Canon RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM
Sample Images Intro New Good Bad Missing
Specifications Performance Compared
R3 R5 R5C R6 II R6 R R8 RP R7 R10 R50 R100
Bodies Compared RF Lenses EF Lenses Flash
Canon RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM (82mm filters, 32.8 oz./931g, 2.3'/0.7m close focus, 0.26× macro ratio, $2,099). bigger. I got mine at B&H. I'd also get it at Adorama, at Crutchfield or at Amazon, or get it used if you know How to Win at eBay. As of September 2023 it's still nearly impossible to get. Do what I did: just order it and be patient.
This 100% all-content, junk-free website's biggest source of support is when you use those or any of these links to my personally approved sources I've used myself for way over 100 combined years when you get anything, regardless of the country in which you live — but I receive nothing for my efforts if you take the chance of getting it elsewhere. Canon does not seal its boxes in any way, so never buy at retail or any other source not on my personally approved list since you'll have no way of knowing if you're missing accessories, getting a defective, damaged, returned, dropped, incomplete, gray-market, store demo or used lens — and my personally approved sources allow for 100% cash-back returns for at least 30 days if you don't love your new lens. I've used many of these sources since the 1970s because I can try it in my own hands and return it if I don't love it, and because they ship from secure remote warehouses where no one gets to touch your new lens before you do. Buy only from the approved sources I've used myself for decades for the best prices, service, return policies and selection.
September 2023 Better Pictures Canon Reviews Mirrorless RF Lenses EF Lenses Flash All Reviews
Sample Images top
Sample Images Intro New Good Bad Missing
Specifications Performance Compared
More samples throughout this review at Bokeh, Falloff, Macro, Spherochromatism and Sunstars.
These are just snapshots; my real work is in my Gallery.
These are all shot hand-held as NORMAL (▟ stairstep icon) JPGs; no tripods, FINE (quarter circle) JPGs or RAW CR3 files were used or needed.
Downtown San Diego and the Embarcadero as seen from Harbor Island's Coasterra on a Gray Day, 1:17 PM, Sunday, 10 September 2023. Canon EOS R8, Standard Picture Style with sharpening set to 7,1,1 and Saturation to +4, RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM at f/5 at 1/500 at ISO 50, +0.3 stops exposure compensation (LV 14.6), Perfectly Clear (now sold as Radiant Photo). bigger or camera-original 24 MP © 10 MB JPG FINE (quarter-circle icon) file.
Mercedes S580, 6:57 PM, Monday, 11 September 2023. Canon EOS R8, Standard Picture Style with sharpening set to 7,1,1 and Saturation to +4, RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM at f/2 hand held at 1/160 at Auto ISO 400 (LV 7.4), Perfectly Clear (now sold as Radiant Photo). bigger or camera-original 24 MP © 5 MB JPG NORMAL (▟ stairstep icon) file.
Hamilton Lancaster Grandfather Clock Face, 12:55 PM, Wednesday, 13 September 2023. Canon EOS R8, Standard Picture Style with sharpening set to 7,1,1 and Saturation to +4, RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM at f/2.8 hand held at 1/160 at Auto ISO 100 (LV 10.4), Perfectly Clear (now sold as Radiant Photo). bigger or full resolution 24 MP © 5 MB JPG file (file size reduced from camera original JPG NORMAL file.)
This is shot with distortion correction OFF and is an extreme test, with straight lines parallel to the edge. All the distortion goes away with Distortion Correction ON.
It's ultra sharp even hand-held here for a quick shot of my clock. Even shot off the cuff focus is dead-on and you can see the halftone dots in the moon phase artwork. In fact, I'd never seen the artist's signature on that artwork in person; I only first saw it here in this photo!
Mercedes S580, 6:58 PM, Monday, 18 September 2023. Canon EOS R8, Standard Picture Style with sharpening set to 7,1,1 and Saturation to +4, RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM wide-open at f/1.8 hand held at 1/160 at Auto ISO 1,250 (LV 5.4), Perfectly Clear (now sold as Radiant Photo). bigger or camera-original 24 MP © 4.3 MB JPG NORMAL (▟ stairstep icon) file.
What makes this lens stand out isn't just the soft background bokeh. Skilled eyes will appreciate the lack of spherochromatism, which often leads to green color fringes on the out-of-focus chrome highlights towards the rear of the car. It's unusual and good that the out-of-focus highlights remain neutral and natural, rather than tinged with green.
It's also great that Image Stabilization makes it trivial to hand-hold at dusk without any worries about sharpness. If I was paying attention I would have shot at 1/50 and a lower ISO for even better results, but this, like much of my work, is real-world grab shots.
Introduction top
Sample Images Intro New Good Bad Missing
Specifications Performance Compared
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This Canon RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM is just about optically perfect and has optical stabilization which no other similar lens has ever offered.
Even though it's an expensive chunky lens, it's so good that it's nearly impossible to find almost a year after it was announced. To get yours, do as I did and just order it and be patient.
Of course it's fast and among the sharpest lenses ever made, and it also has great bokeh, focuses about twice as close as most lenses, has minimal ghosts, no color fringes, minimal spherochromatism, great optical stabilization on every camera and great sunstars.
I got my RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM at B&H. I'd also get it at Adorama, at Crutchfield or at Amazon, or get it used if you know How to Win at eBay. As of September 2023 it's still nearly impossible to get.
New intro top
Canon's first mirrorless ultraspeed telephoto longer than 85mm.
Good intro top
Excellent Image Stabilization.
Image Stabilization rated 5.5 stops; 8 stops if your body is stabilized.
STABILIZER switch.
AF//MF switch.
Dust and drip proof.
Case included.
Nice, deep hood included — deep enough so it will work much better than most other hoods.
Two lens function buttons (they do the same thing; one is for vertical and the other for horizontal shooting).
100% U.S.A.-based high-quality technical support at (800) OK-CANON.
Canon RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM. bigger.
Bad intro top
Nothing other than being big and expensive.
Missing intro top
No always-active manual-focus override unless you set that in a menu.
Mounting index dot isn't raised so it can't be found by feel in the dark.
No focus or depth-of-field scales. So, what is this, 1957?
Specifications top
Sample Images Intro New Good Bad Missing
Specifications Performance Compared
I got my RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM at B&H. I'd also get it at Adorama, at Crutchfield or at Amazon, or get it used if you know How to Win at eBay. As of September 2023 it's still nearly impossible to get. Do what I did: just order it and be patient.
Camera & Extender Compatibility specifications top
This lens only works on Canon's EOS-R series of mirrorless cameras.
It won't work with any teleconverters.
It won't fit on, and cannot be adapted to, any DSLR because a DSLR has too much distance between its sensor and its lens mount flange.
Name specifications top
Canon calls this the RF135mm f/1.8 L IS USM:
RF: Works only on Canon's EOS-R Mirrorless cameras.
L: Expensive as L.
IS: Image Stabilization.
USM: UltraSonic (autofocus) Motor.
Optics specifications top
Canon RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM Internal Optical Construction. UD elements. IS section.
17 elements in 12 groups.
2 UD extra-low dispersion elements, which help reduce secondary axial chromatic aberration.
Fluorine anti-crud coating.
Super Spectra and Air Sphere anti-reflection coatings.
Diaphragm specifications top
RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM. bigger.
9 rounded blades.
Electronically actuated.
Stops down to f/22.
Filters specifications top
Plastic 82mm filter thread.
Coverage specifications top
Full-frame and APS-C.
Angles of View (Full Frame) specifications top
18º diagonal.
15º horizontal.
10º vertical.
Autofocus specifications top
Nano USM (UltraSonic Motor).
No external movement as focussed, so no air or dust is sucked in.
Focus Scale specifications top
No.
Infinity Focus Stop specifications top
No.
You have to focus somehow to get precise focus at infinity, just like at every other distance.
Depth of Field Scale specifications top
No.
Not on lens, but may be displayed in-camera.
Infrared Focus Index specifications top
No.
Close Focus (distance from subject to image plane) specifications top
2.3 feet (0.7 meters).
Maximum Reproduction Ratio specifications top
1:3.85 (0.26×).
Image Stabilizer specifications top
Rated 5.5 stops improvement; actually gives about 4.5 stops in the real worked, which is superb!
Rated 8 stops improvement if your camera also has in-body stabilization.
Caps specifications top
Canon E-82II front cap, included.
Rear Lens Dust Cap RF (p/n 2962C001), included.
Hood specifications top
The plastic ET-88B hood is included.
It's one of the few hoods deep enough to do some good.
It has a nice locking pawl with a spring-loaded release button.
Canon RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM with ET-88B Hood. bigger.
Case specifications top
LP1319 suede-like sack included.
Size specifications top
3.51" ø maximum diameter × 5.13" extension from flange.
89.2 mm ø maximum diameter × 130.3 mm extension from flange when collapsed.
Weight specifications top
32.840 oz. (931.0 g) actual measured weight.
Rated 33.0 oz. (935 g).
Quality specifications top
Canon RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM. bigger.
Made in Japan.
Announced specifications top
Wednesday, 02 November 2022.
Promised for specifications top
Late January 2023.
As of September 2023 it's still nearly impossible to get.
You have to order it and be patient.
Included specifications top
Lens.
Canon E-82II front cap.
Rear Lens Dust Cap RF (p/n 2962C001).
Canon's Model Numbers specifications top
Product code: 5776C002 (5776C001 in Japan).
Model number: RF13518LIS.
JAN code: 4549292-207385.
Price, U. S. A. specifications top
September 2023
$2,099 at B&H, at Adorama, at Crutchfield and maybe at Amazon.
About $2,000 used if you know How to Win at eBay.
As of September 2023 it's still nearly impossible to get. Do what I did to get mine: just order it and be patient.
Canon RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM. bigger.
Canon RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM. bigger.
Performance top
Sample Images Intro New Good Bad Missing
Specifications Performance Compared
Overall Autofocus Manual Focus Breathing
Bokeh Distortion Ergonomics Falloff Filters
Flare & Ghosts Lateral Color Fringes
Lens Corrections Macro Mechanics
I got my RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM at B&H. I'd also get it at Adorama, at Crutchfield or at Amazon, or get it used if you know How to Win at eBay. As of September 2023 it's still nearly impossible to get. Do what I did: just order it and be patient.
Overall performance top
This RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM lens is big, expensive and chunky and can't zoom, however it's essentially optically perfect. It's so popular that you'll probably have to wait to get yours after you order it — it's that good.
Autofocus performance top
Autofocus is swell, no problems here.
As a fast tele the focus is immediate, but not instantaneous. It takes a moment to glide its focus in and out.
Assuming you're using the camera correctly, focus is always dead-on. This is a huge benefit of mirrorless, which focuses directly from the sensor. Back in DSLR days where AF sensors were in a different part of the camera connected by mirrors you never quite got perfect focus every shot if your AF system wasn't in perfect alignment. With mirrorless there's nothing to go out of alignment.
The USM (ultrasonic motor) is silent. The only sound is some quiet sliding that you can hear if the camera is to your eye in a quiet room, otherwise you'll never hear it focus.
Manual Focus performance top
Manual focusing is entirely electronic; the manual focus ring isn't connected to anything other than a digital encoder.
Thank goodness there's an AF/MF switch.
How to get manual-focus override.
Focus Breathing performance top
Focus breathing is the image changing size as focused in and out. It's important to cinematographers that the image not breathe because it looks funny if the image changes size as focus gets pulled back and forth between actors. If the lens does this, the image "breathes" by growing and contracting slightly as the dialog goes back and forth.
The image grows somewhat as focused more closely.
Focus Distance Recording performance top
The focused distance is recorded in the EXIF data.
I read this in the lower left of my screen in Photoshop's lens correction filter.
Bokeh performance top
Bokeh, the feel, character or quality of out-of-focus areas as opposed to how far out of focus they are, is superb. As a long, fast lens, backgrounds also get very far out of focus.
Here are photos from headshot distance wide-open. I'm focused on the DAVIS logo. Click any for its © camera-original file:
Made-in-U. S. A. Davis 6250 weather station, 10:05 AM, Saturday, 09 September 2023. Canon EOS R8 at 1/2,500, 1/1,000 and 1/250 at ISO 50, 0, +0.3 and +0.3 stops exposure compensation (LV 14.0, 15.0 and 15.0). Click either for the © camera-original file.
As always, if you want to throw the background as far out of focus as possible, shoot at f/1.8 and get as close as possible.
As with all lenses, if you shoot from farther away, backgrounds don't get as far out of focus:
Mercedes S580, 6:57 PM, Monday, 11 September 2023. Canon EOS R8, Standard Picture Style with sharpening set to 7,1,1 and Saturation to +4, RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM at f/2 at 1/160 at Auto ISO 400 (LV 7.4), Perfectly Clear (now sold as Radiant Photo). bigger or camera-original 24 MP © 5 MB JPG NORMAL (▟ stairstep icon) file.
Distortion performance top
The RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM has minor pincushion distortion with Distortion Correction OFF (as you can see exaggerated with the extreme example of the clock face at Sample Images), and none with Correction ON.
While Canon's own software probably also corrects this from RAW CR3 files, be warned that other brands of raw processing software probably won't correct the distortion.
Use these corrections in Photoshop's lens correction filter to uncorrected images.
These aren't facts or specifications, they are the results of my research that requires hours of photography and calculations on the resulting data:
On Full-Frame R8 at 30' (10m) |
Correction factor to use with images made with correction ON in R8 |
Correction ON |
±0.00 |
Correction OFF |
-1.50 |
© 2023 KenRockwell.com. All rights reserved.
Ergonomics performance top
|
|
Collapsed, just turn the zoom ring to shoot. bigger. |
Ready to shoot! bigger. |
Other than being a handful, ergonomics are great.
The additional front control ring is a feature common to many Canon RF lenses. You can set it in your camera to be Exposure Compensation, Aperture, ISO or other things.
You can pay Canon service to remove the clicks from the front control ring. I prefer them with the clicks as shipped.
It also has two programmable Lens Fn buttons, which default as AF Lock. You can program these in your camera to do other things. There are two buttons, one for vertical and the other for horizontal shots. They each do the same thing; you can't program to do different things.
It has both AF/MF and STABILIZER switches:
Canon RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM. bigger.
Falloff performance top
Falloff on full frame is invisible with correction at its default of ON.
If you shoot raw data rather than JPG images, whatever software you use to create visible images from raw data may or may not correct the distortion as is done in-camera as JPGs. You're on your own there; I don't bother with raw data.
I've greatly exaggerated the falloff by shooting a gray field and placing these on a gray background; it will not look this bad in actual photos of real things, and it's till pretty much invisible here:
Falloff on full-frame at infinity, correction at its default of ON.
© 2023 KenRockwell.com. All rights reserved. |
If you're silly enough to go out of your way to turn the correction OFF or need it for creative effect, falloff is strong wide open and goes away by about f/2.8. Again, gray-on-gray exaggerates this:
Falloff on full-frame at infinity, correction deliberately turned OFF.
© 2023 KenRockwell.com. All rights reserved. |
Filters, use with performance top
There's no need for thin filters. I can stack quite a few standard 82mm filters with no vignetting at any setting on full-frame.
Go ahead and use your standard rotating polarizer and grad filters.
Flare & Ghosts performance top
This big, complex lens is remarkably free from flare and ghosts. Canon really did their homework on this lens. Bravo!
See examples at Sunstars.
Lateral Color Fringes performance top
There are no color fringes.
Even if you go out of your way to turn this correction OFF (or shoot raw and then use non-manufacturer software to process that data into images) then there are still no lateral color fringes
Bravo!
Lens Corrections performance top
Other cameras may vary as the years roll on, but my EOS R3, R5, R5C, R6 II, R6, R, R8, RP, R7, R10, R50 and R100 all have options to correct for falloff (Peripheral Illumination Correction), Distortion and a Digital Lens Optimizer which corrects for a suite of other aberrations.
Falloff (Peripheral Illumination Correction) and the Digital Lens Optimizer are ON by default, and Distortion correction is OFF.
If you turn off the Digital Lens Optimizer, you are then offered à la carte ON/OFF options for Chromatic Aberration Correction and Diffraction Correction.
If you shoot raw data rather than JPG images, whatever software you use to create visible images from raw data may or may not correct these as is done in-camera as JPGs. You're on your own there; I don't bother with raw data.
Macro Performance performance top
This lens gets pretty close; closer than most lenses, and it's very sharp and has beautiful bokeh this close.
Wide-Open at f/1.8
It's extremely sharp wide-open, and the bokeh is beautiful:
Casio G-Shock Solar Atomic Watch wide-open at f/1.8 at close-focus distance, 09 September 2023. Canon EOS R8 at 1/2,500 at ISO 50, +1 stop exposure compensation (LV 14.0). bigger or camera-original © file.
1,200 × 900 pixel (5× magnification) crop from above. bigger or camera-original © file.
The texture you're seeing is the solar cell of the watch face.
If this 1,200 × 900 pixel crop is about 3" (7.5cm) wide on your screen, then the complete image printed at this same large magnification would be about 10 × 15" (25 × 38cm).
If this 1,200 × 900 pixel crop is about 6" (15cm) wide on your screen, then the complete image printed at this same extreme magnification would be about 20 × 30" (50 × 75cm).
If this 1,200 × 900 pixel crop is about 12" (30cm) wide on your screen, then the complete image printed at this same insanely high magnification would be about 40 × 60" (1 × 1.5 meters).
While the bokeh (quality of defocus) is superb, as with all fast telephotos at macro distances there is almost zero depth of field so I doubt you'd ever want to shoot at f/1.8. The watch above is easy because its face is flat, while just about nothing in nature is. Here's an example of a flower; you get one paper-thin plane in focus and the rest is all a blur at f/1.8:
Yellow Hibiscus, 13 September 2023. Canon EOS R8, Standard Picture Style with sharpening set to 7,1,1 and Saturation to +4, RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM at f/1.8 at 1/3,200 at Auto ISO 100, +0.7 stops exposure compensation (LV 13.2), as shot. bigger.
At f/5.6
Yellow Hibiscus, 09 September 2023. Canon EOS R8, Standard Picture Style with sharpening set to 7,1,1 and Saturation to +4, RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM at f/5.6 at 1/640 at Auto ISO 100, +0.7 stops exposure compensation (LV 14.4), as shot. bigger.
1,200 × 900 pixel (5× magnification) crop from above. bigger.
If this 1,200 × 900 pixel crop is about 3" (7.5cm) wide on your screen, then the complete image printed at this same large magnification would be about 10 × 15" (25 × 38cm).
If this 1,200 × 900 pixel crop is about 6" (15cm) wide on your screen, then the complete image printed at this same extreme magnification would be about 20 × 30" (50 × 75cm).
If this 1,200 × 900 pixel crop is about 12" (30cm) wide on your screen, then the complete image printed at this same insanely high magnification would be about 40 × 60" (1 × 1.5 meters).
At f/8
I don't really need to show this because the RF 135mm f/1.8 L is already ultrasharp at f/1.8, but here we go at f/8. I usually show f/8 to show how lenses that are soft at macro distances wide-open become sharp at f/8 and smaller where you'd more likely want to shoot them at close distances:
Casio G-Shock Solar Atomic Watch wide-open at f/1.8 at close-focus distance, 09 September 2023. Canon EOS R8 at 1/2,500 at ISO 50, +1 stop exposure compensation (LV 14.0). bigger or camera-original © file.
1,200 × 900 pixel (5× magnification) crop from above. bigger or camera-original © file.
The texture you're seeing is the solar cell of the watch face.
If this 1,200 × 900 pixel crop is about 3" (7.5cm) wide on your screen, then the complete image printed at this same large magnification would be about 10 × 15" (25 × 38cm).
If this 1,200 × 900 pixel crop is about 6" (15cm) wide on your screen, then the complete image printed at this same extreme magnification would be about 20 × 30" (50 × 75cm).
If this 1,200 × 900 pixel crop is about 12" (30cm) wide on your screen, then the complete image printed at this same insanely high magnification would be about 40 × 60" (1 × 1.5 meters).
Mechanical Quality performance top
Canon RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM. bigger.
This is a well made lens with a plastic exterior.
Finish
Black plastic.
Front Bumper
None.
Filter Threads
Plastic.
Hood Bayonet Mount
Plastic.
Front Barrel Exterior
Plastic.
Control Ring
Plastic.
Focus Ring
Rubber-covered Plastic.
Slide Switches
Plastic.
Rear Barrel Exterior
Plastic.
Silver-Look Ring Near Mount
Metal.
Identity
Nearly invisibly printed around front of barrel, also "135" engraved on top of barrel.
Internals
Seem like metal and plastic.
Dust Gasket at Mount
Yes.
Mount
Metal.
Markings
Paint.
Serial Number
Canon RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM. bigger.
Laser engraved in black-on-black on bottom of barrel.
My studio photo shows this much more clearly than it will ever seem in the field; you really have to squint to read this.
Date Code
None found.
Noises When Shaken
Mild to moderate clunking, most probably from the Image Stabilization elements.
Made in
Made in Japan.
Sharpness performance top
Lens sharpness has nothing to do with picture sharpness; every lens made in the past 100 years is more than sharp enough to make super-sharp pictures if you know what you're doing. The only limitation to picture sharpness is your skill as a photographer. It's the least talented who spend the most time worrying about lens sharpness and blame crummy pictures on their equipment rather than themselves. Skilled photographers make great images with whatever camera is in their hands; I've made some of my best images of all time with an irreparably broken camera! Most pixels are thrown away before you see them, but camera makers don't want you to know that.
If you're not getting ultra-sharp pictures with this, be sure not to shoot at f/11 or smaller where all lenses are softer due to diffraction, always shoot at ISO 100 or below because cameras become softer at ISO 200 and above, avoid shooting across long distances over land which can lead to atmospheric heat shimmer, be sure everything is in perfect focus, set your camera's sharpening as you want it (I set mine to the maximum) and be sure nothing is moving, either camera or subject. If you want to ensure a soft image with any lens, shoot at f/16 or smaller at ISO 1,600 or above at default sharpening in daylight of subjects at differing distances in the same image.
People worry waaaaay too much about lens sharpness. It's not 1968 anymore when lenses often weren't that sharp and there could be significant differences among them; ever since about 2010 all new lenses are all pretty much equally fantastic.
This said, this lens is ultra sharp and contrasty corner-to corner at every aperture, limited of course by diffraction at the very smallest apertures.
This lens excels in the lab, and duh, you've already seen the sample images.
If you can't make a sharp photo with this lens, something's wrong.
Canon RF 135mm f/1.8L IS USM MTF wide-open at 10 cyc/mm (black) and 30 cyc/mm (blue). Sagittal (solid) and meridional (dashed).
Spherochromatism performance top
Spherochromatism, also called secondary spherical chromatic aberration or "color bokeh," is an advanced form of spherical and chromatic aberration in a different dimension than lateral chromatic aberration. It happens mostly in fast normal and tele lenses when spherical aberration at the ends of the color spectrum are corrected differently than in the middle of the spectrum. Spherochromatism can cause colored fringes on out-of-focus highlights, usually seen as green fringes on backgrounds and magenta fringes on foregrounds. Spherochromatism is common in fast lenses of moderate focal length when shooting contrasty items at full aperture. It goes away as stopped down.
Surprisingly for such a fast, long, it has very little spherochromatism which really makes this lens outstanding. Most ultrafast teles have a lot of this, and it robs real-world sharpness and make out of focus areas look funny. This lens is awesome at this; there is nearly no spherochromatism here and in actual use:
Mondaine A132.30348.11SBB at close-focus distance wide-open at f/1.8, 09 September 2023. Canon EOS R8 at 1/4,000 at ISO 50 (LV 14.6). bigger or camera-original © file.
1,200 × 900 pixel (5× magnification) crop from above. bigger or camera-original © file.
If this 1,200 × 900 pixel crop is about 3" (7.5cm) wide on your screen, then the complete image printed at this same large magnification would be about 10 × 15" (25 × 38cm).
If this 1,200 × 900 pixel crop is about 6" (15cm) wide on your screen, then the complete image printed at this same extreme magnification would be about 20 × 30" (50 × 75cm).
If this 1,200 × 900 pixel crop is about 12" (30cm) wide on your screen, then the complete image printed at this same insanely high magnification would be about 40 × 60" (1 × 1.5 meters).
Image Stabilization performance top
Optical Image Stabilization (OIS, IS or VR (Vibration Reduction)) is great; I see 4½ stops of real-world improvement — on an unstabilized camera! Canon claims even better stabilization with a stabilized camera; I didn't try.
"Percent Perfectly Sharp Shots" are the percentage of frames with 100% perfect tripod-equivalent sharpness I get when I'm shooting hand-held while free-standing with no support or bracing. Hand tremor is a random occurrence, so at marginal speeds some frames will be perfectly sharp while others will be in various stages of blur — all at the same shutter speed. This rates what percentage of shots are perfectly sharp, not how sharp are all the frames:
| % Perfectly Sharp Shots, unstabilized R8 | 1s |
1/2 |
1/4 |
1/8 |
1/15 |
1/30 |
1/60 |
1/125 |
1/250 |
1/500 |
| Stabilization ON, day 1 | 0 |
0 |
? |
67 |
50 |
100 |
100 |
100 |
100 |
100 |
| Stabilization OFF, day 1 | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
17 |
0 |
17 |
83 |
100 |
| Stabilization ON, day 2 | 17 |
33 |
50 |
67 |
83 |
83 |
100 |
100 |
100 |
100 |
| Stabilization OFF, day 2 | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
17 |
0 |
17 |
58 |
100 |
100 |
| Stabilization ON, day 3 | 3 |
0 |
25 |
33 |
83 |
100 |
100 |
100 |
100 |
100 |
| Stabilization OFF, day 3 | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
50 |
100 |
100 |
I see a 4½ stop real-world improvement.
Without stabilization I need to shoot at 1/250 to get perfect tripod-equivalent sharpness almost of the time, while even on an unstabilized camera I can get the same perfect results most of the time at 1/15 to 1/30, and loads of perfectly sharp shots at 1/8 or even 1/4 depending on luck. Shot a few frames at the slower speeds for insurance and you can almost always get perfect sharpness in one good shot out of a few at 1/4 or 1/8. Bravo!
Sunstars performance top
With a 9-bladed rounded diaphragm, I get pretty good, sharp 18-pointed sunstars on brilliant points of light at most apertures.
Click any to enlarge:
Click any to enlarge.
In the case above the disc of the sun is so big that you can't see how sharp are the star points.
Here's a blinding point of light; the sun reflected off chrome car trim:
Click any to enlarge.
With point sources the stars are sharp. This is great performance.
Compared top
Sample Images Intro New Good Bad Missing
Specifications Performance Compared
I got my RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM at B&H. I'd also get it at Adorama, at Crutchfield or at Amazon, or get it used if you know How to Win at eBay. As of September 2023 it's still nearly impossible to get. Do what I did: just order it and be patient.
Versus the EF 135mm f/2 L
Canon EF 135mm f/2 L (72mm filters, 0.9m/3' close-focus, 25.0 oz./708g, get it used at Amazon or used at eBay if you know How to Win at eBay).
The Canon EF 135mm f/2 L has also always been an extraordinarily sharp lens with superb bokeh. It has much more spherochromatism than this new RF 135mm f/1.8 L and won't quite be as sharp wide-open for scientific and astronomical use, however for portraits it's superb. It has no optical stabilization.
It works flawlessly on mirrorless with an EF to RF adapter.
It's smaller and lighter and less expensive than any of the other similar lenses today, so if you want this for people, beauty, environmental and , by all means pick up this well-loved classic for a song and laugh all the way to your bank!
Versus the Sony 135mm f/1.8
Sony FE 135mm f/1.8 GM (82mm filters, 33.5 oz./950g, 2.3'/0.7m close focus, check price).
The Sony FE 135mm f/1.8 GM is almost identical in size, weight, features, extreme optical performance and price. Actually it's uncanny how close they are, even though the internal optical designs are quite different.
A huge advantage to this Canon Lens is that is has optical stabilization, sorely lacking in the Sony, and that Sony dumped production to China while Canon makes this lens domestically in Japan.
Each only works best on its own brand of camera, so it's actually a bit silly to compare — but you asked, so here you go.
Versus Nikon
Nikon NIKKOR 135mm f/2 AI-s (72mm metal filter thread, built-in hood, 30.1 oz./854g, 4¼'/1.3m close-focus, get it used if you know How to Win at eBay).
Nikon has nothing similar today for their mirrorless cameras, at least as of September 2023.
You could use the AF DC-NIKKOR 135mm f/2 D, however Nikon's FTZ and FTZ II adapters are defective by design so unfortunately this AF lens won't autofocus on Nikon's mirrorless cameras.
Your best bet is the great AF-S 105mm f/1.4, which will autofocus on the FTZ and FTZ II, but lacks optical stabilization. It's faster but shorter.
You also can use the excellent classic manual-focus NIKKOR 135mm f/2 F, AI or AI-s on an adapter, but it won't have any data communication or optical stabilization with any brand of mirrorless camera. The NIKKOR 135mm f/2 F, AI or AI-s is still sought after today for its extraordinary bokeh, however wide-open it won't be as extraordinarily sharp as the newer lenses.
The NIKKOR 135mm f/2 F, AI or AI-s is smaller than the others, and just a little bit lighter, and it's 100% made out of engraved metal, an object of beauty that should need nothing more than a cleaning and relubrication every few decades or so to last forever.
User's Guide top
Sample Images Intro New Good Bad Missing
Specifications Performance Compared
I got my RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM at B&H. I'd also get it at Adorama, at Crutchfield or at Amazon, or get it used if you know How to Win at eBay. As of September 2023 it's still nearly impossible to get. Do what I did: just order it and be patient.
Canon RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM. bigger.
AF - CONTROL - MF Switch user's guide top
AF: Autofocus, and maybe manual or manual override if you set your camera that way.
MF: Manual focus, only.
Manual-Focus Override user's guide top
By default, there is no always-responsive instant manual-focus override as we take for granted in our DSLRs.
EOS R cameras need a menu setting changed for manual-focus override, otherwise the focus ring is always ignored in AF.
Find the "Lens electronic AF" option in your AF menu (AF 6 in R7, R8 and R10, AF 4 in EOS R5 and EOS R6 or CAMERA 8 in EOS RP), and set it to either "One‑Shot‑> enabled" or "One‑Shot‑> enabled (magnify)."
Canon should have it set this way by default, but they don't. No big deal now that I figured it out.
In ONE SHOT mode manual focus now takes over and stays wherever you set the focus manually, however in SERVO mode this setting lets the lens focus manually as you turn the ring, but as soon as you stop turning the ring the AF system takes back over and keeps tracking focus! Oh well.
STABILIZER user's guide top
I always leave this ON, except if I'm on a tripod.
Recommendations top
Sample Images Intro New Good Bad Missing
Specifications Performance Compared
I got my RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM at B&H. I'd also get it at Adorama, at Crutchfield or at Amazon, or get it used if you know How to Win at eBay. As of September 2023 it's still nearly impossible to get. Do what I did: just order it and be patient.
Most people get very excited about this lens for headshots, but I don't: I prefer a zoom like the RF 100-500mm as I do headshots at a longer distances with longer focal lengths. 135mm is great for full-body shots, however I'd never shoot at f/1.8 because so little is in focus; if the subject is at an angle you're not going to get both eyes in focus at f/1.8, so I prefer zooms because I prefer their flexibility and don't fret the slower speed.
For astronomical and scientific use this lens is optically superb at every aperture.
I use a clear (UV) protective filter instead of a cap (exactly like an iPhone) so I'm always ready to shoot instantly. I only use a cap when I throw this in a bag with other gear without padding — which is never. The UV filter never gets in the way, and never gets lost, either.
The very best protective filter is the 82mm Hoya multicoated HD3 UV which uses hardened glass and repels dirt and fingerprints. The Nikon NC 82mm is also an excellent choice, but not as resistant to the environment, fingerprints and physical abuse as the HD3 UV.
For much less money, the Hoya multicoated 82mm UV is also optically superb, but the Hoya HD3 is the toughest.
Any of these filters protects as well and gives ultrasharp images, but since filters last a lifetime, you may as well get the best since the Hoya HD3 is tougher and stays cleaner than the others since it repels oil and dirt.
The Nikon 82mm Polarizer is superb.
All these filters are just as sharp and take the same pictures, the difference is how much abuse they'll take and stay clean and stay in one piece. Since filters last a lifetime or more, there's no reason not to buy the best as it will last you for the next 40 years. Filters aren't throwaways like digital cameras which we replace every few years, like it or not. I'm still using filters I bought back in the 1970s!
I got my RF 135mm f/1.8 L IS USM at B&H. I'd also get it at Adorama, at Crutchfield or at Amazon, or get it used if you know How to Win at eBay. As of September 2023 it's still nearly impossible to get. Do what I did: just order it and be patient.
This 100% all-content, junk-free website's biggest source of support is when you use those or any of these links to my personally approved sources I've used myself for way over 100 combined years when you get anything, regardless of the country in which you live — but I receive nothing for my efforts if you take the chance of getting it elsewhere. Canon does not seal its boxes in any way, so never buy at retail or any other source not on my personally approved list since you'll have no way of knowing if you're missing accessories, getting a defective, damaged, returned, dropped, incomplete, gray-market, store demo or used lens — and my personally approved sources allow for 100% cash-back returns for at least 30 days if you don't love your new lens. I've used many of these sources since the 1970s because I can try it in my own hands and return it if I don't love it, and because they ship from secure remote warehouses where no one gets to touch your new lens before you do. Buy only from the approved sources I've used myself for decades for the best prices, service, return policies and selection.
Thanks for helping me help you!
Ken.
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