Canon Debuts RF Cinema Lens Series with RF-mount,
Featuring Seven Models of Prime Series with Superb Optical
Performance for Rich Expression
Canon announced today a new series of RF-mount-compatible RF Cinema Lenses for the Cinema EOS System. These seven models of the PRIME Lens series of single-focus lenses with full manual operation will be released from end January 2024.
The new lenses—Canon’s first cinema lenses equipped with its RF mount—combine high optical performance for 4K and 8K shooting, cinema-style operability, and RF mount transmission functionality. With these RF Cinema Lenses, Canon will expand its lineup of RF-mount-compatible video production equipment to meet the needs of professional video production such as movies, TV and commercials.
The seven lenses (focal length of 14/20/24/35/50/85/135 mm respectively) are compatible with the EOS C70 (released in November 2020) and EOS R5 C1 (released in March 2022) RF Cinema cameras. These lenses are compatible with the transmission protocol of RF mount, and as with previous models2, operators can control magnification, chromatic aberration correction, peripheral light correction and a dual pixel focus guide via camera body operations. In addition to these functions, the new lenses feature distortion aberration correction. These features support efficient video production not only during on-location recording but also post-shoot editing.
The new products achieve high optical performance suitable for use with 4K and 8K cameras by optimally positioning large-diameter aspherical lens elements and lens elements with anomalous dispersion glass. Their compatibility with the full-frame large-format sensor, bright T values3, and the use of 11 aperture blades allow for a shallow depth of field for subjects, natural round blurring, and soft image expressions. In addition, since the color balance is unified throughout the series, adjusting color tones when changing lenses, while shooting the same scene can be done with greater ease.
With an appropriate sense of torque of the operation ring, the new lenses allow for precise and smooth adjustments that are required for cinema shooting. In addition, due to the unified design across the series, including the gear position of the operation ring, the diameter of the lens and the rotation angle (operation angle), the lens can be exchanged smoothly without the need to adjust the mounting position of the mat box or external focus adjustment accessories for each model. A new knurled surface near the mount provides a comfortable fit in the user’s hand, allowing the lens to be held securely without gripping the operation ring when attaching and detaching different lenses.
| Product | Release date |
|---|---|
| CN-R14mm T3.1 L F | Late February 2024 |
| CN-R20mm T1.5 L F | Late March 2024 |
| CN-R24mm T1.5 L F | Late January 2024 |
| CN-R35mm T1.5 L F | Late January 2024 |
| CN-R50mm T1.3 L F | Late January 2024 |
| CN-R85mm T1.3 L F | Late January 2024 |
| CN-R135mm T2.2 L F | Late April 2024 |
1 Performance guaranteed in VIDEO mode, when used with EOS R5 C
2 EF-mount PRIME Series lenses
3 The brightness of a cinema lens is generally expressed as a T value, which is obtained by additionally reflecting the transmittance of the glass to the F value.
