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Canon RF 100mm f/2.8 L USM IS macro - Review / Test Report - Sample Images & Verdict |
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Lens Reviews -
Canon EOS (Full Format)
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Page 3 of 3
Sample Images
Click on an image to download the full-size variant.
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 250 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/4.0 |
| Exposure | 1/30s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 800 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/2.8 |
| Exposure | 1/25s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 800 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/2.8 |
| Exposure | 1/40s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 800 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/2.8 |
| Exposure | 1/50s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 800 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/2.8 |
| Exposure | 1/80s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 800 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/2.8 |
| Exposure | 1/100s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 100 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/2.8 |
| Exposure | 1/800s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 100 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/2.8 |
| Exposure | 1/800s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 100 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/5.6 |
| Exposure | 1/800s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 100 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/5.6 |
| Exposure | 1/640s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 100 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/2.8 |
| Exposure | 1/1000s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 100 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/2.8 |
| Exposure | 1/4000s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 100 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/5.6 |
| Exposure | 1/640s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 100 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/2.8 |
| Exposure | 1/1250s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 100 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/2.8 |
| Exposure | 1/1600s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 100 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/2.8 |
| Exposure | 1/1250s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 800 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/4.0 |
| Exposure | 1/100s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 100 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/4.0 |
| Exposure | 1/320s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 100 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/2.8 |
| Exposure | 1/1600s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 100 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/5.6 |
| Exposure | 1/1250s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 250 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/5.6 |
| Exposure | 1/13s |
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| Make | Canon |
| Model | Canon EOS R5 |
| ISO Speed | 250 |
| Focal Length | 100.0mm |
| Aperture: | f/5.6 |
| Exposure | 0.5s |
Competition
As of the time of this article, Canon hasn't licensed their mount to other manufacturers and the third-party gang is still busy reverse-engineering the protocol. So if you are in the market for a medium macro lens, you got basically 3 mainstream options - the RF 100mm f/2.8 L USM IS macro (shown to the left), the RF 85mm f/2 STM IS (center) or a DSLR-era macro lens with an adapter (here: the Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 L USM IS to the right). The new RFs are a touch better in the outer image field compared to the EF lens. The RF 100mm is also superior in terms of bokeh fringing/LoCA but then there are the RSAs (...). An obvious difference is the build quality which isn't that great on the RF 85mm and it only offers a max magnification ratio of 1:2. On the other hand, it's an f/2 lens thus one stop faster. You may also notice that the RF 100mm is as long as the EF 100mm with the RF-to-EF adapter - it's really a long lens of its kind.
Visual comparison courtesy of camerasize.com.
Verdict
The Canon RF 100mm f/2.8 L USM macro IS is a great lens with some added weirdness. Optically, it is capable of delivering very sharp images straight from f/2.8 - just as you would expect from a moderately fast macro lens.
Image distortions are basically negligible even without correction. Lateral CAs are on the low side as well and can be easily corrected anyway. This can't be said of the raw vignetting which is comparatively high at f/2.8 so auto-correction should remain activated. The quality of the bokeh is generally pleasing with a smooth background blur and nicely rendered highlights. The foreground blur isn't ideally rendered but that's usually of lesser concern. Bokeh lovers may also like the SA feature on the lens but, to be honest, for most of us, it'll remain an oddity that you have to pay for without using it. Maybe video makers can appreciate it more than photographers. That being said - the massive focus-breathing doesn't help with videos. A bit concerning are the RSAs when stopping down - focus shifts aren't helpful at very close focus distances. It's something to keep in mind when shooting at least.
The build quality is in line with what we have seen from other RF L lenses. The (long) lens feels sturdy albeit a bit "hollow" maybe. Formally there's nothing wrong with using good quality plastics though. The dust- and splash-proof design, as well as the internal focus system, are certainly appreciated. The Dual-Nano USM drive allows for fast and quiet auto-focusing. Manual focusing is also a joy "despite" or because of the by-wire system. The Hybrid IS system, as Canon calls it, combines in-lens and in-camera IS with a claimed efficiency of up to 8 f-stops. Yours truly has rarely achieved critically sharp images (by my standards) at the extreme end of this claim but there is no doubt that this helps - a lot.
The Canon RF 100mm f/2.8 L USM macro IS is a worthy representative of its species and an obvious choice for Canon RF mount users. That being said - it's also a darn expensive one. Eventually, third-party AF macro lenses will be available, making sales tougher in this class. Or just use an affordable EF macro lens via adapter. Still, this doesn't diminish the qualities of this lens - highly recommended!
Mechanical Quality:
★★★★★
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