Photograph of railway station at twilight, created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM.
Martin Mojzis / Fine Art Photography and Graphic Art Atelier.

CANON RF 28 – 70 MM 1 : 2 L USM.

BIG AND EVEN BIGGER LENS.

☼ January 16, 2018.
The subtitle inspired by the well-known sentence of Czech writer Frantisek Nepil (a good and even better journey) very well describes my impressions, when I first unpacked the new Canon RF from the box. It's probably the largest standard lens with varying focal length that you can currently see. However, 1 : 2 lens speed is indeed exceptional for this type of lens. The only Sigma produces a similar, but not standard, wide angle, 24 - 35 mm.

Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM – lens review. The lens design is mainly metallic. We find three rings here: for focal length selection, focusing and third for optional features. On the side is the only auto or manual focus switch. The lens hood is locked by a small lock under the button, a nice thing. The lens and the hood are made in Japan.

The lens is resistant to dust and splash water.

Let's first look at the technical specifications.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS, DIMENSIONS AND PRICE.

Focal length:

28 – 70 mm.

Minimum aperture:

2.

Maximum aperture:

22.

Optical design:

19 elements in 13 groups.

Angle of view:

75° – 34°.

Minimum focus distance:

39 cm.

Diaphragm blades:

9, rounded.

Filter thread diameter:

95 mm.

Dimensions (D x L):

103.8 x 139.8 mm.

Weight:

1430 g.

Price:

3300 € or $3000.


And now some sample photographs. There was no filter on the lens. File type RAW (CR3), converted to DNG, no compression indeed. Processed in Adobe Lightroom 6.14, the basic sharpening 25/1/25/0 was left, which I have proven to be a reference when testing lenses.

The crops are 100% size at 150 dpi. So far you look close at the fragment of a more than one meter image, precisely with a longer side of 113 cm.

Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. ↑ TWILIGHT. Canon EOS R, Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM, focal length 28 mm, exposure time 5 seconds, aperture f/13, ISO 100.
Second photograph is crop from 100% size at 150 dpi.
Beautiful stars around light sources.



Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. ↑ CLOSE TO CEMETERY. Canon EOS R, Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM, focal length 28, 35, 50 and 70 mm, exposure time 1/320 second, aperture f/2, ISO 100.
Samples of depth of field and bokeh at different focal lengths.



Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. ↑ TO THE NORTHEAST END. Canon EOS R, Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM, focal length 28 mm, exposure time 1/50 second, aperture f/13, ISO 100.
Second and third photographs are crops from 100% size at 150 dpi, left and right bottom corner.
Corners are a bit soft, despite of the large f-number.
Fourth and fifth photographs are crops from 100% size at 150 dpi too, left top corner.
On the fourth image some chromatic aberration are visible, on the fifth successfully fixed after enabling it in Adobe Lightroom.



Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. ↑ DECEMBER. Canon EOS R, Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM, focal length 50 mm, exposure time 1/15 second, aperture f/11, ISO 100.
Second photograph is crop from 100% size at 150 dpi.



Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. ↑ IN THE FIELDS. Canon EOS R, Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM, focal length 35 mm, exposure time 1/20 second, aperture f/11, ISO 100.
Second, third and fourth photographs are crops from 100% size at 150 dpi, left bottom corner, center and right bottom corner.
Here, too, the corners are softer, this lens is not intended for landscape photography. The center is very good, in view of the variable focal length and the count of optical elements.



Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. ↑ LOKCOMOTIVE. Canon EOS R, Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM, focal length 28 mm, exposure time 1.6 second, aperture f/8, ISO 100.
Second photograph is crop from 100% size at 150 dpi.



Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. ↑ SYMETRY. Canon EOS R, Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM, focal length 49 mm, exposure time 1.6 second, aperture f/8, ISO 100.
Second photograph is crop from 100% size at 150 dpi.



Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. ↑ DEPARTURE. Canon EOS R, Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM, focal length 70 mm, exposure time 1.6 second, aperture f/8, ISO 100.
Second photograph is crop from 100% size at 150 dpi.
The sharpness and overall drawing is very good here too, in view of the variable focal length and the count of optical elements.



Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. Phoograph created with Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM lens. ↑ SUBWAY. Canon EOS R, Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM, focal length 70 mm, exposure time 3.2 second, aperture f/8, ISO 100.
Second photograph is crop from 100% size at 150 dpi.
The automatic chromatic aberration repair has been turned off here, was not necessary.


As you can see, the lens is really capable of substitute four prime lenses (28, 35, 50 and 70 mm, of course everything in between). So when it comes to a shallow depth of field, magnificent stars around light sources and a noble bokeh.

In terms of sharpness, this lens tends to be a bit softly drawing, which is noticeable in the landscape; it will be an advantage for portraits. It can be an intention, or just a result of high speed and complex optical design.

Canon RF 28 – 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM – lens review. For which situations is this lens designed? Wedding ceremonies in dimness of churches, reportage still life, journalistic and documentary work in situations, where there is no time or possibility to change lenses. Here, the new Canon RF 28 - 70 mm 1 : 2 L USM will be a welcome and very popular optical tool to create unique photographs, that we could otherwise missed when changing lenses. High speed could make it a good tool for photographing the starry sky, but due to the almost still cloudy nights, I did not have the chance to try it out.

Finally, I would like to point out, that this article is no way supported or influenced by Canon or any other company.

© Martin Mojzis, 2019.
Photographies: © Martin Mojzis, 2018.

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