Used Canon RF 85mm f/2 Macro IS STM Lens

2025-06-07T20:00:00

Excellent optics and a delight to use. Love this lens!

Magicfoto

Originally posted at

2025-04-23T11:06:21

bought for wider field Milky Way and star imaging. Found pretty good stars across the field but found it has pretty bad internal reflection or some other problem that creates circular rings in night sky images. I managed to 'control' it and process a lot of it out, but a big disappointment as an EF-S similar lens I have, has none of this.

Ronald P.

2024-09-03T20:00:00

I purchased this lens in August of 2024 for my Canon R6M2. I'm happy with the lens overall as it produces good quality images. My only complaint is the time it sometimes takes to focus but as a person that mainly takes landscape photos, it's an issue I can live with. I'm attaching a couple of photos taken with the RF85 F2 for reference.

S_P00

Originally posted at

2023-09-19T02:14:39

Awesome lens. I love the sharpness of it. I use it to take pet portraits. I have tried the macro on static subjects outside and it is sharp at the focus point. I think it is well-made and the price is reasonable. I am happy that Canon has a series of prime lenses for those of us who are not professional photographers but love photography. Just buy it.

Janet R.

2023-05-15T03:10:29

Excellent Lens!

Armando F.

2023-02-19T01:14:09

Great lens. Takes sharp photos. Much cheaper price than the 85mm F 1.2. On top of that it is a macro lens for great close up shots. Very happy with lens.

Kevin R.

2023-01-18T07:25:42

I returned this lens. The motor was extremely noisy and took a long time to focus. I wanted to use it on the R7 as a macro lens, but it didn?t work out for me.

RENEE S.

2023-01-02T15:35:54

Great lens. Sharp quick focus. Only issue is it focus hunts in extreme low light. Awesome portrait lens.

Joseph R.

2022-12-26T09:02:41

Great lens. Finds focus quickly with the exception of some low light (night shooting) situations. Does well with portraits and the macro focusing is amazing. In my opinion this would be a 5 star lens but the low light focus hunting took that to 4 stars. All in all a great lens that produces sharp images!

Joseph R.

2022-11-15T19:00:00

I needed a lightweight camera for backpacking/hiking. I thought I would give the Canon RP full frame mirrorless a try because it is so light weight. I coupled the RP with the RF 85mm f/2 on a recent trip to Mt. Whitney Portal. I captured some amazing photos of Mt. Whitney during the early Nautical and Civil twilight hours. Temps. around 23 F. and the above package, while light weight, performed great. See attached photos.

LouR

Originally posted at

2022-11-15T13:30:27

Optical quality is nice but the STM AF motors are slow, noisy, and hunts pretty badly. Maybe the worst AF performance of any RF lens I've used. Additionally, for being labeled macro it doesn't actually focus that close. I really wish they would make an offering between this and the L model. I'd be happy with these optics but with USM motors. I often reach for the 85mm focal length but I really don't need anything faster than f/2, and the price of the L model is just insane.

DEREK Y.

2022-09-07T08:15:19

Really no complaints at all with this lens. This was my second native RF lens and it's rarely leaving my camera now. I do a mix of product, portrait, studio fashion and wedding photography and it's been a solid performer in all areas. Fast focusing, even on the original EOS R with Eye-AF turned on, and exactly what you'd expect from an RF lens.

CHARLES M.

2022-08-29T08:10:29

This is a wonderfully sharp, light lens that I?m very happy to add to my kit. The f2 gives you really good depth of field and bokeh at a fairly approachable price point.

Will E.

2022-08-15T11:02:10

Great lens for the money. The AF can be wonky at times but the photos are fantastic

JOSHUA M.

2022-08-05T08:38:19

I received my canon lens on time. I really like the quality built of this lens and it?s definitely a great lens to have in your lens kit. I highly recommend

Jaffa O.

2022-06-22T12:22:21

High-quality lens at a great price! I'm very happy with my choice and would recommend it to others. The only downside is AF is a bit slow.

Yashavantha V.

2022-05-11T10:15:21

Great lens for the price!

RACHELLE V.

2022-03-17T20:00:00

Excellent lens, sharp, lightweight, fast focus. Great dof at f2.

JasonM129

Originally posted at

2021-12-20T08:16:34

Great lens and bundle package offered by Adorama. Beautiful bokeh and great portrait lens!

RACHELLE V.

2021-11-08T15:46:57

Awesome lens! Great value, sharp and nice bokeh!

ASHLEY N.

2021-10-26T08:10:41

I didn?t expect much from this stm lens but i am blown away with the quality of the images.

RANDDELL V.

2021-09-18T20:00:00

Loved my f 1.8, FD version back in the 70s. Love this RF version on my RP today. Image stabilization is my friend for sharp hand-held shots. Bokeh is beautiful. Close focusing distance is amazingly helpful. Compact size and weight are also beneficial.

Hbvideo

Originally posted at

2021-09-09T09:28:38

Just what I was looking for. Great F.2 portrait and macro lens. Waited a long time for it. Definitely would recommend.

Kelly H.

2021-09-09T04:38:28

Love this 85mm for outside portraits!

JOHN P.

2021-09-06T07:55:54

Great for the purpose of my purchase. Only use for portraits and Macros.

JAMES N.

2021-09-03T09:27:12

Works great. I've only had it for a few days and am yet to get to the field. So, my experience has been limited to test photos around the house, all of which were good. Relatively fast focusing. I'm satisfied.

John G.

2021-08-16T08:40:57

you really don't need an "L" lens to get great results, this lens is great for portraiture, macro, and many other scenes.

LARRY H.

2021-08-01T12:32:35

I opted for the less expensive RF 85mm and I am very impressed with its sharpness and colors. I tested the lens shooting some still life, one photo is attached here. As an elderly photographer, keeping the weight of my gear down is very important, so this lens is best for me. I highly recommend ignoring the nay-sayers who tout the "L" lenses because this lens is superb.

LARRY H.

2021-06-11T08:39:51

Have used this for several sessions so far and it is so sharp!! I love it. My go to!

JENNY D.

2021-05-26T15:50:50

Disclaimer: I originally purchased this lens via Amazon, as it was out of stock at the time at Adorama. This review is based on my experience with the RF 85mm f/2 Macro IS STM lens paired to my Canon R5 camera. I truly love this lens. It is a great all-rounder, and I have used it for everything from macro-insect/flower shots, to wildlife, car, and headshots. The images produced are sharp, with relatively no chromatic aberration, a smooth bokeh, all while still being "relatively" lightweight and easy to carry around. The built-in IS works flawlessly, and is especially impressive when paired with my R5's IBIS, which results in me being confident about doing long-exposure handheld shots I would have never even considered doing before (I was still able to get a relatively "focused/sharp" image at 0.3" shutter speed while handheld). My only two cons (hence the 4 stars instead of 5) are that I wish Canon could have dropped the aperture to f/1.8 (not a drastic change) for headshots, and that unfortunately my lens' internals decided to break after only two months of usage, which led me to finally discover the horrible service associated with Canon's warranty repairs. Pros: -It is definitely sharp. Sure, the L series lens are probably much nicer, and I'm hoping to be able to finally experience them one day. But for my current budget, this lens' clarity and sharpness will definitely do. -The bokeh is quite smooth, allowing for some especially great headshots. -The IBIS works as intended, allowing you (or at least definitely me) to capture still useable shots in low light settings without destroying them with ISO. I never felt comfortable going under 1/60 prior to my R5/RF lenses, so I'm still amazed that I can capture a very useable image at 0.3" (best so far has been 0.5", while standing/handheld) -The fact that this is a Macro lens truly allows you to get up and close to your subject, making it especially perfect for insect/flora photography. -Good bang for your buck. Which is a good thing, seeing as it is one of the cheaper RF lenses available today, and is far superior to the RF 50mm f/1.8 that canon offers. -The AF works quite well, when it works... (see Cons) Cons -Again, wished that Canon could have at least given us f/1.8 at this price. although it is minor, it would have made this great lens even better. But, you can't always get what you want.. -This is a rather long segment, as it deals with the lens breaking through not fault of my own/having to deal with Canon. As I stated above, my lens did break after approximately two months/1000-1300ish shots of use. Obviously this isn't the norm, and probably wouldn't happen to most people, but this is my luck. I should state that this is the first Canon lens I have ever had fail on me, and I'm very cautious with maintaining and protecting my equipment, nor do I expose it to any rough elements. The only issue I did have with the lens, was the the AF seemed to occasionally have an issue when it came to focusing. On occasion (every 1 out of 4 shots), it would zoom past my subject, then zoom all the way back, only to then be completely out of focus. Eventually, the day came that the lens simply refused to work. I would mount it to my R5, and Error code 60 stated that the lens was somehow obstructed/inoperable, which then forced my camera to shut-down. After calling Canon, I sent it to their repair facility in California to have it fixed, which was a rather unpleasant experiencel. I was originally told it would be repaired within 7 business days, and so imagine my surprise when I called after 14 business days due to not having received an update, only to be told that the repairs were supposed to happen that coming week. I then was told to purchase an annual subscription in order to get "expedited/better service", despite the lens still being under warranty (which left me with a very different view of Canon, after being a loyal customer for years). After over a month of waiting, I finally received the lens back. According to the short description from Canon's repair facility, one of the internal mechanisms had broken, and repairs were made in order to fix the issue. I've since used the lens only a little, but it seems like the focusing issue is gone, and it is much more responsive/snappier than it was before. So the focusing issue I stated above may have been due to the fact that I had received a defective lens in the first place. Despite dealing with the unpleasent issue described above, I still find this to be a great lens. I'm really hoping that my experience was a fluke, and that no one should have to deal with something similar. I'm also hoping that the fix is final, and won't be a repeat issue, but time will tell. If you've made it this far, thanks for reading my review, and happy shooting.

Nicolas S.