About to sell my 5D3 for an R8. Am I making a mistake?

I'm in the process of selling my 5D3 so I can pickup an R8. The more I read about these newer cameras the more I keep asking myself if I'm making a mistake.

On one hand, I really like that the newer cameras have eye-AF and flip screens. That'll be super helpful with photographing my 2 year old. The tracking would also be great for pictures of our dogs. Better video quality would be amazing as well since my wife is wanting to start doing some videos for some personal side projects to share some info.

What has me worried are these drawbacks. I'll have to start worrying about artificial light flickering which I've never worried about with the 5D. Then there is the issue of the electronic first curtain shutter having an impact on the out of focus areas in higher shutter speeds. Then to top it off, it sounds like some of these high speed sync shots I like to do with a strobe aren't going to work.

I feel like this is just a hard decision because it seems like I'm giving up a lot and going into the unkown with a new system. Does anyone have any input that might help me out on this?

My initial question is why the need to change? If the original camera is working for you, does that outweigh the trade offs?

I have the R5 and use the mechanical shutter for shooting in LED light situations, I'm not sure of the R8 has a MS, even then I shoot sequential to pick the best image so I don't have to guess what speed they are recycling at.

Plus there's the cost of going native glass, unless you are satisfied using the RF adapter, but some lenses work better than others, especially if you've been using 3rd party versions.

If you're looking to upgrade the video then perhaps a 5DM4 is a better choice for now?

I bought myself an R3. That I haven't regret. But I probably would have, if I hadn't kept my DSLR cameras too.

I was in this quandary 3 months ago. I even pre-ordered a R8... Then I realized that it doesn't have IBIS and dual card slot, so I cancelled my order and got a R6MkII instead. I kept the 5DIII, but haven't touched it since. I like the R6II rendering a little bit better (the R8 has the same sensor). The mechanical shutter fps is almost the same with the 5DIII, but, as you know, there is not 1st curtain flash (like the R6II has). I am not doing much flash photography anymore, so for me, it doesn't matter.

Sounds like the R6II might be the perfect match for you, if you can justify the expense. Also, you might wish to check out the outgoing model, the R6.

I've used my 1DX and 1DX Mark II several times even after getting the R3. The R3 isn't best at all things.

R8 is nothing, but bumped up RP.
Same miserable 2,360,000 Dot EVF with same miserable LP-E17 which will be dead even faster with IBIS.

Before buying any camera with EVF, check its EVF. I have to yet find EVF which is on-pair with OVF for panning.

I went with RP with idea to replace 5D MKII. It was wrong idea. Got rid of RP (two months out of warranty it needed 400 USD repair because of cheap on/off switch).

RP continuous AF for dog tracking was not a problem, but EVF was struggling to render anything moving fast and non-linear. Not enough processing power. I doubt R8 has more of it.

Putting decent L on this small body was odd experience. Terribly front balanced, have to hold the lens while walking with camera on the neck strap. R8 is no difference.
And bulky EF-R adapter makes entire rig looks ugly.

For me it took a while to get comfortable with mirrorless but now I prefer it, mainly for the size and the autofocus. One concern of the R8 is the tiny battery so that's something to consider, you'll probably want at least 2 batteries. If you're using a camera for travel, I think you'll appreciate the small size of the R series. However, If you're happy with the 5d3 ( which is an excellent camera ) I'd probably wait. I'd bet by holiday time the R8 will be reduced in price so maybe save and have both bodies for a while.

If you do switch I find the adaptor works well, in fact some of my lenses perform better than they did on my EOS bodies.

kf095 wrote in post #19506297
Before buying any camera with EVF, check its EVF. I have to yet find EVF which is on-pair with OVF for panning.

Have you tried the R3? In good light I think it's decent. When the light is dim not so much.

kf095 wrote in post #19506297
Putting decent L on this small body was odd experience. Terribly front balanced, have to hold the lens while walking with camera on the neck strap. R8 is no difference.
And bulky EF-R adapter makes entire rig looks ugly.

The adapter is 3oz and looks like a TC. As to the lens plus body dynamics, not sure about you, but I hold the lenses now when they are attached to my DSLRs. And my gear straps/harnesses already point my cameras downward so the lens points to the ground on their own, no issues there either.

The battery might be a concern on the R8, but canon, I believe, has worked on power needs and it should be better than the RP.

Of course with the price of the R8 there will indeed be some shortcomings, one has to decide if the strengths outweigh that.

Like so many others, I have both DSLRs and mirrorless, and my mirrorless get used 3/4 off the time over the DSLRs. So the fact that so many that have both, likely use their mirrorless more, is a testament unto itself.

I feel like there are a handful of folks that should start a Mirrorless Haters or DSLR Anonymous thread, lol.

I use my R3 more than the 1DX and 1DX Mark II. After all, it's more modern and has a few functions the other two don't.
But I do use the older ones too. And for some more special tasks, they are better.

No. I'm trying to avoid one kilogram cameras.

kf095 wrote in post #19506297
R8 is nothing, but bumped up RP.
Same miserable 2,360,000 Dot EVF with same miserable LP-E17 which will be dead even faster with IBIS.

Before buying any camera with EVF, check its EVF. I have to yet find EVF which is on-pair with OVF for panning.

I went with RP with idea to replace 5D MKII. It was wrong idea. Got rid of RP (two months out of warranty it needed 400 USD repair because of cheap on/off switch).

RP continuous AF for dog tracking was not a problem, but EVF was struggling to render anything moving fast and non-linear. Not enough processing power. I doubt R8 has more of it.

Putting decent L on this small body was odd experience. Terribly front balanced, have to hold the lens while walking with camera on the neck strap. R8 is no difference.
And bulky EF-R adapter makes entire rig looks ugly.

The R8 doesn't have IBIS. The RP/R8 EVF is fine and the body works great with my EF 11-24, 24-70II, 70-200III.

for the price, get the R7, mo' betta.

or go for the R5. If there was no R7, I'd go for the R5.

kf095 wrote in post #19506731
No. I'm trying to avoid one kilogram cameras.

Yes, I know, it's a bit light. But still useful, even if it feels a bit flimsy with a larger lens mounted.