EOS M50 - ignoring the woeful 4K, any good for static and action stills in 2020?

Associate
Joined
30 Jul 2009
Posts
77
Been looking around at the mid to upper range micro four thirds offerings, and the EOS M50 ticks 3 main boxes: fully articulated touchscreen, phase detect focusing, mic input.

I realise the 4K implementation on this camera is pants because of the frame crop and disabling of phase detect focusing, though I believe 1080 is fine as it still uses the better phase detect.

So for me, main use is both static and action stills, hence the need for phase detect, and occasional video.

4K would have been nice to have, though.

I've also looked at the vastly overpriced Sony offerings (a6100/6400 etc.), Fujis and Olympus. None of them have fully articulated screens. The Sonies, whilst having good focussing, have next to no touchscreen functionality beyond focus points; the OMD EM10 MkIII uses the older 16MP sensor and wierd UI quirks such as no ability to process panoramic, and I just don't like the retro Fuji look, and older style dial function knobs, aswell as their lenses being expensive.

I love Panasonic UI's, but their equivalent offerings, whilst having great fully articulated touchscreens and great 4K options, are all contrast detect focusing.

So this takes me back to the EOS M50.

I've never used Canon before but they seem to have a widely acknowledged positive UI experience, and though it seems the M50 was a very poor attempt at their first 4K four thirds, and unless i'm missing something, is this the best option I have right now?

Cheap DSLRs would tick all the above, but i'm downsizing for a reason, having sold my Nikon DSLR and lens collection, and don't want to go back to Nikon anyway.

Cheers
 
Soldato
Joined
9 Nov 2009
Posts
24,771
Location
Planet Earth
Those dials and wheels,etc on the Fujis make them quicker to use in the realworld than having to trawl through a 100 menus and button pushes. One is a function wheel which changes modes,and one is for shutter speed and the other is for exposure compensation. The front dial can change aperture and in practice you can change shutter speed,aperture and exposure compensation very quickly on the fly(I have experience with Fuji,Nikon,Canon and Sony menus).

If you look at professional bodies from most of the camera companies they tend to have lots of dials and wheels - because not only is it quicker to access certain functions,but imagine if you are wearing gloves,etc and want to quickly change shutter speed,aperture,exposure compensation,etc then having to start pressing buttons.

Look at the Canon M5 and M6 - they add two additional wheels over the M50. One is shooting mode(like the Fuji),two is exposure compensation(like the Fuji) and the third is custom function wheel(like the Fuji). The Fuji has the extra shutter speed selector. In practice you can hold the camera and use your hand while holding it to change shutter speed,aperture and exposure compensation whilst taking a picture.

The Fuji lenses are expensive since they are all very good - even the kit lenses are quite sharp.

Also the Canon M50 isn't 4/3 its APS-C.

Another thing - from my own experience and the experience of other people I know,the dSLRs might be "old fashioned" but battery life tends to be much better compared to the mirrorless cameras(if you compare equivalent models in the same ranges),so factor in the cost of a few extra batteries.

Another thing is mirrorless isn't always that much smaller than a dSLR,as you can see from some of the Nikon and Canon entry level ones which are not that big,and ultimately lens size is going to be determined to a degree by the sensor size. A Olympus or Panasonic m4/3 might be worth looking at if you want smaller lenses,but then some of their higher end lenses are not that small either.

TBH,I think the best move is to go to a shop and handle some of the cameras and try operating them.
 
Last edited:
Associate
OP
Joined
30 Jul 2009
Posts
77
Ah yeah APSC, so at least i'd benefit from a smaller crop and bigger sensor on the M50. My old DSLR was APSC so i'm fine with that anyway.

I'm not convinced the old school dials always make life easier because in the digital age, there are far more settings than cant be accounted for on a dial; but of course that's our personal preferences, I'm just not a fan of vintage look and feel i guess. I thought i could overlook a viewfinder and just rely on a touch screen, but then thought i might miss it, and it seems this range tends to have EVF's, and some of the lesser ones (Canon GX, Panasonic GX800/880 etc.), seem to have hit and miss pop up EVFs.

Most of all, though, I'm just not willing to overlook contrast detection with the slow response to moving subjects and so on, so Panasonic and Olympus already ruled out in that price point; unless i'm missing something!

The smaller size and weight of the small to medium telephoto M lenses are very appealing to me, as i've had enough of carrying a rucksacks worth of lenses around. I just looked at the combined weight of an EOS 250D + 18-200mm EFS, it's over 1kg! The M50 + M 55-200 is about 550g. I'd definitely notice that!

I take the point about battery life though, many reviewers find similar, though it seems for the average user they seem to hold up for a days shooting, and seems hit or miss whether they support USB charging.

I wonder if there are any M50 users that can offer some feedback on stills/action shooting? Or the Sony a6100 for that matter, as it seems like the equivelant tro the M50, minmus fully artic touch screen.

Cheers
 
Last edited:
Soldato
Joined
3 Dec 2012
Posts
2,699
Location
Northern Ireland
I will try and offer my 2 cents worth as a recent M50 owner myself. My photography journey (coming up on 10 years) has been purely DSLR. I have a 6D mkII and recently purchased a used M50 to second shoot but also for the crop factor for wildlife and football. I've only had one football match to shoot since I got it so my experience is limited in that regard. What I noticed is that the difference between the OVF and EVF will take some adjusting to - for me anyway. I 100% admit I have a lot to learn about mirrorless but with the EVF the action is never 'truly' live and in at least half the shots I took that day I missed the ball, purely because of the minuscule delay. Luckily I had my 6D with me so I was able to use it as a back up.

From my one experience I certainly couldn't recommend JUST mirrorless for action stills. However as I say that is ONE experience. I'm sure over time I will adjust and I can't speak for other mirrorless cameras.

That being said the shots I did get were excellent and to be blunt when I was editing that evening (at normal zoom) I couldn't tell which shots were taken on the 6D and which were from the M50! Obviously I knew the bad shots but once I had filtered them out the good shots were every bit as good - I just found it more difficult to obtain them in the first place.

Sample shots:

M50:
50003GM.jpg


50011GM.jpg


6Dii:

50001GM.jpg


So as you can hopefully gather from the photos in pure IQ terms the M50 is great - they were shot with 300mm f4 L IS.

The 10 FPS on the M50 is excellent so in that regard it is well suited to action shots.
 
Soldato
Joined
14 Mar 2005
Posts
16,815
Location
Here and There...
I had the original eos m and only got rid of it because the focus was naff and canon refuse to invest in the lens line up. The m50 fixes one of those problems at least but canon still show no sign of fixing the other! An m series body with the 22mm f2 on it is a seriously good lightweight option though I still miss mine a little.

I moved to Fuji and really like it the dials are really useful the lenses while expensive are tack sharp and the JPEG’s are so good I’ve stopped shooting RAW most of the time and saved hours of processing time. The 27mm f2.8 isn’t as nice as the canon 22mm f2 though!
 
Last edited:
Soldato
Joined
3 Dec 2012
Posts
2,699
Location
Northern Ireland
I had the original eos m and only got rid of it because the focus was naff and canon refuse to invest in the lens line up. The m50 fixes one of those problems at least but canon still show no sign of fixing the other! An m series body with the 22mm f2 on it is a seriously good lightweight option though I still miss mine a little.

I moved to Fiji and really like it the dials are really useful the lenses while expensive are tack sharp and the JPEG’s are so good I’ve stopped shooting RAW most of the time and saved hours of processing time. The 27mm f2.8 isn’t as nice as the canon 22mm f2 though!
Moving 9,827 miles (according to Google) seems a bit excessive for fancy dials and lenses! Sorry I couldn't help myself :p

I often thought if I were to ever leave Canon it would be for Fuji. I appreciate how they decided they will focus on the APSC market and develop their glass accordingly. Whereas with Canon there's obviously no such thing as APSC 'L' glass which is a shame I think.
 
Soldato
Joined
14 Mar 2005
Posts
16,815
Location
Here and There...
Moving 9,827 miles (according to Google) seems a bit excessive for fancy dials and lenses! Sorry I couldn't help myself :p

I often thought if I were to ever leave Canon it would be for Fuji. I appreciate how they decided they will focus on the APSC market and develop their glass accordingly. Whereas with Canon there's obviously no such thing as APSC 'L' glass which is a shame I think.
Fixed the typo there! Canon have always been a bit funny about L glass as there are a few aps-c lenses in the range that are as good as L but not given the designation for me they could make the M series massively more appealing in about 5 minutes by releasing some compact fast(ish) primes and a pro level kit lens which I don't think would even take them very long and Fuji have proved how successful this can be. they just don't seem interested in that market.
 
Soldato
Joined
15 Dec 2008
Posts
2,681
Location
London
Can't stand my M50. Bought it, used it for one weekend trip, it's been in the crap-box ever since.

Should sell it really. Could point to this post as a thrilling advert for it.
 
Soldato
Joined
3 Dec 2012
Posts
2,699
Location
Northern Ireland
Can't stand my M50. Bought it, used it for one weekend trip, it's been in the crap-box ever since.

Should sell it really. Could point to this post as a thrilling advert for it.
What didn't you like about it? Did you use it for photos or videos?
Also, do you have an alternative camera or a recommendation for one?
 
Soldato
Joined
15 Dec 2008
Posts
2,681
Location
London
Wanted a travel camera that was easier to lug about, just seemed a massive compromise for everything - especially video. Wasn't particularly happy with the photos either. I'm not a brilliant photographer, I just found I had to put a lot more effort in with it to get the photos looking how I wanted.

I am a bit spoilt for camera gear though - I've got an A7R mk 4 and an A7/3 for example.

I replaced the M50 with an RX100.
 
Soldato
Joined
14 Mar 2005
Posts
16,815
Location
Here and There...
Wanted a travel camera that was easier to lug about, just seemed a massive compromise for everything - especially video. Wasn't particularly happy with the photos either. I'm not a brilliant photographer, I just found I had to put a lot more effort in with it to get the photos looking how I wanted.

I am a bit spoilt for camera gear though - I've got an A7R mk 4 and an A7/3 for example.

I replaced the M50 with an RX100.
Video was never going to be a strong point, as a still camera though while it's never going to match the A7R it shouldn't have fared that badly especially if you are happy with the RX100 which is admittedly massively more pocket able! Definitely sell it seems pointless keeping it if you hate it so much it will only be worth less when you finally get round to it!
 
Soldato
Joined
15 Dec 2008
Posts
2,681
Location
London
Oh I'm sure it was just me being overly fussy and therefore a bit more disappointed than perhaps it deserved. I use the RX100 for it's role now - that camera is properly awesome considering it's size, but then it was a fair bit more expensive.
 
Back
Top Bottom