Canon officially announces the RF 85mm f/1.2L USM DS & RF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM

[JTP]

Great. What is so incredible about this lens from your perspective? A genuine question. Thank you.

I really loved how light and nimble the lens was to hold. It just felt great in my hands. The front element extending outwards was a bit peculiar at first, as I am used to the EF, but the light and nimble feel really made up for that fast. What I enjoyed most about the RF version was how sharp it was and how well it focused at 200mm. It brought a sense of security to me that I've never felt before, much like the whole EOS R line does focus wise at maximum aperture. The clarity and colors, to me, are just on another level, though that is incredibly subjective. I'll try and post a few sample pictures in a few days when I can get around to it.

 

[SecureGSM]

I really loved how light and nimble the lens was to hold. It just felt great in my hands. The front element extending outwards was a bit peculiar at first, as I am used to the EF, but the light and nimble feel really made up for that fast. What I enjoyed most about the RF version was how sharp it was and how well it focused at 200mm. It brought a sense of security to me that I've never felt before, much like the whole EOS R line does focus wise at maximum aperture. The clarity and colors, to me, are just on another level, though that is incredibly subjective. I'll try and post a few sample pictures in a few days when I can get around to it.

Thank you. Most useful comment.
Could you please share some shots where we could judge bokeh quality, chromatic aberrations and also artistic qualities of the lens: rendering, contrast, colour magic, saturations and in focus to out of focus transition. Cheers.

 

[Bonich]

No words about the "Minimum focusing distance" for the 70-200?! But for the 85mm... strange!

The Tamron 70-200 G2 has only 0,95m! Hoping for something like that...but I won't afford those lenses .... 3000€ for a 85mm is crazy! I bought a used 300mm 2.8IS for this before 6 years!

It looks like minimum focus distance is not constant across the zoom range (like it is true with the RF 24-70). This gives you better maximum magnification at shorter focal length and enables a different photographic approach in closeups: you are free to decide perspective by focal length and can focus down to the desired magnification instead of zooming to 200mm and the focus.
I really like this performance of my RF 24-70 2.8.
BTW: min focus distance of the RF is 0.7m, I do not have data about the corresponding focal length.

 

[Michael Clark]

The more I use it, the more I love it for portraits. I dont shoot test charts.

I'm glad you like it. I'm a bit underwhelmed.

Some of those who think that the "sharper" a lens is, the better it is for any purpose remind me of those who think the "nifty fifty" is a "great" lens. It's a great value for the price, but it's fairly mundane as wide aperture primes go. But to those who have only used slow zooms and have never used a truly great prime lens, it's the best lens ever made.

 

[JTP]

Thank you. Most useful comment.
Could you please share some shots where we could judge bokeh quality, chromatic aberrations and also artistic qualities of the lens: rendering, contrast, colour magic, saturations and in focus to out of focus transition. Cheers.

Most welcome! I'll try to post some this week if I can. I didn't get to shoot a ton, but from what I shot, I really loved.

 

[JTP]

I'm glad you like it. I'm a bit underwhelmed.

Some of those who think that the "sharper" a lens is, the better it is for any purpose remind me of those who think the "nifty fifty" is a "great" lens. It's a great value for the price, but it's fairly mundane as wide aperture primes go. But to those who have only used slow zooms and have never used a truly great prime lens, it's the best lens ever made.

I agree about sharpness. I have the new RF 50mm 1.2 and it is so sharp that it scares me sometimes to use on any women that doesn't have near perfect skin. You can see nearly every flaw in a persons skin when taking a near close portrait, especially if you don't have soft fill. If the person has deeper pores, be prepared to do a lot of post work.

 

[Optics Patent]

This lens may well be what pushed me from Nikon (Z6 that I love) to Canon. I tested and rejected the RP earlier this year, primarily because of the reverse zoom direction, but decided to stubbornly try again to get the better Canon lenses. Z6 has a better rear display flip up for fast low angle shots, a superior view finder with a larger apparent image, and a shutter that doesn't should like a toy (cringe). RP has the weight and size advantage, and Nikon shows no promise to catch up. Even looking to upgrade my Nikon 400mm f2.8 heavyweight, there seems little point with their heavier best option. I'm motivated to force myself to learn to love Canon to have a happier if less comfortable "marriage." I also trust that the RP can be replaced or supplemented by a next generation mirrorless body to get the most out of the pro lenses, and IBIS for my vintage oddballs like Questar 700 mirror lens and manual Nikon collection.