EF Lenses on R Mount (f/1.2 portrait primes)

saltydogstudios wrote:

I've been interested in getting into the R Mount for a while now with the 50mm f/1.2 and 85mm f/1.2 lenses for portrait work - both natural light and studio.

These are all very beautiful lenses for portrait work.  I love using them and the results are always quite dreamy and "expensive looking".  Modern smartphones try to emulate the "creamy" bokeh they produce but can't emulate it properly.  The reason most people buy these lenses is for the amazing defocused backgrounds they produce.  The smoothness is exceptional.  They both work fine on the EOS R cameras. They are actually more reliable on the EOS R cameras than on DSLRs. The most versatile of the two lenses will be the 50mm lens because you won't be backed into a corner in a small room.  The 85mm lens is more troublesome in this regard if you attend a party and the floor-space isn't sufficient to allow you to back up enough to frame your subject.   No doubt you'd know this but it is important to remember if you shoot functions.  I originally bought my EF 85mm f/1.2L USM lens to photograph a friend's wedding with.  It was held outdoors on a mountaintop and the bridal party were spread out... so that not only could I not frame them properly, but I could only get one set of eyes in focus per shot.  I ended up swapping to a wider lens on a different camera.
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EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM lens - at that friends wedding.

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There reason to consider the 85mm lens is because they produce such a profoundly defocused background with unique character.  But there's another alternative that you may not have considered: The EF 135mm f/2L USM lens.  This one is perhaps the cheapest L-series lens on the market today and is considered one of the so-called 'Holy Trilogy of Fast Primes' by Canon.  The other two EF lenses you are considering make up the remaining two from that trilogy. Be sure to take a moment to look into the EF 135mm f/2L lens because it produces a very profound bokeh with more of the subject in the focus-plane ...yet even stronger background diffusion and beautiful (legendary) bokeh.  This lens also performs very well on the EOS R although I don't have any samples from the camera to show at the moment that aren't astro-photography related.
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Adding all of the above to my cart ends up being around $8000 USD for the body and both lenses.

The new lenses are indeed very expensive.  I ended up trading in my pristine copy of my EF 85mmL lens to offset the cost of the newer RF lens. I'm considering the RF 50mmL lens but since I found the performance to be similar to my EF 50mmL lens, I'm not in a rush.  In fact unless I have a specific motivation to do otherwise, I'll hang onto the EF lens.  It works perfectly with the lens adapter. Both of these lenses will perform on your EOS R better than on their native EF mounted DSLR cameras.

But the latest DP Review video has me thinking - why not get the EF mount equivalents?

That video was garbage. It's just padded with fluff that could have been stripped out.  It does not explore the more important comparisons between the lenses, does not cover the technology of the RF lens deeply enough, and appears to have been made "for fun" - presumably because they knew they were being ridiculed for not covering the new RF lens here on DPreview.  Yes, there's some useful information to be gleaned from watching that video, but you would do well to ignore it and compare the lenses on other websites.  Take a look at Dustin Abbott's reviews, for example.  Those helped convince me to look more closely at the RF alternatives.

Sure the lenses are older and the autofocus and optical performance may not be as good - but with some used EF lenses, my cart is now half the price (body, two lenses and adapter).

I understand completely.  The only reason I gave up my EF 85mm f/1.2L lens the other day was because I felt it unnecessary to own both lenses since DSLR is being outpaced by Mirrorless and the RF version offered greater optical and physical performance. The EF lenses work just fine on the EOS R. Possibly more reliably too. If you do use your EF lenses on the R bodies, you'll need to choose from one of the three adapter rings.  The basic one is just fine and may be the strongest of the three.  You don't need the one with the Control Ring or the Drop-in Filter slide.  If you think that you might like to make use of the Control Ring and apply that feature to your EF lenses, then consider that model as an alternative.

Does anyone who has experience with both the EF and R versions of these lenses have an opinion on this?

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Canon's EF 50mm f/1.2L USM lens

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EF 50mm f/1.2L USM lens Vs RF 50mm f/1.2L USM lens:
The EF lens works just fine on the EOS R.  Bokeh is much the same - if not identical.  AF speed is acceptable from the EF lens.  The performance, clarity and sharpness of the RF version is clearly going to give it an advantage but they both have an element of LCA that is present.  I find that on the EOS R, the EF 50mm f/1.2L USM lens performed as well as the RF lens that I tried out around 2 weeks ago.  I saw no need to "upgrade" to the RF version when the EF version is capable of a nearly identical experience.  However, at least one other member here has demonstrated superior optical qualities coming from the RF version that makes me think I ought to at least consider the RF lens.  Can you do with the EF version?  In my opinion? Absolutely!  It looks good on the camera and it performs perfectly.  With the EOS R touchscreen, you are no longer forced to use risky focus methods like the "Focus and Recompose" method.  Studio work and face/eye-tracking seem to work well with EF lenses on the EOS R.
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EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM lens

RF 85mm f/1.2L USM lens

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EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM Vs RF 85mm f/1.2L USM lens:
No contest.  The addition of Blue Spectrum Refractive Optics (BR) and Air Sphere Coating (ASC) combined with a Flourine Element and Lowlight Dispersion Glass (ED) makes the new RF lens an EF killer.  It shames the older EF lens with AF speed but it's the ability to consistently nail the AF every time that makes the RF the better lens of the two.  The ASC all but eliminates ghosting and flare while the BR ensures that LCA is virtually gone.  Plus the new RF mount ensures a clear, sharp, flat field with exceptional corner-to-corner sharpness and virtually non-existent coma.  The difference in performance and optical quality (image quality) on the RF 85mm lens makes it the hands-down best choice of the two. Yes, you can get away with the EF version but you'll soon consider it a slow lens. It won't be an issue unless you're shooting moving subject though.

With the lenses at less than half the price of the R mount versions, it seems like a no brainer - I can get started and then trade up to the R versions if/when it makes sense.

Is there any major reason I would regret getting the EF lenses?

If you don't already own the EF lenses, you still have a chance to weight up your options. There's a glut of EF glass on the market at the moment so presumably you can get some good deals.  Be wary of copy-variation from both EF lenses because they were known to be problematic occasionally.  When I bought my EF 85mmL lens it needed to be replaced the following day due to massive back-focus problems.  For example, it would focus two inches beyond a closeup subject and three feet from a subject 40 feet away.  This was adjustable via the MFA setting on my DSLR camera but I was right at the very limit of my MFA adjustment settings with no room to move. I then managed to select a new model from three other new lenses and was extremely satisfied with the results.  In theory, backfocus ought not to be a problem with mirrorless lenses.  Yet some folks complain that their EF lens with back-focus issues can occasionally struggle to nail focus on a mirrorless camera.  Usually, this always/only applies to f/1.2 lenses.
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In general, you should find that EF lenses will be universally more reliable and accurate with the DPAF sensors on mirrorless cameras.
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The EF 85mmL is something of a classic lens that produces exceptionally beautiful bokeh.  But the new RF version outpaces it just about everywhere.  F/1.2 lenses are difficult for manufacturers to make, which is why all the third party f/1.2 lenses tend not to have Auto Focus. With the 50mm lenses, I find the performance similar and the IQ to be very close except with astrophotography (where the new RF 50mm lens shines).  With the 85mm lenses, the RF significantly outperforms the EF lens.  One of the things to come from that video was the mention that you could consider using the RF lens as a street lens now due to AF and performance speed.  You simply can't do that with the EF lens. 
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The only things I didn't like about the RF lens is:
* Larger 82mm filter thread = more expensive filters.
* The outer drum of the body is made from composite (polycarbonate?) plastic.  Admittedly, this ought to protect the lens more if dropped. 
* Even heavier than its predecessor.
* With the included lens hood, it's far larger and more intimidating... which may attract unwanted attention on a dark street or when entering a venue where cameras are frowned upon.
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If you are using either of these lenses for portraits you may not feel a need to "upgrade" to the RF versions at all.  The EF lenses will continue to perform for you and your images will look as they did coming from a DSLR. I would suggest that if you want to use the EF lenses on an EOS R camera, they will work quite well.  The EF 50mmL lens is obviously more useful indoors due to the wider FOV.  The bokeh from it on the EOS R is the same as from any DSLR.  AF speed feels slightly faster but that might be my imagination.  The EF 85mmL lens is a lot slower compared to most other lenses because it used an older type of focus method.  It's not just slower, it's actually a slow lens to use (for such "fast" glass).  Using it on an EOS R will speed up accuracy but the AF speed will only be slightly improved.  Canon are having sales almost each and every month now.   They probably need to make up for lost revenue after the crippling pandemic lockdown (in fact, that's exactly what they are doing).  If I were you, I would consider the EF 50mm f/1.2L lens and then spend some time trying to decide if you have use for an 85mm f/1.2L lens.  If the answer is "yes", then consider the RF version of the 85mmL as being the better choice. Don't bother with the new D.O. version (there's two RF 85mm f/1.2L lenses now) because that's a specialty lens. But with this specific lens (if I were starting from scratch but knowing what I know now) I would give the older EF version a miss and move straight to the RF equivalent for the 85mm lens.  Don't forget to take a look at the EF 135mm f/2L USM lens as well.  You might even want to consider it as an alternative to the 85mmL lenses.  Note also that there are some new lenses from OTHER manufacturers for the EOS R... including the cheaper Samyang RF 85mm f/1.4 lens... but note that this is NOT an f/1.2 lens.  I won't recommend the non-Canon alternative for the 135mmL lens.
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Just my thoughts.