Canon’s EOS R50 revealed as a superb successor to M50 bestseller

Last Updated: February 28, 2023

Canon’s EOS R50 APS-C mirrorless camera has now also been revealed for pre-order in both body-only and body/lens combo editions.

It has the look and specs of a revamped, improved version of the best-selling M50 and is the most affordable R-Series camera yet made.

In other words, this new release lets M50 fans get to keep enjoying all that they loved about that older mirrorless edition but with new access to a whole range of RF-mount lenses and some new features.

For casual photographers, street photographers, beginner shooters, and traveling photographers who want to go beyond simple smartphone photography without spending too much, this is great news if they’re Canon fans.

The R50 is also a great device for vloggers thanks to its video creation features, which it also shares with the older M50.

The EOS R50 is Canon’s lightest and smallest camera so far, weighing even less than the M50 it replaces. This compact shooter measures just 0.83 lb or 13.23 oz and comes sized at 116 x 86 x 69 mm (4.57 x 3.39 x 2.72 inches). Despite this, it comes quite packed with specs and features.

The features and specs in the R50 are solid across the board for its price tag. They include a 24.2MP APS-C sensor that’s the same as the one in Canon’s R10, the latest Digic X processor to power that sensor and a 15fps continuous electronic shutter shooting speed.

The above shooting speed is actually superior to that of other pricier Canon R family cameras such as the R8, which was released at the same time as the R50.

The R50 also features Dual Pixel CMOS AF II technology and a 2.36-million-dot OLED viewfinder with .96x magnification. Its LCD screen on the other hand is a 1.62-million-dot display that comes with touch control features.

Just as is the case in the EOS R8, the R50 doesn’t come with a fully mechanical shutter. Instead, it contains an electronic front curtain shutter and electronic shutter functionality for its 15fps shooting speed.

canon eso r50 camera

Because this is a budget camera, it also lacks certain more advanced features like AI-based subject detection (which you probably won’t need anyhow) and in-body image stabilization (which would definitely be a great thing to have.)

Users who want their images to be more stable while shooting quickly will thus have to spend some extra money on an image-stabilized Canon RF-mount lens to go with the little R50.

Fortunately, the 55-210mm lens that’s available in one of the kits for this camera models comes with image stabilization.

The EOS R50 can shoot photos in JPEG and HEIF both while also having RAW and C-RAW capture capacity. It can also deliver burst shooting at up to 28fps if only capturing photos in JPEG format while using its purely electronic shutter.

For video creators and vloggers, the EOS R50 is promising to be just as good or better than the M50 as a highly-rated vlogging camera.

It can record uncropped 4K video at 30p with 6K oversampling and is capable of shooting 1080p FHD video at up to 120p if audio is turned off. With audio on, it can shoot 1080p at a more modest 60fps.

There’s also support for vertical video, which is useful for rapid social media posting. Other social media-friendly aspect ratios are also available for quick and easy uploading to platforms like TikTok and Instagram.

One other cool video shooting feature in the EOS R50 is that it doesn’t have the 30-minute shooting limit of previous Canon cameras. Instead, it can record for as long as an hour at a time.

Canon has also given this camera focus breathing correction for sharper, more stable video recording and audio noise reduction as well.

Another useful feature in the R50 is that it can be connected to computers as a no-setup webcam and streaming video device via UVC/UAC connectivity.

Just like the EOS R8, the R50 comes with an A+ creative mode setting in its physical dial. The A+ modes in this model let complete beginner photographers sink their teeth into shooting with different creative styles without having to learn the ins and outs of manual settings at first.

Canon has made a wonderful little beginner, street photographer and travel photographer’s camera out of all the specs and features offered by the EOS R50.

It’s hard to believe that it won’t sell exceptionally well among fans of standalone cameras.

The Canon EOS R50 is already available for preorder but will start shipping in early spring in both black and white versions.

The body-only edition is pre-order retailing for $680 while also being available as an EOS R50 kit with RF-S 18-45mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM lens for $799 or with the 18-45mm f/4.5-6.3 and RF-S 55-210mm f/5-7.1 IS STM lens for $1,029.

photo of canon eos r50 camera with two lenses

Twitter Facebook Pinterest

Highly Recommended

8 Tools for Photographers

Check out these 8 essential tools to help you succeed as a professional photographer.

Includes limited-time discounts.

Learn more here

Stephan Jukic Shotkit Journalist, Writer & Reviewer

Stephan Jukic is a technology and photography journalist and experimental photographer who spends his time living in both Canada and Mexico. He loves cross-cultural street photo exploration and creating fine art photo compositions.