Canon RF 35mm f/1.4L VCM Review

[Richard CR]

OpticalLimits (formerly photozone.de) has published its review of the Canon RF 35mm f/1.4L IS VCM. This is a lens that most have been waiting breathlessly for, and it does not disappoint. OpticalLimits (like myself) have a strong aversion to digital correction. So when a lens scores 8/10 WITH digital correction, you know they think it's

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[Jethro]

I've found Klaus very reliable over a long period of time. They are unusually high scores for a digitally corrected lens!

 

[J.H.]

Interesting results from a 3rd party unbiased review… I personally would love a fast, sharp slightly wide angle option and was hesitant to purchase because of all the discourse about heavy correction.
My primary use case would very low light bar/venue live music with no augmented lighting. I’ve used trinity 2.8s in these scenarios and the noise from digital corrections is quite apparent in my RAWs so I’m still waiting for reviews in this use case but it’s good news none the less.
Still hoping for a 1.2 stills oriented version with less reliance on post optical corrections and wouldn’t mind a heavier lens if it meant I could get better IQ. In the meantime I’ll continue to use the RF 50 1.2…

 

[Maximilian]

I've found Klaus very reliable over a long period of time. They are unusually high scores for a digitally corrected lens!

Fully agree.
Thank you, @photozone.de.
Seems to be a lens worth saving for, if you want a compact, high quality OEM 35/1.4.

 

[frankchn]

Interesting results from a 3rd party unbiased review… I personally would love a fast, sharp slightly wide angle option and was hesitant to purchase because of all the discourse about heavy correction.

My personal opinion is that so long as the final result looks good after barrel distortion correction, I don't really care about that at this price point. I care a bit more about vignetting correction since it is using more of the DR of my camera to correct (2+ stops in this case).

But agreed that hopefully we can get a f/1.2L at some point or Canon lets Sigma release their 35mm f/1.2 Art for RF.

 

[Emyr Evans]

I store all my images in Apple Photos which does not apply lens corrections in it\'s RAW converter.

I have no wish to put thousands of distorted images through Lightroom or DPP first before having to put them in another library.

I\'ve already fallen into this trap with my RF14-35mm.

 

[wockawocka]

I used mine for the first time at the weekend and that thing vignettes like crazy. Withthe EF mkii you could get away with shooting at 1.4 and delivering image uncorrected but the VC version is up to 2 stops darker.

Other than that, great, accurate lens that is sharper than the EF mkii version.

 

[Richard CR]

I store all my images in Apple Photos which does not apply lens corrections in it\'s RAW converter.

I have no wish to put thousands of distorted images through Lightroom or DPP first before having to put them in another library.

I\'ve already fallen into this trap with my RF14-35mm.

what kind of raw converter in 2024 doesn't have basic corrections?

 

[Richard CR]

I used mine for the first time at the weekend and that thing vignettes like crazy. Withthe EF mkii you could get away with shooting at 1.4 and delivering image uncorrected but the VC version is up to 2 stops darker.

Other than that, great, accurate lens that is sharper than the EF mkii version.

some of that is fundamentals of mirrorless and short flange distances and not actually as much the optical design.

 

[Quarkcharmed]

some of that is fundamentals of mirrorless and short flange distances and not actually as much the optical design.

But they don't have to actually utilise the short flange distance. It's a deliberate decision to use it all the way through which contributes to a relatively high vignetting.

 

[neuroanatomist]

According to Klaus’ measurements, the RF 35/1.4 has 3.55 stops of vignetting wide open, and the EF 35/1.4 II has 3.05 stops. The comparison on TDP shows the two are pretty similar, as well.

Not sure why some people are apparently losing their sh!t over half a stop (or claiming it’s 2 stops), I guess people like to complain or want to justify not spending the money.

 

[sanj]

According to Klaus’ measurements, the RF 35/1.4 has 3.55 stops of vignetting wide open, and the EF 35/1.4 II has 3.05 stops. The comparison on TDP shows the two are pretty similar, as well.

Not sure why some people are apparently losing their sh!t over half a stop (or claiming it’s 2 stops), I guess people like to complain or want to justify not spending the money.

 

[jam05]

But they don't have to actually utilise the short flange distance. It's a deliberate decision to use it all the way through which contributes to a relatively high vignetting.

Of course, get rid of the IBIS or make it squat down. No need to have it stand up while doing jumping jacks right? Never mind the IBIS and sensor range of motion, make room for a huge lens flange. I am exagerating a bit but camera design with IBIS movement comes first.

 

[sanj]

Perhaps because they were expecting better from this long-awaited newer lens. Perhaps they thought that Canon would improve upon this part of the IQ as well.

 

[Richard CR]

But they don't have to actually utilise the short flange distance. It's a deliberate decision to use it all the way through which contributes to a relatively high vignetting.

they don't .. but then they increase the size of the lens and complexity of the lens then.

everything is a tradeoff somewhere.

 

[bbasiaga]

I'll continue on the high horse here - it's one of the greatest lenses I've ever used. Get used to the digital correction, enjoy the weight savings. Worth every penny!

Not possible! It'll be all they think about as they digitally correct every other aspect of the image in LR/PS....

 

[SwissFrank]

> OpticalLimits (like myself) have a strong aversion to digital correction.

I'm always asking why and would love to hear more details, @Canon Rumors Guy . I've gotten some good answers for digital correction of vignetting, if you have a scene that absolutely demands the full DR from the center and the very deep corners, though the only practical examples I've heard of so far are astro.

But is this the only digital correction you're referring to? Or do you have specific issues with other correction? I'd legit like to know what these issues are but no-one actually has been able to take the time to explain it to me.

 

[SwissFrank]

some of that is fundamentals of mirrorless and short flange distances and not actually as much the optical design.

Nah, they could have for instance simply used the EF35/1.4MkII design with a longer tube behind the rear element to connect to the shorter flange. It'd be a perfectly valid mirrorless lens design. But they've been able to deliver massive cost and size savings, and improve sharpness simultaneously, in tradeoff for more vignetting.

Vignetting comes from many sources. One is called cos^4 vignetting and is due to photons hitting a sensor at a fairly strong angle imparting far less energy to the sensor, the same way a 100mph fastball hitting a glancing blow would hurt a batter far less than one that hit him full-on and stopped. The closer the lens's "exit pupil" is to the sensor, the greater that angle. The "exit pupil" isn't necessarily the rear lens element though, instead it's the point that the light appears to be coming from: if you look through a lens from the back, at an angle, the bright circle you see is the exit pupil and it generally appears inside the lens. But the two tend to move hand in hand.

My worry is more about mechanical vignetting, where the effort to make a lens smaller and cheaper results in it making football-shaped out-of-focus highlights instead of full circles. If that highlight shape is only half the area of a normal full circle in a similar out-of-focus highlight in the center of a shot, that will make that part of the photo a stop darker. Generally speaking I don't like these and would love to make a lens that doesn't have them. But, this has nothing to do with mirrorless or short-flange.

 

[Emyr Evans]

what kind of raw converter in 2024 doesn't have basic corrections?

The largest company in the world, apparently

Not an apple fan boy, been using Aperture/Photos for over 20 years as main viewing library. Always have Lightroom if needed.

Wish Apple would invest a bit more into it.

 

[mimbu]

So, it gets the same 4/5 star rating, and same 8/10 optical rating as the Samyang AF 35/1.4 that is currently on sale for $450. Ouch.

Disappointing that there is no similar review yet of the Sony 35/1.4 GM which is $100 cheaper than the new Canon lens, and is likely why Canon couldn't get away with charging $2300 for a 35/1.4L prime anymore.