In August of 2022, the Chinese lens company Viltrox quietly removed a lens from their online store: the Canon RF version of the Viltrox AF 85mm f/1.8. Soon, it became clear that this removal was in response to a demand from Canon that the lens no longer be sold.
It was a concrete sign of something that many Canon users had suspected for years – that Canon was not just closing the RF lens mount to third-party autofocus lenses, but actively going after companies that tried to reverse engineer the mount. In a world where so many Sigma, Tamron, and other third-party lenses are beloved by photographers, what followed was a predictable (and almost two-year-long) PR disaster for Canon.
Just today, however, the dam may have finally broken. Sigma and Tamron announced almost simultaneously that they are now developing autofocus lenses for the Canon RF mount!
The specific lenses that they’re developing are all APS-C lenses so far, and all of which are variations of the companies’ existing lenses. They are as follows:
- Sigma 16mm f/1.4 DC
- Sigma 23mm f/1.4 DC
- Sigma 30mm f/1.4 DC
- Sigma 56mm f/1.4 DC
- Sigma 10-18mm f/2.8 DC
- Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 DC
- Tamron 11-20mm f/2.8
Sigma says that the 18-50mm f/2.8 DC for Canon RF will launch in July 2024, while all five of their other lenses say “fall of 2024 and onwards.” Meanwhile, Tamron says that the launch of their lens is “planned within 2024.”
APS-C users will probably be happy to have a lot more good options, although I think it’s fair to say that these are not the most head-turning lenses that Sigma or Tamron make (no word on a Sigma 14mm f/1.4 Art or Tamron 35-150mm f/2-2.8 for RF yet). But it’s not the specific lenses that have me so excited – it’s what this hopefully signifies. As long as Canon also opens their mount to full-frame lenses, this marks the first step in a critical change in Canon’s approach to third-party glass.
We can complain that it took too long to get to this point, but I’m glad we’re here now. I look forward to seeing Canon face some more competition – it should pressure them to continue improving their RF glass, while also being more aggressive about sales and discounts in the future. Of course, it should be a great thing for Sigma, Tamron, and other third-party manufacturers, too. Canon holds a huge percentage of the mirrorless market, and this move will allow third-party lens companies to get significantly more revenue and invest in some new lenses of their own. For many reasons, it’s something I find very exciting, even though I’m a little nervous that only APS-C lenses have been announced so far.
You can read more in the official press releases from Tamron and from Sigma.
Are there any third-party autofocus lenses you are most looking forward to seeing for the RF mount? Let me know in the comments!
Sigma RF Mount 85mm, 35mm please
Not only is this a good sign for Canon users, it’s also a little sign of hope that APS-C is still a thriving format!
It’s interesting that Sigma brought APS-C lenses first for both Nikon and Canon. Either they (i) truly think that they can make the biggest difference there, (ii) think that they can test the waters with the least risk in APS-C, or (iii) were restricted to that format by Nikon/Canon. Will be interesting to see which one it was (if we ever find out from reliable sources).
QUOTE
SIGMA Launches Interchangeable Lenses for Canon RF Mount System
* These products are developed, manufactured and sold under license from Canon Inc.
press.sigmaphoto.com/produ…rf-lenses/
The Canon R7 and 100-500 looks to be pretty desirable combo at a fair price. But there isn’t much to go with it. Add a Nikon-style 10-20 and 16-80 and you’d have a decent system. But these lenses don’t get you there.
There are Sigma 18-50mm f2.8 and 10-18mm f2.8.
Tamron makes a 17-70 that will do the job well. They also make an 11-20 2.8. Trade a small amount of wide angle for a brighter aperture. Or the Sigma 10-18 is excellent.
Lots of great options here.
It looks like there are only APS-C lenses to be planned at this right time : any information about that being a limitation from Canon ?
On a personal point of view, my only wish may be that Sigma port their new 500mm F/5.6 to RF and Z mount. Though, I guess APS-C lenses can give a little boost to entry level Canon line-up, needed or not.
That’s definitely the question. I don’t know if we’re only seeing APS-C lenses because that was Canon’s decision to prevent competition, or because it was Sigma/Tamron’s decision to dip their toes in the water before committing to a new mount.
Thinking further, in the case of FF Lenses, it can also depend on Sigma (or Tamron) contracts with Sony and L mount… of course. So maybe Canon has no direct connection with this decision.
All bayonets are protected by patents. And all of them are actually closed. It’s just that when Sony released the new E mount at the time, it had to let other manufacturers produce lenses for its new system. But at the same time, they block the maximum rate of fire of the camera and do not allow you to compensate for the focus breathing.
Canon was a market leader, conducts aggressive marketing and has a large fan base. In this situation, they decided to increase profits. By not allowing RF lenses to be produced for the bayonet. But camera sales in 2023 and the delay in the release of the R1 forced a change in strategy and allowed the release of lenses for APS-C cameras.
The situation with the Z bayonet was somewhat different. At the time of the release of the Z mount, Nikon was losing market share. All this made the strategy of adapting lenses to the Z mount risky for third-party companies. At the same time, there was an outright wave aimed at discrediting the new cameras. In this situation, Nikon most likely had to pay Tamron extra to produce new cheap lenses. But after the release of the Z9, and then the Z8, sales of cameras with the Z mount began to grow and this made the release of lenses more attractive for him. And since both Canon and Nikon frankly lacked their own products for APS cameras, that’s why third-party manufacturers gave priority to lenses for these cameras.
The issue with full-frame lenses for RF is open. The release of third-party manufacturers will negatively affect sales of their cheap line of non-L optics. We need accurate sales figures here. Having them, you can understand what would be optimal for Canon. Increase revenue by selling more cameras, but at the same time lose revenue on sales of optics for a full frame, or earn more from selling lenses, but sell fewer cameras.
During the covid period, Nikon faced the problem of supply chain disruption and a shortage of components. In this situation, they focused on cameras that bring high returns to the Z9 and later the Z8, and stopped updating the Z5, Z6, Z7, Z50, and
I counted about 20 assumptions that need to be proven :)