Are the Canon RF600mm and RF800mm really as good as claimed?

Saturday 15 August 2020, 14:07 by Nando Harmsen | 6,747 views | 2 comments

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

The new RF 600mm f/11 IS STM and RF 800mm f/11 IS STM lenses are best described as unique. They are small, compact and very affordable. Especially when you compare them with their larger siblings. But these advantages do come with a few compromises.

The Canon RF 600mm f/11 IS STM. Small, light, compact and with a very long focal length. But it does have a small aperture.
What is most surprising about these lenses is the fixed aperture of f/11. That is, of course, a very small aperture, which quickly makes using high ISO values necessary, something many photographers naturally dislike.

This is an EF800mm f/5.6 lens. However good the quality may be, lenses like this are not exactly easy to take with you, or convenient to use. That is without even mentioning the price. There is now an RF800mm f/11 that has all these advantages, and is also affordable.
Tony and Chelsea Northrup have now posted a very enjoyable video comparing these lenses on the Canon EOS R and Canon EOS R5 with a 600mm f/4 lens on a Nikon D850.

It quickly becomes clear that the RF 600mm and RF 800mm hold their own very well.

Watch the video and enjoy a very interesting comparison. Start watching after 1 minute to skip Tony Northrup's advert.

From what I see and hear, I expect these to be two very suitable and attractive lenses for many wildlife photographers who do not have ten thousand euros or more available for an extremely long focal length, yet still want perfect image quality combined with a very portable lens.

You will have to switch to a Canon EOS R, or preferably an R5 or R6.

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About the author

Nando Harmsen has been photographing for more than 40 years. He specialises in wedding photography and landscape photography. Nando also gives talks, workshops, masterclasses and photo trips, and regularly reviews new and interesting equipment.

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2 comments

G.Osten wrote on Wednesday 19 August 2020 at 10:22 | reply
Hello
Again an interesting one, but that price for those lenses is too expensive for me.
Kind regards.
Georges Osten
Translated from Dutch.

Nando wrote on Thursday 20 August 2020 at 09:37 | reply
@G.Osten:
I can imagine that it is outside the budget. It remains a fact that other lenses with these focal lengths are usually many times more expensive. In that respect, they are very good prices.
Translated from Dutch.

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