Developers Of Canon EF 400mm f/2.8L IS III and EF 600mm f/4L IS III Lenses Interviewed

Canon EF 400mm

Canon posted an interview with the engineers who designed and developed the Canon EF 400mm f/2.8L IS III and Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS III telephoto lenses.

The interview is available as a PDF and you can see it here.

An excerpt:

Interviewer: Please tell me about the background, design policy, and your enthusiasm at the start of development.

Nagao (Development Leader): Pro photography situations require the ability to capture split-second, one-of-a-kind moments in high quality. I accompanied pro photographers as they shot, and I noticed how many times that they were all packed into a tight space while tracking a subject. In order to capture such photo opportunities, I realized just how important it is to have a piece of equipment that feels like a part of you and that can be manipulated with complete ease in such tense shooting situations. We then started research from the question of “what should the pinnacle of next-generation lenses be?” We listened to the opinions of experienced photographers, thinking of how we could provide the best piece of equipment to satisfy such users, and engaged in the development process with the ideal lens in mind, but without being caught up in the framework of the conventional lens. 

Shimada (Product Planning): The foremost product concept was a lightweight design. This means a dramatic sense of lightness that one can feel when holding in the hand, as we achieved with the EF400mm f/2.8L IS III USM and EF600mm f/4L IS III USM. The reason we are committed to a lightweight design is because even though the pro and advanced amateur photographers who use super-telephoto lenses have their own ideals when it comes to specifications and style, they all invariably request a lighter lens. We also took into consideration the common view that simply lighter is not enough — rather, the weight balance when holding the camera is an important factor as a professional tool of the trade. Of course one requirement that absolutely must be met is high image quality. Just how light could we make the lens while achieving high image quality? That was the key point of this project.


Canon Announces Redesigned EF 400mm f/2.8L IS III and EF 600mm f/4L IS III Lenses

Canon EF 400mm F/2.8L IS III

I missed this on Canon EOS R announcement day. So here it is. The Canon EF 400mm f/2.8L IS III USM is scheduled to begin shipping in December 2018 with an estimated retail price of $11,999. The Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS III USM is scheduled to begin shipping in December 2018 for an estimated retail price of $12,999. Pre-orders are not open yet but you can get notified when they are available.

Canon press release:

Canon Redesigns Premium L-Series Super-Telephoto Lenses With Its New EF 400MM F/2.8L IS III USM AND EF 600MM F/4L IS III USM Lenses

New Compact and Lightweight EF Super-Telephoto Lenses Are Well Suited for a Variety of Photographers’ Needs

MELVILLE, N.Y., September 5, 2018 – Most professional photographers need to carry multiple lenses in their camera bags. Helping to lighten their load, Canon U.S.A. Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, introduces two new super-telephoto lenses, the EF 400mm f/2.8L IS III USM and EF 600mm f/4L IS III USM. Both lenses possess a dramatic weight reduction and high-image quality, making it ideal for shooters to easily transport and capture images during action-driven scenarios, such as sports and wildlife. Both lenses now hold the title of world’s lightest in their respective focal length*. The weight of the EF 400mm f/2.8L IS III USM and EF 600mm f/4L IS III USM lenses has been reduced by 2.2 lbs. (more than 25 percent) and 1.9 lbs. (more than 20 percent) respectively.

“When developing updates to some of Canon’s most popular legacy lenses, one common question that is asked by photographers was ‘can they be lighter,’” said Kazuto Ogawa, president and chief operating officer, Canon U.S.A., Inc. “The significant reduction of weight in these two lenses addresses this customer need and delivers thoughtfully designed, high-quality optics .”

The new lenses are must-haves for advanced and professional photographers shooting wildlife, aviation, sports and news with Canon’s new EOS R full-frame mirrorless camera (with use of one of the three new Canon mount adapters), as well the EOS 1D and 5D series of DSLR Cameras. Both lenses feature two of Canon’s most advanced propriety lens technologies – Air Sphere Coating (ASC) and Super Spectra Coating (SSC), helping to reduce flaring and ghosting, and suppressing the reflection of light, leading to vivid images. These updated lenses inherit the excellent overall build-quality and ruggedness photographers have come to expect and admire from the Canon EF L series of lenses. In addition, the minimum focusing distance has been improved for both lenses, from 2.7m to 2.5m (8.8ft to 8.2ft) for the EF 400mm f/2.8L IS III USM and 4.5m to 4.2m (14.8ft to 13.8ft) for the EF 600mm f/4L IS III USM.

Additional noteworthy features of the lenses include:

  • Upgraded Optical Image Stabilization from three-and-a-half stops to five shutter speed stops1 of correction over the previous f/2.8 lens
  • Improved, flexible focus control with a customizable electronic-focus ring
  • Two fluorite lenses and one super UD lens, helping to provide high image quality
  • Circular nine-blade aperture
  • 17 lens elements in 13 groups
  • Heat-shielding paint helps prevent lens temperature from rising during excessive exposure to sun
  • Fluorine coating on front and rear optical elements, helps to reduce smears and fingerprints
  • Inner focusing system with Ring Ultrasonic Motor

Availability and Pricing

The Canon EF 400mm f/2.8L IS III USM is scheduled to begin shipping in December 2018 with an estimated retail price of $11,999. The Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS III USM is scheduled to begin shipping in December 2018 for an estimated retail price of $12,999^. For additional information regarding the lenses predecessors please visit, visit usa.canon.com.

The Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS III USM Lens

Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS III to be announced within a month? [CW2]

Canon EF 600mm F/4L IS III

The rumor mill has it that Canon might announce another big white telephoto lens before Photokina 2018. The rumored lens is the Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS III. This rumor surfaces a day after the rumor about the Canon EF 400mm f/2.8L IS III.

No specifications are suggested, just that the Mark III version will focus on “weight reduction”. At the time of writing we can not confirm the announcement of the EF 600mm f/4L IS III. The Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II was released in 2011, so a replacement appears to be a bit early on schedule.

Have a look here to get an idea about what Canon might announce in the next weeks or months.

Canon patent for EF 600mm f/4 IS DO lens

jpa_428200685_000002

That may become a killer lens if it ever goes to production. Canon files a patent for a n EF 600mm f/4 IS DO lens. “DO” stays for diffractive optics.

Will this lens eventually replace the existing EF 600mm f/4L IS II? Not necessarily. DO optics are usually of smaller size than their counterparts without DO, so the lens referred in the patent could well be an addition to the line-up.

  • Patent publication number 2016-200685
    • Release date 2016.12.1
    • Application date 2015.4.9
  • Example 1
    • Focal length 585.00
    • F number 4.12
    • Half angle of view (degree) 2.12
    • Image height 21.64
    • Lens total length 335.32
    • BF 66.92

[via Egami]

Canon EF 600mm f/4 DO IS may come late 2017, several patents exist [CW3]

ef 600mm f/4

Do you remember the prototype 600mm f/4 lens shown at Canon Expo 2015? Well, guess it was just a matter of time before a pertinent rumor surfaced.

A new Canon EF 600mm f/4 DO IS lens is said to be announced in late 2017. Indeed, there are several patents pointing to such a lens, both for a 600mm f/4 and 600mm f/5.6 and with some patents dating back to 2012 (1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5).

Given the amount of patents pointing to a 600mm optical formula, I guess it is a safe assumption that Canon is actively working on such a lens and that we will see it, sooner or later. While I am pretty sure Canon is working on a EF 600mm f/4 DO IS lens, I am sceptical about the announcement date since rumored dates for Canon’s big white “L” lenses rarely happened to be right.

The prototype EF 600mm f/4 DO lens (pic above and below) shown at Canon Expo 2015 features Blue Spectrum Refractive Optics, a technology Canon announced in August 2015. BR corrects chromatic aberrations. The technology was first seen on the Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L II.

The rumor adds some more juice, suggesting that

Canon is well on its way developing updates for the other “big white” prime lenses. While optics will likely be similar, Canon is working on weight savings techniques and updated coatings and IS systems. We don’t expect to see these lenses announced in 2017, although we’re told it’s possible we may see them being tested at the 2018 Olympics in South Korea.

Pinch of salt needed here.

ef 600mm f/4

A Bit of Everything (M5, EF 600mm, 5D4, 4K, Milvus 100mm, etc)

Above: Canon EF 600mm F/4 IS review – the daniel life


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