Canon R7 + Sigma 150-600 C: Heaven on budget? (Field test) 

Thank you for this clarification, and thank you very much for this video! Maybe could you make a test with a small toy at 5m for example? (recording the screen like you did in this video, the quality is good enough!) Maybe you are a lucky guy with a combo which has a limited pulsing :).

@@remifuentes1893 I did some testing, and the closer I was, the more noticable the pulsing effect, but its really tricky because sometimes it is steady for some seconds, sometimes its not. My mistake was, that I thought the soft shots were due to camera shakes and as I was never very close to a subject, I had such a better keeper rate, which tricked me. (Howewer despite the pulsing I also still have better keeper rate with closer objects as well, than formerly) I'll show this in my next video.

@@birdingwithandrew594 clear, thank you!

My condition is the opposite of yours. Almost all of my records I'm extremely close to the subject so the pulsing issue is extremely troublesome

@@irascher please check Duade Paton youtube channel, he wrote a pulsing issue update, one of his followers has made some settings with the sigma for closups to get better performance and he did :)

Thank you Sammy, its really nice of you 😊

Thank you! This combo is not perfect of course, but surely more than enough for a budget wildlife lover. Greetings from Hungary!

Have fun in the field! I am curious and would be glad, if you shared your experiences after having tried this combo, I really hope you will have at least as many joy with the gear as I had and currently have. Greetings from Hungary!

This is a very contriversial topic, I saw a lot of comments about good results with this combo, and a lot who are not delighted. I can just share my experiences: the most of the situations my keeper rate is around 70-90%. I have come from a 4000D/T100 rebel, then a 90D, so I am used to soft shots, but I got way less than I have experienced with the former gears, the keeper rate is still in another level. So for me pulsing issue is not a dealbreaker and still think this is a very great combo on budget.

Hi Lawrence! As a former 90D user, I think you won't regret the switching at all, enjoy this gear combo like I do or even better in the field! Wish to have your R7 delivered soon! Cheers

Thank you! Greeting from Hungary!

Haha, thank you! 😁 I am glad that I could help, on a budget, this combination is a really good choice according to my experiences :) greetings from Hungary!

Thank you for your kind words, a lot of us are on tight budget so every experience and info counts, thats why I made my review.

Thank you, greetings from Hungary :)

Thank you for your kind words! Happy birding in Singapore, you have really nice footages about so exotic birds which are quite different from ours. But the joy of the birds is the same. Also subscribed! Greetings from Hungary!

This will be a massive upgrade for you, I am sure you won't regret it and have a lot of joy with your gear. I saw on FB that very few UK citizens got their R7 delivered yet, but this is just a patience test, to train for being patient in the field. Greetings from Hungary!

I wish to have fun in the field, and of course, to have your gear delivered as soon as possible! Greetings from Hungary!

Örülök, hogy segíthettem! The R7& Rf 100-500 combo surely works better, but for almost the 1/4 of the price you get a great value, while using basically the same f-stop.

Thank you! Yes, very few of us are pros, and on a hobby and budget level, this combo is more than enough, and capable of delivering amazing results! :) Greetings from Hungary!

@@birdingwithandrew594 Greetings from South Africa

I have read tons of comments and forum discussions and I can say there is a huge controversy about this combo: a lot of people are very delighted with it(like me), and many are not. According to the comments, it seemed to me that who were coming from an older DSLR/a lower end body, they tend to be more satisfied with this combo. For me, as a former 90D user, the switch was a huge move, my keeper rate is much higher now, I get shots which I have never been able to take formerly. On next week I try to finish my next video with my results to show you this combo is a really great one and rocks on budget. + But I advise you to check Duade Paton's video: "Sigma 150-600mm + Canon R7 = Amazing Combo, but..." For me, the pulsing issue is not a dealbreaker, as the sigmaC behaved so much worse on my 90D body, plus on the R7 you get an amazing autofocus system with 15fps/30fs bursts, so all in all I think getting some(I only experienced some) soft shots is not a big deal, because you can get plenty of sharp ones, and your keeper rate is much higher! These were only my opinions, it's adviseable to check every video on youtube and every forum on the internet before the purchase, to be totally aware of everything. Greetings from Hungary!

I hope this combo will work for you, cheering for you! 👌🏼

@@birdingwithandrew594what adapter do u need

As a starter, I used a 4000D/T100 rebel for more than a year for wildlife photography, so I can really appreciate the 90D, truly not a bad camera, but the R7 is a great upgrade, and thankfully it works well with the sigma! Thank you, greetings from Hungary!

Hi Laszlo! Glad to see that you enjoy your combo, the RF 100-500 is surely a different leage, I am really curious about your experiences with the sigma especially after an RF 100-500. So if its not a burden for you, I would be glad to read your feedback or some comparison about them. Surely the lack of IBIS is the biggest compromise we have to live with as a sigma owners. Cheers from Hungary!

@@birdingwithandrew594 Thanks for the quick reply Andrew. I'll give you my findings related to sigma with the r7 once I get there. Keep in touch.

@@laszlobacs9347 thank you, really appreciate it!! :)

@@laszlobacs9347 how'd you like it?

Hi Pawel! F 6.3 is not so forgiving, but at F 8.0 I get a lot of sharp shots always during 3-4 sec bursts (15fps mode). I took most of my shots with tripod, but nowadays I use handheld technique more, and I still get a lot of sharp shots. I am on VERO, if you would like to check, I can upload some unedited raw files there! you can find me: BirdingWithAndrew. Greetings from Hungary, and thank you!

Thank you Mike, greetings from Hungary!

For non Canon EF lenses with image stabilisation, the IBIS doesn't seems to be on. It will end up all dependent on the lenses. IMO don't found it deal breaking because the autofocus still works like a charm. For Canon made EF lenses with IS, later models will have the ability to work in conjunction with IBIS. Other than RF lenses, Canon's non-IS EF lens benefits the most from IBIS. My old non-IS telephoto lens like 400/5.6, 80-200/2.8 & 70-200/4(1st gen) revived because of it.

@@zegzbrutal for me, the lack of IBIS is also not a dealbreaker if the focusing speed and the focusing performance is satisfying, and thankfully it is with the Sigma. Wow, the Canon EF 400 5.6 seems also a great budget option for wildlife photography with the working IBIS. Are you satisfied with the focusing speed and IQ while using this lens? Thank you for the informations and experiences you shared! Greetings from Hungary!

I can't answer this directly, because I haven't gotten my R7 yet. But this question was brought up in a forum about a similar issue with the Canon R5, and this was the response received from Canon: "The IS Mode option will only show up in the menu when an lens with IS capability is not attached. If you want to reference the manual for that information it is in the caution note on page 238. The easiest way to see the option is to take the lens off, press the Menu button, go to the seventh page under the red camera icon, and when you go into IS (Image Stabilizer) Mode you will have the option shown on page 237. When you enable that setting the in body stabilization will work with any EF, EF-S, or RF lens that you attach to the camera. You do not need to re-enable it for each lens. Once it is on it stays on. " Having the option taken out of the menu might not mean a lack of IBIS. According to this post from Canon, it appears you can't change the IBIS settings with some lenses attached, because the menu isn't available, but if it was already turned on, it's still on.

@@Bad_Wolf_Media wow, this info rocks! And also explains why it showed the IBIS option in the menu when I tried with the nifty fifty because it hasn't got the IS, while the sigma has. Really appreciate your info, I give it a try! Thank you!

Did you try with the lens IS turned on or off ? Does switching the lens IS from mode 1 to 2 make any difference ?

You used the same combo I did, I wish to be as satisfied with the switching as I am. Waiting is hard, I know, I had such a luck, I was the 21th on the preordering list, but suddenly I noticed that there are 2 R7 on stock at another store so just nailed the opportunity as fast as I could. After 15 minutes, the other was sold too. Guess, we need luck in every field of our life.

Pulsing issue is real, but most of the situation you can get 70-80-90% keeper rate, especially with 15 fps bursts, so for me its not a deal breaker, still way better than what I have expected with the 90D.

@@birdingwithandrew594 Oh I have no doubt and not knocking Sigma, i have/had 3 other lenses of theirs and was happy with them. But on my M50, I noticed the same issue with the focus not grabbing onto subjects. I was thinking user error till you mentioned pulsing and Sigma's claims about compatibility. I haven't done much wildlife photography yet, or taken advantage of that 15/30 burst mode.

Thank you! Greetings from Hungary!

Thank you! Sounds like an interesting budget combo. Please feel free to share your experiences, because a friend of mine is also considering to buy a sigma C for her M50. As talking about M50, I recommend you to check Paul Miguel's video: Using the Canon EOS M50 Mirrorless Camera to Photograph Roe Deer ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-zLM-ryGVdgg.html. He tested the M50 with an EF400mm f/5.6 lens. Good luck in the field! :)

@@birdingwithandrew594 I would say, shooting with a M50 is fun for someone that never used anything else. But i would not advise to buy it if you want a battery that don't die so fast. Also, there is no eye or head detection of animals, no customs or back focus buttons (don't quote me on that), not a very good grip on it, very small camera. What's good is, the price, 24mp, 10fps, the flip screen, the view finder, the simplicity of it. Cheers

@@Chrispitchwildlife Thank you for your opinion! This is what I thought, the M50 surely aims vloggers and travelling/hiking people because of the low weight and small design. But you can have fun in the field with every gear, for example when I started, I have used a 4000D for more than a year, that camera is much worse than the M50 but at least I have learnt the basics and I was forced to improve my skills :D Cheers

Thank you, Paul! I dont know how to make a 100% legit fps test, but after I saw your comment, I sprayed the mechanical shutter while having recorded it with my phone, then I analized the soundtrack on my PC and checked the raw files I had taken. I took 58 images within just less than 4 seconds, but to be sure, I counted the shutter sounds from a second to another second and according to my "home made" fps test, surprisingly The R7 did maintain the 15 fps with the mechanical shutter, even though I have a slow card. I hope I could help with this surely not the most professional home made test :)

@@birdingwithandrew594 Thanks much for checking.. Good to hear it is not penalized like the R6.

@WhistleBit the test method that I had used was surely not a professional one, but there are always alternative options to get the same result :D thank you! Greetings from Hungary!

Dear Paul. I do have the R6 and the Sigma and can have it at 12 fps mechanical and 20 electronic. However, I think your problem comes from something, Canon does not tell explicitly, it is buried in the manuals: when you want full fps, you need to have wireless turned off and have a full (up to 60% in my experience) Canon(!) battery. This way, the Hi+ icon should be green and you get the full speed. Cheers Ralf

@@ralfseidler7141 Thank you so much! Turned off the wireless and .... perfect!

The 4000D and sigma 150-600C is the ultimate budget combo I have ever had 😁😁😁

Yeah, was a huge mistake not to mention the buffer size... With a Sandisk extreme pro UHS-I 64GB both with mechanic and electonic shutter the buffer is (H mode, H+ with mechanical): ISO 100: 87 Iso 800: 59 ISO 2000: 50 ISO 6400: 46 Greetings from Hungary!

Thank you John, greetings from Hungary!

Hi! I used the official canon adapter, I purchased the body+adapter kit. i didnt experience any problem.

@@birdingwithandrew594 thanks 😊

Hi Ivan! Most of them was shot with the 90D + sigma combo, that session was meant to represent that the sigma can be really sharp at F8 cause I just got the R7 back than when I made the video so I didnt have a lot of images to add for that session. But I created another video when I had more photos with a lot of raw examples as well.

Hi! I always used eletronic shutter except the case when I tested the mechanical shutter sound. When your eye gets close to the viewfinder, a sensor recognize it and it immediately turns off the LCD screen and you can see only from the viewfinder (due to energy saving), after your eye goes away from the viewfinder, the LCD screen turns on again and stays on.

@@birdingwithandrew594 thank you Andrew. ☺️

that's interesting, thank you for the info! I planned to buy an UHS II card, but having seen other's experiences, I sticked to my card, still can keep the 15 fps till around 4-5-6 seconds, really depends on the iso.

@@birdingwithandrew594 i had the Eos RP before - the R7 is definately slower than the RP at sd card writing (in burst at least)

Despite the pulsing issue, my keeper rate is still better than formerly, I get a lot of sharp shots, so I wont sell my sigma, for me, shooting at F 7.1 F/8 at 600mm(960mm) with great IQ is more important than some soft shot during a bursts on a budget. But of course if canon come up with better 600mm budget option, or if they open their rf mount to third party lenses, my opinion will be different, but till then, I still think this is the best budget option. Greetings from Hungary, Fhilip.

My keeper rate is definitely better with the R7, if you have the extra budget for the R7, I would go for it. The R7 has better stills and video features than the 90D in almost everything.

@@birdingwithandrew594 got the R7 last week till then it's raining In Amsterdam 👍

Hi Ludo, thanks! I experienced very much the same you mentioned. Honestly, my keeper rate was also really bad, not just with BIF, but also with stills. As I have experienced the R7 in the field, I feel I own a gear from a different leage. The switching was just a very huge step: -my keeper rate is always around 80% - if not better - at the end of the day -the eye-AF(truly a gamechanger), -the ability of silent shooting with 15 frames/sec (not to mention the 30 fps option, howewer rolling shutter can ruin this, but I have a slow card so I dont have to worry about rolling shutter yet... :D), -the better ISO performance, -better video features - 3 custom ring option + the manual mode, so 4 preset option -the focusing speed seemed fast: despite the busy backgrounds, I managed to take lot of acceptable shots -not to mention the good subject tracking All in all, I think the R7 surpasses the 90D in every way. These were my honest thought as a former fellow 90D shooter. All the best Ludo, wish to have fun in the field!

@@birdingwithandrew594 You confirm what I thought and I will definitely take the plunge with this R7 that catches my eye

@@ludowild According to my experiences, I am more than sure that you won't regret the switching. Good luck and I wish a lot of sharp shots in the field, and of course lot of joy!

@@birdingwithandrew594 thank you ! All the best, Ludo

Imaging resource's studio raw files show that the R7 has a noticeably worse noise performance than the M6 II (which has the same noise performance as the 90D) at low exposures , the noise performance seems to be even a tiny bit worse than the M50. So the R7 raw files should give you significantly more noise than the 90D at the same exposure time and f-number.

Hi! I'm just really into birds and wildlife, so I dont want make advices about anything in which I dont have any experience, so I cannot answer to your question.

But in my opinion, full frame cameras are better for portraits and wedding photography, with better low lighg performance, and for landscape with FF you can take wider pics, howewer there are solutions for this on aps-c cameras.

@@birdingwithandrew594 thank you my friend.. Love from INDIA ❤️🇮🇳

Yes, without it, the combo won't work

For wildlife? As a former 90D user I can tell you that the R7 is superior to the 90D in almost every way(15 fps/30fps modes, silent electronic shutter shooting, animal eye-AF, video features) only the mechanical shutter is little bit louder with the R7. Nowadays when mirorrless cameras have really taken over the DSLR-s, its hard to reccommend the 6d mk II, as I think there are better mirorrless options than that camera and those price point. If you prefer walk around style, an APS-C camera like the R7 is very handy with the extra FOV. Yes, it is not as good in low light than full frame cameras, but everything is about taking compromises. You just have to know which are your key points, which are the most important things for you, where you don't want to make compromises. For me these were: 1.AF 2. extra field of you APS-C sensor 3. Silent shooting for ethical wildlife 4. high fps 4+1 to invest in future which is the RF mount. That's why I bought the R7 and I can make compromises with the other fields (low light performance, rolling shutter). Hope I could help.

Yes for wildlife. And thank you for your clearly information about my confuse. I think I’m gonna take r7. Because I just wildlife photo with my 150-600 sport

@@ahmetsapanc9735 I have read that the sport version performs better than the Contemporary on the R7 and the eye AF ia better, so guess these combo would be awesome.

@@birdingwithandrew594 thank you Andrew you really open mine mind today for decision 🙂

You can use EF lenses on RF mount with an adapter, this is why EF to RF adapter has been made by Canon, but you cannot use RF lenses on EF mount, neither an EF lens on RF mount without the adapter.

Budget zoom telelenses are tend to be a little bit soft at wide open, so F 6.3 is not so ideal, according to my view. In low light situations sometimes I use 7.1 and it is fine, but F8 is the apeture I use most of the time with the sigma to gain extra sharpness. Hope I could help, greetings from Hungary! :)

@@birdingwithandrew594 thank you for this, I appreciate your response, please continue to share your knowledge, and stay safe! :)

I haven't tried the R10 so I can't give you a proper answer, but you can watch great contents on wild alaska and duade paton channel, and I am sure your question will be answered!

Yes, I used tripod during these sessions, in my next video, only handhold shots were showed.

I just have the nifty fifty (canon 50mm 1.8) I checked if the IBIS works with the lens and it does!!! But I didnt have enough time yet to really test it, but when I have, surely will do other tests.

@@birdingwithandrew594 Sorry to ask but what is the IBIS?

@@florisk8025 in body image stabilazator, (which according to canon offers 7 stop image stabilization, but I guess it is true only for the high end RF lenses) It helps you to avoid camera shake, this function is very handy for example in low light situation, using low shutter speed, while tackling motion blur.

@@birdingwithandrew594 Alright thx for the help but do you think EF ultrasonic lenses will work just fine on the r7?

@@florisk8025 This is so complex, without experiences with a lens, I cant say a straight answer or suggestion for you. But I do know a lot depends on the resolving power of the lens. www.michaelthemaven.com/?postID=5254&canon-r7-recommended-lenses-which-have-enough-resolving-power-which-do-not - Michael The Maven youtuber created a list about canon lenses: which works well or not so well on the R7. Worth to take a look. My best suggestion is that to check here on YT for videos specificaly your lens, or ask it in a forum.

Hallo Norbert, Ich verstehe viel, aber Ich kann nicht so gut sprechen, eher auf Englisch .

Yeah, I know, that's why it is surprising that the EF Sigma150-600C performs quite good on the R7, surely better than I expected previously. The optical stabilization was not the strongest feature of the sigmaC on the EF mounted cameras anyway, but if the IBIS function were supported, guess this combo would be even a bigger, a mega bargain.

@@birdingwithandrew594 And what will you say if someone gear endures a Fault costing them $$$$$ . When you never stated any warning because they watched your video also you make the manufacturers warranty void because the Sigma lense isn't even advertised nor markerted for Mirrorless ...

@@colintraveller C'mon man, There are tons of videos just on the YT about R series cameras paired with the Sigma C, by way more popular youtubers, professional photographers as well. Because it is proven that with the adapter, this glass works on the R series cameras, so on the R7 as well, and you can have really great shots. This is my last answer.

@@birdingwithandrew594 True , But Gear Reviewers should know better , Would you think they would let folks use there gear with eq that isn't officially compatible which would render the Warranty null n void

I dont know, but I"ll check this out on YT. So far, I haven't experience any issue, I almost always used just the AF-On button as the animal eye-AF servo back button , when I had other disturbing bird/animal on the frame or very busy background, I've set the star button as the traditional spot autofocus button, so I pointed on the subject, then pressed the AF-On button again and the camera nailed the eye. I tested this method with very busy backgrounds and it just worked for me. Much much better than I have experienced with my former 90D.

Haha, was a month ago, I am starving now :D

Constructive criticism is always welcomed but just writing some words without any specific is not CC. On my computer/phone the images looked really good.