92 http://www.digitalcameraworld.com
UPDATE
£3249/$2999
CANON has announced the
RF 85mm f/1.2L USM DS lens,
a lens with the same build and
design as the standard RF
85mm f/1.2L USM. But this is
also the first ever Canon optic
to receive a new Defocus
Smoothing (DS) coating
- which softens the hard edges
of blurry circles in images and
video to make out of focus
circular highlights, also called
bokeh, buttery smooth.
Although the coating softens
out-of-focus areas further, we
were told that it would not
soften the focal point, which
will remain pin-sharp.
The coating is “a vapor-
deposited coating technology
that has a high transmittance
at the centre and a low
transmittance toward the
periphery.” However, a
by-product of the coating and
defocus properties is that its
light transmission is reduced.
So while it remains an f/1.2
optic in terms of depth of field
characteristics, Canon tells us
that its effective lighttransmission is reduced by
around one to two-stops.
The DS is applied to both
sides of a single lens elements
within the 85mm. Intriguingly,
we were told that if the coating
was only applied to a single
side of the glass that only one
half of the bokeh circle would
become defocused, so the
pricey coating has to be
implemented on both sides to
create the full effect.
Canon’s RF 85mm f/1.2L
USM lens (see 85mm lenses
test on page 104) shares the
same reliability, durability andcomfortable operation as the
new DS version. Both optics
are identical in terms of build,
ergonomics and specification
bar the new special DS coating.
Including the nine-sided
aperture, maximum f/1.2
aperture and minimum
focusing distance of 85cm.
The new DS version will sit
alongside Canon’s RF 85mm
f/1.2L USM giving consumers
the choice as to whether they
want DS or not. They’re both
ideal for capturing portraits
with smooth backgrounds to
draw focus on to the subject.CANON RF 85mm f/1.2L USM DS
Canon’s new fast-telephoto mirrorless prime now gets Defocus Smoothing for even better bokeh!