R1 is going to outperform the EOS R8 Mark II by a large margin when it comes to autofocus and sensor readout speed, but it'll be interesting to see if the R8 Mark II is better or equal at some other things.

I think Canon has done well here.

Firmware Update

Canon EOS C50

Firmware v1.0.6.1

Fixes & enhancements

• Enhanced security for IP streaming
• Fixed display problems in some language environments
• Fixes an issue where image recording to the card may not complete in Photo mode

Download Firmware Check Price →

Firmware Update

Canon EOS C80

Firmware v1.0.8.1

Fixes & enhancements

• Enhanced security for IP streaming
• Corrected display problems in some language environments

Download Firmware Check Price →

Firmware Update

Canon EOS C400

Firmware v1.0.8.1

Fixes & enhancements

• Enhanced security for IP streaming
• Corrected display problems in some language environments

Download Firmware Check Price →

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In Closing

The firmware is nice, but it's strange to see that Canon really only has 3 Cinema EOS cameras. We suspect a camera or two above the C400 are coming, but we have no idea when.

It feels like we've been waiting forever, but we think Canon is going to re-imagine the higher end level of cameras. Sony is the big player, and it seems the higher budget filmmakers simply don't look at Canon and roll with Sony and ARRI.

In a recent patent, Canon shows off an optical design for an RF 70-200mm f/2L IS, and that would be cool. Since the RF 28-70mm f/2L became a thing, there have been endless desires for Canon to add an f/2 version of the 70-200 series to pair with it. Great idea, and all it will take is a big bag of money to get one.

This patent is not related to the recent high-refractive-index patent(s) that have appeared lately. The highest index glass used in this patent is the “normal” 2.05x, and the recent patents have been 2.2x-2.3x.

This patent has more to do with moving focusing groups to keep the size of the design as small as possible and to preserve image quality at the minimum focusing distance, the optical designs presented are using 3 focusing groups.

All three of the focusing groups move towards the subject for close focus. The main focusing group is labeled “F3”, the “F1” and “F2” groups move only a tiny amount to offset field curvature. Since the two latter groups only move a little bit according to the patent, they don't need large focus motors as the elements in those two groups don't have to be thick and heavy.

In a patent application with about a dozen optical designs, the RF 70-200mm f/2L is the one that stands out. It's not small with a lens length of 220mm without the added flange distance. The EF 200mm f/2L IS USM was 210mm in length, but as a whole package. How lens lengths in a patent translate to an actual consumer product doesn't always follow a standard set of rules.

Canon 70–200mm f/2 design · Example 9

JP 2026-168807 A · drag the sliders to zoom and focus

← Subject side
Sensor side →

Zoom

72mm118mm194mm

194mm

Focus

∞closest

∞

Animate zoom Animate focus

Lens data, zoom spacings and focus spacings are from the patent at 72, 118 and 194mm, infinity and closest focus. Positions in between are interpolated, and rays are traced live from the prescription. Total length stays 240.16mm: it zooms and focuses internally.

The design is fairly complex as you'd imagine with 23 elements in 8 groups with 6 aspheric surfaces. This looks to be an internal zoom design as well.

We're not saying it's happening, but if we could preorder based on a patent application, we'd have done so already. Sure, a smaller and lighter RF 200mm f/1.8L IS would be just fine as well. We're not picky, just whiny.

Again, this patent isn't so much about a specific lens design and is more about Canon finding ways to make fast high quality zoom lenses fit into the smallest space possible.

We focused on the 70-200 f/2 design, because that is the most interesting optical design that we think has the biggest chance of the bunch to become a consumer product one day. We still think it's a very small chance and it would cost $6000-$8000 from our friends at Canon.

The other examples in this patent are for "normal" f/1.4 zoom lenses like a 50-85mm f/1.4. That's not something Canon would make, but there seems to be a lot of recent filings pointing towards zoom lenses faster than f/2.

As always, this may be much ado about nothing and we're just showing you what Canon is up to.

This patent is more about the type of glass being used than the optical designs themselves.

If we're reading this one correctly, Canon is using a new class of glass with a refractive index of 2.2-2.3, which is beyond what we traditionally see in lenses. Those don't tend to go beyond 2.0.

What does that mean? If you use elements with a higher refractive index, you end up bending the light in a stronger way. That allows thinner lens elements, which shrinks the length and weight of a lens.

The problem with high-refractive lens elements is that they spread colors out more, which is extremely hard to control and you tend to end up with wonky color errors.

It looks like Canon is using two of the high-refractive lens elements to correct the issues with violet dispersion, which tends to be the color most affected.

The patent shows off a few interesting lens designs for both full-frame and APS-C sensors. Of them, the 85mm f/1.2 example is the most interesting to us, as we do believe we're getting a replacement for the current version in the coming months.

The APS-C 65mm f/1.4 is interesting as well, but we haven't seen much evidence that Canon has interest in making fast prime lenses for crop cameras.

This patent is less about a specific lens and more about a material that could shape all future lens designs from Canon.

Two well-placed high-refractive elements of it are enough to shrink an 85mm f/1.2 or a 135mm f/1.8 without giving up image quality, as claimed in this patent.

We do our best to understand these patents, but if you find something that isn't quite right, please let us know.

Tamron · Available Oct 29

16-50mm f/2.8 A

Canon RF 26–80mm equiv. Constant f/2.8 Weathersealed

$529€499 · £419

Pre-order Now →

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The 16-50mm f/2.8 A is Tamron's fourth lens for the RF mount following the Tamron 11-20mm f/2.8 Di III-A RXD, Tamron 17-70mm f/2.8 Di III-A VC RXD and Tamron 18-300mm f/3.5-6.3 Di III-A VC VXD.

Tamron's goal here is an affordable, lightweight and constant aperture zoom, and it looks like it'll check most boxes for $500. To keep things small and light, at only 305g, Tamron didn't equip the lens with Vibration Correction, Tamron's version of image stabilization.

There is only one Canon APS-C camera with IBIS in the EOS R7, but we expect that to change for the lineup refresh that begins in the next few months.

On the physical side of things, the 16-50mm f/2.8 A uses a 55mm filter thread with a barrel length of 79.6mm, making it ideal for gimbal use for hybrid and video shooters. The lens also comes with some level of weathersealing, which is nice to see on $500 lenses.

The Tamron RF 16-50mm f/2.8 A begins shipping on October 29, 2026 for $549 · €499 · £419.

As with any lens in the area of $500, there are going to be optical performance design choices to appeal to the most potential customers as possible, but nothing will be perfect for everyone.

At 16mm, the contrast is great across the entire frame and even better for the RF mount since Canon's APS-C sensors are slightly smaller than sensors from the likes of Sony or Fujifilm.

Sharpness at 16mm is good and consistent across the mid-frame, but out to the extreme corners you will see sharpness fall off pretty quickly, so be aware of that when shooting. If you're shooting landscapes at 16mm and you're not stopping down, give yourself some pixels on the edges to crop when thinking about composition.

At 50mm, contrast slowly falls off from the center to the corners, and you probably won't notice that in real world shooting. There will be some astigmatism towards the edges at 50mm, but again, if you think that's going to matter, compose with that in mind.

At the center of the frame, the Tamron 16-50mm f/2.8 A is excellent, especially for a $500 lens. Corner performance is the weakness at both 16mm and 50mm wide open, but if you stop down to f/4-5.6, those issues will become far less pronounced.

That said, this is an important update and you should do it at your earliest convenience. It's one of those bugs that you never see until worst possible time.

1. Fixes an issue where image recording to the card may not complete.

Video Hybrid

Canon EOS R6 V

Full-Frame32.5MP7K6040 fps

• 32.5MP Full-Frame CMOS Sensor
• DIGIC X Image Processor
• 7K60, DCI 4K120 & 2K180 Video
• 7K30 Open Gate 3:2 RAW Recording
• Dual Pixel CMOS AF II | In-Body IS
• 15+ Stops of Dynamic Range in C-Log 2
• Rotating UI & Vertical Tripod Mount
• Up to 40 fps & Pre-Continuous Shoot Mode
• 3″ 1.62m-Dot Vari-Angle Touchscreen LCD
• CFexpress Type B & SDXC UHS-II Slots

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Stills Hybrid

Canon EOS R6 Mark III

Full-Frame32.5MP8.5-stop IBIS40 fps

• 32.5MP Full-Frame CMOS Sensor
• 7K 60p 12-Bit Internal RAW Light Video
• Open Gate 7K 30p, High-Speed 4K 120p
• Dual Pixel CMOS AF II & Movie Servo AF
• Up to 40 fps & Pre-Continuous Shoot Mode
• 8.5-Stop 5-Axis Image Stabilization
• 3.69m-Dot OLED EVF with OVF View Assist
• 3″ 1.62m-Dot Vari-Angle Touchscreen LCD
• CFexpress & SD UHS-II Memory Card Slots
• Multi-Function Shoe, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth

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Sigma · Available Oct 22

50-120mm F2.8 DC OS | Contemporary

APS-C 80–192mm equiv. Constant F2.8 6.5-stop OS RF · X · E

$799€799 · £699

Pre-order Now →

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On the RF mount, the new lens has a 35mm equivalent of 80-192mm and weighs only 410g in the RF mount version. The Sony and Fujifilm versions are a bit lighter at 390g, and with their slightly larger APS-C sensors, they don't have as tight of a field of view.

Sigma has now finished a “holy trinity” of f/2.8 APS-C zoom lenses, and it looks like a terrific set of lenses. We already have the Sigma 10-18mm f/2.8 DC DN Contemporary and Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 DC DN Contemporary and they're both great as well.

The Sigma RF 50-120mm f/2.8 DC OS Contemporary has optical image stabilization rated at 6.5 stops at the wide end, and 4.5 stops at the long end. The lens uses an HLA linear autofocus motor, which is more than fast enough. The optical design also minimizes focus breathing for video and hybrid shooters, but photographers appreciate that as well. On top of all of that, you also get weathersealing.

Ultra-Wide Zoom

Sigma 10-18mm f/2.8 DC DN Contemporary

APS-Cf/2.8 – f/2216-29mm equiv.

• Ultra wide-angle zoom
• Fast internal focus system
• Rounded 7-blade diaphragm
• Dust- & splash-resistant design

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Standard Zoom

Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 DC DN Contemporary

APS-Cf/2.8 – f/2229-80mm equiv.

• Minimum focusing distance: 4.8″
• Three aspherical elements
• Special low dispersion element
• Rounded 7-blade diaphragm
• Dust- & splash-resistant design

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The Sigma 50-120mm f/2.8 DC OS Contemporary begins shipping on October 22, 2026 and is available for preorder.

Sigma has been hitting it out of the park with the optical performance of their latest lenses, and the RF 50-120mm f/2.8 DC OS | Contemporary is no exception; the optical performance looks terrific especially for a $799 lens.

At 50mm, the performance from the center to mid-frame is excellent, there's only a slight drop in contrast, nothing anyone is going to notice. The 30 lp/mm line shows a mid-frame dip before recovering going further out in the frame. This isn't something anyone is going to notice, and it's a fairly common thing with zoom lenses that don't break the bank.

The corners look to suffer somewhat, but moreso on Fuji and Sony APS-C sensors since they're a bit bigger than a Canon APS-C sensor. Canon shooters will get better perceived corner performance.

At 120mm, the entire frame shows great contrast at the long end. This is a pretty good achievement by Sigma, it's rare to see this level of performance wide open. The solid 30 lp/mm line shows terrific detail across the entire frame as well.

The only weak point that we see is astigmatism kicking in when going out to the corners. Is this something people are going to notice? Not likely. Do expect to see some softness at 120mm outside of the mid-frame if you peep the pixels.

Overall the lens is terrific optically going by Sigma's own MTF charts. Other people may get different results, but we don't imagine they'll be all that different.

There is always a design choice with zoom lenses, which end of the range is going to get the better image quality, and Sigma has chosen the long end, which is a good choice. Most shooters will be using this lens at the long end for portrait and sports work.

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The goal here is to add an extender without increasing the length of the lens just like a built-in teleconverter would do, but this patent is more about showing the importance of where in the lens the teleconverter is placed.

The placement of a built-in or drop-in teleconverter has an effect on the size of the lens. We had never thought about this before, but it makes sense. As we all know, manufacturers are all in on making lenses smaller and lighter. We're good with that focus in lens design.

As far as the optical design in this patent, Canon is using a 100-300mm f/2.8 base lens and shows the empty space where a 1.4x teleconverter can be “dropped in”. Dropped-in can also mean built-in.

If we just go with the drop-in part of the patent, we could see it being something to do to keep the price point down on a longer supertelephoto zoom lens. If it's something like a 300-600, you could make available a new style of teleconverter to sell to people that want longer reach and not change how the lens feels in your hand and save some money if you have no interest in a built-in converter.

Canon would have no problem selling you a brand new type of teleconverter at Canon prices either.

The teleconverter is placed toward the rear of the lens. This is to take advantage of the narrowing light path before it hits the sensor. Because the light beam is smaller here, the teleconverter glass itself can be smaller than if it was more forward in the design.

We'll have to think more about what a drop-in teleconverter would mean and how it would make a shooter's life better, over simply having it built-in.

Canon is going to be bringing new lenses in the near future with built-in teleconverters, or maybe even a drop-in converter. This just seems like a new way to implement a teleconverter.

As always, a patent just shows us what Canon is up to, and not always what we can expect to be announced. A drop-in teleconverter would be a new way to do it, but as mentioned earlier, we're not sure why shooters would prefer this solution over just building one in other than up front cost savings.

This is definitely an interesting bit of research and development.

This latest patent is similar to the previous patent. The goal is to shrink the size of a macro lens to keep it as short and light as possible.

As you can see, the focusing groups have opposite powers. The ideal is to move the focusing groups away from and toward each other together. This keeps image quality as high as possible and offsets issues like color fringing and blur.

We expect the Canon RF 90mm f/2.8 IS STM Macro to be announced in the next month or so—late October or early November seems to be the most likely, but we do not have a confirmed announcement date yet.

We now have three different designs for the RF 90 macro, so we think it's a safe bet that we're going to see something very close to what is shown here.

This is the type of lens that has been rumored to be coming from Canon for a long time. For a Canon APS-C sensor, this would basically be an 80–200 f/2.8 equivalent, which would likely do quite well for crop-sensor shooters.

We've seen some patents for such a lens from Sigma, including one from back in 2023.

Sigma has more than one lens coming for their confirmed announcement dates of October 8 and October 24, 2026. One of them is going to be some kind of prime lens faster than f/1.2. From a marketing standpoint, hit that f/0.95, people love that number.

Canon also has lens announcements coming before the end of the year, and one of them will be the RF 90mm f/2.8 IS Macro. That one will be a non-L lens, and we think it'll be similar in design to the RF 15–30mm f/2.8 IS STM and RF 28–70mm f/2.8 IS STM.

Unfortunately, 2026 is going to end without any sort of announcement for full-frame Sigma RF lenses, but at least we have some new “RF-S” lenses coming from third parties in the next month or two.

Current Sigma Rebates

Ultra-Wide Prime Save $50

Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC DN Contemporary

APS-Cf/1.4 – f/1619.2mm equiv.

• Fast & lightweight wide-angle prime
• Stepping motor AF system
• Rounded 9-blade diaphragm
• Control ring
• 3 aspherical, 2 SLD elements
• Minimum focus distance: 6.8″
• Water- and oil-repellent coating
• Dust- and splash-resistant construction

$579$629

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Wide Prime Save $125

Sigma 16mm f/1.4 DC DN Contemporary

APS-Cf/1.4 – f/1625.6mm equiv.

• Rounded 9-blade diaphragm
• Stepping motor AF system
• Super Multi-Layer Coating
• Two aspherical elements
• Two SLD, three FLD elements
• Weather-sealed construction

$414$539

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Standard Prime Save $75

Sigma 30mm f/1.4 DC DN Contemporary

APS-Cf/1.4 – f/1648mm equiv.

• Rounded 9-blade diaphragm
• Stepping motor AF system
• Super Multi-Layer Coating
• Two aspherical elements
• One high-refractive index element
• Rubber sealing protects against dust

$344$419

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Portrait Prime Save $125

Sigma 56mm f/1.4 DC DN Contemporary

APS-Cf/1.4 – f/1689.6mm equiv.

• Rounded 9-blade diaphragm
• Stepping motor AF system
• Super Multi-Layer Coating
• One SLD, two aspherical elements
• Weather-sealed construction

$454$579

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All-in-One Zoom Save $75

Sigma 16-300mm f/3.5-6.7 DC OS Contemporary

APS-Cf/3.5-6.7 – f/22-4524-450mm equiv.

• Versatile all-in-one zoom lens
• HLA-driven high-speed AF motor
• Optical stabilization & OS2 algorithm
• 1:2 max. magnification at 70mm
• Low dispersion and aspherical elements
• Dust- and splash-resistant design

$694$769

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