Significant Motion Blur, Canon R6. Caused by IBIS? Wide angle only.

electronicsenthusiast wrote:

An R6 shows significant motion blur at shutter speeds between 1/60 to 1/200, occasionally on only the lower part of the frame.

Focusing is typically solid and sharp. Issue happens most frequently on an EF 16-35 f4L IS USM, usually at wider focal lengths. Occurs, occasionally, and differently, on an RF 24-70 f/2.8 IS USM. I do not experience the same issue on an RF 70-200 f2.8 IS, but could be because of smaller sample selection at those shutter speeds.

2/3 of the time, the entire image may show image blur, but 1/3 of the time, I see blur in the lower or upper frame only. See samples...

I never saw this issue with the EF 16-35 on a Canon 5D III.

Canon support acknowledge the issue, thinks it may be the sensor, and asked to send the body in for evaluation. He didn't sound confident. Is it worth sending in? Do you experience the same issues?

Note in the samples, parts of the image on the same focal plane and at several distances may be sharp above, or severely blurred below. Look at sharp edges to see the movement.

IMAGE 1: Sharp close and at a distance on top of frame. Red lettering middle left is passable. Lower 1/3 is out of focus. Note movement on mirrored glasses, lower right.

I experience the same issues with my R6, with 3 different RF lenses, and not only wide angle. Sometimes the entire image is blurred, sometimes only a part of it, and sometimes with a clear double-image look (like the mirrored glasses in your example). When only a part of the image is affected it is usually the left side or the right side (in landscape orientation), not the lower or the upper half like in your case. Like you, I notice it mostly in the first shot of a series/burst. The second shot is tack sharp.

The firmware is up to date. Tripod shots with IS switched off are fine, and shutter mode does not seem to matter. At one point I thought that setting the image stabilization to mode 3 "shot only" cured the problem, but this is not an option with all lenses. I am also no longer sure of this. Everything about this issue is difficult to reproduce.

I contacted Canon and they advised to have the products checked by one of their authorized service partners. I went there, and at first they only wanted to check the camera, but I convinced them to keep at least one lens (RF 100-500) for testing.

After two weeks, I could pick up the camera again. They had adjusted the gyro sensors. The lens took a long time. The technician said he could reproduce my reported behavior with his own R6, and eventually replaced two lens groups.

Did it help? I am not sure. Maybe the problem occurs less frequently, but it is definitely not gone.

I will not turn in the equipment again, but rather take a short burst when possible.  One of the images will be sharp.