Canon Announced Two New Versatile RF Lenses

Canon announced two new versatile RF lenses, the RF24mm f/1.8 MACRO IS STM and RF15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM lenses. The two new RF lenses are great additions for photography enthusiasts using the EOS R range of mirrorless cameras, complementing and competing the line-up of affordable RF lenses. With the addition of these two lightweight and versatile RF lenses, the RF lens family line-up now has 30 lenses.

“We are excited to introduce these new lenses to our RF line-up as it reaffirms our commitment to ensure that photographers have the right RF lens for every occasion, from fast primes to versatile zooms and ultra-wide to telephoto. These latest additions are lightweight and affordable, which will appeal to a wider segment of photographers as they are also compatible with both full-frame and APS-C EOS R bodies as well.” said Edwin Teoh, Head of Marketing, Singapore Operations, Canon Singapore.

For prime lens users, the new RF24mm f/1.8 MACRO IS STM completes the affordable range of RF prime lenses, which now overs 16mm, 24mm, 35mm, 50mm and 85mm focal lengths. Similarly, for the new RF15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM lens, they now complete the affordable zoom lenses line-up, covering a range of focal lengths from 15mm to 400mm.

Both lenses take advantage of the large diameter and short back focus that the EOS R camera system is renowned for, which results in both a compact optical system and excellent quality throughout the whole image. 

RF24mm f/1.8 MACRO IS STM : Wide-angle with Beautiful Bokeh

The RF24mm f/1.8 MACRO IS STM on a full-frame EOS R camera body has a minimal form factor, it’s also identical to the highly popular RF35mm f/1.8 IS STM lens in size. This make this RF24mm f/1.8 MACRO IS STM lens great and ideal for travel and landscape photography, or as an everyday lens.

When the RF24mm is mounted on an APS-C EOS R camera body, the focal length becomes 38mm, which is closer to the human’s eye field of view. This would make it suitable for portraits or street photography. At f/1.8, the RF24mm f/1.8 MACRO IS STM is at least two stops brighter than a typical kit zoom lens, allowing it to create beautiful bokeh, a stunning background blur effect which cannot be achieved by a zoom lens. With a large aperture, this would also make it an ideal lens for astrophotography.

The RF24mm f/1.8 MACRO IS STM can also double up as a macro lens, which is an uncommon attribute for wide-angle lens. With a minimum focusing distance of only 0.14m, it can achieve up to 0.5x magnification. This combination of 24mm with f/1.8 aperture creates a unique wide-angle close-up with beautiful bokeh, making it ideal for food or flower shots during travel or as an everyday lens.

The RF24mm f/1.8 MACRO IS STM has a native lens image stabilisation (Optical IS) of up to 5 stops and can go up to 6.5 stops when coupled with a compatible camera body with in-body image stabilisation (In-Body IS). This enables precise snapshots with minimal camera shake in a dim environment, with low shutter speeds or other scenarios prone to camera shake. 

Coupled with the silent Stepping Motor (STM), the RF24mm f/1.8 MACRO IS STM is perfect for videos. Vloggers who often use a small tripod or selfie stick will appreciate its light weight and compact size.

RF15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM : Versatile with Near Macro Capabilities

An ultra-wide angle zoom lens is usually expensive to own, however the RF15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM lens is going to change that, it’s designed to meet the budget of photography enthusiasts while providing a practical focal length range that covers 15-30mm. The weigh is approximately 390g, its small size form factor makes it great and ideal for travel photography. Comparing the RF15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM to the RF15-35mm f/2.8L IS USM lens, the RF15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM is approximately 53% lighter (approximately 390g vs 840g).

At the 15mm focal length, the RF15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM covers a view much wider than any standard kit lens, allowing users to include the atmosphere or environment along with the subject, especially in scenarios such as small rooms or tight spaces where backing up is not possible.

At the 30mm zoom telephoto end, users can capture images utilising a natural angle of view and perspective that is closer to the human eye.

When the RF15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM is mounted on an APS-C EOS R camera body, this lens now has a very versatile 24-48mm focal length range, offering a wider angle of view at the wide end compared to a kit lens. The lens can still be used even if the user switches to a full-frame camera in the future, making it an excellent future-proof investment.

The RF15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM corrects chromatic aberration throughout the zoom range with the use of two Ultra-low Dispersion lenses, achieving crisp and clear images with minimal colour blur.

The RF15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM has a native lens image stabilization (Optical IS) of up to 5.5 stops, which can go up to 7 stops of image stabilisation when paired with a compatible camera body with in-body image stabilisation (In-Body IS). This enables low light photography with minimal camera shake and achieve images with low shutter speed that usually would require a tripod.

RF15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM can achieve a magnification of up to 0.52x on the 15mm wide end while in manual focus mode for close-up shots. The RF15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM has a minimum focusing distance of just 0.128m.

With wide angle capabilities, both the RF24mm f/1.8 MACRO IS STM and RF15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM will come in handy for indoor photography which are often limited by space constraints, while their compact and lightweight size make them a breeze to use outdoors. Their wide angle(s) of view, built-in IS and smooth autofocus for video make them well-suited for shooting videos on top of delivering excellent still images.

Pricing and Availability

The new RF24mm f/1.8 MACRO IS STM and RF15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM lenses will be available from Canon authorised dealers as follows:

Technical Specifications

* Information and pictures courtesy of Canon Singapore and Gloo *