RKH Loc: Bay Area CA

I was looking around at the Adorama website and noticed the following:

Canon EOS M3 Mirrorless Digital Camera (24.2 APS-C sensor) Kit, with EF-M 18-55mm F3.5/5.6 IS STM Lens, and Mount Adapter EF-EOS M for $599. To add the EVF-DC1 electronic viewfinder for $2.00 The list price on these products is $1,201 ($999+$202 for the view finder). Two of the most complained points from the reviews are 1) the lack of/cost of the exterior viewfinder and 2) lack of available lenses.

For a total of $601.00 (50% off), it includes an adapter that can utilize your existing EF and EF-s lenses, an electronic viewfinder and a STM 18-55 kit lens. Is it a good deal? Based on what I can find on the reviews, the EOS M3 model is significantly improved from the original EOS M model.

Would like to hear your comments, especially from existing Canon M users. Thanks.

mas24 Loc: Southern CA

There's a very lengthy review of this camera on DP Review. Check out their pros and cons about this camera.

Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

Canon executives have made comments that they feel that they need to do better in the field of mirror less cameras, and have hinted at some significant announcements later this year and into next year. Unless you are in a hurry for some reason it may be beneficial to wait. The Canon Rumors website has periodic commentary on this topic.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

I guess the Canon Pellix with a non-movable, semi-transparent mirror from the late 60s doesn't count...

Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

It may be 'less of a mirror', but I think you are correct!

BebuLamar

No it doesn't count. If it does then you have to count many of the Canon rangefinders as well. And did you ever heard of the term mirrorless back then? So really the term mirrorless means more than just a camera without the mirror (and I am sure the first camera ever made didn't have a mirror).

Cdouthitt Loc: Traverse City, MI

Skip canon (and Nikon for that matter) for mirrorless. They're down at the bottom of the mirrorless food chain.

Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

I think that is a very fair assessment at this point in time, but I do expect it to change in the next year or so, but the future is hard to predict. Of the people that I know with mirror less cameras they also express some issues, especially with EVFs and battery life etc. I expect that mirror less offerings from all vendors will continue to evolve fairly rapidly. If I wanted one right now (which I don't) even though I am a long time Canon user I would not buy a Canon mirror less. With an adapter you should be able to use your Canon lenses on several different brands. How much capability and what level of performance you get will probably vary, but if Canon does introduce a decent mirror less later this year then I would imagine it will be hard to give the earlier EOS M bodies away.

Cdouthitt Loc: Traverse City, MI

Battery life is an easy one to over come...just carry a few more.

RKH Loc: Bay Area CA

Thank you all for your assessments. I was considering getting a mirror less or point and shoot for travelling camera. I currently use Canon exclusively. Really appreciate your in-valuable inputs.

The Canon EOS M3 was just introduced 6 months ago; is Canon really ready to announce a new model? Apparently, there was a M2 model but it was never made available in the U.S.

Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

That is the word on the street as quoted from interviews with senior Canon executives. The message is basically that they realize the mirror less market is important and that so far their products have not been good enough, so they plan to release new mirror less products and lenses beginning in late 2016. These things are always tightly held, but as I mentioned earlier, the Canon Rumors website is a useful source of pretty good information.

If you really want something in the short term there are better mirror less cameras than the Canon ones on the market, and with an adapter you can use your existing Canon lenses. As was said, even if they do burn through batteries with EVFs etc, you can always carry a pocketful. Despite what some of the mirror less fans will say they have their advantages and disadvantages as all products do, and only you can decide what works best for yourself.

My personal and speculative opinion is that Canon knows exactly what it is doing and has been dipping the odd toe in the water with its mirror less offerings and is also letting other vendors do the pioneering work while they watch and wait. After all Canon is the market leader in DSLRs and that market isn't going away anytime soon. Why pick a battle in the early days when you can let the young pretenders fight between themselves until it becomes really clear what the customer requirements really are, especially if it is only going to dilute a market that you are the leader in. I doubt that mirror less cameras are going to increase the market much, let alone offset the decline in P&S cameras being replaced by smartphones. If and when Canon does come out with a decent and competitive EOS M system I would expect the current set of EOS M bodies to become paper weights very rapidly. In the longer term, I would expect to see a fusion of mirror less and DSLR form factor occur. EVFs are not yet equal to optical viewfinders, but many of the attributes of mirror less cameras such as focus peaking, zebras and so on are very useful. There is no technical reason why Canon can't implement those things on its DSLRs today. The unofficial Magic Lantern run time software for certain Canon models proves that beyond any doubt.

It wouldn't surprise me if Nikon isn't doing something similar, but I don't track those guys. Others on the forum may.

Good luck in your quest.

RKH Loc: Bay Area CA

Hi Peterff,

Thank you so much for your insight. I really appreciate you are taking the time to share your thoughts on mirror less.

Raymond

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

YES, skip Canikon.

Strategy: certain Olympus, Panasonic, Sony and Fujifilm bodies can use Canon EF lenses WITH automation features (how much varies by brand) IF you use them with the right "smart" adapter. MetaBones SpeedBoosters are the most advanced adapters.

Of course, EXCELLENT pro-grade lenses are also available for these four excellent brands.

For many, however, it makes more sense to build a new system. I'm an old Nikon and Canon user, and that's what I did. I don't have enough old glass that I can't unload it on someone else without crying... And I can't justify having two SpeedBoosters (Canon and Nikon mounts) for lenses I use maybe 2% of the time.

Whatever you do, study your options carefully. Each brand has carved out a specialty niche for itself. Get the one that makes the most sense for what you want to photograph.

mas24 Loc: Southern CA

Wilderness Images Loc: Apache Junction, AZ.

I have owned a Canon EOS M for a few years now, before I bought it I did a lot of research on its good and bad points so I was pretty well aware of what I was getting myself into. I do a lot of hiking in the Arizona mountains so I needed a good camera that was light, small and took good photos. The EOS M met those requirements so I have never felt that I should have bought something else.

The camera is very sturdy and has taken some tumbles but it has never been sent in for repair. I purchased a lens adapter so that I can use some of my old FD lens (from the AE-1 days) and I have extended it abilities. The Canon touch screen and menu layout is fast and easy to catch on to, I just wish the screen would tilt for those high and low shots.

The M3 seems to have resolved several of the issues and upgraded the sensor from 18mp to its current 24.2, added some NFC and a tilt screen but the battery life remains a problem unless you buy a couple of spares. I think the pricing on the camera is a bit high and if Canon expects to be a competitor in the mirrorless market they have got to go all out. I tried the Sony a6000 several times but was spoiled by the ease of navigating through the Canon menus and the frustration of trying to find the setup features in the Sony (and the lack of a touchscreen). After a user break-in period the lack of an EVF is not such an insurmountable problem....(think cell phone camera).

Six months ago I purchased the Samsung NX500 and its been in for repair two times now, by comparison the Samsung is like a spendy toy but it has many of the advanced features that I was looking for (I love the photos from the 28.2mp sensor) . The construction of the Samsung, body or lens, can't compare with the solid little Canon. I had thought about selling my EOS M but after the experience with the Samsung, I'm going to need a reliable backup.

I think the M3 could be a handy traveling companion but it seems priced on the high side yet when compared with features offered by the competition.
Jack