Meike launches the AF 85mm f/1.4 autofocus lens for the RF mount

[dtaylor]

Good point #3. Though if that were the case and is a valid loophole I would think that the market would have a lot of 3rd party RF mount AF lenses by now.

3rd party manufacturers may be hesitant to take this step for fear that their lenses won't be fully compatible in the future.

 

[Del Paso]

Not if not licensed to work with the RF. Just ask Sigma.

I don't know, it would just be an "EF" lens with integrated RF to EF adapter. Shouldn't be a legal issue. As long as Meike don't copy Canon's RF protocols...

 

[Del Paso]

3rd party manufacturers may be hesitant to take this step for fear that their lenses won't be fully compatible in the future.

Future compatibility could indeed become an issue. Good point!

 

[shadowsports]

Agree << Compatibility wise, we have yet to see how new cinema cameras are going to behave.

Example. R5 C. Both of my 3rd party EF glass works well in photo mode. Have the Sigma 150~600c and 24~70 f2.8 Art. In Cinema mode AF operation diminishes slightly.

Put a Tamron 24-70 f2.8 G2 on the R5 C in Cinema mode and you won't get AF period. Yet, this lens works fine on the C70 and C300mkII (example)

I fully intended to transition to RF slowly. Once I saw the AF performance when using the Control Ring (which was acceptable, just not stellar) I purchased the RF 24~70 f2.8L 2 weeks later. Within a few months, I had replaced everything. Trinity + some zooms.

I am curious however to see what happens when the summer update drops in June/July. They'll have to add EL-5 support even though its not specifically listed in the update. Also support for the ST-E10 for the MF shoe. However, Its not Canon's responsibility to ensure 3rd party EF glass works with their RF mount cameras. So allowing EF communication via a RF bayonet sounds risky, and I wouldn't be surprised if Sigma and Tamron were not jumping on board with that.

So, not clear what direction things are moving in. But I still think 3rd party AF support in RF mount is a ways off. Happy if it comes sooner. Lots of folks clamoring for it.

 

[entoman]

2-3 years back Canon gear was priced within 5% of US prices but still compared to Nikon quite a lot more expensive. In general though among birders Nikon is quite a lot more prevalent though Canon is quite a lot more present among herp photography group.

Yes, almost all the bird photographers I see in India are using Nikon gear, mostly DSLRs. Strangely, butterfly photographers and tiger photographers mostly seem to use Canons. The only Sony models I see are RX10 bridge cameras.

 

[Del Paso]

Yes, almost all the bird photographers I see in India are using Nikon gear, mostly DSLRs. Strangely, butterfly photographers and tiger photographers mostly seem to use Canons. The only Sony models I see are RX10 bridge cameras.

Interesting, especially the part about tiger photographers.
PS: an aunt of mine, a catholic nun, was living in India (Mysore). But her camera was a Brownie Flash...
PPS: she didn't photograph tigers.

 

[entoman]

Interesting, especially the part about tiger photographers.
PS: an aunt of mine, a catholic nun, was living in India (Mysore). But her camera was a Brownie Flash...
PPS: she didn't photograph tigers.

Tiger photography can be a weird experience. A few weeks ago I counted no less than 32 jeeps crammed 3 abreast on a short section of track. They were divided into 2 groups, with a gap of about 10 metres between the groups. There was a tigress hidden among trees about 100m into the forest, and the photographers (mostly locals, plus a handful of foreign tourists) waited at that spot for almost 2 hours, hoping she would emerge and cross the road between the jeeps.

When she eventually did, all the photographers leapt up and jostled frantically (and very noisily) for position. It was pandemonium, but the tigress just strolled across the road, seemingly oblivious of the jeeps full of noisy tourists.

My jeep got stuck in the middle of this melee, as it was impossible to move forward or backward. Not the most enjoyable experience. Fortunately I'd already got some nice shots of tigers earlier (not on the road, I hasten to add), in a less crowded part of the tiger reserve, along with leopards, elephants, gaur, jackals, boar, chital, sambar, and lots of beautiful birds.

 

[bergstrom]

is Meike a brand to be excited about?

 

[entoman]

The door was never closed. People on the internet took a known fact (Canon has two lens makers stop making AF RF lenses due to patent infringement) and blew it up into "Canon won't allow 3rd party lenses" or "There will never be any 3rd party AF lenses for the RF mount." Alas, a typical scenario in today's social media world where fact, rumor and downright lies are all mingled together and treated equally. (Actually lies and misinformation are far more accepted than facts in many cases). Canon says they have no 3rd party policy at this time and never had one. They will look at things on an individual basis. So we have no idea how open the door is or will be.

Truth is irrelevant in 2023.

My faith in the media has diminished almost to zero.

 

[entoman]

is Meike a brand to be excited about?

A Chinese company called “Shanghai Shen Zhou Trading Co. LTD” makes the lenses. Allegedly, they’ve been making lenses for other brands for years, although I don't know *which* other brands. It's probably safe to say that they won't match Sigma, Canon, Nikon, Fujifilm, Panasonic or Sony in terms of image quality or build quality, but they are cheap. Would I get excited about Meike lenses? Nope.

 

[Ozarker]

is Meike a brand to be excited about?

That's socioeconomically dependent. So, yes!!!

 

[markschneider]

I, like may of you, have EF and RF lenses. 1. To say they are similar is plain wrong. RF has four more pins, allowing faster communication/faster focusing and a different transmission protocol. 2. Just because you can reverse engineer something does not make it legal. It's still a violation of copyright law. Yes, I would love Sigma/Tamron to produce RF mounts - and I have no doubt they will. Patience. For those who threaten to jump to Sony or Nikkon, just do it and stop whining. 3. I love my R6, and have worked my way up the ranks with the Rebel, 5DM2, 5DM4, and now my R6.

 

[AlanF]

I, like may of you, have EF and RF lenses. 1. To say they are similar is plain wrong. RF has four more pins, allowing faster communication/faster focusing and a different transmission protocol. 2. Just because you can reverse engineer something does not make it legal. It's still a violation of copyright law. Yes, I would love Sigma/Tamron to produce RF mounts - and I have no doubt they will. Patience. For those who threaten to jump to Sony or Nikkon, just do it and stop whining. 3. I love my R6, and have worked my way up the ranks with the Rebel, 5DM2, 5DM4, and now my R6.

Reverse engineering is perfectly legal as long as you are not using illicitly obtained information, and it is not a violation of copyright law.

 

[Chaitanya]

Yes, almost all the bird photographers I see in India are using Nikon gear, mostly DSLRs. Strangely, butterfly photographers and tiger photographers mostly seem to use Canons. The only Sony models I see are RX10 bridge cameras.

In recent years there has been shift towards Sony A7 or A1 series coupled with 200-600mm lens from Nikon users(and some Canon shooters as well) thanks to underwhelming Z6 and Z7. Those who held back seem to upgrading to Z9 these days.

Tiger photography can be a weird experience. A few weeks ago I counted no less than 32 jeeps crammed 3 abreast on a short section of track. They were divided into 2 groups, with a gap of about 10 metres between the groups. There was a tigress hidden among trees about 100m into the forest, and the photographers (mostly locals, plus a handful of foreign tourists) waited at that spot for almost 2 hours, hoping she would emerge and cross the road between the jeeps.

When she eventually did, all the photographers leapt up and jostled frantically (and very noisily) for position. It was pandemonium, but the tigress just strolled across the road, seemingly oblivious of the jeeps full of noisy tourists.

My jeep got stuck in the middle of this melee, as it was impossible to move forward or backward. Not the most enjoyable experience. Fortunately I'd already got some nice shots of tigers earlier (not on the road, I hasten to add), in a less crowded part of the tiger reserve, along with leopards, elephants, gaur, jackals, boar, chital, sambar, and lots of beautiful birds.

View attachment 208589

Nice pic, sadly some tiger reserves(TATR, Kanha, Pench, Bandhavgarh, Ranthambore, Jim Corbett and Kaziranga) have turned into glorified zoos and these days people who like to see Tiger(not guaranteed sighting) but want to enjoy wildlife in general visit less crowded places like Melghat, Umred, Nagzira(much better place than TATR), Bori, Satpuda, Pilbhit, Simplipal, Sundarbans(great place for birding as well), etc...

 

[RexxReviews]

Were all the Canon "Doomers" maybe wrong?
Looks like Big Bad Canon doesn't prevent 3rd. party manufaturers from making AF lenses in RF mount...

They also don't seem to be approving any actual big brands either. The 1 brand to make an AF lens that has been approved has what, a 1% market share, if that in the lens world? They seem to be only approving companies that wont give them any real competition. When we see SIGMA and TAMRON that will show real change.

 

[RexxReviews]

The door was never closed. People on the internet took a known fact (Canon has two lens makers stop making AF RF lenses due to patent infringement) and blew it up into "Canon won't allow 3rd party lenses" or "There will never be any 3rd party AF lenses for the RF mount." Alas, a typical scenario in today's social media world where fact, rumor and downright lies are all mingled together and treated equally. (Actually lies and misinformation are far more accepted than facts in many cases). Canon says they have no 3rd party policy at this time and never had one. They will look at things on an individual basis. So we have no idea how open the door is or will be.

You forgot the part where SIGMA at one point that they were pretty much blocked from the mount currently.

 

[photographer]

Meike? No thanks. This is no competition for Canon. Sigma and Tamron would be a different story.

 

[SnowMiku]

If this lens was approved by Canon then Meike and Canon must have reached some sort of agreement, maybe Canon gets a certain percentage of each lens sold? Since it is approved it should maintain compatibility with future bodies in the short term future, but it might not retain compatibility with RF bodies say 10+ years from now like an official Canon RF lens.

 

[Ozarker]

I don't know, it would just be an "EF" lens with integrated RF to EF adapter. Shouldn't be a legal issue. As long as Meike don't copy Canon's RF protocols...

Probably right. The price points are very low.

 

[wockawocka]

Well I guess if it's a combined EF adapter and EF protocols it'll be the safest option. I can't see Canon cutting out backwards compatability for years to come. If it's reverse engineered then that's more likely to be stomped out with a firmware update.

I can't see Canon bricking all their EF lenses to spite Meike.