Canon has doubled the number of lenses for VR content creators with a second stereoscopic optic: the Canon RF-S 3.9mm f/3.5 STM Dual Fisheye lens.
I first saw a prototype of the lens at The Photography & Video Show earlier this year, where Canon explained that “we have invested heavily in virtual reality and want to bring these products to market as quickly as possible.” The company wasn’t kidding, because the Canon RF-S 3.9mm f/3.5 STM Dual Fisheye has now come to fruition.
It is the successor to the full-frame Canon RF 5.2mm f/2.8L Dual Fisheye lens that was released in early 2022. Unlike the existing model, the new 3.9mm version isn’t an L-series optic – and it’s an RF-S lens, designed for Canon’s APS-C mirrorless cameras, keeping the price down.
It has an MSRP of $1,099 / £1,349 / AU$1,999, which makes it around 35% cheaper than the existing full-frame model.
Furthermore, the Canon EOS R7 body it was designed with at launch is also significantly cheaper than the EOS R5 that the RF 5.2mm was initially built for (although it is also compatible with the R6 Mark II today).
So individually and as a combined package it will cost significantly less and will lower the barrier to entry for anyone interested in creating virtual reality content.
Although the RF-S 3.9mm will only work with the EOS R7 when it launches this month, Canon said it will extend lens compatibility to other models in the future. Check out the test footage below, taken with a beta lens sample on an R7, recorded in 4K 25p.
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Above: Sample shots straight from the camera
The dual fisheye lenses have an ultra-wide focal length of 3.9mm, which works out to 6.24mm in full-frame terms once you’ve taken into account the crop factor of the 1.6x APS-C sensor, but that’s still always an astonishing field of 144 degrees of view.
Canon added that “the lens uses a 60mm pupillary distance that resembles human eyes to create a realistic 3D viewing experience.”
Also on the spec sheet you will find an STM (stepper motor) in the left lens for fast and smooth autofocus, although this is One-Shot AF for fast and accurate adjustment of your shots. There is no servo mode for continuous AF, so to adjust focus while filming you can use the adjustment switch on the side of the lens barrel.
There’s also a large control ring on the barrel, which works best as a manual focus ring, but can be adjusted for other settings such as ISO.
The Canon RF-S 3.9mm f/3.5 STM Dual Fisheye is smaller and lighter than the RF 5.2mm f/2.8L Dual Fisheye, yet still manages to incorporate two ultra-low dispersion lenses to ensure high image quality and prevent aberrations.
The lenses also benefit from Canon’s premium Air Sphere Coating – the first time this has been applied to an L-series optic – to reduce reflections and flare and deliver impeccable image quality.
I was initially told that the Canon RF-S 3.9mm f/3.5 STM would be released in July, but Canon has since confirmed that it will go on sale in June for a price of $1,099 / £1,349 / AU$1,999 .
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Check out the best Canon RF lenses for mirrorless cameras, and don’t forget that EOS R bodies easily adapt the best Canon lenses for DSLRs.