The Canon EF 1200mm f/5.6L USM sells for a record €500,000 at auction

entoman

wildlife photography
May 8, 2015
1,998
2,438
UK
Like the Zeiss Apo Sonnar T 1700mm f/4 that was custom-built for a wealthy Qatari individual...

View attachment 200734
Looks very futuristic, presumably the lug/knob on the side is for attachment to a gimbal?

Do you have any idea what subject matter he had in mind when he had it built?
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Upvote 0
Aug 26, 2015
1,380
1,042
If they can overcome the mediocre sharpness, mediocre contrast, and donut bokeh that are the hallmarks of catadioptric lenses. But, you know...physics.
And the 1200mm f/5.6L isn't the sharpest either, it's soft by modern standards. A modern catadioptric lens designed for a new mount can probably match it in some regards at least (while actually being usable in the field).
 
Upvote 0
I'm sure there are a bunch of Leica lens collectors steaming, and figuring out how they can engineer a future feeding frenzy on some of the higher-end Leica oldies. There's no good reason one of them can't spend $1.5 million for a some limited edition 28mm.

If auctions were an indication of our economic competencies, we'd all be quite hosed.
 
Upvote 0
Looks very futuristic, presumably the lug/knob on the side is for attachment to a gimbal?

Do you have any idea what subject matter he had in mind when he had it built?
There are sites that say Wildlife Photography. There was one that I read some time ago that said it was mounted on top of a SUV. Both may have been speculation.
It was made for a 6x6 medium format.
Equivalent FOV on a 35mm would be 935mm;

Need to have an adapter so a 7D II can be mounted to it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Upvote 0

InchMetric

Switched from Nikon. Still zooming the wrong way.
CR Pro
Jun 22, 2021
267
287
Upvote 0
Looks very futuristic, presumably the lug/knob on the side is for attachment to a gimbal?

Do you have any idea what subject matter he had in mind when he had it built?
Probably PJ, you know, to get a safe working distance. . . .
Jokes aside, such a long focal length in a place like Qatar, wouldn't the heat haze be a nightmare?
 
Upvote 0

Del Paso

M3 Singlestroke
CR Pro
Aug 9, 2018
3,301
4,187
I'm sure there are a bunch of Leica lens collectors steaming, and figuring out how they can engineer a future feeding frenzy on some of the higher-end Leica oldies. There's no good reason one of them can't spend $1.5 million for a some limited edition 28mm.

If auctions were an indication of our economic competencies, we'd all be quite hosed.
$500,000 are nothing more than peanuts in the Leica collector's world.
Leica "0" series: number 7 sold for Euro 3.000,000 in 2011...
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Upvote 0

entoman

wildlife photography
May 8, 2015
1,998
2,438
UK
Probably PJ, you know, to get a safe working distance. . . .
Jokes aside, such a long focal length in a place like Qatar, wouldn't the heat haze be a nightmare?
Yes, I wondered if it could have been for bird photography. Heat haze would be pretty awful in the middle of the day, but bird photography is most often done quite early in the morning, when it would be less of a problem.

However that is contradicted slightly by the highly reflective silver finish, which tends to indicate that the lens would be used primarily in hot sunny circumstances. The shape of the integral lens hood also indicates a need to keep overhead sunlight from striking the front element.

Interesting to speculate!
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Upvote 0
Dec 25, 2017
575
558
Looks very futuristic, presumably the lug/knob on the side is for attachment to a gimbal?

Do you have any idea what subject matter he had in mind when he had it built?
DP Review says its for "long distance wildlife".
But given that it got a weight of 250kg, I can hardly belive this "quatari individual" that he planned on taking it out on safari :-D My guess: peeping at people from his skyscraper xD
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 users
Upvote 0

Berowne

... they sparkle still the right Promethean fire.
Jun 7, 2014
487
419
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Upvote 0