Lens Comparison: Canon RF 85mm f/2 STM Versus RF 85mm f/1.2 L USM

Photographer Alex Barrera has published a 10-minute video where he compares both of Canon’s RF 85mm lenses: the 85mm f/2 Macro IS STM and the 85mm f/1.2 L USM. In it, he alleges that “one of these lenses is not a true 85mm.”

This is a comparison between a lens that costs $2700 lens to a $600 lens, so Barerra wanted to see what that extra $2100 buys you other than a red ring. For this test, he set up his Canon EOS R5 on a tripod and had his wife model for him, and in the comparison shots she did not change her distance from the camera. In post, he turns lens corrections off so that images can be viewed exactly how the camera captures them.

In Barrera’s first image comparison, he set both lenses to f/2 and shot two photos. The first photo is taken with the RF 85mm f/1.2 L USM: