He ain’t lying – THE BEST PRIME LENS. Period. by Peter McKinnon

Canon Rumors Guy

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Peter McKinnon has released a review of sorts of the Canon RF 50mm f/1.2L USM. A lens that he claims in the title that it’s “THE BEST PRIME LENS. Period.”. I also completely agree with him. It’s rare that I don’t have the Canon RF 50mm f/1.2L USM  on my EOS R5.
Canon RF 50mm f/1.2L USM Key Features

Fixed Focal Length Lens with High Image Quality and Bright f/1.2 Aperture for the EOS R System.
Minimum Focusing Distance of 1.31′ (0.40m)
Control Ring for Direct Setting Changes
Three Aspherical Elements and One UD Element
12 pin Communication System
Dust- and Water-resistant with Fluorine Coating
Air Sphere Coating (ASC) Minimizes Lens Flare and Ghosting
Fixed Focal Length: Focal Length: 50mm

Canon RF 50mm f/1.2L USM $2299

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The funny thing is a couple of years ago he swore the only prime lens anybody needs is the EF 24 1.4 L II.

We are all on a creative journey and what suited us a few years ago probably doesn’t suit us now, and almost certainly won’t in a few years time. If the 50mm focal length works for you the RF 50 seems like a very nice lens, if you have RF cameras. If the focal length doesn’t suit you or you don’t have RF bodies don’t sweat it, use what you have.
 
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frjmacias

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I love how people in this forum don't like YouTubers' content.
This is not exclusive to this forum. Plenty of photographer forums, including the Sony and Nikon rumor sites have photographers and videographers that shrug off anything most YouTubers publish. I personally do not mind YouTubers as I use them for information and do not take their word as law. Everyone has their personal experiences with equipment, but I feel like I can always learn something from someone.
 
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I love how people in this forum don't like YouTubers' content.
Bwhatsup with that? :LOL:

But seriously, I think given the size of the platform everybody can find people to like and dislike on YouTube, however videos based on comments like "every photographer has to own this" are tiring and don't account for most people let alone everyone, it just preys on the impressionable people who still think they just need one last piece of the puzzle to be the next Peter McKinnon. What use does a 50mm lens have for the largest group of photographers out there, the amateur BIF group that need an R7? ;)
 
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koenkooi

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Bwhatsup with that? :LOL:

But seriously, I think given the size of the platform everybody can find people to like and dislike on YouTube, however videos based on comments like "every photographer has to own this" are tiring and don't account for most people let alone everyone, it just preys on the impressionable people who still think they just need one last piece of the puzzle to be the next Peter McKinnon. What use does a 50mm lens have for the largest group of photographers out there, the amateur BIF group that need an R7? ;)
Take pictures of the bird perching on your 1200mm f/5.6. I'm assuming birds are like jumping spiders and dragonflies, those prefer to sit on your gear :)
 
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The best lens is the one you need for your photography. However, technically the Canon RF 50mm is the best 50mm ever. And its not that expensive imho.
Yes, but sometimes people overlook the fact that its the person behind the camera who creates the photo. The finest gear in the world will only turn out mediocre photos in my hands. I'm not artistically inclined. I like fine gear but someone with a cell phone, my wife, for example, takes better photos than I do.
 
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AlanF

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Bwhatsup with that? :LOL:

But seriously, I think given the size of the platform everybody can find people to like and dislike on YouTube, however videos based on comments like "every photographer has to own this" are tiring and don't account for most people let alone everyone, it just preys on the impressionable people who still think they just need one last piece of the puzzle to be the next Peter McKinnon. What use does a 50mm lens have for the largest group of photographers out there, the amateur BIF group that need an R7? ;)
Quite correct: an 800mm f/11 is equivalent to a 50mm f/0.6875, so who wants a drinking-straw lens like 50mm f/1.2.
 
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Quite correct: an 800mm f/11 is equivalent to a 50mm f/0.6875, so who wants a drinking-straw lens like 50mm f/1.2.
But 'pixel density' I need pixel density... ;)

Or, you could go for a 2.25mm x 1.5mm (which is close to the old 1/6" size) 45mp sensor with that 50mm f/0.6875 to get your R5 and RF 800mm equivalent....
 
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LSXPhotog

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Funny how back in the day every camera came with a 50mm lens and everybody couldn't wait to get rid of it and get something better, more useful! I still don't own a 50.. nor anything at F1.2. Huge apertures are quite the fad in the 2000's I wonder how anyone created a nice photo before them!
What are you talking about? Nearly all vintage lenses from Canon/Nikon/Leica/Pentax etc were extremely fast. My vintage lens collection alone is stacked with f/1.4 to f/2 lenses as well as a couple of f/1.2 primes…that happen to be 50mm and 55mm. Wide apertures were significantly more important in the film era as you were typically stuck to 400 and 800 film speeds. More sensitive film stocks like 1600 and 3200 were seldom used because of their grain density, so fast lenses were the ticket. Additionally, during the day, you would find yourself with 400 or 800 in the camera and be limited by shutter speeds values of 1/1000 or 1/2000 on most camera bodies…sometimes 1/500, so it was often that you would stop these old lenses down to achieve proper exposure. So huge apertures have been important for decades. We’re just lucky cameras shoot at 1/8000 now with digitally controlled ISO.
 
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LSXPhotog

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I rented this lens last month to shoot what I believe may be our final wedding…getting out of that business as the industry continues to tip in the unrealistic expectations direction. Haha I was really amazed by its performance in all aspects except for manual focus….good LORD is this a terrible lens to manually focus with! I’m borderline ready to sell all three of my Sigma Art series primes to just buy this 50mm, but that’s a tough pill to swallow. The flexibility of being able to shoot at f/1.4-f/2 at 24mm, 35mm, and 50mm has been really nice to have…but I’m sure I can live without it now that I have the 35mm f/1.8 from Canon that isn’t “magical” like the Art, but has its own set of tricks up its sleeve.
 
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SonicStudios

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Have this lens and love it as much as my 85DS, both primes are really good lenses. My 50 gives off an interesting blue tint when viewing subjects through the finder, none of my other lenses do that, pretty cool and unique, not having any manual focus issues with my primes, BUT with all that said, the 28-70 is still super glued to my R5 :ROFLMAO:
 
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