Dano wrote:
I'm currently using a Canon EOS 80d (which has been great for my needs) but have been thinking about moving to a full frame. I mostly shoot portrait, some sports, and am currently getting into cave photography. My rationale for full frame is mostly to take full advantage of the L glass that I have and to increase low-light capabilities (my #1 motivator). My two primary constraints are price (trying to stay around or under $1k for a body so I can stay married) and size (anything larger than the 80d will be challenging based on how I transport my equipment, especially when caving, which knocks out the 5d's).
I've been looking at both the 6d mark II and the mirrorless RP as a replacement for my 80d. I know all 3 of these have very similar technology, but both full frames would give me a significant bump in IOS. Both choices would compromise burst speed and max shutter speed, but I don't think either of these would be a limiting factor. I am a bit concerned about using EF lens on an RP body, but I think this is only because I don't have any experience with mirrorless.
Any thoughts, experience, or opinions would be greatly appreciated, especially since this is close to a lateral move.
I'm currently using a Canon EOS 80d (which has bee... (
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I don't have either camera, so these are just my thoughts about them based upon what I have seen, heard, read, etc...
Both RP and 6DII are full frame, 26MP cameras. Both have a fully articulated rear LCD Touch Screen and the same ISO range (100-40,000 native, expands to 50 and 102,400).
The mirrorless RP is selling for $1000 and is significantly smaller and lighter than the 6DII. It is rated to be able to use slightly higher ISO. This is probably mostly due to the RP's 1-generation-newer processor and improved firmware. It also has an electronic viewfinder that can be very helpful in low light conditions with it's "exposure simulation". The RP's AF system covers almost the entire image area (vs 45 points that are largely centered) and has face/eye detection. It can shoot 4K video (vs HD in the 6DII).
The biggest concerns with the RP might include that it uses the smaller LP-E17 battery (vs LP-E6N the 6DII uses) and is rated to get far fewer shots per charge. Because it's EVF uses a lot of power the RP is rated to be able to do 250 shots per charge, while the 6DII with its optical viewfinder is rated to do 1200 per charge. Neither camera has a built in flash, which is another heavy draw on camera batteries. This may or may not be a concern, depending upon how many shots you typically shoot in a day. If it's a lot, extra batteries might be needed.
Some other concerns include that the RP is slower shooting. It's max is 5 frames per second, where the 6DII can do 6.5 fps. Also during continuous shooting the RP's EVF will have some "blackout" (later R-series do better at this). Look on Youtube for RP reviews by Froknowsphoto (Jared Polin) and others. Some of the reviews demonstrate this by directly filming what's seen through the viewfinder. This blackout may not be any concern unless you do a lot of long, continuous bursts, it's something many people become accustomed to and there's actually a little blackout with an optical viewfinder like the 6DII's, too... though it's less noticeable.
To use your existing EF lenses on the RP will require an adapter. Many users report little difference in focus performance with adapted lenses. In fact, many find them to be sharper, because mirrorless cameras like the RP have no need for focus calibration because their focus sensors are located directly in the image sensor, on exactly the plane of focus.... where DSLRs use mirrors to redirect the image to AF sensors, usually located in the bottom of the mirror box. The alignment of the mirror is critical and there's usually some very slight error, which can be corrected to an extent with the camera's Focus Calibration feature, on a lens by lens basis.
In a DSLR like the 6DII there is some light "lost" to the semi-transparent mirror used to redirect the image up into the viewfinder. The RP is mirrorless, so the AF sensors get 100% of the light transmitted through the lens. As a result, the RP is rated to be able to autofocus as low as -5EV, two stops lower than the 6DII. This means the RP needs only 25% as much light for AF to function. Another benefit of this is that the RP can work with "slower" lens/teleconverter combos... The 6DII is pretty good for a DSLR, able to focus "f/8 combos" with at least one and sometimes more AF points (with select lenses and TCs). But the RP can focus with f/11 and possibly even f/16, with most or all it's AF points.
The RP also has a more sensitive metering system. It covers the range from -3EV to +20EV, compared to 1EV to +18EV in the 6DII. However, the 6DII has a larger range of Exposure Compensation available: +/- 5 stops, compared to +/- 3 stops in the RP. Both cameras have the same mechanical shutter range 30 seconds to 1/4000 second and both have a 1/180 flash sync. Both cameras are fully functional with Canon EX flashes.
The RP has a "silent mode" using an electronic shutter. But unlike some other mirrorless, it does not offer any faster shutter speeds than the mechanical shutter. Note that electronic shutter can have problematic "rolling shutter" effects with some types of lighting and with fast moving objects. The upcoming and far more expensive R3 is using a back side illuminated sensor for much faster readout in an effort to minimize these problems... only a truly global shutter where the readout is instantaneous across the entire sensor will ever completely eliminate rolling shutter effects.
The 6D Mark II is selling for $1400, body only. Neither the RP nor the 6DII have IBIS. They both use SD memory cards and have a single slot.
Both cameras have self-cleaning sensors. The 6DII has an advantage that it's sensor is deeper inside the body and hiding behind a mirror and a shutter most of the time, which helps protect it from dust. The RP's sensor, on the other hand, is fully exposed any time the lens is removed. Plus it sits pretty far forward in the body. It's likely to be more susceptible to dust... and some care must be taken not to touch or damage the sensor during lens changes. (Note: This is a problem with other mirrorless, too. However Canon has made changes to later models so R6, R5 and presumably R3 have shutter that by default closes over and protects the sensor any time the lens is removed.)
The 6DII can optionally be fitted with a BG-E21 vertical battery grip that doubles battery capacity, as well as providing helpful secondary, vertical controls (the Canon OEM grip costs $200... there are cheaper 3rd party clones that perform similarly, but may not be as nicely made or durable). The RP is not designed to work with a battery grip and Canon doesn't offer one. 3rd party manufacturer Vello does offer an inexpensive one, but it's rather "funky" in how it works. It does increase battery capacity and provide a grip, but the only secondary control is a shutter release button and for that to work an external cable wire needs to be connected to the camera.
The future is mirrorless. Canon is adding RF-mount lenses regularly, has 25 of them now and more planned for the future. We will probably have over 30 to choose among this time next year. At the same time, Canon is discontinuing EF lenses and hasn't introduced a new DSLR model in a year or two. Within the last couple months Canon announced 24 EF/EF-S lenses were no longer going to be available, out of a total of 80 or 90 lenses total in that system at it's peak of production. There had been some others discontinued more quietly prior.
In the end, if it were me making this decision, based upon your criteria, between these two models I'd choose the RP. Compared to the 6DII, the RP's upsides greatly outweigh a few mostly minor shortcomings. And it's a move to a system with a future, rather than hanging in with the older system that will be gradually phased out over the coming years. (This is from someone currently using a bunch of EOS DSLRs and around 20 EF/EF-S lenses... who will sooner or later end up transitioning to the mirrorless cameras, too.)