Will Canon allow EF lenses to work on future RF bodies?

Arthur Stanley Jefferson wrote:

antonio-salieri wrote:

This idea is ludicrously absurd.

Canon will surely continue to phase out its production of EF lenses and will eventually replace its offerings for which there is not yet an RF successor. The EF 35mm f/1.4 II and 11-24mm f/4, for instance, are still important parts of Canon's professional lens lineup, but RF successors will replace them in due course.

But EF lenses will also surely continue to work on RF bodies. Any notion that they would cease to do so is absurd.

The RF mount was designed specifically to be an extension of the EF mount. Blocking EF lenses would be a matter of software, not of hardware.

Software (firmware upgrades) would be the subtle and gradual way to evolve the compatibility away from EF lenses.

Firmware changes to degrade performance of existing lenses aren't upgrades. They would also discourage existing users from upgrading their cameras. That's definitely counter productive for a manufacturer aiming for a majority market share.

Canon never blocked an EF lens in firmware. Why would they? All of them going back to the 1980s remain compatible with the latest and greatest cameras. I have personally used some lenses from the late 80s on my R5 before. And more than that, Canon has never disabled third-party lenses through firmware, whether EF or RF. Even the third-party RF lenses that Canon said infringed some patents remain operable with current RF cameras with the latest body firmware, despite occasional hiccups (normal with third-party lenses).

Those hiccups being mostly unexplained random focussing errors on otherwise amazing 3rd party lenses such as the Sigma Art series.

You presume Canon will disable EF support in software on future cameras to prevent the use of third-party lenses.

I don’t think Canon would blatantly just switch off EF support in one single obvious move or update, as that would cause a backlash of annoyed users.

But what about the many professionals who will continue to use EF lenses for decades and decades to come? I'm certain that thirty years from now, EF lenses will still be in use on a daily basis by pros. (Hell, some of them might even be popular as "vintage" lenses!)

This move would make the R5iv or whatever less useful than the R5iii by artificial means. This would be not only a marketing disaster, it would significantly damage the real-world usability of Canon's cameras. And Canon would not benefit at all.

No, users would realise their EF lenses that worked 4 years ago on older R bodies are now, not working so well anymore on newer R bodies. They would blame their older lenses before they blamed the most recent R body or accept it’s the price of design progress and sell their EF lenses on the secondhand market.

Such a policy would be the salvation of Nikon. I would return a new Canon body that gave worse performance with my EF lenses than my EOS R, buy a Fringer adapter and a Nikon Z camera and sell off my RF mount lenses when my EOS R needed to be replaced. That would effectively stop me buying EF lenses as they aren't adaptable to any other camera system. People like Metabones, Fringer Viltrox, etc. are already producing adapters that allow current EF lenses to be used on just about all the other mirrorless systems and that sort of policy would keep them in business for years to come. They would be the only reason there was a second-hand market if Canon were silly enough to degrade the performance of EF lenses on RF bodies.

The things that will kill off EF lenses are more attractive RF lenses, old age and the prophets of doom. Canon don't need to do anything unethical to haste the process.

In the future, Canon will do what they've always done: try to convince people of the advantages of the new RF lenses. The later EF lenses have similar advantages over the early entries from the late 80s, too. The RF lenses often make real improvements. But people will remain free to use EF lenses in the future, just as they can use old EF lenses today.

They'll be free to use them, but they just won’t work as well on each successive R generation, you’ll have to buy the same lens in RF mount for best performance, it’s your choice.

Or change systems to one that does support EF lenses.

Otherwise, Canon's entire RF design was a waste of their time, and their new cameras will be markedly worse than their old ones!

Not at all, the Canon made a great system, the AF alone is what is driving many to buy R bodies for their old EF lenses which work better …on current R bodies and that is great for us but bad for Canons RF lens sales.

I see no need to get upset over this debate, I simply speculate that I would assume the enormous supply of EF lenses (that are making the purchase of expensive R bodies more palatable) will eventually eat into the sales and profits of Canon.

Not really. There will eventing be a finite and decreasing number of EF lenses in circulation. There are a lot of RF lenses that are as cheap or cheaper than EF lenses and a growing number of attractive lenses that were never available in EF mount. EF lenses that come to the ends of their useful lives, will be replaced with RF lenses. Someone who buys a second-hand EF lens for a fraction of the price of a new RF isn't necessarily a loss of an RF lens sale if it keeps them in the Canon system. They haven't bought a competitor's lens and may well replace it with a Canon lens or buy another RF lens as well.

Canon hook new buyers in to the R system with the current great compatibility of EF lenses on R bodies. Many will part exchange their Dslr bodies to upgrade, and won’t look back, great

Once there are enough new R bodies in circulation, and the remaining new EF stock has been sold or replaced by a similar RF lens model, EF won’t be sold anymore.…

And Canon don't need to degrade the performance of the RF mount to make that happen.

.. I think we’re in a sweet spot….right now…of EF lenses on R bodies…I’m on the brink of buying an R body myself.

but I really don’t believe that the sweet spot will last forever.

.. I also expect new EF lens prices to go much higher as the run out of EF stock begins, this will also drive sales to RF mount as the prices will be closer …and who would buy EF at the price of RF?

A lot of the new EF lens prices are already similar to new RF lenses of similar specifications. Compare the 24-105mm L lenses or the 14-35mm & 16-35mm our the 70-200mm f/4 lens prices for example.

Canon want to sell lenses, for profit, they want you to upgrade, they make no money from lenses you bought 8 years ago or secondhand.

whether it’s by design evolution, progress or whatever, I believe EF will slowly become less functional, more expensive and be replaced ….enjoy it while you can

I don't agree, Canon will still prefer you to upgrade your body rather than defect to Nikon.