Hands-on with Canon's 'not-coming-to-USA' EOS M3

So does this mean an actual review for M3 by DPR ??

"Our man in England Damien Demolder". Sheesh, if you're going to be a hand model get a proper manicure.

Over priced—a Sony α5100 is $448.00 and a Sony α6000 is $548.00 vs $679.00 for the Canon M3 (all body only).

I can buy an α5100, plus Sigma 19mm f/2.8 les for less than the M3 body.

Selling all my Canon SLRs DSLRs, lenses etc still seems like a good decision.

I bought one of the Japanese kits with the EVF and it was under $500. At that price, having an external viewfinder (which I have used just once) didn't seem like a big deal. The EVF weighs about as much as a postage stamp so I carry it even if I never use it.

With the stabilized 11-22 lens it's an excellent camera. Not in DxO terms but in actual picture-taking terms. Focus is still a little slow but much better than the EOS M1. It's built as well as the other EOS M except for the hinge on the LCD which is flimsy. In short, not cutting edge anything, just a big sensor in a small body with reasonably priced lenses.

No built in viewfinder? no thanks.

I'll pass!

No integrated EVF, I'll pass!

I have a sl-1 for light travel when I don't bring my 5Dlll or 7Dll. Does anyone know how the M3 compares to the sl-1. They both use Canon lenses & are small & portable. I would love to find someone who has used both to see what their opinion comparing the two cameras. Bab

Have it on my hands for the following 1,5 weeks or so.
AF is REALLY decent, quite unexpectedly it's on par with other upper-level ILCs, Fuji X-E2 at least. if not better... Will have some speedy wildlife to put AF through paces. Ultrasonic motor remains ultrasonic when conventional EF lenses are used via original adapter. Mind to switch lens IS switch off, though, because when it's on, gyroscopes are engaged all the time the camera is on.
And, well... EOS M4 (yes, I'm already thinking of it) MUST have built-in EVF (instead of built-in flash, for instance), because with two-decade long SLR habits it's very hard to handle such miniscule contraption attached even to 70-200/2.8L IS, not to mention anything more substantial (400/4DO IS in my case).

Once again, Canon try to avoid conflicts between DSLR and mirrorless in THEIR brand.
But they forget they already have concurrent products from Sony, Fuji, Olympus, Panasonic and even Samsung now.
So, to avoid selling less DSLR in favor of mirrorless, they sell less mirrorless by making them unattractive and don't even sell them in the US market.
At the end, they are going to sell less mirrorless...and less DSLR.
Good job Canon !
Next time, give me the gun to shoot in your foot...it will be less painful than the way you do it.

Here are my first impressions after having the camera for a few days. This is my take on M3 as a supplement to a "real camera"
http://www.dnkphotography.com/blog/wedding-photographers/hands-on-with-the-canon-eos-m3/

Got the body + EVF kit from Japan last week. Very nice camera with much faster focusing (still not as fast as an antiquated SLR). Less than $500 including shipping. I'm not crazy about the EVF and might sell it, making the cost of the M3 body even less than the original EOS-M. If Sony or Fuji have a mirrorless camera with an APS sensor for under $300 I must have missed it.

I wish they would import it to the US. I have an original EOS M and for the most part I like it. The M3 appears to have all the features I wish my M did have. I also have a Powershot G11 and looked at the G1X but I wanted interchangeable lenses. I understand that the EVF for the G1X will work on the M3. That makes it even more attractive to me.

Can't wait to pair this bad boy with the Sigma 18-35 Art. Canon colors, 24MP, accurate PDAF, fast touch shutter and lots of lens resolution on tap.

I bought an m1 when the price fell through the floor, to complement my canon SLR.
I can honestly say the camera is a joy to use. It feels a million dollars and the images are fantastic. Its still not the faster in the world at focusing, but it handles exposure really well and the colours are stunning.
I also use the lens adapter with an EF mount super wide and it works great.
The new M3 looks great.

If you cumulate all IDGAF votes in the last DPR poll about M3, you get 80%
USA or not, it is a failure. I'm European, i love mirrorless concept (even if i love OVF pentaprism too).
And frankly, Canon or Nikon are my last interest in mirrorless world.
Give me a Sony, Fuji, Pana or Oly. May be even a Samsung.
They don't pretend to take mirrorless seriously : they do it.

Sony A6000 is still the champion in this range.

The USA is where mirrorless cameras come to die, and be dumped at deep discounts. :-)

No viewfinder yet again. (Having to block one's flash hotshoe with an external one essentially means no viewfinder whatsoever.) That's a dealbreaker for me. I'm fifty-eight, and I can't possibly juggle my reading glasses off and on every time I want to switch from looking at the screen to looking at the subject. Indeed, I don't want to have to bring my reading glasses with me when I'm taking photos whatsoever.

Hey Damien, I think you should do something about the colour of your nail varnish, but at least it matches the camera!

A big Boo Hiss to Canon for not bringing the M3 to the USA. I have been waiting for the M3 having passed on the M1 for its issues and the M2 as it was not available here either. So I will now complete my transition fully to M4/3 via Olympus and Panasonic. The have the big picture as to what we users want and need with many options. So I will sell all my Canon gear now and move fully to M 4/3, which are excellent cameras and a pleasure to use. Even if the M3 was available in the USA, there are minimal lens choices. I will, however, thank Canon for helping me decide to dump them and move to more user oriented brands.

DPR, the EOS M3 doesn't seem to appear in the most popular camera (bar chart) but nikon 810A with half the comments is there.

Ugh, again with no viewfinder. Really starting to p*** me off. I love my EOS M for the sake of putting film lenses on it, but could seriously use even a digital VF for this thing. It's so stupidly small that it makes anything larger than a 50 cumbersome and awkward to use...even if you have the Franiec grip like I do.

The EOS M3 is cool to me because it reminds me of BMW, and it has more grip/ergo and more features, but still no VF. And they have the balls to charge over $750 for this thing, but haven't learned a thing from the mirrorless market. I bought my EOS M for $240 new, and that is a justified price for a mirrorless that doesn't have a VF....and lousy high-ISO performance.

Canon apparently made a marketing decision not to cannibalize on it's very popular series Rebel, nD and similar, ending up making a downgraded basic camera even if improved compared to their first attempts. Other companies are not shy and are making mirrorless cameras in many (most) aspects superior to the M3. By the way - what a name for such a mediocre product. The competitors will not hold back their better cameras. Many here are pleased, that they can use this for a backup of their normal Canon equipment, but Canon are apparently afraid to make a really good camera, that could compete with their own DSLRs. (You can also use a Nex just as compatible with your Canon DSLR lenses.) Canon does still not look serious in the mirrorless market and that is a shame for a (former?) leader in digital photography equipment.

Sounds great! I'd buy one without a second thought if I ever have to replace my EOS-M. These little mirrorless cameras nicely complement a full size SLR. I am much more comfortable taking mine kayaking or into other environments that I wouldn't take my full size SLR. Most of the people who bellyache about the slow AF on the EOS-M probably haven't even used one. If the AF on the EOS-M3 is as much of an improvement as they say, then it will be a little great camera.

Shall we expect a subject's full review with comparison?

That lens is ridiculously huge for being only 2x and slow.

no evf, no interest

About the comparisons (...and yes, this is directed at you too, DPR...)

This is not a mirrorless. This is a EOS mirrorless.

What it means to us, EOS Canon system users, is that this complements our system in a way, I cannot fully convey.

You have to understand that, under this logic, the integration one, an EOS M is as useful, as say, the system top-of-the-line 1DX.

It will use the same lenses (even lenses that the 1DX cannot use), it will use most EOS accessories. it will use the same flashes.

I could put an ST-E3-RT on top of it and control 15 individual flashes in 5 groups, in the very same way I can do it with my 1DMKIV.

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In trips, I hook up my EOS M2 to my BlackRapid Yeti dual-camera strap, together with my 1DMKIV and use them indiscriminately, with whatever lens I want, whenever I want.

I can come back to the hotel midday, and go back out with one camera or the other, both of them, flash or non flash, new or previous selection of lenses.

I come back again, late afternoon, take a bath, relax a bit, prepare for dinner and the rest of the night and, once more during that very same day, I can elect the same options or another combination for this last sortie (i.e just my EOSM2, the adapter, my 35mm f/1.4 and my very compact Manfrotto table tripod).

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I can control both cameras from my Samsung Galaxy tab, the 1DMKIV with a third-party app (DSLR Controller) via a USB cable, the EOSM2 via Wi-Fi with the Canon Remote Control app.

I could go, on and on and on...

People REALLY have to understand (...and Canon needs to get better at conveying this, specially to the press...) what this camera really brings along. It's not a fad format, it's a differentiated complementary tool.

The fact that it is a mirrorless is subsidiary, in this context.

What this is, is an extremely useful and apt piece from a more vast and rewarding photographic puzzle.

It looks cool!

With the a6000 in existence for about a year now, i can't think of a reason for this camera to exist. And at this price, even less reason.

well outside of the awkward decision again by Canon USA - Not a great surprise given the fact that only 500K MILC's shipped into NA all last year, making realistically around 40-80K units being sold over the entire year by t he M3 in NA. Especially facing the fact that canon ships 1.5 million DSLR's to the same region.

Interesting design. around the same size as a A5100/A5000 class APS-C MILC, smaller than an X-A2. Seeing the prices in Japan - it's very competitive in that price range as well. looks like canon is trying to grab marketshare where it counts - Asia. Against the A5100, it gives up FPS and AF, gains some features such as external dials, hotshoe and external EVF. Against the X-A2, gets an external EVF, 24Mp versus 16Mp.

sure it could be better - it could compete against the A6000,etc class - but then it'd have to be bigger can't have everything I suppose.

Canon Copiers. Years of experience.