Canon Announces Two Super-Telephoto Lenses

The RF 800mm f/5.6L IS USM and the RF 1200mm f/8L IS USM promise to unlock professional photographer’s potential when capturing distant subjects

On Thursday Canon announced the launch of two new super-telephoto lenses, the RF 800mm f/5.6L IS USM and the RF 1200mm f/8L IS USM. It claims that the lenses will redefine the standards for super-telephoto lenses, boasting extreme magnification for long-distance shooting. The lenses offer astounding focal lengths of 800mm and 1200mm and feature an impressive Optical Image Stabilizer and wide aperture. The lenses will appeal to the gamut of photographers – be they in sport, wildlife, news gathering or surveillance.

The RF 800mm f/5.6L IS USM and the RF 1200mm f/8L IS USM offer photographers powerful reach, without compromising on portability. The already impressive focal lengths of each lens can be doubled by using them with the RF 1.4x or RF 2x extenders, with AF shooting and IS function. In practice, this means that users of the RF 1200mm f/8L IS USM have the ability to capture subjects that are over 400 metres away with beautiful clarity.

Canon has redesigned their optical system to achieve a smaller and lighter design than that of many traditional super telephoto lenses of this kind. The RF 800mm f/5.6L IS USM weighs in at just 3.1kg, making it Canon’s lightest and shortest 800mm L-series yet. Meanwhile the RF 1200mm f/8L IS USM weighs just 3.34kg – 13kg less than its predecessor the EF 1200mm f/5.6L USM.

The lenses work in tandem with the powerful Image Stabilization to provide up to 4.5 stops in the RF 800mm f/5.6L IS USM and up to 4 stops in the RF 1200mm f/8L IS USM. This reduces shake and ensures the production of crisp images packed with detail. The 800mm lens offers a large maximum aperture of f/5.6 which allows users to capture images of excellent quality.

Both are a great option for video, too, with 9-blade circular aperture that can move in 1/8^th steps, producing smooth transitions between apertures when filming.

The design of both lenses incorporates Canon’s industry-leading optical technology, including Fluorite, Super UD and UD elements that offer flawless image resolution and eliminate chromatic aberration. Ghosting and flare are minimised by ASC coatings.

For more information, visit Canon’s website.