Canon R5/R6 Crop Mode…..Is it usable?

Canon R6 Camera body

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Back in November 2021 I upgraded from my Canon 80D to a Canon R6, I finally made it into the mirrorless camera world. Now it’s been just over a year that I have had it and 2.5 years since it was first released. I won’t go over all the features and this is not a review though I may do my own personal take in the future , what I want to talk it about is the built in “crop mode” which I don’t hear a lot of People talk about. Now both the R6 and R5 have it and I presume the R3 as well and the new R6 mkii has a different version of the internal crop mode. I could be wrong but I assume most don’t take advantage of this feature, especially on the R6 model. But we will go over why, even with the R6 I think it can still be a usable feature in certain circumstances so grab a drink sit down and join me as I go over what I think are pros and cons of the Built in crop mode.

Lets start with how to get to the crop mode setting, I have been asked how you even get to it on the camera a few times, and if you don’t know it’s there I can see how you could overlook it. First off with your camera on click the menu button on the touch screen press the Q button at the top right corner, from there on the bottom left select Cropping/Aspect ratio and on the bottom of the screen you will see your options such as 1:1, 4:3, 16:9. But the second option right beside Full is the 1.6 crop option select this and it magnifies what you see and what the sensor see’s. So now you know how to get to the crop mode now let’s look at how this impacts your image and what you can do with it.

Shot with Canon R6 in 1.6 crop mode

The down sides of the 1.6 crop mode show up more on the R6 rather than the R5, primarily because of the fact that it reduces the megapixels your sensor is using. On the R5 this is less of an issue since it starts with 45 MP and once crop mode its activated you go to 17 megapixels, which is still plenty to work with for most applications. On the other hand the R6 drops from 20 megapixels down to 7 megapixels, this will limit what you can do with the image in post and for print applications. How many megapixels you need for what application is a hot topic and I wont go into it here but so far when I have employed the function its been just fine, though I am particular about the situations I use it in and sometimes I make use of it just to get some more reach to better identify a subject farther away then I can easily see. When post processing an image you took in crop mode its more or less the same except you probably don’t want to crop it anymore as you don’t have a lot of resolution to work with. This is the major draw back to using it with the Canon R6 vs. R5, so I would say its imperative you get the composition right when you take the shot. As for the rest of the edits you may do, such as exposure adjustment’s and colour grading should be just fine.

Shot with Canon R6 in 1.6 crop mode

So what are the upside’s that I have found in using the crop mode and times when it works for me, well one of the most simplest uses is just to get a tighter shot to help identify a subject that’s farther off. This would never be a shot I would use for a portfolio image but in loo of not having a good set of binoculars (which I really need ) this is an option, albeit yes a waste of battery and more so used when I have one of my longer lenses on for wildlife oppose to short wide angle lenses. But I have also found it useful for photographing smaller song birds to get nice tighter shots when they are perched on a branch or maybe a nice tight head shot of some waterfowl. The trick here I have would be when I am staying stationary, sitting at a location with my camera on my tripod and using the crop mode in conjunction with straight full frame to get different or unique shots. Now it’s probably best to use this mode on a tripod or monopod as any movement from you will be more noticeable and can ruin your image also be sure to switch your aspect ratio back to full afterwards, I have made this mistake myself and that can certainly impact your shoot. I should also note that if you are walking through a forest or park, or wherever you may be out shooting, being in crop mode could make it harder to find your subject in the view finder. This also goes for tracking birds in flight, this can be difficult with longer focal lengths let alone setting the 1.6 internal crop mode.

In the end should this be your main way of getting more reach out of your camera, well no I don’t think so. Teleconverters will work much better allowing for the full sensor resolution, there is also the fact that you could crop in on the image after if you need too, both of these would probably be my first recommendations to use. That or practice getting closer to your subjects with out making them uncomfortable of course or when possible use a longer reach lens as well. If you made it this far thanks for reading and I hope you gained something from it, if I have missed any points you think are worth noting please don’t hesitate to leave a comment with your thought’s, or just leave a simple greetings.

Shot with Canon R6 in 1.6 Crop mode

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My Gear for 2022…

Well it's 2022 and a lot has changed, I've upgraded some gear from camera body to backpack and everything in between. I am going to lay out in this updated kit post everything I will be using and what I will be using it for.

*Disclosure ....Below I have a few affiliate links to some of the products I use. If you click a link it will open a new tab to that company's website where you can check out the products and if you happen to purchase something from them I may receive a small commission from it at no extra cost to you.

Watch the video here……My Gear Video

Photography Gear

Canon Eos R6 - This is the biggest addition to my kit, I purchased it back in the fall after going back and forth over many options at the time. This was a massive upgrade from the Eos 80d that had served me well for years, but it was time for a full frame camera. Other considerations was a Canon 5dmk1V or the R5. I chose the R6 over the 5dmk1V for a few reasons, mainly faster fps and future proofing. As for choosing it over the R5, well primarily cost and other then much higher resolution there was just not enough other differences at this point to justify the cost. Not just the cost of the body but the memory cards start around $200.00 and go up from there. I am happy with my choice as I said its still a massive upgrade from my crop sensor Eos 80d and one I will be happy with for some time to come. I will continue to shoot landscapes but also will be focusing more on wildlife which should be even more fun with the R6.

Lenses

I will be pairing my R6 with 3 different lenses for now, starting with my primary for wildlife the Sigma 150-600mm f5.6/6.3 C. This lens has rarely left my camera since the fall and I have very much neglected my other 2, but I have been shooting a lot more wildlife and have been really taking time to get used to this lens and body combination. I use the Sigma Prominently for wildlife photography but also some intimate landscape work as well. My second lens is my old Canon 70-200mm F4 is, this lens is my all a rounder anything from landscapes, wildlife to close ups of plants and insects. The lens is old but I find it to be a very sharp and capable lens, I plan to get back to using this more often this year. Finally my third lens I have and have had for awhile its a "nifty fifty'', a little cheap canon 50mm f1.8 stm. I have used this lens maybe 5 times in the past but just maybe this year I will get it out more often, maybe even in a you tube video where it is the only lens I can use who knows.

Video Gear

Video gear is newer to me, I have made a handful of videos for you tube and all have been filmed with a low budget out of date action camera. The safari 4k is not terrible and will have a place for now in my bag but more of a back up or used somewhere I dot mind if it gets banged around. Now my old main photography camera will be getting a second life as my video camera to record hopefully better content for my you tube channel. Its paired with a sigma 18-250mm lens and a rode shotgun mounted mic ( or so the plan hopefully goes ). This camera does not have 4k and I think personally don't mind 1080 is all I really need for the level of quality, plus I can us the R6 from time to time for 4k if I really need it.

Bags and Accessories

I'll try to keep this section from getting to long in the tooth, but I make no promises.

Lowepro Flipside Trek450 - I spent hours searching for a camera bag and ended up on the Flipside Trek450, the biggest version of this bag. It has enough room to hold my main camera and 3 lenses though its a bit tight with the big Sigma 150-600mm, but honestly I usually walk with camera and one lens on in hand anyways. It has lots of room for filters extra batteries a rain jack and whatever else I may need in a day outing. Id like to add one more bigger bag in the future for extended excursions maybe something from Fstop gear or Shimoda Designs.

Neewer tripod and gimbal - My tripod has not changed but I have now added a gimbal that I also picked up from neewer as well. This has made photographing wildlife so much more enjoyable though I must admit I don't use it as much as I planned on. Primarily because it with the tripod are heavy and I do a lot of hiking so carrying the extra weight is not always fun. I plan to make myself use this out on location much more often to take some strain of my shoulders, and maybe carrying the extra weight will be good exercise too. If you click my affiliate link for Neewer and find a product you might like I also have a coupon code KEVINJMURRPHOTOGRAPHY15 which will save you 15% off your purchase, not a bad deal!!!

Accessories - I have jumbled the following into one category for ease of organization, the behind the scenes gear of the photography world. For instance batteries to power everything which I have 3 from canon with 2 canon chargers as well as 2 batteries from neewer as well as a dual charger for them with a USB connection. I have one Samsung ssd external hard drive and a western digital 4TB HDD. A lens cleaning kit from Ziess, a two drive raid from Western digital for backing up my archive and also a Jackery portable power station for extended off grid trips. finally and assortment of memory cards ranging from 32 gigs to 128 gigs of memory. Last but not least I also have a Nisi Optics filter kit version V5 ( older model ). With it I have the mount and adapters, Circular polarizer and an ND 6 stop and 8 stop filter. I will also be expanding on this system in the future.

While the above might not be a complete list it is what I use regularly on a trip out in the field shooting.

Post processing and Editing

Acdsee utlimate - My go to editing platform for photo editing and organizing, I have tried some of the other editing software and always comeback to this one. I highly recommend you check them out and give it a try.

Luxea - A video editing platform from Acdsee that I use to edit videos for you tube and other projects. Something I'm still new at and learning more tricks as I go but I have found Luxea to be simple and easy to learn with.

Computer and Monitor - I'm a PC user and always will be, My system is still the same and consists of an Alienwear Laptop from my gamer days ( 2012 era, lol ). Also my ASUS pro art 27 inch screen which gives a great representation of what my images will look like in print. Speaking of printing I couple this set up with a Canon pixma pro-100 for prints, but if I am being honest I have not actually printed and image in a long time ( if you are interested in a print get in touch By Email ).

As always there is more I would like to add or change/update but things take time and money to acquire. In the nearer future I hope to add an Rf 24-104 F4 lens to my kit. Of course there are other lens improvements I could chase after but this kinda of stuff is not cheap and should really only be purchased once you are at a point of it being justifiable. Aside from hoping to add the one RF glass to my kit I would like to upgrade my computer, I have been looking at a Dell XPS more power and more storage space, but for now I will continue to ride on this old Alienware until there becomes some space in the budget for an upgrade.

Thanks for stopping by, stay safe and see you out there...