10 Best Canon Cameras for Professional Photography

In a world where megapixels are king, you might be surprised that the greatest Canon DSLR ever made has a 20.1 MP sensor. And it costs more than $5,000. This seems ridiculous in a world where people think more pixels are better.

But you may be aware that it’s not as simple as that. The Canon EOS 1D X Mark III has more than enough pixels for most. That is unless you’re a landscape or fine art studio photographer. Or if you need to print pictures in commercial formats.

The EOS-1D X Mark III is a beast of a Canon DSLR. It weighs 1.63 lb (1.44 kg) without a lens fitted. Only someone serious about photography is going to consider something this big.

But in that body, it packs a wealth of features cherished by the hard-working pro. It has a continuous shooting speed of 16 fps (frames per second) using the optical viewfinder and 20 fps in Live View. In practice, there is no buffering. That’s because it records images to two CF cards.

It has almost unmatched Live View autofocus (AF). And it’s only slightly less impressive using the viewfinder. The autofocus system works down to a -6 Exposure Value (EV). That’s roughly the amount of light you get on a moonless, starlit night away from artificial light!

The Canon EOS-1D X Mark III is my top Canon camera pick. It has a fabulous dynamic range and ultra-fast, reliable AF. Shooting at 16 or 20 fps is fast enough for even the most demanding sports photographer. And if that wasn’t enough, it can shoot video at 5.5K, using that same autofocus system.

It’s a winner, whichever way you look at it. Overall, it’s the best Canon camera available. You can see how the 1D X Mark III matches up with the Canon R3 for extra info.

You might mistake this mirrorless camera for a 1D at first glance. It has the same permanent vertical grip body shape. Side-by-side, you can see it is slightly smaller. And at 2.2 lb (1 kg), it is only two-thirds the weight of the Canon EOS 1D X Mark III.

But the camera body shape declares the intent of the Canon EOS R3. This is a professional photographer’s Canon camera... at a premium price.

Like the 1D, it has a modest-sized sensor of only 24.1 MP. This is a back-illuminated CMOS sensor. And it goes some way to solving Canon’s long-running problems with rolling shutter. It also has the same powerful DIGIC X processor as the 1D (but only one rather than two). So the image quality is excellent.

The Canon EOS R3 boasts a very fast continuous shooting speed. (To put it mildly.) With a maximum of 50 images, you can shoot at 195 fps. More normal but still remarkable speeds are possible. These have practically no limit to the number of images you can take:

• 12 fps (mechanical shutter)
• 30 fps (electronic shutter)

But perhaps the R3’s greatest trick is the eye-controlled focus. I had a Canon EOS 50E back in the mid-90s. This had three (yes, three!) AF points. By process of witchcraft, the viewfinder detected which of the three points I was looking at. And the camera selected it as the focal point. It was way more useful than I ever expected it to be.

The EOS R3 takes it several light-years further. It has 1,050 more focus points. So there’s no need to consciously look at one point to focus. The natural focal point is the subject of your photo. And the camera sees this and chooses the nearest point.

There’s not enough room in this review to list all the positives of the Canon EOS R3. Suffice it to say it is a powerful contender as a worthy professional mirrorless camera. It is the best Canon camera in the mirrorless camera field.

Have a look at these popular R3 camera comparisons to see how it holds up:

• Canon EOS R3 vs EOS R6
• Canon EOS R3 vs EOS R5
• Canon EOS R3 vs Nikon Z9
• Canon EOS R3 vs Sony a1
• Canon EOS R3 vs Fujifilm X-T5

This is the latest 5D from Canon. And it has proved to be just as successful and popular as its two predecessors. Like the two previous models we’ve looked at, the 5D Mark IV is sturdy and strong. It is weather-sealed and dust-sealed. This protects it from the heavy use professional photographers put it through.

It has the same Dual Pixel CMOS AF that produces fast and reliable performance. The autofocus system uses 61 focus points, 41 of which are cross points. One of the many improvements over the Mark III was the introduction of a touchscreen. This is really well-implemented, bringing smooth and intuitive controls to the functions.

The EOS 5D Mark IV is smaller than the 1D or the R3. But it is no lightweight. You might want to add a battery grip anyway. It doubles the battery capacity. And more importantly, it duplicates the important controls for vertical shooting. It’s a real bonus for shooting portraits, sports, and weddings. And for additional peace of mind, you can use it to power the camera with 6 AA batteries.

The video performance of the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV has started to look a little below-par. Compared to others that have come along, it is not class-leading. So it’s worth bearing in mind if you want to record quality video.

The EOS 5D Mark IV is a solid, reliable, and extremely capable camera for a professional photographer. It delivers reliable, impressive image quality. It’s probably the best Canon camera. It’s a more compact camera than the 1D.

It’s nearly ten years since the release of the Canon EOS 6D. So in the fast-moving digital camera world, it’s almost a dinosaur. The 6D also fails the test that “you must have two cards.” But this Canon camera offers you a 20.2 MP CMOS sensor for not that much money.

It also adds an autofocus system that can operate down to -3 EV and a 100 to 25,600 ISO range. Some often see it as a poor person’s alternative to the 5D Mark III above. But it has some features, like GPS and Wi-Fi, that its more expensive cousin doesn’t.

Burst shooting at 4.5 fps is pretty decent. And the layout of the controls is similar to many more expensive Canon cameras. It’s a design that has stood the test of time. And Canon has honed it in response to feedback from demanding professional photographers.

You won’t get all the bells and whistles of the more expensive and the very best Canon camera in this review. But you get a great full frame Canon camera at a pretty bargain price.