DSLRORMIRRORLESS?
Canon launchedtheEOS90Dalongsidethe
EOSM 6 MarkII.Bothsportthe samesensorand
DIGIC 8 processor,sowhatarethekey
differences?Themirrorlessmodelis smaller,
lighter( 408 grams)andcheapertoo(£869body
only/£1,119with15-45mmlens).ItusesEOS
M-serieslenses(currentlyeightin therange,but
canuseEF/EF-Slensesviaanadapter)andhas
an optionalelectronicfinder.Ithasafaster
framerate(14fps)butsmallerbatterycapacity
(around 300 shots) and a weaker flash.Handling 18/2 0
Easeofuse 18/2 0
Features 18 / 20
Performance 18 /2 0
Value 18/2 0Overall 90 / 100
AF pointsonoffer jumpsto animpressive
5,481coveringa majorityof theimage frame
(100%verticallyand88%horizontally).And
whiletheviewfinder-basedAFworkswell,it's
actuallytheLiveViewAFthathas the edge
whenit comesto trackingmovingsubjects.
Faceandeyedetectionis alsoavailable.
The 220 , 000 -pixelRGB+IRmetering
sensoris anotherbigstepupfromtheEOS
80 D. Whenusingtheviewfinder,the
Evaluativemeteringpatternuses 216
segmentslinkedto theAFpoints,whilewhen
usingLiveView,it has 38 4 zones.Whichever
optionyouuse,you'll findexposuresare
consistentandaccurate.It'sonlybacklit
situationsorsceneswithlargeexpansesof
bright skythatthreatenunderexposure.
Videographerswillbe pleasedto notethat
theEOS 90 D capturesfull-width4Kat 3 0 p,
although 24pis notavailableat 4Kor1080p.
Externalmicrophoneandheadphonescan
be connectedviathesocketsontheleftside
of thebody, whereyou'llalsofindports for a
remote release, HDMI andUSB.
Alongwiththe exposuremodes,the
maindialoffer a range of in-cameracreative
filtersto applyincludingHDR,miniature
effectandToyCamera,forthosewhowant
to addspecialeffects.Anintervaltimerand
multiple-exposurefacilityarealsoavailable.
ThoseupgradingfromanEOS80Dwillbe
pleasedto notethattheEOS90Dusesthe
sameLP-E 6 N battery,whichdeliversover
1,000framespercharge, althoughyoucan
expectaroundhalfthatamountifyou
regularlyuseLiveView.BothBluetoothand
Wi-Fiareavailable.
Alongwithbeingveryenjoyable to use,
theEOS90Dprovesto beanaccomplished
performer.Asmentionedearlier,AFand
exposuresystemsareexcellent,whilecolours
are nicelysaturatedandaccurate.While nota
class-leader,thedynamic rangeis verygood,
whilenoiseis wellcontrolled,soshootingup
to ISO 3200 withoutmajorissuesis possible,
althoughJPEGsharpeningcanbea little
aggressive.Overall,theEOS90Dis one of the
best camerasin thispricebracket.In oneofthemostcompetitive
areasofthecameramarket,
whereAPS-CDSLRsfacestiff
competitionfromfull-framerivals
andmirrorlessmodels,Canon's EOS 90 D
entersthefraywithallgunsblazing. It might
havetheoddniggle,butdeliversin allthe
keydepartmentsfromhandlingthroughto
featuresandperformance.It providesfirm
proofthatdigitalSLRsstillhavemuch to
offer to serious photographers.VERDICT
CLOSESTRIVALS
ŔFUJIFILM X-T3: One of the best mirrorless
models on the market, this beauty boasts a
26.1-megapixel sensor, 4K video and wide
rangeoffeatures.Pricierat £1,349bodyonly.
Testdate:March2019.Testscore:93%.
ŔNIKON D7500: An excellent APS-C DSLR
with a 20.9-megapixel resolution, full range
of features and excellent performance. A price
dropmeansit'savailablebodyonlyfor£949.
Testdate:September2017.Testscore:91%.
Ŕ CANON EOS M6 MARK II: Launched at the
same time as the EOS 90D, this is effectively its
near-identicalmirrorlesstwinin termsof
features,butin a smaller,lighterbody.
ŔSONY A6400: Sporting a 24.2-megapixel
APS-C sensor, 4K video, 11 fps burst rate and a
425-zone AF system that is claimed to be the
world'sfastest,thisis a cheaper(£949body
only)andsmalleralternativetotheCanon.
ŔNIKON D750: It's been around since 2014,
but at around £1,100 body only, we had to
mention this full-frame DSLR. It still has plenty
to offer enthusiasts, including a 24.3-megapixel
resolution and first-rate performance.
Test date: February 2015. Test score: 93%.December 2019 DigitalSLRPhotography 93
Exposure:1/250sec atf/3.5(ISO 800 )