EOS 6D Mark II vs EOS 6D: Key Features and Comparison

The EOS 6D Mark II has arrived, and we know you’ll have a tonne of questions about it. 

Things like: How does EOS 6D Mark II compare to the original 6D? What are the key features of the EOS 6D Mark II? Who should buy an EOS 6D Mark II?

In this article, we outline the important details you need to know, plus share some input from the photographers who played with EOS 6D Mark II* before its launch. Those four lucky people are time-lapse extraordinaire Matthew Vandeputte, travel and adventure photographer Melissa Findley, lifestyle photographer Alex Spurway and Photographer May. 

Let’s get into it!



26.2 Megapixel Full Frame Canon CMOS Sensor

This is a brand new, Canon-developed Full Frame CMOS sensor. Full frame CMOS sensors offer better image quality compared to smaller APS-C sized sensors, and also eliminate the crop factor so your wide-angle lenses are still wide as can be.

This is important for landscapes, travel and especially low-light photography. The sensor delivers outstanding detail from both highlights and shadows. The additional megapixels—compared to the 20.2 megapixels of the original EOS 6D — also give greater flexibility to crop or print larger.

Learn more about Sensor Size



3” Vari-angle Touch LCD Screen

This is the first time any Full Frame DSLR has featured a vari-angle screen. Having a vari-angle screen means it’s now much easier to find new creative angles to shoot. This is perfect for astrophotography for example, when the camera’s needs to be pointed to the sky. 

The touch screen also enables touch auto focus so that you can easily—and precisely—lock focus on your subject. Plus you can quickly review images in playback mode, and navigate through menus.

ISO 40,000

This camera excels in low-light conditions — carrying on the strong reputation of the original EOS 6D. It’s perfect for sunrise, sunsets and astrophotography in particular.

With fewer megapixels than the EOS 5D Mark IV, each individual pixel is slightly bigger, which allows the EOS 6D Mark II to surpass the EOS 5D Mark IV in ISO capability. 

“I was mightily impressed with the low light performance of the pre-production models I was shooting with”

Matthew Vandeputte

Learn more about ISO

4K Time-lapse Movie Mode Built-in

Create time-lapse movies in camera in either 4K or Full HD resolution. The camera can even adjust exposure for each frame allowing for easy day to night time-lapse sequences. 

It’s now easier than ever to make impressive time-lapse movies in camera without the need for editing.

“Built in 4K time-lapse movies will speed up my workflow for many time-lapse productions”

by Matthew Vandeputte

Watch Matthew Vandeputte’s world-first EOS 6D Mark II Astrophotography time-lapse.



Extended Battery Life

Enjoy up to a massive 1,200-shot battery life when shooting using the optical viewfinder. This is handy for travellers and those wanting to cut down kit weight. 

Also, the EOS 6D Mark II body is compatible with the batteries used in the original EOS 6D — plus the EOS 80D and EOS 5D series. Upgrade safe in the knowledge that you can use your old batteries.

“For the astro time-lapse, I used one battery per night of shooting per camera. Temperatures dropped down to 3 degrees and at the end of every shoot I had at least 40% battery life left. That is very impressive performance!”

Matthew Vandeputte

45-point All Cross-type AF System 

We’ve packed in an advanced 45-point all cross type auto focus system, for precise auto focus and subject tracking. It also gives you the ability to focus in low light conditions—down to EV-3—and select between one point auto focus or a group of focus points.

This is a much more advanced system compared to the 11-point centre cross-type system of the EOS 6D, allowing for more precise focusing and greater tracking of moving subjects.

“Changing auto focus points through the touch screen makes things so easy”

Danny May

Learn about AF points

Bluetooth and Wifi

Enjoy always-on connectivity between camera and smartphone. Once paired, Bluetooth low energy maintains the connection in a standby mode and will switch smartly to Wi-Fi when you want to download images or use the phone to shoot remotely. Easily use the Canon Camera Connect app to download images to your smartphone, or get in the frame and use the phone as a remote control.

“Often my work features a human element in a vast landscape. Spending a lot of time on the road solo, there are occasions when I need to place myself in the frame for that perspective. With the new Bluetooth and Wifi connectivity to my smart phone, I am now able to see a live view of what the camera sees, making this so much easier then setting a 10 second time and running.”

Melissa Findley

Aside from the seven features listed above, other noteworthy features are Dual Pixel CMOS Auto Focus, Full HD 60p movies, bulb and interval timer modes, intelligent viewfinder, and a compact, lightweight body. 

Find out more, and see sample shots on the EOS 6D Mark II product page.

* pre-production models were used.