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The Canon RF 135mm f/1.8L IS USM has been out for a while now, as it was announced on November 2, 2022, and available in January of 2023. Still, I haven't seen too many clinical reviews of it until Opticallimits got their hands on one and completed a review recently.
Canon had big shoes to fill with this lens, as the Canon EF 135mm F2.0 USM was often put in the legendary lens category when the EF mount was in full use. So any future 135mm L lens from Canon had to meet or beat these expectations. The Canon RF 135mm f1/.8L IS USM was released with a great deal of excitement as this was an eagerly awaited lens for Canon's RF mount.
Key Features of the Canon RF 135mm
- RF-Mount Lens/Full-Frame Format
- Aperture Range: f/1.8 to f/22
- Nano USM AF System
- Optical Image Stabilizer
- Ultra-Low Dispersion Elements
- Air Sphere Coating
- Lens Function Buttons and Control Ring
- Rounded 9-Blade Diaphragm
If we examine the RF 135mm F1.8L IS USM's MTF chart, it appears nearly perfect, with a slight decrease in resolution as you move into the corners, while contrast remains exceptional throughout the frame. The meridional and sagittal lines, which closely align, usually indicate excellent bokeh qualities and low astigmatism. Overall, looking at this MTF, I'd expect it to be pretty great.
One of the longest-standing “complaints” from internet experts about Canon lenses and their MTFs is that they are computer-calculated and don't necessarily represent a real lens. Yes, there are always quality issues that may arise, and the MTF diagram is certainly optimistic that you get a good copy – but the lens itself is computer-designed, so it seems odd to question an MTF diagram that is also computer-modelled at the same time.
So what did OpticalLimits discover? That the MTF and the results do match up. Optically, the lens is excellent, but in some scenes, the bokeh may appear a bit busy.
Klaus of OpticalLimits has tested hundreds of lenses if not more, and he said this about the optical performance;
The Canon lens delivered an outstanding resolution performance in the lab across all relevant aperture settings and across the image field. Stopping down improves the quality only marginally. This is probably the best result that we have seen from any tested lens so far.
That's high praise of the Canon RF 135mm f1/.8L IS USM.
Their conclusion had this lens as a 9/10, which is hard to get from Klaus.
The Canon RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM is one of the sharpest – if not the sharpest – lens that we've ever tested. It's brutally sharp at all relevant settings, and that's across the frame. Lateral and axial CAs are very low, and image distortions aren't relevant either, with only marginal auto-correction needed here. The RAW vignetting is comparatively high at f/1.8, although, once again, auto-correction will come to the rescue here. A curious flaw is the “technical bokeh” in the focus transition zone. To be fair here, you will usually use the lens for very shallow depth-of-field photography where this won't be noticed anyway. However, it can be noticed in certain scenes.
The build quality is great, as you can expect from a Canon L lens. It feels, and is, sturdy despite the use of engineered plastics. The AF is very fast, as with all Canon USM lenses. The image stabilizer is a unique value-add for such a lens. Optical IS is more efficient at long focal lengths, and combined with IBIS, it can give you an edge when shooting in darker places.
Overall, Canon delivered an impressive piece of engineering here.
So just in case the Canon RF 135mm f/1.8L IS USM was sitting in your cart waiting to be purchased, now is a great time as it's also $200 off its now regular price of $2300, as Canon has recently increased its price in the USA.
- RF-Mount Lens/Full-Frame Format
- Aperture Range: f/1.8 to f/22
- Nano USM AF System
- Optical Image Stabilizer
- Ultra-Low Dispersion Elements
- Air Sphere Coating
- Lens Function Buttons and Control Ring
- Rounded 9-Blade Diaphragm
And thanks to Opticallimits to put the lens to a test.
I spent a long time deliberating whether I should buy the EF 135/2 L.
Exactly the same with this lens. Still, uncertain... even with this review... 🤔
Not only the IQ is special, so is the price, too. 😉
It's a very specialized lens and less versatile (in my opinion) than an 85. My only issue with it is that it is not magic to my eyes like the 85 1.2 is 😏 YMMV
I´m really interested in the 135mm focal length, but 2.500 € is too much for a specialized lens (at least for my use cases). I am looking at used EF 135mm F2 lenses. Does anybody know how the EF version holds up against its successor?
I bought a new RF10-20 f/4L in the grey market and it is working great. I saved around €750
The EF 135 2.0 by today's standards could be considered soft, however, not everything needs to be pimple revealing sharp.
For my workloads I'm not likely to notice a difference, but if I were creating wall sized posters the real world difference may be worth it.
Personally I'm saving for the 85mm 1.2 first. At 135mm you stand quite a way away from your subject/model.
As for now, I'll probably just rent the 135mm for a weekend to play around. It should be fun and satisfy my curiosity.