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135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

mdvaden
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

I'm curious what your thoughts are now about which 135mm you would pair with R6 or R5 in 2024. I decided to add 135mm again permanently. Optically I think nothing touches Zeiss 135mm f/2 Apo Sonnar / Milvus. I may get one again for forest shooting someday. But I want a 135mm with autofocus. 3 choices I'm looking at are the old EF 135mm f/2 L, Sigma 135mm 1.8 Art and RF 135mm f/1.8. Sigma and Canon RF seem optically better but I haven't used either. The other night I reviewed EF 135mm L photos from previous years. They were tack-sharp at f/3.2 or f/4. At f/2 the files were not quite as sharp but seemed flattering to skin of women or men. That got me to rethink and re-inquire before buying. I always shot hand-held and never had IBIS in the 5D mk ii, mk iii or EOS R.

What's your preference now for 135mm, if paired with R6, R6 mk ii, R5 or R5 mk ii? I'm aware of alternatives like Sigma's 105mm 1.8. But for reasonable weight and size it leaves me inquiring about 135mm specifically.

Thanks
MDV

...

Edited on Sep 05, 2024 at 08:23 PM · View previous versions

Sep 05, 2024 at 06:03 PM

scottsoutter
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

I use the 135 Milvus on my gfx and love it. Less fun on my 5d4 unless I’m on a tripod and in live view. I anticipate that on an r mirrorless of some flavor I’d like it more with in viewfinder magnification.

Sep 05, 2024 at 07:25 PM

tomasr
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

I have ART 135mm f/1.8 and absolutely love it. It has to be my best lens by pretty much all the metrics. I own a bunch of EF mount ARTs and some of my remaining Canon L lenses just for context.

On R6 you simply get instant focus and gorgeous results. There is no need to bother with any distortion profiles, and vignette is nearly gone by f/2.8. It also fully out-resolves 5Ds right from the start, and that's more demanding than R5 / II. It also doubles as a very sharp close-up lens.

R6 would be also OK with the older EF 135mm L. That sensor resolution is very permissive and it is still a great lens at the end of the day. R5 will at least initially slightly out resolve the EF L, so where possible Sigma will be preferable for just a slight premium.

The RF one... if you disregard like most of the other great ARTs you could buy for the difference, yes it should slightly exceed the 20+yo EF version, maybe even get close to Sigma with some luck.

One of them may also work on GFX with adapter. Guess which.

Sep 05, 2024 at 07:27 PM

rscheffler
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

I have the RF 135/1.8. It's very sharp and very competent, but I'm also not really in love with it. I mostly do people photos with an R6II and R6 as back up.

As part of my DSLR-mirrorless transition I was a bit undecided about what I wanted to do for mid-range telephoto. In EF I strongly disliked the 70-200/2.8 models because of size, weight, and until the latest version(s), optical performance (which was good, but IMO, not great). On mirrorless, adding the ~1" EF-RF adapter makes the EF 70-200/2.8s feel that much more front heavy, which I disliked even more. In EF I used the f/4L IS version complemented by the 135/2 when I needed the speed for low light work. I was torn between the two RF 70-200's. The f/4 is very small, light and easy to bring along. The f/2.8 IMO handles better than the EF versions because it's much lighter and makes a great all-rounder. I didn't like that Canon seemed to chase the others (Sigma and Sony) by releasing a larger 135/1.8, just because (and Nikon obediently followed suit). When a great deal on a used RF 70-200/4 appeared, I went for it and later decided to add the 135/1.8 to basically mirror what I had in EF. While I could have kept the EF 135/2, and I did use it on mirrorless for a while, I was just too annoyed with the significant fps drop in EFCS/mechanical compared to my other lenses. Whenever I switched to it, it felt like it was slowing me down. And when this happens (the gear starts getting in the way), it really bothers me. So in came the RF 135/1.8. I haven't used the Sigma or Zeiss 135s, so can't offer a comparison. Against the EF, the RF is significantly sharper wide open with higher contrast/acutance in the plane of focus. Color seems really good and I haven't noticed any blatant CA/LoCA, though I haven't tested specifically for it (whereas I do notice mild LoCA with the EF 85/1.4L IS in real world photos, and it was blatantly obvious with the old EF 85/1.2L). I don't remember seeing it with the EF 135L either. Where the RF 135 has some weakness is flare resistance. Direct sunlight on the front element, or strong backlighting, will cause some veiling flare. AF also isn't quite as infallible as it tends to be with other RF lenses. I do see some focus 'flutter' shot to shot in non-stationary but also not overly dynamic situations. The lens I really want, instead of 70-200s or the 135 prime is a 70-135/2L IS to complement the 28-70/2. With these two I'd be very content when covering social events.

Regarding how the RF 135 handles skin: it's sharper and higher contrast than the EF, so it can be a lot more revealing of blemishes. But for people photos I now almost always create an AI mask in Lightroom for skin and apply negative texture and clarity values to smooth away the fine details. I'd rather have a sharp lens and do this than the other way around.

Would it be worth renting the Sigma and Canon RF to compare?

One last comment about the EF 135/2L: the copy I owned was bought about 20 years ago and I think I replaced the USM on it at least three times. It's not that it ever stopped working entirely, rather, it would eventually start acting up (struggle to focus and be much slower) whenever the lens was held in certain orientations (like if shooting verticals and/or pointing the lens slightly up or down). The linkage between the manual focusing ring and the focusing group would also slip and disengage in these orientations. Given the lens is now discontinued and eventually parts will no longer be available, it was one more reason (IMO) to move on. I did like the look from the lens. As you noted, not overly sharp wide open, yet quite pleasing and it had a certain charm with backlight flare.

Sep 05, 2024 at 08:42 PM

kirbic
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

I recently bought a copy of the RF 135/1.8, after doing a bunch of research. In addition to portraiture, i wanted it for astro work. That application is without doubt the most taxing on certain aspects of lens performance.
The Sigma has somewhat less vignetting than the Canon, but is not as good in the corners, with more coma/astig visible. For my money, the RF 135 was the better choice. Now, should Sigma ever offer an RF-native 135, my bet is that it will be very competitive with the Canon. For the foreseeable future, however, I think the RF is the choice if ultimate image quality is the goal.

Sep 05, 2024 at 09:08 PM

artsupreme
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

The EF 135 was my favorite lens until it needed an adapter on ML. I've owned the Sigma and Canon RF 1.8's but I didn't jive with them as I love the classic look of the old 135. Like most of my lenses, it was glued wide open and I rarely ever shot it above f/2.5

It's one of the few EF lenses I'm still holding onto, but I dont' use it anymore. I miss the days of it being tiny/compact on a DSLR. If you aren't traveling with a ton of gear, maybe the adapter won't bother you. It can be had for dirt cheap and it's a great portrait lens.

Sep 05, 2024 at 10:13 PM

artsupreme
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

rscheffler wrote:
One last comment about the EF 135/2L: the copy I owned was bought about 20 years ago and I think I replaced the USM on it at least three times. It's not that it ever stopped working entirely, rather, it would eventually start acting up (struggle to focus and be much slower) whenever the lens was held in certain orientations (like if shooting verticals and/or pointing the lens slightly up or down). The linkage between the manual focusing ring and the focusing group would also slip and disengage in these orientations. Given the lens is now discontinued and eventually parts...Show more →

Could have been just a bad copy or bad electronics/pins in your lens. Mine is 20yrs old and it's never missed a beat. I've never had a problem with focusing. Shot a ton of action with it.

Sep 05, 2024 at 10:17 PM

mdvaden
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

artsupreme wrote:
The EF 135 was my favorite lens until it needed an adapter on ML. I've owned the Sigma and Canon RF 1.8's but I didn't jive with them as I love the classic look of the old 135.

The classic look of the photos, or the lens itself?

The look of the EF 135 photos is what gave me pause before looking at just the Sigma and Canon RF. Now I'm weighing all three. For look of a lens, the front element does seem somewhat elegant.

Sep 05, 2024 at 11:19 PM

artsupreme
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

mdvaden wrote:
The classic look of the photos, or the lens itself?

The look of the EF 135 photos is what gave me pause before looking at just the Sigma and Canon RF. Now I'm weighing all three. For look of a lens, the front element does seem somewhat elegant.

Haha, the lens is actually pretty good looking and it has a nice long hood for protection, but I was referring to the rendering of the lens. I like the magic it produces. It’s the worst of the bunch from a technical IQ standpoint, but I like it best, it has character.

Sep 05, 2024 at 11:47 PM

Picture This!
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

The Sigma 135/1.8 is ridiculously good (and great value especially used). I got one to use with my gfx.

Sep 05, 2024 at 11:59 PM

Pixelpuffin
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

All these exotic 135’s…

and here’s me with my old vintage arc ef 135 soft focus 😂
TBF, it was a barn find, still boxed, had never seen use £70!! It’s stupidly small and as it’s still new, the arc drive is unbelievably quiet. Since owning it the EF L version I have has never once seen use 😂👍🏻

In a dream world I’d like the RF version and the body to match too, but I don’t take photography serious enough these days to warrant that kind of outlay.

Edit : I pair it with the EF 28mm 2.8 (arc drive) they both share the same hood. The old 28 is almost as sharp as my newer 28 IS stm, but way lighter and smaller.
Sorry didn’t mean to derail the thread.

Edited on Sep 06, 2024 at 03:28 AM · View previous versions

Sep 06, 2024 at 12:27 AM

moondigger
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

The EF 135 f/2L performs well enough that I’ve had no reason to replace it so far, even using it on the R5. I’m not telling you the Sigma Art and RF 135L aren’t sharper — I’m sure they are. But the EF 135L is so good that I’ll probably replace it only if it stops functioning.

Sep 06, 2024 at 12:35 AM

tomasr
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

moondigger wrote:
The EF 135 f/2L performs well enough that I’ve had no reason to replace it so far, even using it on the R5. I’m not telling you the Sigma Art and RF 135L aren’t sharper — I’m sure they are. But the EF 135L is so good that I’ll probably replace it only if it stops functioning.

I think this is reasonable view. It is not bad lens at all; actually some of the better ones that Canon managed to make. I may actually get its longer cousin the 200mm f/2.8 when I want something longer with top notch IQ, above the zooms.

When buying from scratch which is what I did last year you really have to weigh them up. I tried EF in a trade shot, and liked it a lot but Sigma just delivers insanely good results that even other ART lenses are struggling to match.

I'm getting sharper corners at f/1.8 than most zooms manage at f/8. Perfect clarity or moon in the corner same as in the centre. I guess if you are not there you must have been unlucky to get a bad copy.

Sep 06, 2024 at 08:39 AM

jedibrain
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

I have the EF135L and still love it. The only thing it doesn't do is full speed in MS or EFCS mode. You can only get about 8fps. In ES mode no problems.

But they are pretty cheap, so if you aren't going sports shooting on this lens then in my mind its hard to justify a more expensive option.

Brian

Sep 06, 2024 at 09:15 AM

mdvaden
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

Pixelpuffin wrote:
All these exotic 135’s…

and here’s me with my old vintage arc ef 135 soft focus 😂
TBF, it was a barn find, still boxed, had never seen use £70!! It’s stupidly small and as it’s still new, the arc drive is unbelievably quiet. Since owning it the EF L version I have has never once seen use 😂👍🏻

That soft focus 135mm is one I wouldn't be buying now or future. But your post did get me interested to read about it again. Of the few sites briefly looked at, something Rockwell wrote was interesting. He said that his R5 is programmed with data for that old 135mm, like lens correction stuff.

So I picked up a bit more understanding of the R5 too

...

Sep 06, 2024 at 09:27 AM

tomasr
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

jedibrain wrote:
In ES mode no problems.

Well that is the whole point. Starting with R5 II, and R3 / R1 there will be very very few reasons not to use it. And even on R6 I go EC whenever there is action and faster fps involved because it is not only faster and mostly adequate that almost nobody can tell the difference, but also I just can't deal with lag and blackout of that inadequate EVF in any other mode.

Sep 06, 2024 at 09:51 AM

garyvot
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

For me, 135mm is a specialist "tweener" focal length, so, I have seen no reason to upgrade from the EF version. (I'm not a dedicated portrait shooter, and I find the 70-200 more practical for event, travel, etc.)

My copy is still sharp in the center at f/2, and while it has some well-known LoCA, it can usually be mitigated in post.

I used this lens a lot more on APS-H, which tells you that I tend to favor a longer focal length. (I prefer 85-100mm for short tele work.)

I'm sure that if I were a heavy user of this focal length, I would find the upgrade to the RF version worthwhile. But while the EF version can be nitpicked by comparison, I think it is still a solid choice for someone like me.

If you need higher than 7fps, the lens can be used in ES mode. Newer cameras without significant rolling shutter effects make this more practical.

Sep 06, 2024 at 10:14 AM

mdvaden
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p.1 #18 · p.1 #18 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

This thread may have helped me toward a decision, but different than anticipated when posting. I'm thinking to buying TWO 135mm lenses.

Any of the three 135mm lenses I'm considering gain at least 1 stop of light indoor. And the EF 135mm L is low cost, like $300 to $450 used. The EF 135mm is lighter, and aside from portraits, would carry easier in my backpack when photographing redwoods, where I shoot f/5/6 to f/11. And it will suffice wide open for portraits.

I see that MPB sells "excellent" around $425 w/ free shipping available. I'd post a WTB in Fred Miranda's Buy $ Sell but my subscription expired.

Then I can buy a 2nd 135mm for around town or wedding venues. Either the Sigma 135mm or the Canon RF 135mm

...

Sep 06, 2024 at 12:17 PM

jedibrain
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p.1 #19 · p.1 #19 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

tomasr wrote:
Well that is the whole point. Starting with R5 II, and R3 / R1 there will be very very few reasons not to use it. And even on R6 I go EC whenever there is action and faster fps involved because it is not only faster and mostly adequate that almost nobody can tell the difference, but also I just can't deal with lag and blackout of that inadequate EVF in any other mode.

It does quite well at 20fps in ES mode on the R5 and R6. I used it at a few indoor games, but not much. The anti-flicker control on the R6 only works with the actual shutter, and it was too slow after having been spoiled with 20fps*. I too shoot almost exclusively in ES on these two bodies as it is hardly noticeable in most circumstances (rolling shutter effect is hardly noticeable). I have tried an R3 though, and I'll be honest I can't really see a big difference in the EVF. I never had a problem tracking anything in the R6 EVF, and I always felt the 'blackout' was way less jarring than the mirror flip on the DSLRs. But people commonly complain about it so I guess in this case its 'just me' who doesn't mind the EVF in those bodies for action tracking.

Brian

*Its amazing how after 9 years of a 5DIII meeting my every need at 6fps, it took like 1 soccer game at 20fps for it to feel like a dinosaur!

Sep 06, 2024 at 02:09 PM

rscheffler
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p.1 #20 · p.1 #20 · 135mm for R6 / R5 in 2024 - Thoughts ?

mdvaden wrote:
The EF 135mm is lighter, and aside from portraits, would carry easier in my backpack when photographing redwoods, where I shoot f/5/6 to f/11.

When stopped down I saw no real difference between the EF 135 and a 70-200 zoom. In such use cases I'd rather carry a 70-200/4 and the RF version is an excellent, compact, lightweight option.

jedibrain wrote:
I never had a problem tracking anything in the R6 EVF, and I always felt the 'blackout' was way less jarring than the mirror flip on the DSLRs. But people commonly complain about it so I guess in this case its 'just me' who doesn't mind the EVF in those bodies for action tracking.

Brian

*Its amazing how after 9 years of a 5DIII meeting my every need at 6fps, it took like 1 soccer game at 20fps for it to feel like a dinosaur!

I thought I wouldn't mind the EFCS EVF blackout because it should be similar to that of DSLRs, but IME, the reality was that the blackout, combined with the EVF's lag, made it more difficult for me to follow fast action than was the case with DSLRs like the 1DX series that operated at similar fps rates. Through the OVF you're obviously seeing action in realtime whereas the EVF is always a fraction of a second behind.

The other problem I had with the R6 was that the transition from image capture to resuming the regular live feed tended to be jumpy. This became problematic whenever I was trying to do single shots or short bursts in quick succession. The EVF 'jump' was jarring enough that sometimes I'd lose track of the intended subject. The R6II is better in this regard, but I still use it for sports/action mostly in e-shutter to avoid the combination of blackout and EVF lag. The R5II should be better in this regard and I feel the R1 will be the closest Canon will at this point offer to an OVF-equivalent experience.

Sep 06, 2024 at 03:40 PM

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