Canon EOS RP review: This full-frame mirrorless camera can shake up market

In May 2017, rumours of Canon coming out with a full-frame mirrorless camera had sent the world of photography on the internet into a mini tizzy. Now, it is not that Canon did not have a mirrorless camera range already. It did and the M series was a capable series too. But, alas! It was not full-frame. For the uninitiated, a full-frame camera is one that captures images on a sensor which is the same size as a traditional 35-mm film (remember film cameras of the past?) Most DSLR cameras you see today are APS-C or crop-sensor cameras. These have smaller sensors that capture much smaller frames (22x15 mm). This basically means a full-frame sensor has a surface area which is 2.5 times an APS-C sensor camera. A bigger sensor of course means a much higher price, too. An APS-C is not a problem for most, except pros and people who want to move up the ladder in the serious photography business.

Canon has been a global leader in photography and has had a wonderful full-frame DSLR range, but here we come to the second big point -- a mirrorless camera. Mirrorless cameras represent the evolution of camera species in which Canon had been a slow mover, even as Sony stole the march. Canon’s M series had a different mount (more on mount’s later) and did not have a full-frame version. They were capable cameras but not quite there for the more serious enthusiast.
In 2018, Canon did come out with its first full-frame mirrorless camera, the Canon EOS R. Being part of the EOS family of Canon cameras, this one had the RF mount. A mount is the interface (mechanical and electronic) that allows a lens to fit onto a camera body (where the sensor lies). 

Canon has EF, RFF or EF-M mounts, while Nikon has its own mount. When any serious photographer buys a camera (even if a beginner-level DSLR) he makes a choice as to which universe he wants to be part of. A Canon camera owner would purchase lenses that fit this camera. So, when he eventually upgrades to another device in a few years, he would still be able to use the lenses with this new device. But he might not move to a Nikon or a Sony as the old lenses would become useless or lose some of their functionality (if they use an adapter). This is the reason why the launch of the first full-frame mirrorless Canon camera in 2018 sent its legion of followers into a tizzy. This camera had an RF mount (a new one that allowed old EF lenses to be used as well. An adapter is not supplied in the box, however). They could now step up to a mirrorless camera while using their existing lenses. Earlier this year, Canon launched its second entrant in this field. The Canon EOS RP, the subject of this review. The EOS RP is a 26.2 MP full-frame camera. Its launch is being compared to the launch of the EOS 300D 16 years ago, as that was the first camera to bring large-frame digital photography to the masses. Read Complete Article