R7 Canon Review

[Valiant Puga]

Heyeveryone, I have been on the fence deciding whether or not to purchase the new RF 200-800mm F6.3-9 IS USM Lens, or the RF 100-500 and Tronhard posted a thread here titled "Which is Which", where he compares the two in a picture comparison, which I thought was great. It made me lean towards purchasing the RF 200-800. However, the "narrow apertures" of the RF 200-800 made me hesitate a bit. So, I decided to research it further. My concerns were that with such narrow apertures the lens wouldn't perform in cloudy, overcast days, and at dawn or dusk. So, in my research after going through various reviews, I came across this review by Bryan Carnathan which I found to be so thorough that it would help others that are on the fence like me. I'm no longer on the fence as the aforementioned review answered all the questions in depth with graphs, picture comparisons and data. Not to mention the reasons why this lens is different from the RF L series and does not have the L series Red Ring. To give you an example of his review here is one of his illustrations.

I recommend, that if you're on the fence like I was, take the time to read the entire review, you won't regret it. It is very informative. here is the link: Canon RF 200-800mm F6.3-9 IS USM Lens Review (the-digital-picture.com)

The Canon RF 28mm f/2.8 STM is the next in line for a growing collection of small prime lenses. We tend to keep an eye on the Canon L lenses for the RF mount, which deliver amazing quality, but are large, heavy, and expensive. It's easy to lose sight of the smaller and more affordable lenses.

These smaller lenses also deliver good quality, more than sufficient for most purposes. There is a trade-off, though, like the lack of weather resistance and the use of cheaper materials. In the end, it's the image quality that counts.

At first, I wondered about the somewhat odd choice of focal length. But in this day and age, we're so used to the standard use of 24mm and 35mm prime lenses that it's easy to forget the origin of the 28mm focal length.

I remember how 28mm was the standard wide angle in the analog days of photography. The 24mm lenses existed but were extremely expensive and in comparison rare. You would choose a 50mm as the standard focal length or the 28mm for a wide angle.

More importantly, the 24mm field of view is sometimes considered a bit too wide for many occasions. You need to get close to the subject, which makes it prone to perspective distortions. Alternatively, the field of view of a 35mm is too narrow. For prime lens users, the 28mm sits perfectly in the middle.

This lens is extremely small, measuring only 69.2 x 24.7 mm, and it weighs only 120 grams. It's truly a pancake lens, the very first one I've used. Although its length is less than 2.5 centimeters, Canon found room for a multifunctional ring and a switch. The switch offers the choice between manual focus, autofocus, and the control function set by the camera's customization menu.

The ring is positioned at the front of the lens and measures only a few millimeters in width. Thanks to the structure of the ring, it's easy to operate. There is almost no need to worry about getting fingers in front of the lens. When looking at it, the front lens is tiny and makes up only a small part of the diameter. If you like to use filters, 55mm is the size you need.

As mentioned on the Canon website, the lens has three aspherical lens elements with a Super Spectra Coating. These are responsible for maintaining image quality with a small lens design like this. The image is not flawless, but it relies on in-camera lens correction to obtain the best possible quality.

Without lens correction enabled, the RF 28mm f/2.8 STM shows the expected vignetting at f/2.8. This vignetting is almost gone at f/8, but not completely. Even at f/11, it shows some light falloff at the edges.

I noticed how little chromatic aberration this lens shows, even without lens corrections. Since this lens performs best with in-camera lens correction enabled, I checked the amount of chromatic aberration in a real-world situation. At f/2.8, it seems to show a hint of purple fringing, which can be easily removed in software like Lightroom Classic.

At f/2.8 and 28mm focal length, you can't expect to get an amazing bokeh. But the round diaphragm opening does produce nice bokeh circles. There is not much deformation of these circles, and I didn't notice any onion ring effects.

Because of its small size, the RF 28mm f/2.8 STM makes any Canon EOS R camera discreet, except perhaps the Canon EOS R3. While the lens has a 28mm field of view on a full-frame camera, it changes to a 45mm field of view on an APS-C camera. In both situations, it's a great focal length.

I personally experienced one downside, and that's its size. The pancake lens feels too small for my preferred way of holding a camera. Of course, this is personal, and perhaps it needs getting used to in order to appreciate this kind of lens.

I used the lens on both a Canon EOS R5 and a Canon EOS R10 for some street photography and simple landscape and nature photography. This is where I noticed the benefit regarding its size and weight. At 120 grams and only 7 x 2.5 centimeters, there is no reason to leave it at home. It won't take up a lot of space in the camera bag.

Colors and sharpness are better than expected. Keep in mind how the sharpness will decrease at the edge of the frame. As mentioned before, its focal length is a perfect match, not as wide as 24mm but wider than 35mm. When using it on an APS-C camera, it matches almost a 50mm field of view, which is perfect.

The lens is easy to take with you. Mounted on a camera, it's discrete, making it an ideal lens for street photography and travel photography. The bokeh looks nice, although you shouldn't expect wonders from it.

Do I recommend the Canon RF 28mm f/2.8 STM? If you are into prime lenses, yes, absolutely. It's a great focal length, both on full frame cameras and APS-C cameras, and you won't be disappointed in the image quality. I think it's a great companion for a set of lenses that include the RF 50mm STM and the RF 85mm STM.

Nando Harmsen is a Dutch photographer that is specialized in wedding and landscape photography. With his roots in the analog photo age he gained an extensive knowledge about photography techniques and equipment, and shares this through his personal blog and many workshops.

You're mistaken.

I do like the focal length a lot.

I noticed I didn't like the small form factor personally.

Yes, 299 is a bit expensive in my humble opinion.

Why did I review the lens? Because Canon asked me.

I bought this when it came out to use with my R6 as I wanted a small package to keep in my work bag for when I commute home on foot. For the most part, it's a good lens. I find it doesn't seem as sharp or appealing as my 35mm RF F1.8 but it gets the job done and is very good for the price and weight. Agreeing with the others, 28mm is not an "odd" focal length at all. However, I believe Canon chose it because it replicates the typical focal length of a phone camera. If you check out Canon's promo pieces for the lens, they feature a nicely dressed woman taking pictures of her bubble tea, vlogging and storing it in her handbag...

Looks like a great little lens. I own a Canon EF 40mm pancake and I really enjoy that little lens. The autofocus is not too great on my Sony camera with it, but it would be silly to expect an old adapted lens to work perfectly. I still use it all the time when I can get far enough away from the folks who I am photographing. Anyway, that's off-topic. Just meant to say that if I had an RF-mount Canon body I would totally consider buying the pancake 28mm because I have had a good experience with the old 40mm pancake.

Hoping someone can help me figure out why i'm having focus issues. Typical example is that i take some shots and of say 20 only 10 are in focus. Granted the lens i used in my last test is front focusing and i will have it adjusted but still something is up.

When i review the images on the camera LCD on one image it shows me where it focused (the little red box shows in the review). On the other image (the one that is in focus) it is not showing it. So wondering if maybe i switched focus points and one happens to be better (yes i know center is best but trying to figure out if that is my issue).

Are you using AI Servo mode? The AF point display shows the focus point that was actively locked in at the moment the shutter was activated. Try taking a photo in One Shot mode, and see if the AF point shows up. Manually select the center AF point, when you do.

The 6D and 7D2 have a similar menu selection and I do manually select the the center point, which is what I typically use at all times when shooting handheld. I'm not typically shooting action photos, either.

Remember, it is not a display of whether or not, or where, the camera is focused. It is displaying the active AF point at the moment the shutter fired. It is not always necessary, or required, that an AF point be actively locked when the shutter fires.

I tried again. I don't use back button focus, so that is not the problem. I was in one shot, center point, but could still not see the focus point on playback. The only odd thing was that I was in "flicker" mode since it was indoor under the flourescents. I will try it outdoors today.

The lens itself feels pretty solid, though it weighs half as much as its EF predecessor. This is great, especially as this lens could be perfect for landscape photographers who might need to carry it on long hikes. I was pleasantly surprised that I could comfortably mount it on my Ronin RS3 mini gimbal with zero problems.

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