Canon R5 update allows you to shoot 400-MP stills

Canon has released a firmware update for its EOS R5 full-frame mirrorless camera. The headline feature of the firmware version 1.8.1 update is called IBIS High Resolution Shot. This feature gives you the ability to take photographs with a resolution of up to an incredible 400 megapixels (MP).

What is IBIS?

IBIS stands for Internal Body Image Stabilization. This technology works by sensing the movement of the camera and applying a compensating movement to the image sensor. It’s designed to remove camera shake when you are shooting handheld. However, the firmware update enables the camera to move the sensor incrementally to replicate the effect of smaller pixels while you take a photograph. The result is an image with a higher resolution than the sensor itself.

IBIS High-Resolution Shot

The Canon R5 mirrorless camera has a sensor with a native resolution of 45 MP. However, Canon says that with the IBIS High Resolution Shot feature, you can capture a 400-MP image. That equates to nearly nine times the native resolution of the sensor. You will also need to use the latest version of Canon’s EOS Utility Digital Photo Professional to view and export the IBIS High Resolution Shot images. The app has been upgraded to work with the super-sized photos, so you will need to download the new version.

Other new features

Along with some fixes for minor issues, firmware upgrade 1.8.1 allows you to crop and resize your images during transfer to an FTP server. The upgrade also adds a “Save/load comm. settings on card” option to the R5’s menu. This means you can now transfer your Network Settings between cameras of the same model.

What we think

Canon’s IBIS High Resolution is a great new feature for still photographs. Sony and OM System already use similar pixel shift technology in some of their cameras. However, these only increase the resolution of your images by around four times. Canon has more than doubled that with the R5, as the 400-MP images are nearly nine times larger than the native 45 MP of the R5’s sensor. How good these images look has yet to be seen, but the upgrade is free, so if you have an R5, then you can give it a try. Be prepared for some very large files, though.

Pricing and availability

The firmware version 1.8.1 update for the EOS R5 full-frame mirrorless cameras is available to download from Canon’s website now.

Pete Tomkies
Pete Tomkies
Pete Tomkies is a freelance cinematographer and camera operator from Manchester, UK. He also produces and directs short films as Duck66 Films. Pete's latest short Once Bitten... won 15 awards and was selected for 105 film festivals around the world.

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