Aquatic Life, Winner: “Octopus Mother” by Kat Zhou
The California Academy of Sciences has unveiled the winners of its BigPicture photography competition, which celebrates stunning images from the natural world. Now in its 12th year, the competition is judged by a panel of nature and conservation photography experts, which is chaired by wildlife photographer Suzi Eszterhas. The Grand Prize Winner is “Lemur’s Tough Life” by Donglin Zhou, a Chinese wildlife photographer known for her nature documentaries.
Meanwhile, in the “Aquatic Life” category, it was DPG Photographer of the Week Kat Zhou who clinched the top award with her mind-blowing shot of a Caribbean reef octopus guarding her eggs at Florida’s Blue Heron Bridge (which also featured in her POTW portfolio). Various DPGers were also finalists in the “Aquatic Life” category as well as other categories, including “Art of Nature” and “Landscapes, Waterscapes, and Flora.”
Big congratulations to all the winners and runners-up in this year’s contest. Don’t forget that the 2nd Underwater Awards Australasia imaging competition is accepting submissions—so make sure you get your entries in soon and claim your share of the spectacular $70,000 prize pool!
Landscapes, Waterscapes, and Flora, Finalist: “Acacia” by Talia Greis
Art of Nature, Finalist: “Ghost of the Reef” by Simon Biddie
Aquatic Life, Finalist: “Yin Yang” by Melanie Müller
Aquatic Life, Finalist: “Dystopian Seas” by Angel Fitor
Aquatic Life, Finalist: “Theatre of War” by Talia Greis
Aquatic Life, Finalist: “Into the World of Dreams” by Hitomi Tsuchiya
Aquatic Life, Finalist: “Mudskipping” by Georgina Steytler
Analog photography is something that has been appreciated more in the recent years with many photographers looking to shoot film. Not many companies manufacture film cameras but there are a lot of trusted sites that sell used cameras. One of the companies that still sells analog cameras is Leica and they are launching their own black and white film, the Leica MONOPAN 50.
Image via Leica
Leica mentions,
With its distinctive look, our Leica MONOPAN 50 black-and-white film recalls the early days of 35 mm photography. It takes us back to 1925, when we presented the revolutionary Leica I to the world.
The Leica MONOPAN 50 film allows 36 high resolution shots, since it has ultra fine grain and super panchromatic sensitivity. The resulting images are amazingly sharp with great tonal range. The film can be processed in all developers available to develop black and white film.
As the name suggests, the iso sensitivity for the Monopan 50 film is at 50 which means it can be used to capture images in bright light conditions using a wide aperture value. It can be a perfect film to use with the fast M-lenses of Leica’s analog cameras.
Here is a summary of the film specifications:
Type of film – Black and White
Number of frames – 36
Iso sensitivity – 50
Resolution – 280 line pairs/mm
Sensitivity – super panchromatic 780nm
Price is about $12
Can be developed in all developers for black and white film
The specifications for the Monopan 50, match the ones for Adox HR-50. Leica has also mentioned that the enhanced spectral sensitivity of the Leica MONOPAN 50 film makes it a great choice for infra-red photography. The film can also be used along with Leica’s yellow, orange and green color filters, to capture high depth, contrast, tonal values and character in black and white images.
More details about the Leica Monopan 50 film can be found here and the film will be available from August 21, 2025.
We have more news for you to read if you are interested at this link here.
Marelux has released its underwater housing for the new Canon EOS R5 Mark II. The second-gen pro-level full-frame mirrorless camera features a back-illuminated, stacked 45MP sensor, shoots up to 30fps using its electronic shutter, and records 8K/60p RAW video internally.
Aiming to take full advantage of the R5II’s capabilities, Marelux’s anodized aluminum alloy housing features an ergonomic design with controls arranged around the built-in handles. A quick-release baseplate allows the camera to be easily inserted with precision and removed again. Dual locking levers ensure the housing is safely closed, while ports and extension rings are secured in place using another locking lever. The housing ships with a vacuum detection and moisture alarm system.
The housing is compatible with various novel accessories, including the Flashfuel FF2100, which combines a flash trigger and a power bank (for charging the camera as well as powering the flash trigger); and the Remote Shutter Module, which allows you to control the shutter remotely using the Marelux Artemis 4500 RMT video light.
The MX-R5II housing has an MSRP of $3,398 and can be ordered directly from the Marelux website.
PRODUCT INFORMATION
MX-R5II Housing for Canon EOS R5II Mirrorless Digital Camera
INTRODUCTION
Marelux housing has the industry leading design that’s not only more compact than other brands but also more simplified in mechanical structure to make it easy to assemble. With 125mm port diameter, the biggest in the market, users can easily install and uninstall cameras with large lens through the housing.
Marelux housing is built using uniquely anodized aluminum alloy which provides superb scratch resistance, sea water erosion durability as well as the attractive options of various surface colors. The housings maintain a perfect balance between sturdy body and lightweight. It has the best-in-class ergonomics with all the camera controls readily available at your fingertips including AF-ON and Q Menu.
Marelux housing can be connected to other innovative products made by Marelux, such as 180-degree Smart Viewfinder etc., making diving and underwater photography easier, safer and more enjoyable.
FEATURES
Flashfuel FF2100 (Manual Flash Trigger + 2100mAh Power Bank Combo)
Patented Design: Tailored for underwater photography and high-speed shooting, combining flash triggering and camera power supply in a single compact device.
Ultra-durable Trigger Performance: Powered by a single CR123A 3V lithium battery, it can handle up to 300,000 flash triggers before replacement.
Robust USB-C Power Output: Integrates a 2100mAh rechargeable battery, offering up to 30W output (5–20V), capable of powering your camera directly.
Remote Shutter Module
With an invention patent, the Remote Shutter Module is designed to enhance underwater photography by providing remote control capabilities to remotely control the camera shutter release via Marelux’s Artemis 4500 RMT Light (42703). It features an effective receiving distance of 10 meters and an optical signal receiving angle of 140 degrees, allowing for flexible positioning and reliable performance.
Dual Locking System
Requires little effort to lock it in place, while making it almost impossible to be unlocked by accident, and it will take only a second to open if needed for a battery change.
Manual Flash Trigger
The flash trigger can translate the electric signal from the camera into light signal, with an extremely long battery life of 10,000 triggers on only two CR2032 batteries.
Built-in Lock
Extension ring and port can be safely locked in place with the built-in locking system on the housing with one simple click.
Sturdy Baseplate
A 50kg force is applied to secure the camera with the design of the quick release baseplate, while being extremely convenient to operate.
Aquatica has announced its housing for the Canon EOS R5 Mark II. The second incarnation of the pro-level full-framer sports a new back-illuminated, stacked 45MP sensor, promising much greater readout speeds. The new hardware allows the camera to shoot full-resolution RAW images with AF at 30fps using its electronic shutter as well as record 8K/60p RAW video internally.
Hewn from aluminum, anodized and baked with tough powder coat paint, Aquatica’s housing features integrated handles, stainless steel push buttons, and compatibility with both native RF and legacy EF lenses (using a mount adapter and extension ring). The housing has a large-bore M24 port supporting HDMI 2.0 output to a recorder/monitor like the Atomos Ninja V+.
The housing can be ordered in four configurations: (i) with dual Nikonos bulkheads, (ii) with dual optical bulkheads and an LED trigger, (iii) with a single Ikelite bulkhead, and (iv) with Ikelite TTL capability (which requires the separate purchase of Ikelite’s DL5 Canon TTL converter). All versions include Aquatica’s Surveyor vacuum circuitry (pump, valve and sensor) as standard.
The housing is available for pre-order from retailers such as Backscatter at an MSRP of at $3,400.
When purchasing underwater photography equipment like the products mentioned in this article, please support DPG by supporting our retail partner—Backscatter.com.
PRODUCT INFORMATION
Aquatica AR5 II: 20099
Price includes your choice of strobe connectors & our complete vacuum, sensor & pump system:
Double Nikonos
Single Ikelite-Manual
Dual Optical-Flash trigger included
Ikelite TTL capability
*Ikelite DL5 external converter required #46074
We are proud to present one of our latest housings: The AR5II for the Canon EOS R5 MKII Mirrorless camera! Continuing in Aquatica’s reputation for offering premium quality and at affordable prices, the AR5II housing has the finest ergonomics and control accessibility combined with the famed ruggedness of our all aluminum construction and distinctive hard coating.
THE CAMERA
The EOS R5 Mark II Mirrorless Camera is the multimedia professional’s solution for versatility, image quality, and intelligence. Features:
45MP Full-Frame Stacked BSI CMOS Sensor
DIGIC Accelerator Processing
Dual Pixel Intelligent AF, Eye Control
8K 60 Raw/4K 60 SRAW/4K 120 10-Bit Video
Up to 30 fps, Pre-Continuous Shoot Mode
76m-Dot EVF with OVF Sim. View Assist
2″ Vari-Angle Touchscreen LCD
In-Camera Upscaling to 179MP
CFexpress & SD UHS-II Memory Card Slots
Wi-Fi 6E / Wi-Fi 6 Support
ABOUT THE HOUSING
As to be expected with all Aquatica housings, it is CNC machined from 6061 T6 Aluminum with a MIL-A-8625 anodized coating and added on top a baked on, extra tough powder coat paint. All control shafts and push buttons are made from T304 stainless steel. This, as for all our housings, will take a licking and keep going!
The AR5II housing supports not only the new RF mount lenses but also the EF mount by simply using our new adaptor extension ring #48474. This new adapter can easily be installed and will enable the AR5 housing to function with any previous Canon EF lens and its corresponding extension ring.
Surveyor monitoring system INCLUDED
What was previously an optional accessory, we are now including our field proven Surveyor Vacuum System (Pump, valve and sensor) as standard.
VIEWFINDERS
The Aquatica AR5 II housing is supplied with our Galileo type eye piece. This high quality and coated optical finder gives a bright and full view of the view finder. For those seeking the ultimate in viewing for still image, the optional Aqua View Finder, available in straight and 45 degrees version, are among the best of the industry, they can easily be installed in a matter of a few minutes by the user. The enlarged and enhanced image provided by the Aqua View Finder (#20054 & 20059) is second to none in clarity; it provides the photographer with tack sharp corner to corner viewing of the camera view finder for composing and critical focusing.
SPECIFICATIONS
Part Number:
20099-NK-VC: with double Nikonos bulkheads & complete Surveyor vacuum circuitry
20099-KM-VC: with single Ikelite bulkhead & complete Surveyor vacuum circuitry
20099-OPT-VC: with dual optical bulkheads, LED trigger & complete Surveyor vacuum circuitry
20099-KTTL-VC: with Ikelite TTL capability & complete Surveyor vacccum circuitry
*Ikelite DL5 External converter required #46074. Purchased separately from Ikelite.
Composition: Aerospace grade 6061 T6 Aluminum with MIL-A-8625 Anodized Coating then finished with a baked on, super tough, abrasion resistant powder coat paint. Control shafts and all push buttons are T304 Stainless Steel
HDMI: Large 23.75mm (.950 inch) HDMI Bulkhead Opening
Depth Rating: 90m ~ 300 ft. Can be upgraded to 130m, ~ 450 ft with our deep spring kit
Weight: 6.5 lb (2.94kg)
Dimensions: 9.50” x 7.10” x 5.96” (W x H x D) (241mm x 180mm x 151mm)
Port System: Compatible with all Aquatica DSLR sized Bayonet Mount Ports
SUPPORTED ACCESSORIES
Aqua View and Aqua View 45 & 180 viewfinders
Full line of the Delta 3 Arm System
5HD Monitor
Aquatica Close Up Kit
Aquatica Housing Lanyard K
RETAIL PRICE AT ONLY $3,399.00
For more information, please contact: info@aquatica.ca or call 514-737-9481
Underwater Housing, OM System Tough TG-7 Camera and Ecko Strobes Wide Angle Kit
Following the launch of its Ecko DS and Ecko Fiber strobes, Ikelite has launched two new kits bundling the fiber-optically triggered model. The kits combine the OM System Tough TG-7 camera, housing, one or two strobes, and various accessories.
The “Wide Angle Kit” (see above) comprises the camera, housing with dome port, Olympus FCON-T02 fisheye lens, tray with dual handles, two Ecko Fiber strobes, strobe arms, and fiber-optic cords—everything you need to shoot a large variety of subjects, from macro to wide angle. The six-inch dome even makes it possible to shoot splits.
The “Deluxe Kit” (see below) consists of the camera, housing, tray with single handle, Ecko Fiber strobe, strobe arm, and fiber-optic cord. With this housing, Ikelite gives you the option of adding the FCON-T02 lens and dome port later—and, of course, a second strobe if desired.
Available from Ikelite, the “Wide Angle Kit” currently retails for $2,825, while the “Deluxe Kit” costs $1,645—the former giving you a $160 discount, the latter saving you almost $90. Similar—but more expensive—kits bundling Ikelite’s DS51 II strobe are no longer available, as the DS51 II has been discontinued. The DS160 II and DS162 have also been discontinued—replaced by the new DS165 and RC165.
Underwater Housing, OM System Tough TG-7 Camera and Ecko Strobe Deluxe Kit
When purchasing underwater photography equipment like the products mentioned in this article, please support DPG by supporting our retail partner—Backscatter.com.
We’re happy to announce the winner of May’s competition “Storytelling In A Single Frame.”
For those who don’t know, the Light Stalking Monthly Photography Competition carries a $100 People’s Choice Award and a $100 Overall Winner Award. The People’s Choice Winner is selected by a vote of the community, whereas our guest judge selects the overall winner.
The “Storytelling In A Single Frame” Photo Contest
Storytelling is an important part of photography and it is a great way to portray emotions and communicate the story visually to the audience. Storytelling always does not require detailed planning, as there are many candid moments happening around that hold stories that can be captured, but it does require careful observation and composing the shot with elements that contribute to the story. The photographer needs to make decisions on when to press the shutter button, to capture the right moment.
Capturing storytelling photos can be difficult, especially if you are photographing in a public environment, where you may have to stay discreet when capturing the shots. There are times when you can speak to the subject, get an understanding of them and then capture their story, which allows for intimate emotions to be captured.
Storytelling visually through photographs can be either through a series of photos or just a single frame and May’s contest theme was to capture a storytelling shot in a single frame. With experience, and by choosing the right scenario, photographers will be able to capture storytelling shots in a single frame.
May’s contest theme was, “Storytelling In A Single Frame” and participants submitted images there were varied from cheerful and fun to emotional moments, most of which portrayed very strong stories and emotions.
When choosing the winning photos, we wanted to make sure that the decision process was based on a good interpretation of the theme followed by other factors like light, composition, story, details, creative vision / thought, etc. The results are entirely subjective and there are no losers in any competition as we all know.
Here are May’s winners:
First Place: “Spare Change Please” by Frogdaily
Spare Change Please – Copyright Frogdaily
Frogdaily has beautifully captured the emotions of a child by a pathway. We can see the child’s innocence and him looking forward to something, but not very interested in his current situation. Frogdaily has also chosen to post-process the image in monochrome, which allows the viewers to focus on the subject and his story, without getting distracted by the elements around.
The composition is also brilliant in the photo with space left towards the direction the child is looking and then all the lines in the frame leading towards the child. The multiple layers of texture and the light in the frame also add more interest to the photo.
Congratulations on the win Frogdaily and for capturing a brilliant storytelling photo.
Second Place: “BuStop” by Jean T
BuStop – Copyright Jean T
The photo “BuStop” by Jean T looks like a fun image that can be interpreted in many ways. It depends on the viewer’s creative thoughts and interpretation of the scene. Jean managed to capture this moment of a person standing by this place at the right time.
The writings seem to be written by someone for fun by a railway track (I think). The light is just right and the horizontal and vertical lines in the photo add a touch of creativity to the photo. The varied textures are also interesting in the frame and again, Jean’s decision to convert the image to monochrome has made the photo more effective.
Congratulations Jean for this beautifully captured image.
Third Place: “Jean Waiting” by Jerre P
Jean Waiting – Copyright Jerre P
This image captured by Jerre is very emotive and clearly tells a story of a subject who is dressed up for the weather and eagerly/anxiously waiting for someone. Jerre has provided us a short description below that explains the situation and the story.
“My wife’s mother, in her late 80s, was not able to renew her driver’s license. She was quietly depressed about it and entirely uncertain about how she could retain her active life. The moment described in this photo as she waited for a neighbour to pick her up and take her to church enabled all of us to better understand the impact of her loss of her license and her independence.”
When framing the shot, it was a great decision to include the car in the frame as it adds to the story. Congratulations Jerre on this emotional storytelling photo.
People’s Choice Award Winner
Our monthly photo contests also come with a People’s Choice Award. The winner of this part of the contest receives $100 worth of store credit on Lightstalking which they can spend as they please on our blueprints, drills, courses or Presets.
Contentment – Copyright Kaleem S
The most popular photo for May, voted by the contestants was “Contentment” by Kaleem S, which has won the people’s choice award. Kaleem has made use of soft light and a simple composition to capture this gentle photo. The soft side light illuminates the subjects by just the right amount and both portray a feeling of content through their expressions, which was beautifully captured by Kaleem. This photo also looks like a great example of juxtaposition.
The monochrome treatment makes the image simple and lets the viewer focus on the story, eliminating anything colourful that may have been in the frame. The black background makes the subjects stand out and also outlines the subjects, revealing the soft textures in the frame. Congratulations Kaleem S on the win and a beautifully captured image.
We are about three weeks into this month’s photo contest and still have a few days left to submit photos to our June’s monthly contest. It has already seen some entries with interesting submissions. This month, our theme is “Minimalism And Simplicity.”
The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own. I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before. In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find. Please DO NOT send me your work. I do not take submissions.
Growing up in New York City, inarguably one of the greatest cities in the world for street food, I was able to enjoy everything from hotdogs to pizza, giant pretzels to shaved ices, Blimpies to bodegas. Probably my favorite NYC street food is your classic slice of Neapolitan pizza, preferable from a brick oven, topped with a sprinkle of dried red pepper flakes and a pinch of dried oregano, folded in almost in half and eaten with one hand as I am walking, while a little grease runs down my wrist.
Recent immigrants, and the broadening of American palates, plus the proliferation of food trucks, have introduced us to the joys of Halal carts, birria tacos, Indian dosas, California burritos, and pretty much anything you can stick between two slices of bread, roll up in a tortilla, or serve atop a pile of rice. Or so I thought.
However, it seems like America has nothing on Asia when it comes to varieties and types of street food. A recent trip to Vietnam allowed me to sample some of the most delicious, as well as most inexpensive, culinary treats, that were for the most part previously unavailable to me. Food establishments are mainly on the sidewalks or in the streets, so pretty much every meal becomes street food.
The first night I arrived in Hanoi, I was a bit taken back to see people cooking food and washing dishes on the sidewalk, right next to the people sitting on their brightly colored chairs, enjoying a meal. Being famished, I quickly got over my western bias and soon found myself hunkered down on a way too small plastic chair, hunched over a steaming bowl of noodles in soup and ice-cold beer.
Most dishes in Vietnam were served with plates of fresh shredded vegetables and herbs, small limes to juice over your food, and often, ancient looking plastic containers of homemade pickled condiments or hot sauces.
One street in Hanoi had several vendors deep frying beef jerky, right out in the air, which was still was warm when I got it, with a subtle aroma of five-star powder. Another street had several vendors hawking platters of giant snails, which once I get over the thought of eating a giant snail, were very tender and quite delicious with their accompanying sauce and condiments.
Just about everywhere I went, I came across people selling food out on the street – not just from storefronts, but more often from bicycles, which could be equipped with baskets for fruit, or sweets, or amazingly, some sort of oven or steamer to cook or keep food warm.
And the variety of what you could sample was amazing- you could usually find Vietnamese iced coffee, grilled pork served over noodles (Bún chả), grilled corn on a stick, grilled rat on a stick (which for some reason I did not try), fertilized duck embryos in their eggshell (ditto), crispy rice crackers topped with mung bean paste or chicken floss, all types of sticky rice wrapped in a banana leaf and young coconuts, not to mention all varieties of dried squid snacks, plus your basic “Tteokbokki” and “New York” flavored potato chips (think NY strip steak).
Of course, there were also open-air markets selling the freshest fruits and vegetables, as well as all varieties of hacked fish and animal parts, most of which I could identify. They also sold lots of noodles and pickled vegetables – at one I tried to find out what something was, so the woman reached in, grabbed a handful, and offered me a taste, which would’ve been impolite to turn down.
In Hue, we met a woman lugging a small cabinet on a yoke, housing a pot of warm tasty ginger soup. Which we tried less than 10 minutes after we finished demolishing three or four small Bahn Mi from a nearby vendor working out of which felt like an empty garage. The problem was not being able to find or afford all these different types of street food; it was being able to have the room to taste everything you came across!
Suzanne Sease is a creative consultant and former ad-agency senior art buyer. She works with both emerging and established photographers and illustrators to create cohesive, persuasive presentations that clients can’t resist.
Suzanne offers something rare: an insider’s perspective on how client’s source creative talent. Her deep understanding of the industry is underscored by her impressive resume: 11 years as senior art buyer at The Martin Agency, seven years as an art producer for Capital One, and stints with the art-buying department at Kaplan-Thaler and the creative department at Best Buy, where she applied her expertise to reviewing bids to see which were most likely to come in on budget. Over the years, Suzanne has worked with a wildly diverse range of clients, including Seiko, Wrangler, Bank One, AFLAC, and Clairol Herbal Essence. Now, as a consultant, she is equipped to problem-solve for her clients from an unusually dynamic point of view.
With the Sigma 17-40mm F1.8 DC | Art lens at his side, photographer and cinematographer Naoki Miyashita visits a Kyoto pottery workshop to find out just how well this modern evolution of a beloved APS-C zoom lens performs.
The R5 Mark II has arrived! It is a good camera but very similar to the old R5 which came out in 2020. I’ve had the original R5 since it came out in October 2020 and the question I want answered is should I buy the new R5 Mark II?
In this post I will strive to answer this question with an honest comparison of these two great cameras.
Taken with the R5.
The old R5 has already been marked down by $1,000 on most websites. Previous generations always get reduced in price prior to the next gen camera’s but it still seems like a bit of a low price for a high quality camera like the R5. It looks like market demand for the R5 has tailed off substantially, and that is true for the R3 and R5C as well. That is why Canon is going for a relatively quick refresh of the R5 after almost exactly 4 years they’re upping the ante with a new R5, the R5 Mark II.
The main thing I want to know is this, is the old R5 at it’s reduced price a good purchase? Below are some stats to help you make sense of this puzzle.
Canon claims that the R5 Mark II is using a stacked sensor with Sony’s BSI technology. Stacked sensors are supposed to be able to “read out” the sensor much faster than the “old technology”. However, when it comes to video rolling shutter, the R5 Mark II performs exactly the same as the original R5. Perhaps the original R5 had a stacked sensor even though it wasn’t marketed as such? Or, maybe Sony’s sensor technology just isn’t that great.
Resolution
The R5 Mark II has the exact same resolution as the current R5.
Readout Speed / Rolling Shutter
The R5 Mark II has faster read out speed when using electronic shutter for still photos only. When using the fully electronic shutter for stills, the new R5 Mark II is more than twice as fast as the original R5 which makes the new R5 a lot better if you like to use electronic shutter… but it still isn’t anywhere close to as fast as a mechanical shutter.
The R5 Mark II’s readout speed remains the same as the R5 for video with a maximum speed around 13 milliseconds. However, the R5 Mark II now adds in 8k 60fps shooting at 13 milliseconds readout speed. This results in a similar readout performance to the original R5 which shot 4k 120fps at its maximum. 4k 120 is equal to 8k 60 in terms of readout performance as 4k 120 is done line skipped in the original R5. Reading half the lines at 120fps is obviously the same speed as reading them all out at 60fps. This type of readout is called “line skipped” readout. The new R5 Mark II, unfortunately, also does 4k 120fps as line skipped, limiting its maximum readout speed to the same as the original R5 for video purposes.
Video Improvements
The R5 Mark II now has 8k 60fps resolution which goes above the original R5’s 8k 30fps video resolution.
The R5 Mark II has also improved upon the dreaded overheating issues the original R5 had, even without the new external cooling battery grip available only for the R5 Mark II.
AF improvements
The R5 Mark II has the same AF system as the original R5 just with more firmware updates. There are no new features other than supposedly better tracking AF. Despite initial reports, I doubt the R5 Mark II will be as good as the R1 when it comes to subject tracking.
Faster CPU
There is no indication that the R5 Mark II has a different CPU when compared to the current R5.
Dynamic Range
According to online review sites, the new R5 Mark II has no dynamic range improvements in stills from 100 ISO to 6400 ISO. In fact, it appears to have slightly less dynamic range than the original R5. It is not known if the new R5 Mark II uses a dual gain sensor like the R5 used, but if it does use a dual gain sensor, it no longer switches to another gain circuit at 400 ISO, instead, this appears to be done at a much higher ISO past 1600.
The R5 has no problem picking up all the details in this scene of a white building with a gigantic white dome.
The 100% view crops below show that there are very few details missing in this shot taken in bright midday sun.
The basic point is, if the R5 isn’t adding more dynamic range then how is it going to make an image like this substantially better?
Well, for video at least, the R5 Mark II is going to add a couple features that some people will want to buy. It appears to have slightly more accurate colors out of camera which is great for people who want a faster workflow. I think the R5’s colors are close enough most of the time but it does require some color grading to look normal.
The R5 Mark II is also supposed to have a lot more dynamic range in video mode when shooting in LOG formats. Camera’s like the R5 C have a lot of dynamic range in LOG getting all the way up to 14 stops, but, the R5 Mark II is supposed to have 16+ stops when shooting LOG. That puts the R5 Mark II less than a stop below the latest and greatest cinema cameras… I know a lot of video people will be interested in that capability.
Ergonomics Updates
The R5 Mark II has slightly changed ergonomics and physical design. The power switch has been moved to the right side of the camera and there is now a fan included in the battery grip which modestly increases recording times for video. There is also a new flash hot shoe which allows the camera to work with Canon’s new lineup of super high-performance flashes.
Bottom Line
The new R5 Mark II is a great camera, which makes sense, since it is nearly the same as the original R5, but now with a few performance updates. Because of all the updates it is now $4,299. And at this price the fully electronic shutter is now competitive with the Nikon Z9, the Canon R3, and the Canon R1. In stills mode the electronic shutter can readout in about 6.3 milliseconds, whereas the original R5 is set to read out in about 16.8 milliseconds for a still photo. Unfortunately, the video readout speeds are just about the same between the two cameras. Because the new R5 Mark II still has overheating as an issue when shooting high resolution video, the sensor is intentionally slowed down to about the same speed as the original R5 to help increase shooting times. On a brighter note, the new R5 Mark II has 16+ stops of dynamic range when shooting in video LOG formats. Since there is no log format for stills, the dynamic range there is just about identical to the original R5. But, getting 16+ stops of dynamic range for 8k 60fps video means the R5 Mark II can definitely deliver some high quality video if called upon to do so.
If you shoot video the new R5 Mark II appears to be an upgrade over the original. However, if you shoot stills, the original R5 doesn’t give up a whole lot compared to the new one. True, you can shoot with the new electronic shutter, but, the good old mechanical shutter is still superior to every camera’s electronic shutter. Yes, the MECHANICAL SHUTTER IS STILL #1. Basically, there’s no point to an electronic shutter just yet, even though random dip shits will say ITS SOOO IMPORTANT. Well, it really isn’t GOOD ENOUGH. If electronic isn’t better than the mechanical shutter then it really isn’t a replacement for the mechanical shutter, is it?
If you really need maximum electronic shutter performance, the R5 Mark II still isn’t good enough in my opinion. It reads out in 6.3 milliseconds which is still quite slow. While it’s not exactly the same, it’s still only as fast to scan as a 1/160th shutter speed. And that means it’s more than 3 times slower than the R1 which reads out in 2 milliseconds. That disparity is partially explained by the lower resolution sensor (24mp vs 45mp), but it isn’t entirely explained by that. All things being equal the R5 should be able to read out in about 3-4 milliseconds.
Ok, the bottom line is this, the new R5 Mark II is a solid camera, but it’s more of a video-oriented camera. If you shoot video, it appears to be better than the original R5, but not really better than the R5 C which doesn’t overheat. For video, the R5 Mark II kind of makes sense if you want 8k 60fps right now, but it overheats even with the fancy battery grip. However, if you don’t need the highest resolution settings, you can enjoy 16+ stops of DR when shooting in LOG. Previously, the only Canon camera with that amount of dynamic range was the C300 Mark III.
For stills shooters the R5 and R5 Mark II are a little close for comfort. Aside from the electronic shutter being improved and the supposed AF improvements, there’s not a lot to get excited about. With the R5 now being about $1,500 cheaper it seems like the better option if you’re a landscape photographer or the like. It remains to be seen how much the R5 Mark II can really improve on its predecessor.
The reality of the world is that images are almost always cropped from what they were in camera no matter how we share them. This is largely due to the constraints of mobile phones where wide aspect ratio images can be hard to view on phones when the phone is held in portrait mode.
The weird thing is that every website or app is a little bit different. Some sites force your images into their own highly restricted crop such as Instagram, and some sites like Flickr don’t care what crop is used. The main concern for using either of those services is how people are most likely to view your images which as far as I know is still a mobile device.
To help photographers deal with this, did you knot that most (if not all) full frame 35mm digital cameras have built in “crop modes” which apply a digital crop to your image in camera?
For example, my camera will shoot in 4 different crop modes (also called aspect ratios). It will shoot in a 4:3 aspect ratio which is the old TV standard for HD television. It will shoot in 1:1 format which is a square format used as we all know on Instagram. It will shoot in 16:9 which is the modern standard for television screens, computer monitors, and many TV shows. Take a look at the comparisons below to get more of an idea of how these different formats relate to each other.
When using these alternate aspect ratios the RAW image remains unaffected. After opening the RAW files in Lightroom a crop will be automatically applied to the image but you can just remove the crop and voila, you’re back to having a full frame image again. If shooting JPG the final image is cropped and the 35mm full frame image can’t be recovered.
Since the RAW file retains the 35mm full frame image a different aspect ratio can be used as a bit of a cheat to help avoid framing mistakes. Say you’re the type who tends to shoot with a tilt or off to the right all the time, or maybe you tend to shoot with the subject low or high and cut off people’s feet. If you’re one of those types then using one of these alternate aspect ratios can force you to frame your images better.
For instance, if you want to make sure you always have room on the sides of your images, you can use the 4:3 crop to force yourself to frame a little wider on your subject. This might be especially useful if you’re shooting fast action such as sports and you want to make sure that there is room in the image to get a nice frame around your subject for publication.
For instance, if I was shooting baseball or basketball where there is usually a focus on what a single player is doing, I might choose to shoot in RAW with the 1:1 crop active. This would force me to put the player close to the center of the frame at all times.
Think of it as a way of making a repetive job a little easier on yourself and you might start to see the benefits of using different crop ratios when you’re taking pictures.
It would be really cool if the camera allowed me to create a couple custom crop ratios for all the different websites out there as well, but, I haven’t heard of a camera that can do that yet.
The R5 can also shoot with a full APS-C crop. Below is a comparison of the full frame area vs the APS-C area.
If you’re far away from the subject, say a bird or other kind of wildlife, then shooting with an APS-C crop not only saves some file size but it can help the photographer get better framing for their final images. It also allows the R5 to work a little more seamlessly with other APS-C cameras if other people happen to be using those.
Despite all this, many if not most photographers will immediately ask why anyone would throw out all those pixels that they paid so much money for in a full frame camera. Well, they honestly have a good point and it’s why I rarely to never use APS-C crop on my camera. For one, while the APS-C crop does offer some logic, it’s really better to use a longer focal length to achieve precise framing. On the R5 a full APS-C crop is still 17.2 megapixels which isn’t too far off from actual crop sensor cameras that are often around 24 megapixels. But it is a far cry from the 45 megapixels of the R5’s full frame sensor. Bottom line: going to APS-C on the R5 throws out more than half the resolution and that would be true with any FF camera that offers the ability to shoot in crop mode.
