Canon RF 800mm F11 IS STM

Canon RF 800mm f/11 IS STM - Review / Test Report

At the time Canon announced the Canon RF 600mm f/11 IS STM and RF 800mm f/11 IS STM, the photo community was a little confused. While (all-manual) slow, long tele tele prime lenses have been around for decades, these were mostly confined to more or less obscure third-party manufacturers. e.g.

Canon RF 800mm F11 IS STM Review

The Canon RF 800mm F11 IS STM delivers extreme telephoto optics at a down-to-earth price, but even with a retractable design it's a big one to carry around. The RF 800mm F11 IS STM ($899.99) is the bigger, longer lens of a pair of ultra-telephoto primes for Canon's full-frame mirrorless camera system. It sports an extremely long focal length, perfect for bringing distant subjects into close view, and its F11 optics keep things lightweight. There are some drawbacks to consider, including the narrow, fixed aperture and limited focus coverage. It's an attractive lens for photographers searching for an affordable telephoto, but we think the RF 600mm F11 IS STM is a better starting point.A Lot to Handle Telephoto lenses are typically pretty big. Even at a F11 and with a retractable design, the RF 800mm is still a lot to handle. It measures 11.1 by 4.0 inches (HD) when closed down for storage, and extends to 13.9 inches when extended and ready for use. It's a lot of lens to hold, but at 2.8 pounds it's at least pretty light for its size. Extending the lens doesn't take much effort, either. A collar twists to lock and unlock the mechanism, a...

Surprise with some obvious limitations

At first sight, when Canon introduced this lens I though: are they crazy? Seriously f/11 fixed aperture? Then as a wildlife photographer and having some big whites and the new excellent RF100-500 I though: well, for the price let give it a chance and I opted for the RF800 which make for me more sense. Well, despite the aperture where you need quite a lot of light the image quality is surprisingly good. Sharpness and contrast is good, colors are nice and I cannot see much aberrations. Even with RF 1,4 converter that brings the aperture at f/16 is still ok for most of the shots in daylight. I pair it with R5 and R6, choosing the R6 more when the light is less or I need to push more the iso to freeze a moment with hi shutter speed. It is lightweight and compact, ideal for walk around bird hunting or hiking. The collapsible system that shorten the length of the lens is very useful to pack it in the bag. Only one general criticisms is it is not weather sealed (so be careful in harsh conditi