Portrait photographers have been awaiting the Canon RF 85mm f/1.4L VCM since the EOS R system debuted in 2018. Sure, we had the RF 50mm f/1.2L at launch, but that’s not a headshot lens; for that, we had to wait until 2019’s RF 85mm f/1.2L and 85mm f/1.2 DS lenses – but those were hulking, expensive, prestige optics. Then we had the budget RF 85mm f/2 Macro in 2020 – a much smaller and cheaper but also much slower and non-sealed option.
What the Canon RF 85mm f/1.4L VCM presents, then, is the traditional sweet spot portrait lens – a cut above the plastic fantastic f/2, offering great performance without the price or heft of the f/1.2. More than that, though, it’s the latest addition to Canon’s line of hybrid lenses – optics that combine the handling and performance characteristics of its EOS, Cinema EOS and broadcast lenses.
