Canon RF 200-800mm f/6.3-9 IS coming on November 2, 2023

[EricN]

I had forgotten the the tilt shift lenses were not officially L lenses in spite of the fact the optics are better than many actual L lenses. Also spaced the MP-E. On rethought, the 400mm DO's (both versions) were very expensive non-L lenses in spite of being painted white and yes, they had weather sealing. Maybe the 200-800 will have a green ring to carry on that tradition since Canon has long had a policy that DO and L do not fit in the same bucket.

forgot about the 400 DOs

 

[Dragon]

If Canon wants to own the low end and give up share with pros and prosumers this sort of lens will do that. Just look at nikon at the long end... 400tc and 600tc if you want the best of the best. 600 and 800pf if you want sharp and fast with small size and light weight, and toss in the 400 4.5 just to add another sharp lens to the mix. Oh, and let's not forget the new 180-600.this new Canon lens won't get anyone to switch from nikon to Canon, but nikon's long lens lineup is getting people to move the other way. And at least for now, Canon is behind at the high end on bodies as well. I may be one of those soon to switch.

The TCs are a nice touch, but flip-in TCs rarely work as well as external TCs. The PFs are in the middle, but not cheap and I fail to see where the 180-600 is an improvement over what we have heard about this lens. Nikon is pushing the pro end now that they have the Z9, but Canon has always had very close contact with the pro community and I suspect knows very accurately when that group is planning to move from DSLRs. That is when we will see the R1 (and any lenses needed to fill gaps). I am curious as to what you are shooting now and what body you are thinking of moving to.

 

[EricN]

The TCs are a nice touch, but flip-in TCs rarely work as well as external TCs. The PFs are in the middle, but not cheap and I fail to see where the 180-600 is an improvement over what we have heard about this lens. Nikon is pushing the pro end now that they have the Z9, but Canon has always had very close contact with the pro community and I suspect knows very accurately when that group is planning to move from DSLRs. That is when we will see the R1 (and any lenses needed to fill gaps). I am curious as to what you are shooting now and what body you are thinking of moving to.

A typical expert on what Canon is doing wrong for the pro end and thinking of moving to Nikon would probably be going from 1000D to Z 30

 

[Dragon]

But, most importantly.... why this before the 35 1.2L?!? C'mon Canon!


Ok well - I have the 800 11 but not happy with it. Haven't had the right conditions to try it out seriously, but I am not a fan of the extending action and the fixed aperture. The versatility of a zoom, plus aperture control, slightly less punishing max aperture and, hopefully, closer MFD, would make me consider a swap, assuming it won't be much bigger than the 800 11.

Will wait and see for this one, not going to order blind on the announcement day.

But still...
Where's the 35 1.2L Canon?!?

Interesting. You would like it not much bigger than the 800 f/11, but you don't want an extending lens. Sounds like magic. Remember you don't have to collapse the 800 f/11 and then you don't have to concern yourself with the extending action. But do give it a serious try out. You can get some amazing images with that lens.

 

[mxwphoto]

A typical expert on what Canon is doing wrong for the pro end and thinking of moving to Nikon would probably be going from 1000D to Z 30

Per latest Asian Games (Sep 2023) 64% of press photogs used a Canon camera. Seems still like a solid majority to me.

Canon comprises number one share of press cameras used during the 19th Asian Games in China | Canon Global

TOKYO, October 12, 2023&Canon Inc. announced today that Canon-brand equipment comprised the number one share—approximately 64% of cameras—used by press photographers at the 19th Asian Games held in Hangzhou, China.

global.canon

 

[Maximilian]

Are you offering??

You could combine that with some holiday on the continent

 

[Maximilian]

Base data of that lens look interesting.
But I'll wait for more details, MFD, size, weight (edit: ) extender operation and price before I start to drool or lament

 

[Marximusprime]

Weather sealing and a good MFD, and I'm sold. I've been *really* wanting a telephoto superzoom to slot between my RF 100-400, my 800, and the 500 II. I've even been considering upgrading to the R6 Mark II to increase the AF area of the 800 f/11, so if this has a better AF area, then it could end up saving me money.

 

[mxwphoto]

I just realized this... the focal length and aperture will be similiar to the Olympus 150-400 f4.5 (300-800 f9 equivalent). Makes one wonder what would get better images, the $9500 m43 system ($7500 lens, $2000 body), or a $4500 (estimated) full frame system ($2000 lens, $2500 camera).

 

[shire_guy]

Now this is interesting. I have yet to buy into the RF longer lenes as I couldn't see much advantage over my existing EF ones. But if this is reasonably sharp it will be my first one. Might be a while before it finds its way to Australia.

 

[koenkooi]

I’m curious about the MFD and magnification ratio. Anything over 0.33x would be good.

 

[DhlcadR6]

If Canon wants to own the low end and give up share with pros and prosumers this sort of lens will do that. Just look at nikon at the long end... 400tc and 600tc if you want the best of the best. 600 and 800pf if you want sharp and fast with small size and light weight, and toss in the 400 4.5 just to add another sharp lens to the mix. Oh, and let's not forget the new 180-600.this new Canon lens won't get anyone to switch from nikon to Canon, but nikon's long lens lineup is getting people to move the other way. And at least for now, Canon is behind at the high end on bodies as well. I may be one of those soon to switch.

Z400 f4.5 & 600/800PF aren't cheap though. For Canon there's always the old and reliable EF400L f5.6 or the DO mk1&mk2. And with modern AF and IBIS, EF400L f5.6 shines again. Nikon Z bodies with old F mount can't pull off. You keep insisting RF/EF-RF aren't providing prosumers choices when it's actually a cheap option. Nevertherless I'm expecting you to say using old EF lens is bad, only newly made lenses are the holy grail.

RF200-800 is to fight 180-600, apparently it doesn't count as competitor. And somehow RF100-500 gets to compared with 200-600/180-600 and gets trashed for being overpriced when those heavy&expensive 100-400s are ignored.

Behind on high end bodies? Z9 and Z8 are not showing pixel advantage over R5. Yes they are stacked but NLog is not useful as CLog so they are somewhat behind in video. R3 is overlooked because "ONLY" 24MP but the 6K and its consistent high burst is what journalist need.

If you are not the 'pro' rushing for the latest gear and lenses for internet show case scenario. Current 'poor' offering from Canon can do the job.

 

[john1970]

Initially, I was quite skeptical of this lens, but am starting to reconsider it as a purchase especially if the price is right. For me the yes or no will come down to the focusing mechanism: USM (yes) or STM (no). Can does use USM motors in non-L lenses such as the RF 24-240 mm.

 

[DhlcadR6]

Now this is interesting. I have yet to buy into the RF longer lenes as I couldn't see much advantage over my existing EF ones. But if this is reasonably sharp it will be my first one. Might be a while before it finds its way to Australia.

The only reason to buy it is you need that focal length. Or want lighter lenses. I'm pleased with the RF100-400 as it's so much more portable than traditional 100-400. If 200-800 is not bigger nor heavier than competitors' 200-600/1xx-600/1xx-500. I see this as an absolute win.

An affordable zoom can reach 700~800mm f9....It's a win for RF tele users.

 

[DhlcadR6]

Initially, I was quite skeptical of this lens, but am starting to reconsider it as a purchase especially if the price is right. For me the yes or no will come down to the focusing mechanism: USM (yes) or STM (no). Can does use USM motors in non-L lenses such as the RF 24-240 mm.

RF lens motor type have these 4 groups:
USM (not ok for video)
nano USM (YES)
Gear type STM (NO)
Lead-screw type STM (YES)

Non-L lens that uses nano USM are 100-400 and 24-240
Non-L lens Lead-screw type is 10-20L, 15-30, 24-105

 

[Bonich]

If Canon wants to own the low end and give up share with pros and prosumers this sort of lens will do that. Just look at nikon at the long end... 400tc and 600tc if you want the best of the best. 600 and 800pf if you want sharp and fast with small size and light weight, and toss in the 400 4.5 just to add another sharp lens to the mix. Oh, and let's not forget the new 180-600.this new Canon lens won't get anyone to switch from nikon to Canon, but nikon's long lens lineup is getting people to move the other way. And at least for now, Canon is behind at the high end on bodies as well. I may be one of those soon to switch.

Canon giving up the pros' market? Lenses like the 28-70 2.0 and the 100-300 2.8 are making pros going Canon.
Nikon's burst of 400mm+ lenses will not bring any new enthusiast into the market, they are to establish a niche.
Canon's 600/11, 800/11, ultra compact 100-400, 200-800 are to conquer new enthusiasts into the market.
Those "switching from Nikon" are on the path to die out anyway.

We will witness something new in the 500-600 range for the "pros" in the future, I guess something different as we did with the 100-300 2.8 replacing the 70-200 2.8 and the 300 2.8 with a single shot, which was a very smart move.

 

[Bonich]

Canon falls further behind nikon with this...

Those looking backwards might come to your conclusion ....

 

[Sigurd2]

Canon falls further behind nikon with this...

Explain your reasoning in detail, please.

Same price range as the competitors, but without weather sealing and with poorer build quality.
Seems also to me that Canon ends up further and further behind.

A wildlife lens without weather sealing is not a wildlife lens in my opinion.
(And I would have preferred a little extra weight to get internal zoom.)

 

[cohenfive]

The TCs are a nice touch, but flip-in TCs rarely work as well as external TCs. The PFs are in the middle, but not cheap and I fail to see where the 180-600 is an improvement over what we have heard about this lens. Nikon is pushing the pro end now that they have the Z9, but Canon has always had very close contact with the pro community and I suspect knows very accurately when that group is planning to move from DSLRs. That is when we will see the R1 (and any lenses needed to fill gaps). I am curious as to what you are shooting now and what body you are thinking of moving to.

The nikon tc lenses work flawlessly as they should for their huge cost.
I currently own an r5, r6 and a z8. In terms of long glass I have the rf100-500 and rf600 f4. I also own the nikon pf lenses and am on the list for the upcoming pf 600. I guess I am mostly talking about wildlife shooters. The Z8 and z9 just perform better for BIF and fast moving wildlife, although the r5 is a great body. If I move I would get another z8 and either the 600tc or the 600pf...

As far as the pf lenses are concerned, neither Canon or Sony makes anything like them. I don't know why they don't, but their combination of small size and performance is pretty amazing. The old do Canon does not stack up even against the old 500pf, which remains a great lens especially at the $2k price point where it now sells. And now if you want to stay light you can shoot with three brilliant light nikon lenses with the 400 4.5, 600pf and 800pf.

 

[Bonich]

The TCs are a nice touch, but flip-in TCs rarely work as well as external TCs. The PFs are in the middle, but not cheap and I fail to see where the 180-600 is an improvement over what we have heard about this lens. Nikon is pushing the pro end now that they have the Z9, but Canon has always had very close contact with the pro community and I suspect knows very accurately when that group is planning to move from DSLRs. That is when we will see the R1 (and any lenses needed to fill gaps). I am curious as to what you are shooting now and what body you are thinking of moving to.

"flip in TCs rarely work as well as external TCs"?
Did you ever shoot the EF 200-400? My shots with this lens outperform the 600 4.0 II left and right.

But I do think Canon will abandon this path to reduce weight and size of future lenses. The 100-300 2.8 is a great example demonstrating Canon's thinking how to do things differently to the legacy to boost added value for the user.