Which standard lens for R6?

If you can only have one for a while, the 24-105mm F4 L is a brilliant option.

I would recommend the 24-240. It is an amazingly good lens for the price.

ffabrici said:

I would recommend the 24-240. It is an amazingly good lens for the price.

Click to expand...

And refurbished ones are often on sale at the Canon USA store.

I have the RF 24-105 f4.0L, the RF 24-240 and the RF 24-105 4-7.1. I used to have the EF 24-105 f4.0L. Of these, by far, I use the cheap, light RF 24-105 4-7.1. I have shot well over 1000 pictures with it this summer, and for my purposes, it's perfect.

It is not in any way better than the others. It simply is perfect for what I shoot most of the time. Namely, photos of headstones in a local cemetery that I post on the "Find A Grave" website. Small, light and sharp on the subject are more than sufficient for this task.

I also use it for shots that come up when I am out and about with friends and family. More than adequate for this task too.

If you shoot birds, portraits, any subject that you want to squeeze out the best possible image quality, the RF 24-105 f4.0L is the choice. Best total package, the RF 24-240 is the choice. It is excellent and has always exceeded my expectations. I don't use it for grave photos because it's heavy and the longer reach isn't needed.

The RF 24-105 STM is overlooked, in my opinion. It is quite capable of producing pleasing photos. Examples below.


Across the table at a diner


A picture of me, at the park with my daughter


Headstones


Graffiti in a park pavilion

TomSKW said:

I just bought a new R6, upgrading from a 80D. I already have some older EF-lenses (50F4, 100F2.8L and 135F2L) and the EF-RF adapter, but I need a more ‘standard’ zoomlens for all day-use. The RF24-105F4L is the most common, but is a bit out of my budgetary reach (I’m not a professional). The older EF24-105F4LII is cheaper, but does it also works good with the AF? And what about the Sigma 24-105F4Art-lens? It is the cheapest 24-105 (exept the RF24-105F4-7.1, but i want a better aperture), but will this work fine on my R6 (AF?)? Making things more difficult I’m also considering the RF24-240F4-6.3. OK, the aperture is a downside, but the focal range sounds interesting, especially for a standard zoomlens. For lowloght conditions I can use my prime lenses.

Any suggestions/thoughts?

Click to expand...

If I couldn't afford the RF 24-105 4L then I'd get the RF 24-105 4-7.1. That lens on the R6 will outperform pretty much any zoom lens you could mount on your 80D except maybe at the very wide end where the distortion correction takes its toll at 24mm or so. Canon just released the perfect companion lens in the RF 15-30 4-6.3. Assuming the IQ of this new lens is good, this 2 lenses will make a great pairing by using the 15-30 up to about 28-30mm.

Now the RF 24-105 4L IS is a great lens and if you can afford it and don't mind the extra size/weight then it is a good choice. If I had to have the proverbial 'one lens' that was all I could ever use it would probably be that lens, but the lighter/smaller/slower and cheaper RF 24-105 is way better than you would expect. If you have something to cover its lower FL range for critical usage then it's a no brainer. If money is tight ,get the 24-105 and then add on something for the wider end later.

Don't fret over the f stop range of the slower lens. With your R6 it will be a lot less of problem than you might imagine.

If you need really low light capabilities just get a prime in your preferred focal length. The 50 1.8 is great affordable fast prime.

--
Jonathan

You already have some great quality primes, Im going to recommend the RF 24-240mm as well.

The IQ is surprisingly good for a 10x superzoom, AF is blazing fast, solid constructions (minus weather sealing, as to separate it from L lenses), and the ease of use is fantastic. I simply cant imagine changing lenses all the time now that Ive used the 24-240 for 3 years.

If I have something specific in mind (rare), ill obviously grab other lenses. But for a general use lens, it cant be beat.



Random sample from my last outing, its nothing special but being able to grab this shot while also keeping up with the family was great.

Tom you have an R6, its an AWESOME body for high ISO. I really like the RF 24-240 on my R6. Its an AWSOME lens for the money. I have tried all 3 versions of the 24-105 and never keep one for more then a year. I had to carry a 70-200 at the same time to cover nearly the same range as the RF 24-240 but still short by 40 Sometimes I needed 3 lenses when I used a 24-105 and needed an ultra wide along with the 24-105 and 70-200. So now I use the RF 24-240 and RF 14-35 for my hiking kit. My RF 70-200 F4 L is very lonely.

WOW that is an AWESOME pic, thanks for sharing.

Gam3r01 said:

You already have some great quality primes, Im going to recommend the RF 24-240mm as well.

The IQ is surprisingly good for a 10x superzoom, AF is blazing fast, solid constructions (minus weather sealing, as to separate it from L lenses), and the ease of use is fantastic. I simply cant imagine changing lenses all the time now that Ive used the 24-240 for 3 years.

If I have something specific in mind (rare), ill obviously grab other lenses. But for a general use lens, it cant be beat.

Random sample from my last outing, its nothing special but being able to grab this shot while also keeping up with the family was great.

Click to expand...

Excuse me? Nothing special? I think this is special! Very nice.

Thanks everyone for the very useful tips and comments. I think I will get a closer look at the RF24-240. The zoomrange makes it a nice walk around lens. And in lowlight conditions I have to rely on my R6 or use one of my faster primes.

I also keep using my M50, especially for travel. And this can also make very nice pictures. This is my favorite, taken this summer during my roundtrip in the US.




Monument Valley - M50 with Sigma 16F1.4



--
Tom
“Once photography enters your bloodstream, it is like a disease.”

I have had numerous Canon bodies and now have RP, R5 and R7. I also have 24-105 f4, 24-240 and 16mm. Since I've had the 24-240 I haven't used the 24-105. I love the 24-240.

Kent

TomSKW said:

I just bought a new R6, upgrading from a 80D. I already have some older EF-lenses (50F4, 100F2.8L and 135F2L) and the EF-RF adapter, but I need a more ‘standard’ zoomlens for all day-use. The RF24-105F4L is the most common, but is a bit out of my budgetary reach (I’m not a professional). The older EF24-105F4LII is cheaper, but does it also works good with the AF? And what about the Sigma 24-105F4Art-lens? It is the cheapest 24-105 (exept the RF24-105F4-7.1, but i want a better aperture), but will this work fine on my R6 (AF?)? Making things more difficult I’m also considering the RF24-240F4-6.3. OK, the aperture is a downside, but the focal range sounds interesting, especially for a standard zoomlens. For lowloght conditions I can use my prime lenses.

Any suggestions/thoughts?

Click to expand...

anything "canon" won't let you down focus wise (relatively to the lens performance on ef bodies), i don't think the sigma will perform badly either, those 2 are great lenses!

the 24-240 is an interesting concept if absolute sharpness isn't a chief concern, sometimes having an entire kit in a single lens will get you the better shot than the sharpest limited focal length lens (especially considering the r6 does not offer endless room to crop).

I have both the EF 24-105 f4 and RF24-240.

Unlike others I don't really like the RF24-240.
Other than a bit of vignetting at 24mm the 24-105 is flawless and produce amazing images, plus the build quality is excellent. And yes the AF works perfectly on the R6.

I find the RF24-240 is a decent lens for the price but not as good as the 24-105 in many ways and certainly not as good as the EF 100-400ii in the range they share, so in the end I rarely use it.
It is a good lens however for going on a hike or daytrip for everyday shots. For anything else that matters to me, I am happy to carry the heavy gear and get the results I want.

(Before everyone start screaming at me and tell me I am wrong etc. This is my opinion that I share with the OP to help him make a decision. He can decide to take it into consideration or ignore it. All good.....but I am not willing to start an endless debate like on all the other threads)

If You are on a budget, buy an used Ef 24-70 f/4 L IS. You can sell it when You have saved for a RF 24-70 f/2.8 L IS. Or You can keep it bacause of the compact size. Buying witout L is often wasted money when You will upg-R-ade theese lenses anyway later.

The EF 24-70 f/4 L IS is a quality, lens mayby not as god as any of the Canon 2.8, but for 500$ Used, it's a bargain. It is recomended by Canon for the 5DS.

I had the RF 24-105 STM for a couple months, which I bought used, and hated it most of the time. The only thing it does nicely is closeups at the highest FLs, where not only you can get great sharpness but also very pleasing out of focus backgrounds. Other than that I was extremely disappointed even though it was very cheap. I sold it later but it took a while because the used market is flooded with this lens. i don't recommend it to anyone looking for quality.

Then I looked to many options including third-party. The next step would be the EF 24-70 f/4 L, which renders very nicely and is compact with the adapter. But I wasn't able to get a good used sample in my area. I started considering the possibility of getting a used RF 24-105 f/4 L and I was almost closing a deal, but I didn't find the IQ to be satisfactory for the price I was about to pay, especially at the wide end (I like to have great sharpness everywhere in the frame at the widest FLs, and don't care as much at the higher ones). The owner of the 24-105 L sent me some landscape samples taken at different FLs and apertures, and I discarded it. I would never pay 900€ for that lens and not be satisfied with corner sharpness.

Then I researched the Sigma and Tamron 24-70 offerings. Both the Art and the G2 versions seemed to have incredible value, but unfortunately I didn't find any ones in the used market, even far away from my area. Maybe people like them and don't want to sell.

The EF 24-70 f/2.8 L II was on my radar as well, but the used value was already 1500€. I know that it's an amazing lens, but I had a long thought about going forward to get it or not. I was already 500€ above my budget! I thought "does it make sense to pay that much for a lens that will be my most used one by far, and require the EF-RF adapter all the time?"

Fortunately I'm at a good point in my life where I can have these wild thoughts. I decided to go all in and get the RF 24-70 L. If I will spend big money on a lens, it better be RF mount instead! I went to the store and asked to test it, and I was disappointed - the left side of the picture, at 24mm, was not sharp even at f/8. Fortunately they had another copy and after careful testing I sealed the deal. All I can say is that it is the best standard zoom I ever used, even better than the Olympus 12-40mm f/2.8 and the Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8, both lenses that I loved. This Canon is extremely sharp corner to corner at all FLs already at f/4, which suits my landscape needs perfectly. And the IS is a big bonus when shooting in churches and museums. My camera is an R6. If it was the R5 maybe it wouldn't be as good, but I love it on my camera. It's a heavy lens, and even feels heavier than the Nikkor I had, but after shooting with it for 2 weeks during my summer holidays where I crossed the country on a road trip and visited a lot of places, the weight didn't bother me as much as I thought (the R6 is fairly light to compensate).

Long story short, I think that it's better to invest in the best lenses if you will use them a lot. In my case, 24-70 is the most used range by far (to be honest I'd be in heaven if it were a 24-85 instead). I also have the RF 50 STM for street and family gatherings. And later I will probably buy used EF lenses to complete my kit: the 70-200 f/4 L and maybe 16-35 f/4 L, because these will be used very seldom.

Good luck with your decision.

jwilliams said:

If I had to have the proverbial 'one lens' that was all I could ever use it would probably be that lens, but the lighter/smaller/slower and cheaper RF 24-105 is way better than you would expect. If you have something to cover its lower FL range for critical usage then it's a no brainer. If money is tight ,get the 24-105 and then add on something for the wider end later.

Don't fret over the f stop range of the slower lens. With your R6 it will be a lot less of problem than you might imagine.

If you need really low light capabilities just get a prime in your preferred focal length. The 50 1.8 is great affordable fast prime.

Click to expand...

Absolutely true. I have found the R6 sensor to be so good against noise that high F numbers and boosted ISO are not a problem. The 24-105 non-L is a fine lens.

I've got both 24-105s, and I still have my now very beaten up EF L Mk I version - it's too scruffy to sell after many years use. The RF L version is a step up optically and in terms of build quality, but aside from the price, it's relatively big, bulky and heavy. I bought the RF STM lens whilst it was on an Amazon special, and it's nearly half the weight, so much easier to carry around all day if photography isn't the main focus of the day's activities - which is why I bought it. And - well I'm impressed. Performs pretty much the same as the old EF L lens, with the added bonus of half life size close focus. AF speed is very good - I don't really notice the difference between this lens and the L version - certainly the fastest focusing STM lens I've used. Only downside is the maximum aperture at the longer end, but it's not all that restricting, and IQ is pretty good with only the slightest of stopping down to f8.

TomSKW said:

I just bought a new R6, upgrading from a 80D. I already have some older EF-lenses (50F4, 100F2.8L and 135F2L) and the EF-RF adapter, but I need a more ‘standard’ zoomlens for all day-use. The RF24-105F4L is the most common, but is a bit out of my budgetary reach (I’m not a professional). The older EF24-105F4LII is cheaper, but does it also works good with the AF? And what about the Sigma 24-105F4Art-lens? It is the cheapest 24-105 (exept the RF24-105F4-7.1, but i want a better aperture), but will this work fine on my R6 (AF?)? Making things more difficult I’m also considering the RF24-240F4-6.3. OK, the aperture is a downside, but the focal range sounds interesting, especially for a standard zoomlens. For lowloght conditions I can use my prime lenses.

Any suggestions/thoughts?

Click to expand...

I have both for the R5 the 24-105mmf4 and the 24-240mm superzoom. For an all day lens hiking or biking I will use the 24-240mm Both lens have good IQ. I use the constant f4 aperture of the Rf 24-105 for video zooming and lower light light events. Both are very good lenses but the RF 24-105mm is weather sealed. which is nice sometimes.

As you have probably already discovered, your EF lenses work perfectly on your R6. So will the 24-105/4 L IS II.

I would also consider one of the used Canon EF 24-70mm L lenses. Even consider a used 24-105 to maximize your budget.

The problem with megazooms like the 24-240 is that while they may be okay in the mid range they are very poor in the wide and telephoto ranges.

You have some extremely good primes so I think you will find the megazoom lacking.