Well, that didn’t take long. First rumoured over a year ago and with news yesterday that announcements were imminent, Canon has now today officially unveiled the new Canon RF 15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM and Canon RF 24mm f/1.8 Macro IS STM lenses. Both of the new lenses are full-frame lenses designed for the Canon RF system. The Canon RF 15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM is a fairly compact lens with ultra-wide-angle versatility. While possessing a fairly slow variable aperture, it’s ideal for things like landscapes, architecture and similar subjects. The Canon RF 24mm f/1.8 Macro IS STM is also pretty compact, allowing you to get close to your subjects while providing environmental context and a deeper depth of field than with telephoto macro lenses.
Canon RF 15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM – $549
Canon RF 15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM – $549
The variable aperture design of this lens has allowed Canon to keep it pretty small compared to brighter constant aperture alternatives. This makes it a great lens for travel and street photographers who want to pack light and don’t often need the performance of a faster lens. To compensate for the slower aperture, though, the lens features Canon’s IS image stabilisation to help overcome camera shake from slower shutter speeds. Image stabilisation is unusual in a lens this wide, but it will be a good compromise for many, particularly those shooting handheld landscapes and architecture.
The Canon RF 15-30mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM is available to pre-order now for $549 and is expected to start shipping in late August 2022.
Canon RF 24mm f/1.8 Macro IS STM – $599
Canon RF 24mm f/1.8 Macro IS STM – $599
The Canon RF 24mm f/1.8 Macro IS STM provides 1:2 half life-size magnification with a minimum focus distance of only 14cm. It allows you to get up close to your subject while still having a field of view wide enough to capture some of the environment for context. Despite having a bright f/1.8 aperture, the shorter focal length and wider field of view mean that you should struggle a little less with depth of field compared to longer telephoto macro lenses.
The Canon RF 24mm f/1.8 Macro IS STM is available to pre-order now for $599 and is expected to start shipping in late August 2022.
