Canon Adds the 85mm f/1.4L VCM to Its Hybrid Lens Series
Canon has announced the 85mm f/1.4L VCM lens, which is the fifth in its hybrid prime lens series. It joins the 20mm f/1.4L, the 24mm f/1.4L, 35mm f/1.4L, and 50mm f/1.4L, all of which share the same physical dimensions to make using them on rigs for video simpler.
The 85mm f/1.4L VCM joins a rather healthy spate of Canon 85mm lenses, including the RF 85mm f/1.2 L USM (half-size macro), the RF 85mm f/2 Macro IS STM, and the specialty RF 85mm f/1.2 L USM DS (desmoothing).
The “VCM” in the name of this series stands for “voice coil motor” which is the autofocusing system that drives all five of these lenses. This motor is designed to work well both for photo and continuous focusing in video capture, making it Canon’s premiere lens series for hybrid creators.
Canon says that there is no secondary Nano USM motor in the 85mm as the VCM is enough to handle the autofocus alone. Nano USM is used to assist when there are floating elements, but the 85mm does not have a floating element design, so a Nano USM could be left out. This has helped keep the weight down, however the 85mm is easily the heaviest of the group of five VCM lenses, weighing in at 636 grams. For reference, the 20mm, 24mm, 35mm, and 50mm VCM lenses weigh 519, 515, 555, and 580 grams, respectively.
The 85mm f/1.4L VCM features a construction of 14 elements arranged into 10 groups, including an Air Sphere Coating (ASC) to reduce flare and ghosting, and both a UD and GMo aspherical lens. The lens has an 11-bladed aperture diaphragm that can be controlled through the camera or via the de-clicked aperture ring on the lens body. The 85mm f/1.4L VCM has a close focusing distance of 29 inches with a .12x magnification, which means it isn’t meant for macro work but it will focus relatively close for its focal length.
Canon says that photographers and filmmakers can expect extremely high image quality, great bokeh, and extremely sharp image rendition from corner to corner. Digital lens corrections can be disabled and since this is more a mid-telephoto prime, there is more leeway with what can be achieved without relying on in-camera corrections: the optical design of this lens does not rely on digital distortion correction, Canon says. The 85mm f/1.4L VCM works with Canon cameras that have focus breathing compensation, too.
The Canon 85mm f/1.4L VCM is expected to start shipping by the end of September for $1,649.
Image credits: Canon
