Canon has announced the introduction of its 35mm f/1.4L VCM, the first in a series of hybrid prime lenses that it will be developing.
According to the company, this new lens type should find wide appeal to both video production creators and photographers thanks to its unique design specs.
The camera giant states, “This lens is the beginning of a new hybrid lens series and with its fixed focal length, fills a gap as there is not a fixed focal length lens wider than 50mm in the L-series — until now,”
The company also explains that the new lens is particularly ideal for low-light recording and photo capture.
Furthermore, the lens includes an external de-clicked manual aperture ring (iris, in cinematic terms) that’s usable during its video recording mode. (if set to photography this can only be controlled in-camera).
Another cool external detail of the lens is an AF lock button on the camera’s side that can be customized for other functions too.
Canon also promises that the new lens outputs minimal focus breathing (perspective shift during focus changes while filming) and that its overall design is “outstanding”.
The company also adds that the lens offers seven stops of shake correction (Image Stabilization) if paired with the company’s EOS R3 camera.
Internally, the new 35mm f/1.4L contains 14 elements in 11 groups. Among these are two ultra-low dispersion glass pieces and two aspherical optics.
The front filter size on the camera is 67mm and the aperture range through its 11-bladed diaphragm is f/1.4 to f/16. Canon has also given the lens three different coatings.
The first of these is ASC (Air Sphere Coating, the second is SSC (Super Spectra Coating) and the third is a fluorine coating for easy dust, moisture and fingerprint removal.
Other essential specs of this new lens are a weight of 1.2 lbs or 555 grams and a fairly compact 3-inch by 3.9-inch size that translates to 7.65 x 9.93 cm.
Now, another crucial aspect of this lens, because it’s part of its name, is the combination of Canon Nano ultrasonic motor and Voice Coil Motor or VCM built into it. These two drive the AF system of the Canon 35mm f/1.4 when it’s attached to one of Canon’s R5 or R6 cameras.
The VCM in particular smoothly moves four fairly heavy lens elements while working with the Nano USM to coordinate with the other optics.
The VCM is the first ever of its kind in a Canon lens and its coordination with the Nano USM is also a very unique part of this new lens for precise handling of both photos and video. This is also the key reason why Canon is calling this product a hybrid lens.
On a final note, the new Canon VCM lens’s control ring offers a dual function of controlling the hybrid focus motor system during manual focus while also being programmable for other things like ISO adjustment.
Overall, the new Canon 35mm f/1-4 VCM is a high-performance lens that Canon camera users who need quality video and photographic performance might seriously want to consider.
Canon is releasing the 35mm f/1.4L VCM IN June for a fairly steep price of $1,500. It’s pricey but similar lenses from Leica cost even more.
