12 lenses of Christmas: November 2023 was Canon’s BIG month, launching a world-first super-telephoto zoom

Canon RF 200-800mm f/6.3-9 IS USM.

Big news doesn’t get much bigger than this. The Canon RF 200-800mm F6.3-9 IS USM is a real whopper with unprecedented super-telephoto reach. Despite its monster zoom range, it’s relatively ‘affordable’ for one of Canon’s big white lenses, and makes handheld shooting viable with a weight of 2kg. At the other end of the scale in every way, there was also news of the forthcoming Canon RF-S 10-18mm F4.5-6.3 IS STM, an ultra-compact, ultra-cheap wide-angle zoom for APS-C format EOS R cameras.

The Canon RF 200-800mm F6.3-9 IS USM makes handheld super-telephoto shooting a distinct possibility with 5.5-stop optical stabilization, rising to 7.5-stop performance with cameras that feature IBIS. That might still present a challenge if you add a Canon RF Extender, which can boost the reach to as much as 1600mm. (Image credit: Gareth Bevan / Digital Camera World)