Canon RF 50mm f/1.2L Teardown (new optic with new technology, Lens Rentals)

Canon RF vs EF 50mm f/1.2 EOS R system
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Roger Cicala and Aaron Closz of Lens Rentals tore down the Canon RF 50mm f/1.2L, the showcase lens for the new Canon EOS R system.

It seems that for once they were a bit overwhelmed by Canon’s latest optical masterpiece. From the conclusion:

[…] the R lenses are not only entirely new optics, they are also largely new electrical and mechanical systems. There are a lot of different things in here that we haven’t seen in any Canon EF lenses. Some of them we should have expected, like the increased electronics going to the control ring. Others we don’t really understand yet, like the tension spring in the ring USM motor or the increased electrical shielding.

[…] We also saw lots of new stuff we don’t completely understand yet and a level of complexity we weren’t expecting.

[…] the RF lenses contain some new technology they [Canon, editor’s note] haven’t used before. There’s a lot of engineering that’s gone into these. Things are different inside here. As we’ll see in the next teardown we do, some of that is carrying over to at least some EF lenses. What does this mean? It means Canon has invested very heavily into developing the lenses of the R system. This level of engineering didn’t all happen in the last year, they’ve been working on this for quite a while.

You can see a few images of the teardown below, though I recommend you head over to Lens Rentals for the many pictures and the step by step description of the teardown. Just don’t do it a home yourself.

The Canon RF 50mm f/1.2L is a highly regarded lens, universally seen as one of the two lenses Canon made to showcase the possibilities of their new RF mount (the other one being the RF 28-70mm f/2L.

Canon RF 50mm f/1.2L: [shoplist 53675]

Canon PowerShot SX70 HS Review (mixed bag overall, Photography Blog)

Canon PowerShot SX70 HS
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PowerShot SX70 HS at a glance:

  • 20.3MP CMOS Sensor
  • DIGIC 8 Image Processor
  • 65x Zoom Lens
  • 21-1365mm (35mm Equivalent)
  • 2.36m-Dot OLED Electronic Viewfinder
  • UHD 4K Video Recording, 4K Time-Lapse
  • Image Stabilization
  • Built-In Wi-Fi and Bluetooth
  • Continuous Shooting up to 10 fps
  • Zoom Framing Assist

Photography Blog reviewed the Canon PowerShot SX70 HS.

The new Canon PowerShot SX70 HS is something of a mixed bag overall – it takes a few steps forward in terms of the features that it offers, but one big step backwards in image quality.

We praised the SX60 HS for its excellent image quality, but unfortunately the same can’t be said for the new SX70 HS. The new 20 megapixel sensor is just too noisy, even at base ISO 100, with the camera effectively offering a usable range of just 100-400 before fine detail gets obliterated. This is only made worse by the camera’s massive zoom range, which demands that use the higher ISO speeds in anything but good light to help keep shutter speeds fast enough to avoid camera shake. As most people buying this camera will be doing so for the massive zoom lens, they’re only going to be disappointed when looking close-up at their zoomed-in shots.

They also have good things to say, read the review here.

Canon PowerShot SX70 HS is in stock now and ready to ship: [shoplist 52650]

Canon EOS R vs Nikon Z7 vs Sony A7 III Mirrorless Camera Comparison

Canon EOS R
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The Slanted Lens compares the Canon EOS R with the Nikon Z7 with the Sony a7 III.

Dynamic range, tonality, sharpness and detail, high ISO, auto focus, and video in 4K and 1080p modes, they’re all put under scrutiny. There is one camera that apparently fails on a lot of categories. Guess which?

Canon RF 50mm f/1.2L Review (Highly Recommended, Optical Limits)

Canon RF vs EF 50mm f/1.2 EOS R system
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Canon RF 50mm f/1.2L at a glance:

  • RF-Mount Lens/Full-Frame Format
  • Aperture Range: f/1.2 to f/16
  • One UD Element, One Aspherical Element
  • Ring-Type Ultrasonic Motor AF System
  • Customizable Control Ring

Optical Limits (formerly known as photozone.de) reviewed the [shoplink 53675]Canon RF 50mm f/1.2L[/shoplink] lens for the EOS R system.

From the conclusion:

[…[ it is quite obvious that the Canon RF 50mm f/1.2 USM L is an awesome lens … with a similar awe-inspiring price tag. In relation to other lenses in this class, the performance is already superb at f/1.2. Yes, the outer image region is not truly stellar but it’s impressive nonetheless. The image quality is extreme at medium aperture settings – across the image frame that is. Low lateral CAs contribute to the very high image quality perception. Image distortions are generally no issue. Vignetting is though – at least in its uncorrected state. There is some heavy light-falloff at f/1.2 and f/1.6 but to be fair – that’s to be expected. Most users will not (should not?) buy the lens for its sharpness but for its shallow depth-of-field capabilities. While not truly exceptional, the bokeh is very good with a smooth rendition in the focus transition zone. Out-of-focus highlights are nicely rendered in the image center, less so towards the image corners. However, that’s a physical limitation really. We were also very impressed by the very low bokeh fringing. Yes, you may spot some traces at f/1.2 but it’s not really relevant anymore from f/1.6 onward – and that’s a very rare characteristic. Read the review…

Optical Limits gives it a “highly recommended” rating.

Canon RF 50mm f/1.2L:

[shoplist 53675]

Canon EOS R Review (Canon quietly innovating, D. Abbott)

canon eos r firmware update
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Dustin Abbott completed his exhaustive review of the new Canon EOS R.

From the conclusion:

Like most new Canon cameras, the initial reaction for many is to be underwhelmed.  It is sometimes easy to overlook the areas where Canon is quietly innovating (the sensor protecting “shield” and control ring on the RF lenses/adapter are genuinely useful innovations) because of the obvious areas where Canon is lagging (no IBIS, video quirks, lower frame rate, single card slot).  Typically Canon cameras prove to be better cameras than their specs, however, and I do think that will be the case here.  What’s somewhat atypical, however, are the ergonomic fails of the EOS R, as that is typically an area of strength for Canon.  In this case an attempt to be innovative (the touch bar) actually proved to be a fail (at least from my perspective).  If you are using a camera on a regular basis, however, you typically learn ways to get it to do what you want it to do, and Canon has allowed for a higher degree of customization on this camera than is typical for them.  The excellent touchscreen also helps in this regard.  I also think that Canon has implemented the best grip I’ve found in a mirrorless camera yet.

Dustin’s review comes with a huge set of sample photos and all sort of tests and analysis. If you prefer to watch the review, the video below tells you everything Dustin has to say about the EOS R.

Canon EOS R world-wide order links:

[shoplist 52287]

Canon RF mount lenses world-wide order links:

[shoplist 52325]