The upcoming Canon RF 5.2mm f/2.8L is a dual-lens VR lens

Canon Rumors Guy

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The recently rumoured and upcoming Canon RF 5.2mm f/2.8L lens is actually a dual-lens for virtual reality. So it’s definitely a niche product.
The full lens moniker is Canon RF 5.2mm f/2.8L Dual Fisheye.
This is definitely a surprising and interesting development for RF lenses, but it shows Canon is more than willing to branch out in lens development.

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Jun 27, 2013
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Panasonic had 3D lens for their micro 43 mount and there are some wierd VR options out there so its definitely interesting development.
 
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What's the advantage of doing something like this on an ILC over an action-style camera? Exposure control? Certainly not stabilization.
Workflow and output consistency. It's hard to get 'action cam' footage to blend in with video from other systems seamlessly, and it's easier for large productions to just use one camera/mount.

Now, whether or not there's really that much call for a VR fisheye to be integrated with other footage, from a cinema body... eh, well, that's why this will be a very expensive, limited-production L lens unlikely to even be stocked by any 'regular' shop, and not marketed or intended to be sold to the general public.
 
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Stig Nygaard

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How do you get two lenses with 180deg field of view to sit next to each other. Surely in one direction they will only see the other lens?
As long as the view is not more than 180deg it shouldn't be a big problem.
If you are standing on the curb of a sidewalk facing the street, you can only see the street with a 180deg view, not the sidewalk. If a guy next to you does the same, you cannot see the guy, except maybe his nose and shoe tips, but it will be a very little fraction of the complete 180deg view.

(If the 180deg is from the absolute tip of the lenses, they won't see each other at all)
 
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100% The porn industry will be pumped for this lens.
Can't wait for upcoming press releases...

"MELVILLE, NY (September 14, 2022) Building on the success of the EOS R camera series, Canon U.S.A. Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions and your favorite porn lens company, today announced..."
 
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entoman

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How do you get two lenses with 180deg field of view to sit next to each other. Surely in one direction they will only see the other lens?
Think about human binocular vision - our own noses intrude into the field of view, but are “processed out” by our brains.

The image from a dual fisheye will be formed on a single sensor, so I imagine that some kind of AI software will be needed to process the images and remove the overlap.
 
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I wonder if the images/video will be anamorphic and require post-processing, or the they will just be taller than they are wide.

EDIT: Forgot fisheye images are circles. I guess there will just be a lot of wasted sensor area. Only the highest resolution cameras are going to be any good for VR. 8K VR vids are massively better than 4K. If the rumored R5S with 100MP sensor is real and this lens can resolve images at that resolution, this would give you some amazing VR180 video.
 
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Stig Nygaard

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Maps

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Workflow and output consistency. It's hard to get 'action cam' footage to blend in with video from other systems seamlessly, and it's easier for large productions to just use one camera/mount.

Now, whether or not there's really that much call for a VR fisheye to be integrated with other footage, from a cinema body... eh, well, that's why this will be a very expensive, limited-production L lens unlikely to even be stocked by any 'regular' shop, and not marketed or intended to be sold to the general public.
Okay, yeah that makes sense. I actually use this workflow all the time. Shoot with an A cam and then have a VR cam mounted on kayak/helmet/backpack for some extra footage that gets pushed back to 180 degrees and cut into the timeline. And those cuts are pretty gruesome. While I'm not going to go skiing with an R5 strapped to my head, I could definitely see the appeal of putting something like this on a tripod and dropping it on a dancefloor at a wedding. Probably a great way to employ 8k once it becomes a little more practical.
 
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