I’ll be honest — I didn’t plan to buy the Canon M50.

I was in Cape Town, scrolling through Gumtree at midnight, convincing myself I didn’t need a new camera. I already had my Nikon D3200. It was fine. It worked.

But “fine” was never really my thing.

The Hunt — 122km for a Camera

I was torn between the Canon M6 and the M50. As someone who was spending more and more time making travel and wildlife content for my YouTube channel TourBee, video quality actually mattered to me. The M50 had 4K, a flip-out screen, and Dual Pixel autofocus. That flip screen alone was a game changer for solo shooting.

Then I found it. A barely used M50 listed in Hermanus — 122km from Cape Town. The seller had received it as a wedding anniversary gift and taken exactly 36 photos with it. Thirty-six. The camera was practically brand new.

Her rule? First come, first served.

I drove my Nissan Sentra to Hermanus the next morning. No second thoughts.

When I held the M50 for the first time, I couldn’t believe how light it was. Coming from a bulky DSLR, it felt almost too small — like it couldn’t possibly be serious. But it was. It absolutely was.

The Kit Lens Phase — Learning What I Actually Needed

For the first four months, I used the M50 with the 15–45mm kit lens. Great for video. Not so great for the kind of photography I was chasing — street, wildlife, portraits with real depth.

So I went to ORMS in Cape Town and picked up an EF-M to EF lens adapter. That was the unlock.

Suddenly I could use proper EF lenses on this tiny body:

50mm f/1.8 — portraits with creamy bokeh, sharp details, beautiful in low light.

75–300mm zoom — wildlife and events, finally within reach without spending a fortune on native lenses.

The M50 became something different after that. It wasn’t just a vlogging camera anymore — it was a real creative tool.

What I’ve Shot With This Camera

From 2019 until today, the M50 has been with me everywhere:

The streets of Cape Town. Wildlife in the bush. Travel content across South Africa. Food shoots, events, lifestyle videos, even some wedding work. It went everywhere my Nikon would have — but in half the size and weight.

You can actually see a lot of this footage on my YouTube channels — TourBee was built almost entirely on M50 footage in those early years, and AsadSnapper has behind-the-scenes content that shows it in action.

The flip screen made solo travel vlogging so much easier. The Dual Pixel autofocus tracked subjects smoothly — even moving wildlife and people on the street. And the compact size meant I could carry it all day without my shoulders dying.

Why I’m Still Using It in 2025

Here’s the thing — I now shoot with a Canon R5 II, a BMPCC4K, and a bunch of other gear. But the M50 is still in my bag.

Why? Because it’s light, reliable, and just works. For quick behind-the-scenes shots, street photography, or situations where I don’t want to pull out the big gear — the M50 shows up every time.

It’s also just a camera I trust. We’ve been through a lot together.

Should You Get One?

If you’re just starting out in photography or video content creation — yes. Absolutely.

The M50 is affordable, compact, and with the EF adapter, gives you access to a huge range of lenses without locking you into expensive native glass. The autofocus is reliable, the flip screen is genuinely useful, and the image quality is more than good enough to build a real audience on YouTube or Instagram.

It won’t do everything. Wildlife in low light gets challenging. The 4K has a crop. Battery life could be better.

But for the price? For a beginner? For a travel creator? It punches way above its weight.

Final Thought

I drove 122km on a whim for this camera. Six years later, I don’t regret it for a single second.

If you’re thinking about getting into mirrorless and don’t want to spend big — give the M50 a serious look. It might just be the camera that starts everything for you, the way it did for me.

Got questions about the M50 or want to know what gear I’m using now? Drop a comment or find me on Instagram and YouTube at @AsadSnapper.