I picked up my copy of the Canon RF 35mm f/1.8 IS STM Macro lens back in June last year – and to say it’s blown me away would be an understatement.
What's not to love? It’s a versatile optic with a standard wide focal length, sporting a fast f/1.8 aperture as well as a half-size macro mode, which opens up all sorts of interesting options when composing landscapes. It’s also more than sharp enough for what I need and it doesn't break the bank at well under 500 bucks.
When Canon announced its new RF 45mm f/1.2 STM lens, I was again very excited. It appears that many of you were, too, as the preorders sold out in Japan within half a day of opening. So why am I so excited? Super-wide f/1.2 apertures are usually reserved for top-end lenses like the Canon RF 50mm f/1.2 USM, which come with an equally premium prices (you're looking at more like 2,500 bucks!).
So what’s different between these two optics? Well, obviously it lacks a red ring around the front – reserved for Canon’s top-flight L-series. This means the optics are likely to be of a lower quality, and it won’t get the weather sealing treatment that its more expensive sibling has.
For comparison, the new budget lens has a 9-element design, whereas its bigger brother has 15. All this extra glass comes at a physical (as well as credit card) cost, though, as it weighs a hefty 950g whereas the new model is a very svelte 346g – perfect for those who like to travel light.
I’ve always loved the combination of quality and portability from my RF 35mm lens, and never pined after better quality that I may get from an L-series model like the RF 35mm f/1.4L USM hybrid lens.
My Canon representatives have in the past told me that L-series lenses with weather sealing ‘last longer’. And in my experience this has been the case, as non-weather-sealed lenses are more prone to dust and moisture intake if you don’t look after them properly.
That being said, I’ve abused my non weather-sealed RF 35mm f/1.8 Macro on some very rainy landscape shoots in the past year – and I haven’t seen any problems.
Another difference is the 45mm focal length, compared to the nifty fifty standard – but this small discrepancy in the angle of view can be easily rectified with a very slight crop. Bigger differences include its slightly slower and louder STM motor, against the USM motor found in the L-series. It also sports nine aperture blades instead of ten, so bokeh balls may not look as perfectly circular.
I’m an advocate for opening up the lens mount to third parties, for wider lens range coverage and healthy competition, and I've called out Canon’s reluctance for this over the years. Some of my favorite lenses are made by brands like Sigma, whose 50mm f/1.4 HSM Art for obvious reasons doesn't sport a red ring – nor does it have weather sealing.
So by that logic, it doesn’t bother me that this new 45mm f/1.2 doesn’t feature these, either; what’s more important is that it’s about 80% less expensive than the L-series 50mm f/1.2.
So while it's not the full-frame third-party lenses I would like to see, Canon is at least providing some of the more budget-friendly options that we'd usually see other manufacturers creating.
You might also like…
See how the new 45mm f/1.2 stacks up against the best Canon RF lenses – along with the fastest lenses you can buy!
