Canon R100 Setup: Menu Settings to Change Before You Shoot

To set up a Canon EOS R100, charge the battery, format a fresh SD card in the camera, choose your image quality, turn on the histogram, and pick the autofocus mode that matches what you shoot. Before you choose 4K video, turn the mode dial to video mode, because the 4K option only appears there.

This guide walks through each change in order, explains why it helps, and keeps the words simple. Canon designed the R100 for first-time interchangeable-lens camera users, so nothing here needs a photography degree. If you are still choosing between Canon's starter models, the guide to the best Canon camera for beginners compares the R50, R10, R100 and R8.

Before you switch it on

Charge the battery and buy a card

In Michael Fil's review, he notes that the battery does not come even partly charged and that the camera does not include an SD memory card. The R100 uses the LP-E17 battery, so give it a full charge before your first outing. PetaPixel's review describes the card slot as a UHS-I SD slot.

Format the card in the camera

The Digital Picture's setup list says to always format a memory card in the camera before using it, and warns that all data on the card will be lost. Think of formatting like erasing a whiteboard before class. The board is clean, and the camera can write on it neatly. If the card came from another device, copy off anything you want to keep first.

Learn the menu before you change it

Canon's manual says the menu tabs and items you see change depending on the shooting mode. So if a setting from this guide seems to be missing, turn the mode dial to a different mode and look again. Nothing is broken. The camera is just showing a shorter list.

When you change some settings away from the default, Canon's manual says the camera marks them in blue on certain menu tabs. That blue color is a handy trail of breadcrumbs, so you can see what you changed. Canon's manual also says pressing the menu button twice exits the menu and returns you to shooting.

Canon's manual refers to a menu display style called Guided. The Digital Picture's list turns off the Mode guide and Feature guide, while noting that novices may appreciate both features. These guides are like training wheels. Keep them on for your first few weeks, and turn them off once the little pop-up notes start to feel slow.

Mistakes here are safe. Canon's manual says you can reset menu functions to default under Basic settings, in Reset camera. For a wider look at how Canon menus are laid out, see the Canon camera menu setup guide.

Photo settings to change first

Image quality: RAW or JPEG

A RAW file is like cookie dough: you can still shape it however you want. A JPEG is the baked cookie: ready to eat, but harder to change. The Digital Picture's setup list sets RAW to "RAW" and JPEG to "-" in Shooting Menu tab 1, because RAW files provide the highest quality and are valuable for editing.

There is one trade-off. PetaPixel found the R100 shoots about six pictures per second but can only keep that up for about 10 RAW files in a row before slowing down, while JPEG mode keeps going. If you shoot kids running around or a soccer game, JPEG may keep up better. If you do not edit your photos yet, JPEG is a perfectly good place to start.

Picture Style

A Picture Style is like a recipe card for color and contrast. The Digital Picture uses Neutral with Sharpness set to 1 in Shooting Menu tab 3, explaining that the low-contrast Neutral style gives a histogram that best shows the available range from dark to bright. The same site switches the style to Standard later during editing. Neutral photos can look a little flat on the back screen. That is normal. If you shoot only JPEGs and want punchier color straight from the camera, Standard is a good choice.

High ISO noise reduction

ISO is like a volume knob for light. Turn it up and the picture gets brighter, but you also get grainy specks called noise. The Digital Picture sets High ISO speed NR to Low in Shooting Menu tab 3, because noise reduction is destructive to image detail. Noise reduction works a bit like sandpaper: it smooths the bumps, but it can sand away fine detail too.

Turn on the histogram

A histogram is a little mountain-shaped graph. If the mountain is squished against the left edge, your photo is too dark. If it is pushed against the right edge, it is too bright. The Digital Picture's list enables screens 1, 2 and 4 under Shooting info. display in Shooting Menu tab 7, and edits screen 2 to show only basic shooting info and the histogram. Checking it takes a second and helps you trust your exposure more than the bright back screen.

Add gridlines

Michael Fil notes that the R100's menu lets you add gridlines. A grid looks like a tic-tac-toe board over your picture. Try placing your subject where two lines cross, and keep the horizon on a line so it stays level.

Autofocus settings

Canon says the R100 uses Dual Pixel CMOS AF with up to 143 focus areas, plus Eye Detection for human subjects. In PetaPixel's review, the camera tracked eyes and faces well in photo modes.

One-Shot AF or Servo AF

One-Shot AF focuses once and locks, like taking one careful aim. Servo AF keeps refocusing, like your eyes following a ball. Canon lists up to about 6.5 frames per second with One-Shot AF and about 3.5 frames per second with Servo AF. Canon also says Eye Detection can follow moving subjects when using Servo AF. Use One-Shot for people standing still, flowers and buildings. Switch to Servo for pets, kids and anything that moves.

Continuous AF

The Digital Picture disables Continuous AF in Shooting Menu tab 4, so the camera focuses only when the shutter button is half-pressed. That gives you control over the moment focus happens. If you like the camera to start focusing before you press anything, leave it on and see which you prefer.

Moving the focus point without a touchscreen

The R100 has a fixed screen with no touchscreen. PetaPixel points out that a touchscreen would have made it easier to move the autofocus point. Practice moving the focus point with the buttons on the back at home, before a shoot, so it feels natural later. For portraits, letting eye and face tracking choose the subject can save you button presses.

Focus peaking for manual focus

The Digital Picture turns MF peaking on in Shooting Menu tab 5, which highlights in-focus detail in red while you focus by hand. Focus peaking works like a highlighter pen. Whatever glows red is sharp.

Getting out of auto mode

PetaPixel notes the R100 has only one control dial. That means you change one setting at a time, so pick a mode that does some of the work for you. Michael Fil found the R100 perfectly usable in aperture priority and shutter priority, not just full manual.

• Aperture priority (Av): The aperture is like the pupil of your eye. A wide opening lets in more light and blurs the background. The kit lens is the RF-S 18-45mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM.
• Shutter priority (Tv): The shutter is like a door opening and closing. A quick door freezes motion, and a slow door lets motion blur. The R100's shutter speeds run from 30 seconds to 1/4000 second.
• Manual (M): You set aperture, shutter and ISO yourself. Treat these three like syllables in a poem: change one and the others need to fit around it.

Low light is where blurry photos usually come from. Michael Fil found that indoors or at night the autofocus searched a bit longer, and with the kit lens's narrower aperture he suggests a tripod or a steady surface for sharp images. A blurry photo is just a clue, and it usually points to a shutter speed that was too slow for your hands. PetaPixel notes the R100's electronic first-curtain shutter is quiet and stable and should handle sharp pictures even at slower shutter speeds.

Video settings

Turn the dial to video before choosing 4K

Michael Fil found that the red record button works in photo modes, but the 4K option only appears in the menu once you turn the dial to video mode. In photo modes, you are limited to Full HD at best.

Know what the 4K mode gives you

Canon lists 4K recording at 24p. The "p" number is the frame rate, like the pages per second in a flip book. PetaPixel notes the 4K footage is heavily cropped, which costs you the wide-angle look. TechRadar notes the 4K footage is 8-bit color. PetaPixel also found eye and face tracking worked poorly when shooting 4K video. If sharp focus on faces matters more to you than resolution, try Full HD and compare the two.

Slow motion at 120p

Canon lists high-framerate recording at HD/120P for smooth replay of fast movement. Canon's notes say autofocus is fixed in 120p and 100p, and each clip can run up to 7 minutes 29 seconds. Set your focus before you press record, and keep your subject at the same distance.

Movie Electronic IS and vertical video

Canon says Movie Electronic IS helps reduce camera shake when you film while walking. Canon also notes the shooting area becomes narrower when it is on. The camera can add vertical position information so your clips replay upright like phone video. For the basics of good footage on any camera, read the beginner's guide to shooting video.

Canon EOS R100 specs at a glance

Spec	Canon EOS R100
Sensor	APS-C CMOS, 24.1 million effective pixels
Processor	DIGIC 8
Autofocus	Dual Pixel CMOS AF, up to 143 areas, Eye Detection
Burst speed	About 6.5 fps One-Shot AF, about 3.5 fps Servo AF
Shutter speeds	30 s to 1/4000 s
Screen	3-inch fixed, no touchscreen
Video	4K/24P, HD/120P
Weight	About 356 g
Battery	LP-E17
Wireless	Wi-Fi 4 (2.4 GHz), Bluetooth 4.2
Kit lens	RF-S 18-45mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM

Write your settings down

The Digital Picture suggests keeping an up-to-date list of your menu settings, so that any time the camera returns to its factory state, you can set everything back up quickly. A note on your phone works fine. Write down image quality, Picture Style, noise reduction, screen info, focus mode and your video choices.

Change these settings once, take the camera outside, and shoot a few dozen pictures in aperture priority. Every photo that comes out too dark, too bright or a little soft teaches you something you can fix on the next one.