Canon RF 28mm f/2.8 STM
Full-Frame Pancake Lens
Sample Images Intro New Good Bad Missing
R3 R5 R5C R6 II R6 R R8 RP R7 R10 R50 R100
Bodies Compared RF Lenses EF Lenses Flash
Canon RF 28mm f/2.8 STM (55mm filters, 4.1 oz./117 g, 0.75'/0.23m close focus, 0.17 × macro ratio, $299). bigger. I got mine at B&H. I'd also get it at Adorama, at Amazon or at Crutchfield, or used at eBay if you know How to Win at eBay.
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 28mm. 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.
December 2023 Better Pictures Canon Reviews Mirrorless RF Lenses EF Lenses Flash All Reviews
Sony vs. Nikon vs. Canon Full-Frame
Canon, Nikon, Sony, Fuji & OM SYSTEM Menu Systems Compared.
Canon EOS R, RP, R5 & R6 compared
Why Fixed Lenses Take Better Pictures
Sample Images top
Sample Images Intro New Good Bad Missing
More samples throughout this review at Bokeh, Distortion, 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.
Turbo-Jet 396 / 275 HP, 10:21 AM, Saturday, 11 November 2023. Canon EOS R6 II, f/11 handheld at 1/8 at Auto ISO 200(LV 9.0), Radiant Photo. bigger or camera-original © JPG file.
Austin-Healey 3000 Mark II, 11:17 AM, Saturday, 11 November 2023. Canon EOS R6 II, f/5.6 at 1/250 at Auto ISO 100(LV 13.0), Radiant Photo. bigger or camera-original © JPG file.
Red Corvette, 11:19 AM, Saturday, 11 November 2023. Canon EOS R6 II, f/7.1 at 1/500 at Auto ISO 100, -1 stop exposure compensation (LV 14.6), as shot. bigger or camera-original © JPG file.
Stairs, 1:42 PM, Monday, 13 November 2023. Canon EOS R6 II, f/6.3 at 1/320 at Auto ISO 100 (LV 13¾), Radiant Photo. bigger or camera-original © JPG file.
Introduction top
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The RF 28mm f/2.8 is a tiny lens with superb optics. It's easy for it to be so sharp because it's a common focal length, it's a fixed lens, and it's a reasonable aperture. We're not asking this lens to do much like zoom, have extreme focal lengths or be ultra fast, so this lens, small enough to fit inside the front cap of my EF 14mm f/2.8 L, has superb optical performance.
Your only real question is do you need this if you carry another zoom which covers any focal length between 24mm and 35mm? The answer is no; if you carry another zoom which covers this range, say a 14-35mm or 24-70mm, then you don't want this lens; just use your zoom.
The real reason for this lens is if you want to make your camera tiny — and leave your other lenses at home, or also it could be a spare lens you put in your pocket along with carrying a telephoto on the camera.
I got my RF 28mm f/2.8 STM at B&H. I'd also get it at Adorama, at Amazon or at Crutchfield, or used at eBay if you know How to Win at eBay.
Canon EOS R6 Mark II and RF 28mm f/2.8 STM. bigger.
New intro top
Canon's tiniest "pancake" lens for its EOS-R mirrorless system.
Clever AF - CONTROL - MF switch selects AF or MF, or lets us assign the ring to control our choice of things like aperture or ISO or more (assigned in-camera).
Good intro top
Ultra sharp.
Ultra tiny.
Handy; Canon somehow found room for a control ring and an AF/MF and CONTROL assignment switch:
Canon RF 28mm f/2.8 STM. bigger.
100% U.S.A.-based high-quality technical support at (800) OK-CANON.
Bad intro top
Nothing; this is a splendid little lens.
Missing intro top
No optical stabilization (works fine with in-camera stabilization).
No switch for in-camera stabilization.
Mounting index mark not not raised so it can't be found by feel in the dark.
No case included.
No hood included.
No focus or depth-of-field scales.
No infra-red focus indices.
No focus lock buttons
Canon RF 28mm f/2.8 STM. bigger.
Specifications top
Sample Images Intro New Good Bad Missing
I got my RF 28mm f/2.8 STM at B&H. I'd also get it at Adorama, at Amazon or at Crutchfield, or used at eBay if you know How to Win at eBay.
Compatibility
This lens only works on Canon's EOS-R series of mirrorless cameras.
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.
It won't work with any teleconverters.
Name specifications top
Canon calls this the RF28mm F2.8 STM:
RF: Works only on Canon's EOS-R Mirrorless cameras.
STM: STepper (autofocus) Motor.
Optics specifications top
Canon RF 28mm f/2.8 Internal Optical Construction. Aspherical elements.
8 elements in 6 groups.
3 Aspherical elements.
Unit focussing.
Diaphragm specifications top
Canon RF 28mm f/2.8 STM. bigger.
7 rounded blades.
Electronically actuated.
Stops down to f/22.
Filters specifications top
Plastic 55mm filter thread.
Angle of View specifications top
On full frame:
75.0º diagonal.
65.0º horizontal.
46.0º vertical.
Autofocus specifications top
Geared stepper motor.
You can pull-out or push-in the internal focussing barrel.
If the camera is ON, the servo system will try to return it to where it was if you push it.
Focus Scale specifications top
No.
Not on lens, but may be displayed in-camera.
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
0.75 feet (0.23 meters).
Maximum Reproduction Ratio specifications top
1:5.9 (0.17 ×).
Caps specifications top
Canon E-55 55mm front cap (p/n 8266B001).
Rear Lens Dust Cap RF (p/n 2962C001).
Hood specifications top
None, and none needed.
Avoid screw-in hoods as the focus motor is very sensitive to outside forces.
Case specifications
None, stick it in your pocket.
Size specifications top
2.72" ø maximum diameter × 0.972" extension from flange.
69.2 mm ø maximum diameter × 24.7 mm extension from flange.
Weight specifications top
4.120 oz. (116.7 g) actual measured weight.
Rated 4.2 oz. (120 g).
Quality specifications top
Made in Taiwan.
Announced specifications top
8:08 AM, 24 May 2023.
Included specifications top
Lens.
Canon E-55 55mm front cap (p/n 8266B001).
Rear Lens Dust Cap RF (p/n 2962C001).
Canon's Model Numbers specifications top
Product code: 6128C002 (6128C001 in Japan).
Model number: 6128C001.
JAN code: 4549292-219487.
Price, U. S. A. specifications top
December 2023
$299 at B&H, at Adorama, at Amazon and at Crutchfield.
About $255 used if you know How to Win at eBay.
Box, Canon RF 28mm f/2.8 STM. bigger.
Box, Canon RF 28mm f/2.8 STM. bigger.
Performance top
Sample Images Intro New Good Bad Missing
Overall Autofocus Manual Focus Breathing
Distance Recording Bokeh Distortion Ergonomics
Falloff Filters Flare & Ghosts Hood
Lateral Color Fringes Lens Corrections Macro
Mechanics Sharpness Spherochromatism
I got my RF 28mm f/2.8 STM at B&H. I'd also get it at Adorama, at Amazon or at Crutchfield, or used at eBay if you know How to Win at eBay.
Overall performance top
This is a great little lens. Read on, but there's not much it can't do well and it's nearly free.
Autofocus performance top
Autofocus is fast enough, but far from instantaneous.
The stepper motor hums as it moves in and out.
You can push or pull the inner focussing barrel with your fingers with power OFF. If you do that, or press the lens against anything with the power ON, the lens' servo system will try to keep pushing it back to where it wants to be — and you shouldn't do that.
Manual Focus performance top
Manual focus is swell, just flip the switch to MF and you're there.
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.
As a unit-focus lens, the image grows as focussed 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 good, but with a lens this wide and slow it will be unusual to have anything far enough out of focus for this to matter.
Here's a shot from headshot distance wide-open. I'm focused on the DAVIS logo. Click for the © camera-original file:
Made-in-U. S. A. Davis 6250 weather station, Sunday 19 November 2023. Canon EOS R6 II at 1/2,500 at Auto ISO 100, +0.7 stops exposure compensation (LV 14.4). bigger or camera-original © file.
As always, if you want to throw the background as far out of focus as possible, shoot at f/2.8 and get as close as possible.
Distortion performance top
Distortion is completely invisible as shot with in-camera correction ON:
Storage, 1:42 PM, Saturday, 11 November 2023. Canon EOS R6 II with in-camera correction, f/11 handheld at 1/8 at Auto ISO 500 (LV 7.7), Radiant Photo. bigger.
In-camera correction can't be turned off, however if you shoot raw data rather than JPG images, whatever software you use to create visible images from the 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.
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, and Heaven only knows what distortion you may see then.
For more critical scientific use with in-camera correction ON, use a correction factor of +0.2 in Photoshop's lens correction filter to JPG 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.
Ergonomics performance top
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Canon RF 28mm f/2.8 STM. bigger. |
Canon RF 28mm f/2.8 STM. bigger. |
Handling is great. It's a tiny lens with a great AF - CONTROL - MF switch right where we want it, and likewise the focus/control ring is exactly where we want it.
Bravo to Canon for getting this so right with so little space.
There's no always-responsive instant manual-focus override unless you enable this in a menu.
Falloff performance top
Falloff on full frame is invisible with the default corrections 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 this 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:
Falloff on full-frame at infinity, correction at its default of ON:
© 2023 KenRockwell.com. All rights reserved. |
If you're silly enough to turn off the correction and then go looking for falloff, you will see some at f/2.8 and it's gone for real-world shooting; these gray-on-gray shots greatly exaggerate the falloff:
Falloff on full-frame at infinity, correction turned OFF:
© 2023 KenRockwell.com. All rights reserved. |
Filters, use with performance top
There's no need for thin filters. The 55mm filter thread is greatly oversized for appearance. I can use quite a stack of standard 55mm filters with no vignetting on full-frame.
Go ahead and use your standard rotating polarizer and grad filters.
Flare & Ghosts performance top
There are no flare or ghosts. This makes sense for such a simple lens design.
See examples at Sunstars.
Hood specifications top
No hood is needed.
I'd avoid using a screw-in hood because the focus motor system will now have to move the extra weight, and it's much more likely you'll press the hood on things and upset the STM servo motor system, which doesn't like to be pushed around.
Lateral Color Fringes performance top
There are no visible color fringes, with or without correction.
This is superb performance.
OK, if you go out of your way to turn this OFF (or shoot raw and then use non-manufacturer software to process that data into images) then there is a pretty much invisible amount of red/green fringing, but you really have to go out of your way to excite and look for it. It's still invisible uncorrected unless you really try to see it, and even then it's still only half visible.
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.
These are all ON by default. You can turn off the falloff (Peripheral Illumination Correction) and Digital Lens Optimizer.
This lens uses distortion correction as part of its design, so Distortion correction is always ON and the setting is grayed-out because it can't be turned 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
It gets about as close as most other lenses:
Casio G-Shock Solar Atomic Watch at close-focus distance, 19 November 2023. Shot on R6 II wide-open at f/2.8. bigger or camera-original © file.
1,200 × 900 pixel (10× 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).
Click either for the camera-original © file.
Mechanical Quality performance top
Canon RF 28mm f/2.8 STM. bigger.
This is a mostly plastic lens with a metal mount.
Finish
Black plastic.
Front Bumper
None.
Filter Threads
Plastic.
Inner Barrel
Plastic.
Focus Ring
Hard molded plastic.
Outer Barrel
Plastic.
Slide Switch
Plastic.
Rear Silver-Look Ring
Silver-painted plastic.
Dust Gasket at Mount
No.
Mount
Chromed metal.
Identity
Internals
Seem like mostly plastic.
Markings
Paint.
Serial Number
Laser engraved in brown-on-black on the bottom of the barrel:
Canon RF 28mm f/2.8 STM. bigger.
Date Code
None found.
Noises When Shaken
Mild clattering.
Made in
Made in Taiwan.
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 lens is super sharp corner-to corner at every aperture, limited of course by diffraction at the very smallest apertures. Even wide-open at f/2.8 it's only very slightly softer in the last couple of millimeters in the corners, which is superb performance.
Canon RF 28mm f/2.8 STM MTF wide-open at f/2.8 at 10 cyc/mm (black) and at 30 cyc/mm f/8 (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.
It has only minor spherochromatism, as expected for a wide lens that's not particularly fast:
Mondaine A132.30348.11SBB at close-focus distance at f/2.8, 19 November 2023. Shot on R6 II wide-open at f/2.8. bigger or cropped.
1,200 × 900 pixel (10× 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 high 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 extreme magnification would be about 40 × 60" (1 × 1.5 meters).
Sunstars performance top
With a 7-bladed rounded diaphragm, I get mild 14-point sunstars on brilliant points of light mostly at the smallest apertures.
Click any to enlarge (shot on EOS R6 Mk II):
Click any to enlarge. (shot on EOS R6 Mk II.)
Weather Sealing performance top
This lens claims no weather sealing. Neither does any LEICA M lens, nor did anything other than dedicated underwater cameras claim this up until a few years ago. "Weather sealing" is mostly a marketing feature to get you to pay more for more expensive lenses.
People worry way too much about this ever since camera companies started FUD campaigns to make us think that our gear will melt unless it has weather sealing. How do you think we shot in the rain for the first 190 years of photography?
User's Guide top
Sample Images Intro New Good Bad Missing
I got my RF 28mm f/2.8 STM at B&H. I'd also get it at Adorama, at Amazon or at Crutchfield, or used at eBay if you know How to Win at eBay.
Overall
Avoid touching the front of the lens with camera on, since the servomotor that moves the lens in and out will try to fight you and put the lens back where it wants to be.
I don't know that anything would break, just that it doesn't seem like a good idea.
Manual-Focus Override user's guide top
By default, there is no always-responsive instant manual-focus override as we took 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" or "Electronic full-time MF" option in your AF menu (AF 6 in R6 II, 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," "One‑Shot‑> enabled (magnify)" or ON.
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.
Recommendations top
Sample Images Intro New Good Bad Missing
I got my RF 28mm f/2.8 STM at B&H. I'd also get it at Adorama, at Amazon or at Crutchfield, or used at eBay if you know How to Win at eBay.
Get this lens if you want an excellent, tiny and inexpensive wide lens. Get it if you want to make your camera seem tiny.
Don't get this if you're also going to carry any zoom that covers any similar range; that would just be duplication and wasting your time (see Assembling a System).
Also consider this lens to keep in your pocket if all you usually shoot is a telephoto; it's much smaller than any other zoom to keep along for the occasional wide shot.
Personally I prefer carrying the RF 14-35mm and RF 24-240mm and I'm set for everything. This 28mm would be triple-covering the 28mm range and a complete waste of time — for me. For me I probably should replace the RF 14-35mm with the RF 16mm f/2.8 to carry even less.
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 Hoya multicoated HD3 55mm UV which uses hardened glass and repels dirt and fingerprints.
For less money, the B+W 55mm 010 is an excellent filter, as is the basic multicoated Hoya filter, but the Hoya HD3 is the toughest and the best.
Filters last a lifetime, so you may as well get the best. The Hoya HD3 stays cleaner than the others since it repels oil and dirt.
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 28mm f/2.8 STM at B&H. I'd also get it at Adorama, at Amazon or at Crutchfield, or used at eBay if you know How to Win at eBay.
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 28mm. 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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