July 2020 RF Lenses RF 600mm and 800mm f/11 etc.

John Sheehy wrote in post #19116109
The weight difference is very big. The RF600/11 is only 2.05 lb or 930 g. The Sigma 150-600 Contemporary is 4.03/1830, and the G2 Tamron is 4.42/2010. That can make a big difference in the comfort of carrying gear around all day, especially if you have the gear lifted for shooting, and more especially if you're pointing it upward. Being able to handle something comfortably for a short while is not the same thing as handling it all day.

Just to add to this, on today's walk I had the EOS R and RF 600mm F11 (in collapsed mode, no hood) in a Think Tank Digital Holster 20 V2.0 (with pop-down extension unzipped) on a Think Tank Belt and did not notice the weight at all.

Cheers

Dennis

EDIT: with the lens fully extended (no lens hood) the EOS R / RF 600mm F11 combo still fits in the Think Tank Digital Holster 20 V2 (with pop-down extension deployed) and the lid can be zipped closed, albeit it is a little tight.

nardes wrote in post #19116134
Just to add to this, on today's walk I had the EOS R and RF 600mm F11 (in collapsed mode, no hood) in a Think Tank Digital Holster 20 V2.0 (with pop-down extension unzipped) on a Think Tank Belt and did not notice the weight at all.

One other thing that is advantageous with a smaller entrance pupil for a given focal length is that the subject is more often already close to focus when you lift the lens. Even with the 100mm of my 400/4DO II, a moderately distant bird against the sky sometimes isn't even visible in the viewfinder from being completely out of focus, making it take longer to get tracking and focused, even if a higher open f-ratio would have done the focusing part slower.

nardes wrote in post #19116029
Here is an example of how the Canon RF 600mm F 11 lens performs on a Canon EOS R at almost MFD, in a controlled setting with lots of light.

This Noisy Miner bird was sun bathing on a 4x4 inch off-cut in our back garden and didn't mind me taking its photo.

#1 is the full frame resampled down to 1600 pix.

#2 is a full res 1600x1600 crop of some feather detail.

Ignore 600mm F4 L in metadata, I had to select this to complete the EXIF fields - this is the RF 600mm F11

#1 full frame

Hosted photo: posted by nardes in
./showthread.php?p=191​16029&i=i8319166
forum: Canon Lenses

#2 1600x1600 full res crop

Hosted photo: posted by nardes in
./showthread.php?p=191​16029&i=i186825260
forum: Canon Lenses

This comatose guy was back again today sun baking on the same log so I managed to grab a shot from a similar distance, but with the 5D Mk IV and Canon 300mm F2.8L Mk II with Extender x1.4 Mk III fitted, for a comparison. Not controlled laboratory testing by any means.

Cheers

Dennis

You may not, but Canon will be the ones counting their shekels all the way to the bank. It is inexpensive, very light for its FL, and exploits capabilities that MILCs have and DSLRs do not.

Just a few from this morning with the RF 800mm, more in the 800mm Sample Photo Thread

Photo from LoneRider's gallery.
Image hosted by forum (1061217)

Photo from LoneRider's gallery.
Image hosted by forum (1061218)

Photo from LoneRider's gallery.
Image hosted by forum (1061211)

600 F11 element wobble ?
I had just lightly cleaned the front element and reinstalled the lens cap.
I was curious as to what the rear element looked like so I set the lens
up vertically and shinned a soft light into the rear of the lens.
To my surprise the rear element looked off center. I moved the lens around
a little and the rear element wobbled in all directions. I moved the lens to
a horizontal position and the rear element dropped down and was off center.
Is this behavior normal ? Or do I have a defective lens ?
Has anyone else with a 600 F11 observed this behavior ?

How do the pictures look? My guess is you are seeing the Image stabilization unit jiggling about.

Some good , some great , some not so good but they don't look out of focus
it just looks like motion blur. I have shaky hands ( essential tremor ) and my hand held
images are not the best no matter what lens.
Tripod , single point , rock steady images are great.
Tripod , panning , servo, continuous about 50% good.
Do the rear elements wobble in your 800 F11 ?

I don't see this wobble in any of my other lenses.
I'm just worried about carrying this lens around with wobbly elements.

OK, just shined a light through my 800mm and looked in the rear, yes you can see an assembly jiggle around. My lens is working fine, I am confident it is just the IS unit.

I wouldn’t be concerned about it’s movement walking around. When powered on it probably is held more firmly in place. Powered off and walking around I am sure any shocks are absorbed by the mounting.

Thanks LoneRider for the info. I really did not want to return this lens , it delivers
great images on my EOS R and R6 considering the price.
I need to learn how to post photos.
BTW, your images with the 800 F11 are fantastic.
Thanks again. I will use this lens without worry.

Indpho wrote in post #19120275
600 F11 element wobble ?
I had just lightly cleaned the front element and reinstalled the lens cap.
I was curious as to what the rear element looked like so I set the lens
up vertically and shinned a soft light into the rear of the lens.
To my surprise the rear element looked off center. I moved the lens around
a little and the rear element wobbled in all directions. I moved the lens to
a horizontal position and the rear element dropped down and was off center.
Is this behavior normal ? Or do I have a defective lens ?
Has anyone else with a 600 F11 observed this behavior ?

Yes, a rear lens element in my unmounted 600mm F11 also "wobbles" in its suspension harness, I can also hear a mechanical clicking when I gently shake the lens.

Cheers

Dennis