Why You Should Buy The Canon M50

Which camera should I buy? What software do you use to edit? What lenses should I get? Since I have a background in both photography as well as videography, family and friends often come to me with questions about cameras, gear, and what they should or shouldn’t buy, especially when considering giving a camera as a gift. And my answer for this year is that you should buy the Canon M50.

Before I get into why this is my answer, let me start by saying that I’m not looking for a lot of negative responses and opinions to this BLOG. My reasoning for suggesting this camera is pretty simple and I will outline all the reasons why following this. I’m fully aware that there are other camera manufacturers out there with similar cameras and features, this just happens to be the camera that I prefer over the others.

To start, I would never suggest anyone to buy something that I myself do not own or have never used, but this statement comes with one caveat, from time to time, I may suggest something that I am planning to buy but it’s currently sitting on my “wishlist”.

So let’s get down to the business of why I would suggest buying the Canon M50 amongst all the competition out there. My first official SLR was a basic Minolta 35mm film camera that my dad handed down to me back around 1993 or 1994 and that’s what I used until 1996 when he purchased my first Canon for me as a gift, because he saw how much of an interest I had in photography. It was a pretty hefty purchase at that time because it was the early stages of 35mm cameras getting electronic features and controls, and they were very expensive. He bought me the Canon EOS Elan II and I used that camera until around 2007 when I purchased my first official DSLR, I purchased a Canon Rebel XTi. From then to now I have owned many DSLR’s and just recently my first mirrorless. I’ve owned Canon’s T1i, T3i, T6i, 70D, 7D, 5D Mark iii, and now the mirrorless M50, and next on my wishlist is the mirrorless Canon EOS R. The reason I mention all these different cameras is because I can use any of my lenses on the Canon M50, with an adapter of course, but I can still use them. If I was to make the switch to another brand, that’s over 20 years' worth of accumulated lenses I’d have to replace and that would cost a small fortune! I truly feel that once you get into the realm of cameras with detachable lenses, it’s best to try and stick to one brand for this very reason. Now if you’re shooting for a living and have a bigger budget for gear, then, by all means, feel free to pick and choose all over the places which brands, lenses, etc to get, but for me sticking to one brand has been very helpful in building up my gear over the years.

Enough about my loyalty to Canon, haha. Let’s get onto some of the other reasons why I would suggest the Canon M50, first and foremost, is the price point. Back when I purchased this camera earlier this year, I preordered it and paid full price, minus a $50 discount I got for a promo. I purchased the basic package which included the body, lens, and the typical stuff like a battery, charger, and neck strap of course. In addition to that, I picked up two more batteries and the lens adapter. Since the time I purchased this camera, I’ve seen it on sale a handful of times and as of the time I’m writing this BLOG, it’s currently on sale for $599, which is $300 in savings from the regular price. Now keep in mind that if you are reading this at a later date, this sale may no longer be active and the price I’ve mentioned may have changed or returned to the full price, but as of today it’s marked down. Price point aside, there are several other reasons to pick this up as a starter camera or family camera. One thing I absolutely love about this camera is it’s compact size. We’re currently seeing a big shift away from DSLR’s and moving more towards mirrorless cameras, and a big advantage of that is the reduction in size. Gone are the days of needing to lug around a big camera, unless of course, you have a big lens on the other end of that camera, but if you’re simply looking for something that can shoot better than your current smartphone without being weighed down with a DSLR, then this is the perfect option. As I mentioned earlier, I bought the lens adapter for mine, so I could use my other lenses, but this, of course, is optional. The standard 15-45mm lens that it comes with is actually a nice little lens for the price and allows you to shoot quite a bit. That being said, if you’d like to have more range, you can purchase the EF-M 55-200mm lens, which will allow you to zoom significantly further than the 15-45mm. The downside of this for me is having to carry two lenses, which defeats the purpose of a smaller camera. My preference is using the Canon EOS M Mount Adapter and a lens with a broader range but still adequate for most shooters. I currently have mine set up with the Canon EF-S 18-135mm lens. Again, I know you can couple this camera with all sorts of lenses with more capabilities or specific purposes. However, most people shooting with a camera like this are not professionals and are just looking for a good alternative to their smartphone; or perhaps an entry-level setup to make sure they actually like photography enough before dishing out big bucks for the more professional gear.

The following video is an unboxing of the Canon M50.