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Photographers who own, or are considering buying, a Canon EOS R mirrorless camera will have several new lens options to choose from later this year. Sigma and Tamron are bringing selected lenses from their extensive catalogs to the RF mount, effectively ending Canon’s embargo on autofocusing third-party lenses for its mirrorless cameras. Until now, Canon has allowed others to make manual focus add-ons for its cameras but prevented any third-party lenses with autofocus or electronic communication from going on sale.Seven existing lenses are now slated for release for Canon cameras, six from Sigma and one from Tamron. They are the Sigma 10-18mm F2.8 DC DN Contemporary, 18-50mm F2.8 DC DN Contemporary, 16mm F1.4 DC DN Contemporary, 23mm F1.4 DC DN Contemporary, 30mm F1.4 DC DN Contemporary, 56mm F1.4 DC DN Contemporary, and Tamron 11-20mm F2.8 Di III-A RXD.
Tamron 11-20mm F2.8 DI III-A RXD on Sony camera (Credit: Jim Fisher)
Sensor coverage is the unifying factor among these lenses. All are designed for use with APS-C sensor cameras like the EOS R50, R100, R10, and R7. None of the full-frame lenses from Sigma or Tamron are included. And none will be available today; Sigma says the 18-50mm F2.8 will go on sale this summer, with the remainder of its introductions set for the fourth quarter. The Tamron 11-20mm is slated for availability sometime this year. We also don’t have pricing yet, and won’t assume that they’ll cost the same as the editions for other camera systems.Great News for APS-C Camera OwnersThe news comes a few months after Canon told PetaPixel it was working on licensing agreements for the previously closed-off RF mount. As we pointed out in a recent column, Canon’s current APS-C lineup leaves a lot to be desired, so a good set of F2.8 zooms and F1.4 primes is great news for photographers who’ve picked up an EOS R10 or similar camera and are looking for a lens upgrade.
Sigma 23mm F1.4 Contemporary on Sony camera (Credit: Jim Fisher)
Canon’s native options for these cameras are limited to a set of low-cost zooms, and while there’s nothing stopping system owners from using a full-frame lens on a camera with a smaller format APS-C sensor, it’s not always a practical solution. For instance, before today, the only wide-angle zoom options for the system were the competent but unexciting RF-S 10-18mm F4.5-5.6 IS STM ($329) and the luxury priced full-frame RF 10-20mm F4 L IS STM ($2,299). As mentioned, we don’t know exactly where Sigma and Tamron will land on pricing, but the Sigma 10-18mm F2.8 sells for around $600 for other systems, so even if it costs a little bit more for Canon, it’s clearly the lens to get as if you want a better quality wide zoom than the Canon RF-S 10-18mm.
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Full Frame Remains a Walled GardenPhotographers with full-frame Canon bodies like the EOS R6 Mark II are still restricted to first-party glass for autofocus photography. I see this as a little disappointing as Canon doesn’t yet have enough mid-priced lenses in RF mount. Its catalog has some strong value picks and a wide complement of high-end L series lenses.There’s no predicting the future, however. There’s always the chance that third-party full-frame lenses will become a reality down the line. But for now, if you’re considering a Canon full-frame camera, you’ll need to make sure the lenses you want to use are available from Canon itself. Read our RF lens buying guide to check and see if the system has your lens needs covered before picking up an EOS R mirrorless camera.
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