Another cheap(ish) RF prime review/demonstration

ProDude wrote:

I don't doubt the value of this lens. But I suppose if I was going to bother with spending the money regardless, this lens has bokeh that is far too busy for my liking. Besides at this time, for times when I'd use a portrait type of application, I use a Sigma 105 f1.4 Art lens which is a true "Bokeh Master".

Yes, if you want that kind of bokeh, the Sigma is the one for you. Size and weight are the deal killers for me, but, as you say, we're not all that fussy. Or rather we are all fussy about different things.

But heck as you say for the $$ the Canon costs for many it will be a suitable answer to their needs. We're not all that fussy. LOL

Far be it from me to have an opinion different from Dustin Abbot or Christopher Frost, both of whose reviews I many times read and agree with, but I must say that my experience has apparently been different than yours and maybe their's. I own this lens for one reason - portraits. Perhaps a hint about its intended purpose is that when "experts" discuss their lens choices for portraits, they almost always talk about lenses in the 85 mm to 105mm range, because, well, most people portraits shot with these lenses yield the most natural looking perspective when shooting anywhere from "roomy" head shots to about 3/4 body shots. Yes, great portraits can be made using almost any focal length, but the 85mm to 105mm range clearly define the typical sweet spot.

That said, I have never used a lens in that range for sports, or fast action at all. For that, I have very expensive and extremely fast focusing zooms like the RF 70-200 f/2.8 and EF 100-400 f/4.0-5.6, while others may add the giant "big whites" to those two or, instead, replace of one of them. That's all the fast focusing stuff I need, along with my 24-70 f/2.8, which gives me a that same speed at wider angles.

So, why is the RF 85mm f/2.0 lens a very good and inexpensive one for me and many others? Because we don't use it for purposes for which it is not intended. It's meant to be a moderate high speed portrait lens with a great added feature of being able to close-focus up to 1:2, making it a good semi-macro lens as well. And a lens that obviously was not intended for, and in fact is not, great for sports or to memorialize your brother-in-law chasing your sister around their back yard. Really good portraits are more often taken at a slower and more contemplative pace, and this lens accomplishes just that very well, while focusing nicely on images with more moderate movement as well, I've never had it fail to autofocus precisely at distance or close up, and it only hunts, as I mentioned in a previous post, when the lens tries to focus over a very large portion of its focus range, like macro to infinity.

If you want to spend a fortune for the better RF f/1.2 lens, your options change dramatically. Or, if you opt for the EF 85mm f/1.8 or a third party one, you might find an 85mm that more suits your style. Go ahead and be happy. But, I'm fine with the RF 85mm f/2.0.

ProDude wrote:

I don't doubt the value of this lens. But I suppose if I was going to bother with spending the money regardless, this lens has bokeh that is far too busy for my liking. Besides at this time, for times when I'd use a portrait type of application, I use a Sigma 105 f1.4 Art lens which is a true "Bokeh Master". But heck as you say for the $$ the Canon costs for many it will be a suitable answer to their needs. We're not all that fussy. LOL

On my trip to Vienna the 105mm Art stayed at home while the RF 85mm f/2.0 IS stm was in the bag. The Art is over three times the weight.

Most of the time I do carry the Art while the RF 85mm stays at home, simply for it's IQ, however, this is having younger kids doing shorter walks.

The Sigma looses a lot of contrast in back lit situations, which can be a real downside for portraits. MFD is one meter or so!  Stabilization:  If you're really careful you can do 1/60th or so, but that's it. 105mm can be better, but it's less flexible in other situations.

The RF lens is a master of none, but it is a jack of all trades for sure.