Ergonomics and Workmanship

In the 600 dollars camera class, Canon relies on plastic for the housing material, including the quite compact and lightweight Canon M50, with a 15-45mm standard lens it weighs just over 500 grams. Even though it feels like “plastic” all around, the case is very cleanly finished. The gap dimensions are minimal and uniform, the overhangs clean.

On the grip side, generously glued rubber linings provide the necessary support. In addition, there is a small bead on the handle that nestles surprisingly well in the hand, but doesn’t fill it with the small size. All in all, the Canon M50 lies securely in the hand, not least because of the well-formed thumb cavity as a counterpart to the grip. The trigger is easy to reach but could offer slightly stronger pressure points.

Around the shutter release button is the only multifunction wheel that can be used to set different parameters depending on how the button is pressed. With its grip and light click it is easy to use.

The program selector wheel offers tightly locking nine positions, so accidental adjustment is unlikely. The switch-on lever is located directly next to it and can be easily reached with the thumb or index finger. In addition, the video release and a programmable multifunction button (M-Fn) can be found on the top.

Most of the back is occupied by the 7.5-centimeter touchscreen, so there’s only room on the right for a relatively small control cross with a middle confirmation key and five more keys. Although these are relatively small and do not offer many possibilities, the operation is quite ok. All keys are clearly labeled and provided with a unique function so that they do not give up any puzzles.

The menus are also well structured, but still offer many settings. The Shooting Menu is divided into eight numbered tabs, each offering three to six setting options. A “My-Menu” with up to five tabs, each with a maximum of six menu items, also allows you to sort the menu structure yourself or save up to 30 preferred menu items. In addition, there is a Quick menu that can be called up directly in shooting mode and displays eleven important shooting parameters for the setting.

The rear touch screen folds 180 degrees to the side and rotates 270 degrees, allowing shots to be taken from all possible and impossible angles. With a maximum brightness of 860 cd/m², the screen shines extremely brightly and is well suited even to direct sunlight.

The touch function allows not only focusing on a tapped detail, but also direct triggering if desired. In addition, the camera can be operated almost entirely via the touchscreen, if you wish. Only the main menu must be called up via the key, navigation and calling up the menu items, however, is possible via fingertip as an alternative to key operation.

If desired, the Quick Menu can be called up directly via a touch button, and it is also possible to enlarge the display to check sharpness. Interestingly, the Canon M50 doesn’t understand touch gestures for zooming in shooting mode, but it does in playback mode.

If the electronic viewfinder is used, the touch screen can also be used to set the autofocus area. In order not to disturb the nose on the screen, the active area in the menu can also be configured. The viewfinder itself activates automatically thanks to the proximity sensor and offers a sufficiently fine image with 2.36 million pixels.

In addition, the viewfinder image makes a big impression, but Canon doesn’t indicate the magnification factor. 0.6x in the 35mm equivalent it should certainly be. With glasses, on the other hand, things look different, so that the viewfinder image can no longer be completely overlooked due to the greater distance between the eyes. If you don’t have too strong a visual defect, you should, therefore, use the dioptric compensation and push the glasses up onto your forehead.

All in all, the operation and ergonomics of the Canon M50 can be described as successful. This also applies to the interface equipment and available features. HDMI and USB are each installed in the micro version, and a jack microphone connection is also available. While USB and HDMI are behind a rubber cover, the plastic cover of the microphone connector looks a bit cheap. On the top of the camera is a metal ISO system flash shoe that is not only compatible with Canon’s E-TTL II system but also has a central contact, which is no longer a matter of course at Canon since the EOS 2000D and 4000D. We have compared in detail both cameras in this article.

 

On the underside, the tripod thread is fortunately located in the optical axis. However, the distance to the battery and memory card compartment is extremely small, so that only a very small quick-release plate does not block access.

Unfortunately, the lithium-ion battery cannot be recharged via USB. For this, Canon includes a classic charging cradle, which will certainly please one or the other buyer. The USB charging function would be very practical on the road. Too bad the Canon M50 here is so old-fashioned.

The lithium-ion battery is only sufficient for less than 250 images according to the CIPA standard. Some photographers who like to take pictures will not get over the day with it, a second battery should be planned as a purchase.

After all, and this is not self-evident in this class, an AC adapter can be connected to the camera via a battery dummy. The SD card slot is SDHC, SDXC, and UHS I compatible. The memory speed is also quite good in practice with over 70 MB/s for UHS I, but in view of the puny buffer memory, it’s also bitterly necessary, more about that later.

Equipment And Features

The Canon M50 offers functions for both beginners and advanced photographers. In auto mode, it sets all the important shooting parameters on its own and detects both the subject and faces. The autofocus is even able to focus on the eyes.

If you would like to use a special scene mode program for the current shooting situation, you will also find corresponding selection options. The quiet mode with the electronic shutter, which unfortunately cannot be selected in the other programs, makes sense here.

Canon also offers creative filters, which are not always pure image editing effects. The HDR mode, for example, actually takes three differently exposed photos and processes them into an image with a higher contrast range. The strength of tone mapping can be adjusted. Also here applies: Unfortunately the HDR mode is not available in other programs, with exception of the backlight program with the scene mode programs.

 

The programs P, Av, Tv, and M are used for the actual creative romp, in which the photographer receives control over the exposure parameters aperture, exposure time, and ISO sensitivity as desired. Even in manual shooting mode, the ISO auto function can be used, even in combination with exposure compensation. The bracketing function works with a maximum of three images that can be spaced by up to two f-stops. Here, too, a combination with exposure correction is possible. For manual HDR recordings, however, the range is somewhat narrow.

The Canon M50’s autofocus works with dual-pixel technology, which now covers an even larger image area. It works horizontally with 88% coverage and vertically with 100% coverage – but currently with only three of the seven EF-M lenses available: the 18-150mm, 28mm, and 55-200mm.

In addition, there is a whole range of EF and EF-S lenses that are relatively easy to adapt, but which make the compactness of the Canon M50 absurd because they are built for DSLRs, partly in 35mm format. After all, the majority of lenses support the large coverage. However, there are also more than 30 lenses that can “only” use 80 percent of the image height or width with dual pixel CMOS AF. In principle, however, this should cause fewer problems, as the main motif seldom sits so close to the edge.

After all, the Canon M50 triggers within 0.3 seconds including focusing. Although this does not come close to the fastest mirrorless system cameras, it is nevertheless very fast. The pure shutter release delay without focusing is about 0.05 seconds – also fast, but not record-breaking. If you want to focus manually, a focus peaking is available in addition to the focus magnifier. Sharp contrasting edges are highlighted in color, which is a very good focusing aid.

 

The integrated pop-up flash is not only slightly puny with the guide number of 5.6. It must be opened manually and only then does it offer automatic operation. After all, it is also possible to flash at the end of the exposure and it also offers a long-time synchronization as well as a flash exposure correction. The illumination in image corners is not particularly good with the 24 millimeters 35 mm equivalent of the set lens, the edges darken very clearly.

However, thanks to the system flash shoe, you can upgrade your Canon M50 with Canon TTL flash units and benefit not only from higher performance and better illumination and indirect flash capabilities but also from a wireless control function for creative lighting setups when purchasing multiple flash units.

The continuous shooting function can be seen with almost ten frames per second. However, autofocus tracking only works at up to 7.4 frames per second. However, the buffer memory is extremely limited. While in JPEG after all only 24 images in a row the speed breaks down, in raw format there are only eight photos in quick succession. After all, the Canon stores the data at around 70 MB/s on a UHS-I-SDHC or SDXC card, as long as it can store it fast enough.

In addition, the camera does not block the functions during saving, so that despite the small buffer you always have the impression of holding a high-performance camera in your hands.

The Canon M50 is Canon’s first mirrorless system camera and Canon’s first APS-C camera in this price range to record video in 4K resolution. However, there are some limitations. On the one hand, only the contrast AF works – the dual-pixel CMOS AF is only active up to Full HD resolution. On the other hand, the crop factor of 1.56 is enormous compared to photos. So you clearly lose wide angles, but you gain “tele”. Technically speaking, this is on a par with the first 4K-capable mirrorless system cameras of many years ago.

There are further limitations if you want to use the digital image stabilizer in addition to the optical one, which is possible, even if the effectiveness is slightly limited compared to Full-HD video recordings. Depending on the stabilizer mode, the crop factor even increases to 1.75 to 2.2 times.

You have to switch to video mode to record 4K videos, in photo mode, the video recording, which also works at the touch of a button, only works in full HD resolution. The Canon M50 can be equipped with an external microphone connection including level display and the possibility of manual level control (also for the internal stereo microphone), as well as a function for extracting still images.

Other special functions include the time-lapse function, which can automatically create a 4K video from photos, and the high-speed video function with up to 120 frames per second, but only in HD resolution (720p) and without sound.

The time-lapse function even offers a selection of different scenarios, so that you only have to deal with the fine adjustments such as the recording interval if you want to. This allows you to create impressive time-lapse videos without much trial and error. Anyone who hoped that the Canon M50 could also be used to take interval shots with individual photos was unfortunately mistaken.

Those who like to photograph in the raw data format, the Canon M50, by the way, has a new format that cannot be opened with older software, can convert it directly in the camera if desired. The new CR3 format offers 14-bit color depth and can be edited with Canon Digital Photo Professional Software (DPP). M-Raw and S-Raw are replaced by C-Raw, which provides 30 to 40 percent smaller image files. But JPEGs can also be edited directly in the camera. In addition to standard features such as Protect, Rate, Crop, Rotate, and Reduce Resolution, you can apply creative filters such as a blur, a grainy SW effect, and others.

The Canon M50 is also very good at wireless connectivity. It offers WLAN, Bluetooth, and NFC. The latter makes it particularly easy to establish a WLAN connection. The Bluetooth function, on the other hand, allows the location data of the smartphone (for example via GPS) to be transferred directly to the camera.

Remote triggering via Bluetooth is also possible. WLAN, on the other hand, provides a real remote control with live image transmission to the smartphone and extensive control options. Transferring pictures to your smartphone is no problem either. If desired, this can even be done automatically directly after the recording. If the Canon software is running on the PC, it is also possible to automatically send images wirelessly to the PC via WLAN.

Picture Quality Of The Canon M50

In order to test the image quality of the Canon M50, we not only tested it in practice but also in with the software for testing cameras so we can retrieve accurate values. In the test, the EF-M 15-45 mm 1:3.5-5.6 IS STM standard lens was used, with which the camera is available for almost 700 dollars.

It is quite strong, especially in the wide-angle angle with 2.5 percent ton shape. At medium focal length, the barrel distortion is reduced to less visible one percent, at long focal length the distortion changes to a likewise less visible 0.5 percent cushion shape.

 

The edge darkening is also clearest in wide-angle and is up to 1.4 f-stops. When dimming down or zooming in, however, it is significantly reduced. Colour fringes, on the other hand, play practically no role. If you want, you can activate digital lens optimization in the camera, which tries to compensate for diffraction effects in addition to distortion and edge darkening.

With a resolution of 15-45 STM at 50 percent contrast, the Canon M50 achieves a maximum of 63 line pairs per millimeter (lp/mm) in 35mm equivalent, which is a very good value for an image sensor with a resolution of 24 megapixels. This value is achieved in wide-angle at 15 millimeters (24 millimeters corresponding to 35mm) in the center of the image slightly dimmed to F4.

The diffraction already reduces the resolution during further fading, but the effect only becomes stronger beyond F8. Even F11 can still be used without any problems because the resolution of over 50 lp/mm still reaches a good value.

At the edge of the image, however, the resolution is only slightly dimmed at 40 lp/mm, which is more than a third less than in the center of the image. This is a typical problem with inexpensive zoom lenses. The maximum resolution of 47 lp/mm is not reached at the edge of the picture until F8. Since the resolution is “only” 57 lp/mm here in the center of the picture, the edge drop is no longer so dramatic – a good aperture for landscape shots.

The further you zoom, the more the resolution in the center of the image decreases. At 26 millimeters, the maximum is 56 lp/mm, at 45 millimeters only 49 lp/mm. The edge drop is also high at medium focal length, as long as you don’t stop down.

With F8, on the other hand, hardly less detail is resolved at the image edge with 50 lp/mm than in the image center with 52 lp/mm. With a long focal length, there is even hardly any loss of resolution at the edges.

 

Although this is a simple set lens with certain optical weaknesses, high resolutions are possible with the 15-45 mm STM and the Canon M50. But that doesn’t say everything about the image quality of a camera.

The signal to noise ratio reaches a good value of over 40 dB up to ISO 200 and a sufficient value of over 35 dB up to ISO 1,600. With higher sensitivity, the picture signal becomes less and less distinct from the noise. Accordingly, brightness noise is slightly visible from ISO 3.200 and strongly above ISO 12.800, while color noise is well controlled by the Canon M50. Noise reduction above ISO 400 increasingly leads to a loss of image detail.

This starts off gently and becomes stronger and stronger as the ISO sensitivity increases. Up to ISO 1.600, the Canon still resolves sufficiently fine details, but at the latest from ISO 3.200, the losses become visible. Above ISO 6.400 the loss of detail becomes drastic, the pictures look more like drawings.

The dynamic range reaches very high values with up to 11.5 f-stops, especially at low ISO sensitivities. Up to ISO 1.600, up to eleven f-stops can be measured, but the dynamic range also decreases significantly. At ISO 6.400 it is less than ten f-stops and from ISO 25.600 even just over seven f-stops. Bright image areas are clearly eroding, while no details are recognizable in the shadows either.

The tonal value curve is very steep, typical for a camera with crisp image processing, and thus emphasizes center contrasts strongly, which leads to a crisp image impression. Also, the sharpness artifacts are not too low with up to more than ten percent and provide strong contrasts for slight overshoots, but at this point, the sharpening also contributes to the crisp image impression.

The JPEG images of the Canon M50 are not intended for post-processing, but rather for photographers who want to view or print them directly. In contrast, demanding photographers with image processing ambitions should better fall back on the raw data format, in which one also gets much finer brightness gradations and can optimally prepare the images for large-format prints, in which sharpness artifacts are less appropriate.

 

The output tonal range decreases almost linearly with increasing ISO sensitivity. At ISO 100, almost all of the 256 brightness gradations contained in the JPEG are actually used. At ISO 200 there are also very good over 224 gradations, at ISO 400 a little over 190. Up to ISO 800, the value is still good with over 160 gradations, from ISO 6.400 it becomes critical with less than 100 brightness gradations.

The color fidelity of the Canon M50 is quite good overall, most colors are reproduced very accurately. There are deviations mainly in the yellow-green range with a slight desaturation and in the red range with a somewhat stronger saturation. This results in less bright grass and other green in landscape shots, but bright red and subjectively pleasantly warm colors. The actual color depth is also good to very good. Up to ISO 1,600, more than four million color nuances are recorded, and at ISO 100 even more than eight million.

Bottom line: Is The Canon M50 Worth It?

The Canon M50 is altogether a successful mirrorless system camera with a piece of good equipment and also good features available.

One notices that Canon wants to conquer market shares in this segment with this model, which is also urgently necessary in view of declining DSLR sales. Especially in this country, the price is very attractive with less than 600 dollars without lens, and 700 dollars with the lens.

However, the M system still has certain weaknesses, such as the lean lens program. Canon shouldn’t rest on their laurels on the cheap and well-functioning adapter, as it makes sense especially for DSLR users, but less so for newcomers to photography with interchangeable lens cameras.

Nevertheless, one notices a little the red pen of the Canon M50 and partly even certain technical backwardness. The case is well made but is made of plastic. The serial image buffer is a bit tight, especially if you are working in a raw data format. The 4K video function also has a whole range of limitations that can spoil the fun a little. Also, the limitation of the HDR mode as well as the silent electronic shutter to certain automatic programs might disturb some ambitious photographers with a small purse.

But the Canon M50 scores above all with the flexible screen, the good handling, and the nice electronic viewfinder. The wireless functions are also implemented in an exemplary manner. But above all, and this is what matters with a camera, the image quality is very good, especially at low sensitivities. Up to ISO 1.600, you still get an acceptable image quality, but beyond that, you have to live with certain limitations.

Pros