CANON RF 14-35MM F4L IS USM LENS

Canon RF 14-35mm f4L IS USM Lens

The Canon RF 14-35mm f4L IS USM is a new L series zoom lens in the Canon RF range, with a little bit extra at the wide angle. The perfect compliment to the mirrorless EOS R system and a nice alternative to heavier f/2.8 zoom lenses.

The Canon RF 14-35mm f4L IS is £1,749 To pre-order contact our sales team on 0207 582 3294 or email us at sales@fixationuk.com

The Canon RF 14-35mm f4 L IS USM, left, and a diagram showing the L series dust and moisture seals, right.
Versatile

Ideal for Architecture, Travel and landscape photography this lens adds an extra 2mm on the wide end vs it EF equivalent the EF 16-35mm f4L IS USM. 14mm provides a much wider angle of view than 16mm: 104° Vs 98° angle of view respectively.

Compact constant f4 aperture

It’s not just the extra-wide angle that makes this lens great for travel and every-day shooting. The f4.0 aperture has allowed a much more compact lens design than if this lens had been built as an f/2.8. The optics are smaller which reduces the weight and size of the lens. In case the F4 aperture is not bright enough to keep your shutter speeds high, the RF 14-35mm f4L IS USM has a 5.5 stop image stabilisation system which will give plenty of tolerance for shooting sharp images hand-held. The IS benefits increase to 7 stops when used with an EOS R system camera with IBIS.

Rugged L series design

Canon L lenses are famous in photography and for good reason. They have long set a benchmark for professional reliability and durability. The RF 14-35mm f4L IS USM lens is no different, pictured above is the weather and dust sealing points to keep you lens operating in challenging conditions. The lens also features a lens control ring that can be customised to adjust ISO, aperture or exposure compensation without taking a hand away from the lens.

Our sales team have years of experience helping photographers find the right kit for them. To pre-order contact our sales team on 0207 582 3294 or email us at sales@fixationuk.com The Canon RF 14-35mm f4L IS is £1,749

USING CANON EF LENSES WITH EOS R BODIES

Using Canon EF lenses with EOS R bodies

Tempted by the new Canon EOS R mirrorless cameras but worried about all your Canon EF lenses gathering dust? In this article, we’re going to be running through the adapter options for mounting EF lenses to EOS R bodies and explain how you really can get the best of both worlds.

We know that it does sound too good to be true. The idea that you might be able to bring all any old EF lenses with you when migrating to a new system, and have everything work just as it’s designed to may seem a pipe dream.

Photographers have been swapping lenses between systems for many, many years now, but it is generally accepted that this will involve a trade-off in terms of features and functionality. Things like autofocus or image stabilisation will either work less effectively than usual, or simply not work at all.

Canon’s new EOS R system, however, is a different story.

With the introduction of the full-frame mirrorless cameras such as the Canon EOS R. Canon turned many heads and signified that it was taking mirrorless seriously. This was a serious tool for serious professionals, and was clearly built and marketed as such – but many pros worried about their considerable collections of EF compatible lenses. Was Canon asking them to effectively throw these investments in the trash and start again?

Short answer: no.

Do Canon EF lenses work with EOS R camera bodies?

It was a given that Canon would produce an EF to EOS R adapter, however what’s impressive is just how comprehensive a job they’ve done of ensuring the lens and cameras can communicate.

This is not a coincidence. Canon has specifically designed the EF and RF systems to be what it calls “bilingual”. When most lenses are adapted between systems, the device is converting the electronic signals from one device to the other.

Even when the communication is sophisticated enough for the devices to understand each other thanks to the latest firmware updates, it still has an inherent latency, which causes lag and impacts on performance. On EF-EOS R adapters, the information can pass straight through.

What this means in practice is that, for the vast majority of models, everything that your EF lens can do on an EOS body, it can also do on an EOS R body when they are connected using an adapter. Indeed, now that the cameras have been around for a couple of years, photographers have been able to test them out. Some are even reporting that, anecdotally, their EF lenses seem to perform better with the Canon R, with faster autofocus.

The Canon EOS R bodies are able to store a large number of lens profiles in their internal memory, allowing them to correct known aberrations and distortions in many EF lenses, back to the 1990s. This functionality can be disabled if you don’t require it and it won’t overpower the character of an old lens if you’re going for a specific “look” over technical perfection.

The compatibility really does extend right across the range of EF lenses. You might be wondering, out of more than 150 EF lenses made by Canon, how many have functions that don’t work when they’re paired with EOS R bodies? Answer: eight.

In all cases, it’s a pretty minor thing – the Canon EF 35-80mm f/4-5.6 PZ lens from 1991 can’t use its Power Zoom when paired with EOS R, and the AF Stop button doesn’t work on seven telephoto prime lenses from the late 90s and early 00s. In all other respects, EF lenses work on EOS R bodies exactly as they were designed to work on the original DSLRs.

From left to right: EF-EOS R standard adapter, Control Ring adapter, Drop-in filter adapter.
EF-EOS R adapters

The EF-EOS R adapter range is made up of three models, each of which is a little different. Let’s take a look at the main features of each one…

Canon EF-EOS R Mount Adapter

This is the simplest, most affordable mount adapter for converting EF lenses to EOS R bodies. It allows for full communication between lens and camera, meaning all functionality like AF points and image stabilisation will work as advertised.

Lightweight and compact, the EF-EOS R mount adapter contains no optical elements, so it won’t compromise the quality of even the sharpest L-series lenses. It’s also dust- and water-resistant, so if you’re using the more rugged lenses in harsh weather conditions, the adapter won’t be a weak spot in your setup.

Canon Control Ring Mount Adapter EF-EOS R

Similarly to the standard EF-EOS R Mount Adapter, the Canon Control Ring Mount Adapter EF-EOS R converts EF lenses to EOS R bodies with no lag or optical elements to compromise quality, and is also equipped with weather sealing.

The key difference, as the name implies, is that this Canon EF adapter comes with a customisable control ring, and it’s not hard to see why many photographers say this is their favourite of the three adapters. Adding a lens control ring to the setup makes using the lens incredibly intuitive. What’s especially good about this adapter is the extent to which the control ring can be customised to the individual user’s preference – essentially it mirrors the control ring found on native RF lenses.

The control ring can be programmed to adjust all the major settings, including shutter speed, ISO, aperture, exposure compensation and white balance. The ring can be set to change values positively or negatively when it’s turned to the right or left. It can also be set to only kick in when the shutter button is half-depressed, if you’re concerned about accidentally knocking it at a crucial moment.

Canon Drop-In Filter Mount Adapter EF-EOS R

The third option of mount adapters for EF-EOS R is an interesting one, allowing for the use of a select number of drop-in filters. This is especially useful if you’re planning to shoot with a lot of larger lenses or wide-angles with a bulbous front element that doesn’t allow for the easy attachment of filters on the front.

While it doesn’t have the control ring option, this adapter does have all the functionality of the other adapters – it retains full autofocus and image stabilisation capabilities of the attached lenses, and also has the same dust- and weatherproofing.

Below are the filters you can use with this mount adapter

Canon Drop-In Variable ND Filter A: This variable ND gives you tremendous flexibility in controlling the amount of light reaching the camera, with a variable ND effect that runs from 1.5 stops all the way up to 9 stops. Use wider apertures or slower shutter speeds even in bright light conditions, and easily alter the intensity of the ND effect with the rotating wheel.

Canon Drop-In Circular Polarizing Filter A: Minimise reflections and glare with this drop-in polariser, which also has a rotating wheel that allows the user to modulate the intensity of the polarising effect. Made with high-quality glass, it ensures that the final image is still pin-sharp

Canon Drop-In CL Filter: This is a clear filter that’s used if you want to use the adapter without any of the above filter effects. Made from high-quality glass, it’s designed to effectively transmit light without any additional effects. This is useful if you want to have the option of using or not using the Drop-In filters without having the hassle of buying multiple adapters.

So the reality is that the best of both worlds truly is possible! We hope you’re encouraged to see the possibilities of shooting with EF glass and EOS R bodies, but if you have any further questions, don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team! You can email sales@fixationuk.com or call 020 7582 3294

CANON LENS REVIEW | 35MM & 24-70MM

Canon lens review | 35mm & 24-70mm

Longtime Canon user Jack Terry tests the Canon 35mm ƒ/1.4L Mk II and tries the 24-70mm ƒ/2.8L Mk II against his original Mk I version.

Investing in lenses is not something any photographer takes lightly. Once you have a set it’s not often that you want to go changing them, despite brands constantly pushing an updated version and striving to find a reason for you to upgrade to their latest model.

I have a general rule that I only upgrade or invest in new equipment if it will do two, or preferably three of these three things. Directly generate revenue, speed up my workflow, or provide a drastic and noticeable difference to the existing product.

After using my set of Canon lenses for almost 10 years, the Mk II versions had me asking myself the question, should I make the move and can I justify it?

To help with the decision, Fixation lent me a 35mm ƒ/1.4L II and a 24-70mm ƒ/2.8L II to shoot a recent personal project “Little Rascals”. The project is a documentary study of a children’s charity and I wanted to shoot it on my own with no assistants and minimal kit.

Little Rascals | © Jack Terry

Photographing kids is something I really enjoy. They are refreshingly inquisitive about everything and then moments later are engrossed in their own world of play and it’s like you don’t even exist. This is something I rely on to get in close and capture the natural moments that are over in seconds.

Little Rascals | © Jack Terry

I used to spend my life shooting on a 50mm ƒ/1.2L for two reasons: firstly I always shoot wide open and it is a beautiful lens, but mainly because I found my original 24-70mm ƒ/2.8L to lack in quite a few areas. The problem with the 50mm is it can be a bit narrow for lifestyle. Shooting this project with the new 24-70mm was a revelation. It gave me the image quality of my primes, but with the versatility that I had forgotten existed with zooms.

Little Rascals | © Jack Terry

Although the focal lengths overlap, I found the combination of the two lenses perfect for this project. With the zoom I could pick little details from a far, or shoot wides of crazy kids running towards me. Changing to the 35mm let me get in close and throw the background out of focus. I would go as far as saying that the 35mm Mk II is the most perfect Canon lens I have ever used. It is the perfect focal length for my work and has a mystical quality to it that just looks different. I felt like images shot on it had more depth to the tones and it gave a beautiful representation of everyday life. It is razor sharp in the right areas while still looking natural and the focus is really quick.

Little Rascals | © Jack Terry

Unlike things like lighting or digital equipment that can be hired out in addition, a photographer is expected to supply lenses, so that discounts my first rule of generating revenue. The question is, do these lenses tick the other two boxes to justify the upgrade?

Little Rascals | © Jack Terry

On commissions recently I have regularly shot the whole day just on the 24-70mm. The change in my workflow has been drastic and not swapping lenses so much allows me to focus on what I need to instead. The image quality paired with a 5DS is capable of billboard level images with no problem at all. Images are always razor sharp and have a contrast and depth to them that didn’t exist in the Mk I version. That combined with the fact that I just sold my Mk I for £550 after buying it new for £800 makes the upgrade unquestionable. If you still have the Mk I 24-70mm, sell it and upgrade. You can thank me later.

Little Rascals | © Jack Terry

In regards to the 35mm ƒ/1.4L II this is less of a black and white answer and driven by something unquantifiable that the sensible side of my brain and my accountant would be shouting at me to ignore. I found this lens an absolute joy to use, the ergonomics are perfect and it sits really nicely in the hand. If you shoot people you should have a 35mm lens, the question is do you need the new one?

I shoot into the sun a lot and always wide open. Chromatic aberration is something I am used to getting a lot of and I spend a large amount of time correcting in post. This lens all but removes it in camera which is amazing for my workflow. In terms of sharpness it is brilliant, however the mkI version is pretty good too. I am left with the dilemma that I can only honestly tick one of my three boxes. This is my favourite Canon lens by a long shot and from the project the majority of selected images were shot using it. The question is do I and do you need one? All I can suggest is hire one from Fixation and find out for yourself, but be careful it will be a tough one to return.

To try either of these lenses simply hire from our sister company Wex Rental:

Canon 35mm ƒ/1.4L II

Canon 24-70mm ƒ/2.8L II

You can also take advantage of our special weekend rates – 3 days hire for the price of 1.

To see more of Jack’s work, visit his website here

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