Canon EF 85 mm F/1.2 L II lens
Last update: Review & Sample Photos @ KenROckwell (added on 17.02.07)
The new Canon EF 85 mm F/1.2 L II lens (Mark II) is the successor of Canon EF 85 mm F/1.2 L with better auto focus speed and it is now compatible with E-TTL II flash metering algorithm.
>> REVIEWS (last updated: 17.02.07)
KenRockwell reviews the Canon EF 85 mm F/1.2 L II lens and recommends;
“As I said pages ago, the people who need this know who they are. This is a very special purpose lens. It’s extraordinarily sharp at f/1.2 and every reasonable aperture, but you pay for it compared to the f/1.8 version in cash, size, weight, focus speed, focus ease, ghosts and close focus distance…The people who need this lens, journalists and astronomers, will love it. Journalists will appreciate the improvement in focusing over the previous version which was even klunkier, and of course love and use f/1.2 for sucking every last photon out of the dark.”
Wlcastleman reviews the Canon EF 85 mm F/1.2 L II lens and concludes;
“Strengths: This lens along with the original mark I f/1.2L lens produces excellent out of focus background blur (bokeh). Combined with super-shallow depth of focus and the greatest light gathering capacity at f/1.2, it offers capabilities that other lenses cannot match for low-light photography and artistic portraits with stunning appearance and for blurring backgrounds in other applications. Mark II autofocus function has been improved compared to the mark I lens, and autofocus is perfectly adequate for many action photography applications. The mark II lens is very resistant to flare because of its improved lens coatings. Weaknesses/Challenges: This lens weighs 2.4 times more, costs 6.2 times more and focuses only about 1/2 as fast as the EF 85mm f/1.8 lens. The greater weight and significantly slower autofocus function than the f/1.8 lens may make it a challenging tool for some action/performance photography applications such as basketball.”
Photozone reviews the Canon EF 85 mm F/1.2 L lens and concludes;
“I was quite sceptical regarding this lens. Not so much because I expected a bad performance but what to do with this lens. I’ve to admit that after a week of testing I’m in love and it’ll be very hard to part with it again. Isolating objects via ultra-large aperture settings is more fun than I ever imagined. Besides the performance of this lens is exceptional with scaringly sharp results (from f/2.8 and up) and a super-smooth bokeh. The build quality is, naturally, up to pro standards. Regarding its price tag it is certainly not a mainstream lens but if you belong to the financially gifted you may consider to take a long, deep look at this lens. “
FredMiranda has some user reviews of the Canon EF 85 mm F/1.2 L II lens
where one of the user writes;
Mount this onto a full-frame sensor and you’ve got a setup that’s very hard to beat. Wide open you’ll get some vignetting in the corners, but this isn’t always apparent. If you shoot an evenly lit white wall or ISO test chart, it will be. I find in many of my pictures at f/1.2, the vignetting doesn’t jump out and hit you. I prefer the look it gives to the pictures with the kind of subject isolation possible at those apertures. There is also chromatic aberration present at very large apertures on high-contrast areas, but that is to be pretty much accepted when you’re dealing with lenses of these speeds. utofocus is very accurate and of decent speed. I would assume that the Mark I version of this lens could be described as somewhat slow, but the Mark II is good. Some people start crying over the idea of slow autofocus, some people’s descriptions exaggerate and blow the issue way out of proportion. I think it’s just fine. Definitely not something you’d praise for being all-out fast, but not a shortcoming like some would have you believe.”
>> SAMPLE PHOTOS (last updated: 17.02.07)
- Canon EF 85 mm F/1.2 L II Sample Photos @ Tasoart
- Canon EF 85 mm F/1.2 L II Sample Photos @ Alfieris Gallery
- Canon EF 85 mm F/1.2 L II Sample Photos @ Flickr
- Canon EF 85 mm F/1.2 L II Sample Photos @ Pbase
PRESS RELEASE
Amstelveen, The Netherlands, 21 February, 2006: Canon today releases its latest professional L-series prime lens: the exceptionally fast EF 85mm f/1.2 II USM. With the widest aperture of any lens in the current EF range, the new model becomes Canon’s definitive portraiture lens, offering extremely fine control over depth of field and consummate low light performance. With vastly improved auto focus speed, the lens replaces the popular EF 85mm f/1.2L USM. As with all L-series lenses, the EF 85mm f/1.2 II USM incorporates the very finest standards of precision optics.
The EF 85mm f/1.2 II USM features:
Pages: 1 2
See also: Canon Lenses | Lens Reviews
Share your photos with our readers, make your own profile page, create blog, discuss photography techniques, and get unlimited storage for your photos & videos by joining our online photo community on MyShutterspace
Print This Post | Email This Post
No posts yet.