Is Upgrading To A Full-Frame Camera Worth It? My Honest Experience After Switching From A Crop Sensor

 

In January 2025, I upgraded from an APS-C crop sensor camera to a Canon R6 MKII full-frame model. I picked it for its excellent low-light performance, fast autofocus, high frame rates for capturing fast-moving wildlife, and enough megapixels to crop without sacrificing image quality all while staying within my budget.

 

 

The main reason I switched to full-frame was for better low-light performance. Out at dusk or dawn, my old APS-C body just couldn’t keep up. Anything over 800 ISO resulted in noisy, unusable images, or blurry shots from slow shutter speeds.

 

 

After considering my primary goals for shooting in low light, I encountered mixed reviews about whether my Sigma 150-600mm lens would work with the Canon R6 MII, especially regarding its autofocus performance. What was the point in having a camera that could handle low light if the lens wouldn’t focus? Honestly, I struggled with the Sigma lens anyway because of the weight, as I found holding it steady a real challenge. Wanting lightning-fast autofocus and a lightweight, easy-to-carry camera body, I decided to trade in the Sigma and pick up the Canon 100-500, which I will review in a later post. Spoiler alert: it’s awesome!!    

 

 

 

 

My biggest concern about switching was losing reach, giving up 100mm, and the 1.6x crop factor that made my APS-C body and Sigma a 960mm equivalent. With the R6 MKII and 500mm lens, would I miss the 460mm of reach?

 

 

 

Having detailed my reasons for the switch and the gear I chose, I can now reflect on my experience with this new combo after using it for over a year. Do I regret my decision? Absolutely not. Do I wish I had made the switch years ago? Yes.

 

 

 

This camera body and lens combo has far exceeded my expectations. I’ve now captured countless images at dusk and dawn of moose, loons, and other wildlife I couldn’t have photographed with my old APS-C body. Previously, I had to wait until mid-morning for enough light to freeze action, which meant missing peak wildlife activity and dealing with harsh light or problematic shadows.  

 

 

This combo is lightweight, coming in at 4.5 pounds. That’s 1.6 pounds lighter than my APS-C and Sigma combo. This may not sound like much, but when you are carrying this around all day, it is huge. My new rig still works beautifully in my Cotton Carrier (a chest harness for carrying cameras), taking all the strain off my neck.    

 

 

The Canon R6 MKII’s electronic shutter can fire at 40 frames per second, making it easy to capture fast-moving subjects as long as the settings are dialed in and the exposure is spot on. This frame rate is truly amazing, especially when photographing birds in flight. Switching to mechanical at 12 FPS is still possible and is something I use on slower-moving subjects, so I don’t end up with a pile of images to sort through.

 

 

Do I miss the extra reach? Honestly, no. While more reach would be nice at times, the high resolution lets me crop significantly without losing quality. The low-light performance and high FPS mean I’m capturing more keeper images than I miss due to limited reach.

 

 

Another benefit I’ve noticed is that full-frame cameras offer a higher dynamic range, capturing more detail in both shadows and highlights. This allows for minor adjustments in post-processing with less compromise to image quality. It’s important to remember to get the correct exposure in-camera to maximize image quality, but this is a welcome feature over my APS-C camera.

 

 

 

Previously, I was almost always shooting at ISO 800 with my APS-C body and various lenses, pushing for at least 1/1000 shutter speed to freeze the action. I was never comfortable going over ISO 800 because my images were too noisy, which led to missed shots and blur. Now, with the full-frame camera, my images are far less noisy at higher ISOs, and I’m not missing as many due to noise, making the upgrade completely worthwhile.      

 

 

My only regret about switching is not doing it years ago. I was so worried about losing reach, I overlooked the many benefits. While there are times when I could use a bit more reach, the improved low-light performance and cropping ability far outweigh that concern. Switching to full-frame has been a game-changer, and I highly recommend it to anyone considering the jump from APS-C.

 

Good birding,
Paul