Am I the Only One who Thinks the RF Lens Physical Design Sucks?

[SwissFrank]

For me:
Rear lens caps a lot harder to put on than EF, though part of it is the weather sealing, but it seems just too exact a fit and has to line up just right.

Mounting dot way too small and hard to see with my cataract issues.

Hoods with the freaking release button. I never had problems in 25 years with EF hoods coming off unexpectedly.

Front lens caps, meh, OK I guess, I liked the EF but these aren't really worse maybe, just different

The little trap door on the 100-500 hood for turning circular polarizers is annoying. What's the point of a hood that doesn't hood? Why not sell the lens with a regular hood and see the CP hood as an extra?

My RF lenses are getting more scuff marks on them from 5-6 shoots than my EF lenses got in 25 years. My EF hoods are all scuffed up from rubbing together in the backpack but the lens exteriors honestly still look nearly new in most cases.

And the 100-500 hood perfectly blocks the zoom, so you CANNOT use the lens unless you remove the hood, which requires you to find the stupid latch button

Design too stripped down. Why not put the f-stop along with the focal length at least. Fine, don't put useless info on it like "Ultrasonic Motor" etc. but at least tell me which freaking lens it is.

If all lenses had the control ring I guess I'd use it but since they don't, I instead use the body controls. Photography for me hinges on muscle memory and using it automatically and I can't sometimes be reaching for the lens control ring sometimes not. So with like 7 RF lenses how much have I paid for control rings I don't use?

The R5's functionality is great as is the lens functionality, but they really dropped the ball on just being able to USE the outfit.

 

[danfaz]

The only thing that bugs me is the rear cap.

 

[neuroanatomist]

For me:
Rear lens caps a lot harder to put on than EF, though part of it is the weather sealing, but it seems just too exact a fit and has to line up just right.

Agree on the rear lens cap – the real problem is that it can only be properly put on in a single rotational position, whereas the EF rear cap could mount in any of three rotational positions. The RF rear cap 'drops down' in all three positions but can only be mounted flush in one of them.

Mounting dot way too small and hard to see with my cataract issues.

It's a line, not a dot. It's closer to the mount now, meaning it's more recessed relative to the barrel. I can see that being an issue for some.

Hoods with the freaking release button. I never had problems in 25 years with EF hoods coming off unexpectedly.

Front lens caps, meh, OK I guess, I liked the EF but these aren't really worse maybe, just different

The little trap door on the 100-500 hood for turning circular polarizers is annoying. What's the point of a hood that doesn't hood? Why not sell the lens with a regular hood and see the CP hood as an extra?

Center-pinch front caps, locking hoods, a CPL window on deep hoods, all of those were found on later EF lenses, too. Personally, I find the center-pinch caps to be an improvement since they are easier to remove an attach with a deep hood mounted, or even a shallow hood with small clearance (e.g. the EF UWA zooms).

My RF lenses are getting more scuff marks on them from 5-6 shoots than my EF lenses got in 25 years. My EF hoods are all scuffed up from rubbing together in the backpack but the lens exteriors honestly still look nearly new in most cases.

Haven't noticed this. My RF lenses still look great, and I'm not especially careful with them.

And the 100-500 hood perfectly blocks the zoom, so you CANNOT use the lens unless you remove the hood, which requires you to find the stupid latch button

Same thing on the RF 70-200/2.8. I suppose the moral is if you bring the hood, you should use the hood. I always do, so I haven't found this to be an issue for me.

Design too stripped down. Why not put the f-stop along with the focal length at least. Fine, don't put useless info on it like "Ultrasonic Motor" etc. but at least tell me which freaking lens it is.

What they omitted compared to EF lenses are the units (mm) and all that 'useless info'. The aperture is where it always was, in small text as part of the full lens designation. For example, compare the 70-200/2.8 (EF III vs. RF) or 24-70/2.8 (EF II vs RF):



For the 70-200, the aperture is on the end of the barrel, for the 24-70 it's printed around the front element. Seriously, is it that hard to tell an f/2.8 from an f/4 zoom just by the size of the lens?

If all lenses had the control ring I guess I'd use it but since they don't, I instead use the body controls. Photography for me hinges on muscle memory and using it automatically and I can't sometimes be reaching for the lens control ring sometimes not. So with like 7 RF lenses how much have I paid for control rings I don't use?

I find the control ring handy. When I had one RF lens and a bunch of adapted EF lenses, I didn't use it. Now that I use mostly RF lenses, I use it routinely. For me, they're in one place on black lenses and another place on white lenses, so it's easy to adjust. Having said that, I have the control ring set to control ISO, which I usually leave in Auto so I don't really need to use the control ring that often anyway.

 

[Viggo]

I like the rear cap much better, when I twist it until it stops I also know exactly how to mount it, even in pitch black. Makes for a much swifter lens change for me at least. No guesswork.

 

[kaihp]

Having said that, I have the control ring set to control ISO, which I usually leave in Auto so I don't really need to use the control ring that often anyway.

I only have EF lenses (and the simple EF-RF adapter) and I've set the 'thumb dial' on the top (Canon-ical name: Quick control dial 2) to control ISO.

That way, I have shutter on the Main dial, ISO on the top (thumb) dial, and aperture on the (thumb) Quick control dial 1 (the 'regular' scroll wheel with 'SET' in the middle) on the back side.

 

[dolina]

I like the rear cap much better, when I twist it until it stops I also know exactly how to mount it, even in pitch black. Makes for a much swifter lens change for me at least. No guesswork.

That's good to hear. EF lens rear cap was a bit loosey goosey that it fell off easily. A problem if you're outdoors and it falls on loose dirt.

 

[AlanF]

I have a friend who has a pet python who told me that it would eat only what it had had for its first meal. It would seem that some photographers are of the same mind set.

 

[neuroanatomist]

I only have EF lenses (and the simple EF-RF adapter) and I've set the 'thumb dial' on the top (Canon-ical name: Quick control dial 2) to control ISO.

That way, I have shutter on the Main dial, ISO on the top (thumb) dial, and aperture on the (thumb) Quick control dial 1 (the 'regular' scroll wheel with 'SET' in the middle) on the back side.

I have EC on QCD1.

 

[Sporgon]

I have a friend who has a pet python who told me that it would eat only what it had had for its first meal. It would seem that some photographers are of the same mind set.

Jeez, it’s a good job humans are not like that; would become embarrassing.

 

[gruhl28]

I find the front caps difficult to put on using the center pinch, so I use the outer pinch to put on, but I like the center pinch for taking off.

 

[koenkooi]

I find the front caps difficult to put on using the center pinch, so I use the outer pinch to put on, but I like the center pinch for taking off.

For the bigger caps, I tilt them on: first one side, then the other. It's kind of a sliding action, it works very well when putting on the RF100-500 cap with the hood attached.

 

[koenkooi]

[...]The little trap door on the 100-500 hood for turning circular polarizers is annoying. What's the point of a hood that doesn't hood? Why not sell the lens with a regular hood and see the CP hood as an extra? [...]

You can pick where the window lands, I prefer it being at the bottom, which is where the sun doesn't shine. It will also act as a nice drain for when you tilt the lens upwards when it rains.

[...] And the 100-500 hood perfectly blocks the zoom, so you CANNOT use the lens unless you remove the hood, which requires you to find the stupid latch button[...]

Depending on where you have set the friction adjustment slider, you can use push-pull zoom like the original EF100-400. I use that when I'm in a hurry, it works for me.
And going back to the first point, I put the hood on the same way everytime, so the latch release is where I expect it

 

[SwissFrank]

That way, I have shutter on the Main dial, ISO on the top (thumb) dial, and aperture on the (thumb) Quick control dial 1 (the 'regular' scroll wheel with 'SET' in the middle) on the back side.

Yeah, that's what I have too. I was so excited to have aperture on the lens ring... but 100-500 is close to the camera instead of front end of lens. I didn't even realize it had one until googling it just now! And even now I realize it, I doubt I'll work it into my muscle memory as the location's different. But my Sigma 28/1.4 lacks it of course. ANYWAY, I've totally adapted to the layout you describe. Can anyone see any upside to returning to the control ring for aperture? If I do so does the "Quick control dial 1" (the thumb wheel with "SET" in the middle) pick up some other functionality?

 

[SwissFrank]

You can pick where the window lands, I prefer it being at the bottom, which is where the sun doesn't shine. It will also act as a nice drain for when you tilt the lens upwards when it rains.


Depending on where you have set the friction adjustment slider, you can use push-pull zoom like the original EF100-400. I use that when I'm in a hurry, it works for me.
And going back to the first point, I put the hood on the same way everytime, so the latch release is where I expect it

Thanks for the tips. I can make good use of ALL those suggestions.

 

[SHAMwow]

I like the material my RF 70-200 2.8 is made of. It wears well. All my other black L lenses wear terribly.

 

[SwissFrank]

but I like the center pinch for taking off.

for me the problem is that if I can't see the front of the lens, I could feel for an EF lens cover and realize it wasn't on. With RF a couple times I've touched the front element thinking there was a cap to center-pinch. I didn't realize the edge grab still worked though, I'll try using that.

 

[AJ]

Ditto on the rear cap. It sucks. It reminds me of EF-compatible caps by Tamron and Sigma that only fit one position. Canon's EF caps fit in three positions.
The other bit that really bothers me is that the serial numbers on RF lenses are basically illegible.

 

[SwissFrank]

Ditto on the rear cap. It sucks. It reminds me of EF-compatible caps by Tamron and Sigma that only fit one position. Canon's EF caps fit in three positions.
The other bit that really bothers me is that the serial numbers on RF lenses are basically illegible.

OK, I have had cataracts, then cataract surgery, and can't really see things I'm holding that well. I can see very well but only at a fixed distance, of my computer screen. It makes shooting hard when I can't read the camera controls and can't see my subject well :-D But I can see perfectly in the viewfinder due to adjustable diopter.

ANYWAY, yes, I have just now studied a lens (at arm's length, where I can see it) and realize they have a smooth black stripe that must line up with the tiny red mark. So now I know how to cap them reliably. But I can't see the red dot nor the smooth black stripe unless I hold the things out as far away as I can. Fair enough, no surprise they're not catering to blind photographers! And I can put a day-glo yellow sticker on them.

But even if you know this mark has to line up, even if you can see them, you still have to DO it. You have to search for the red mark... search for the smooth stripe... THEN mount the back cap. In 25 years of using my EF system I never looked at the back caps. I have no idea how they work--because I didn't need to know. I hold the cap up, and turn a bit and it snaps on...

The serial number issue is pretty straightforward--I can see it in the EXIF data... I can see where it's written on the lens and actually I CAN read it, again, if I hold the lens at arm's length...

 

[koenkooi]

For the rear cap I used bright red nail polish to make the stripe more obvious. It helps me a tiny bit, enough to not throw the caps into the trash out of frustration

 

[AJ]

In 25 years of using my EF system I never looked at the back caps. I have no idea how they work--because I didn't need to know. I hold the cap up, and turn a bit and it snaps on...

Yup. As it should be.