Canon RF 16mm f/2.8 STM Lens
Put yourself in the picture with this fast, affordable, ultra-wide EOS R-series lens. At 16mm this full frame prime is great for vlogging, landscapes, architecture, astrophotography and more. Designed for vloggers and creative content makers For crisp, clear ultra-wide views this lightweight and super compact full frame 16mm prime will transform your images and videos, inspiring creativity at every opportunity – from landscapes to architecture and even astrophotography. Can you afford not to have one? Ultra-wide view to capture all the detail At 16mm, the RF 16mm F2.8 STM’s full-frame focal length is ultra-wide, offering optimum vlogging potential and great creative opportunities for content creators shooting interiors and big views. Smooth and quiet STM motor, perfect for video The STM lens motor offers refined, quiet focusing and great smoothness. It is fast for photo, and provides that stunning cinematic look for video, too. Fast f/2.8 circular aperture The RF 16mm F2.8 STM has a fast f/2.8 aperture, delivering smooth, soft bokeh and highlights, great for landscapes with lots of foreground, as well as depth-of-field control when you want to vlog. Superb image quality The RF 16mm F2.8 STM features nine lens elements in seven groups with a single PMo aspheric lens for excellent colour rendition and crisp, contrasty images – great for architecture and travel. Get closer in crop mode When shooting in crop mode, the RF 16mm F2.8 STM becomes a 25.6mm wide-angle – effectively a second lens – making it ideal for content creators seeking more options. A beautifully small, light, take anywhere lens The RF 16mm F2.8 STM weighs only 165g and measures just 40.1mm 1 in length, so you can leave it on your camera all day or pack it in your kitbag and take it out for spontaneous creative moments.
Put yourself in the picture with this fast, affordable, ultra-wide EOS R-series lens. At 16mm this full frame prime is great for vlogging, landscapes, architecture, astrophotography and more. Designed for vloggers and creative content makers For crisp, clear ultra-wide views this lightweight and super compact full frame 16mm prime will transform your images and videos, inspiring creativity at every opportunity – from landscapes to architecture and even astrophotography. Can you afford not to have one? Ultra-wide view to capture all the detail At 16mm, the RF 16mm F2.8 STM’s full-frame focal length is ultra-wide, offering optimum vlogging potential and great creative opportunities for content creators shooting interiors and big views. Smooth and quiet STM motor, perfect for video The STM lens motor offers refined, quiet focusing and great smoothness. It is fast for photo, and provides that stunning cinematic look for video, too. Fast f/2.8 circular aperture The RF 16mm F2.8 STM has a fast f/2.8 aperture, delivering smooth, soft bokeh and highlights, great for landscapes with lots of foreground, as well as depth-of-field control when you want to vlog. Superb image quality The RF 16mm F2.8 STM features nine lens elements in seven groups with a single PMo aspheric lens for excellent colour rendition and crisp, contrasty images – great for architecture and travel. Get closer in crop mode When shooting in crop mode, the RF 16mm F2.8 STM becomes a 25.6mm wide-angle – effectively a second lens – making it ideal for content creators seeking more options. A beautifully small, light, take anywhere lens The RF 16mm F2.8 STM weighs only 165g and measures just 40.1mm 1 in length, so you can leave it on your camera all day or pack it in your kitbag and take it out for spontaneous creative moments.
Put yourself in the picture with this fast, affordable, ultra-wide EOS R-series lens. At 16mm this full frame prime is great for vlogging, landscapes, architecture, astrophotography and more. Designed for vloggers and creative content makers For crisp, clear ultra-wide views this lightweight and super compact full frame 16mm prime will transform your images and videos, inspiring creativity at every opportunity – from landscapes to architecture and even astrophotography. Can you afford not to have one? Ultra-wide view to capture all the detail At 16mm, the RF 16mm F2.8 STM’s full-frame focal length is ultra-wide, offering optimum vlogging potential and great creative opportunities for content creators shooting interiors and big views. Smooth and quiet STM motor, perfect for video The STM lens motor offers refined, quiet focusing and great smoothness. It is fast for photo, and provides that stunning cinematic look for video, too. Fast f/2.8 circular aperture The RF 16mm F2.8 STM has a fast f/2.8 aperture, delivering smooth, soft bokeh and highlights, great for landscapes with lots of foreground, as well as depth-of-field control when you want to vlog. Superb image quality The RF 16mm F2.8 STM features nine lens elements in seven groups with a single PMo aspheric lens for excellent colour rendition and crisp, contrasty images – great for architecture and travel. Get closer in crop mode When shooting in crop mode, the RF 16mm F2.8 STM becomes a 25.6mm wide-angle – effectively a second lens – making it ideal for content creators seeking more options. A beautifully small, light, take anywhere lens The RF 16mm F2.8 STM weighs only 165g and measures just 40.1mm 1 in length, so you can leave it on your camera all day or pack it in your kitbag and take it out for spontaneous creative moments.
Put yourself in the picture with this fast, affordable, ultra-wide EOS R-series lens. At 16mm this full frame prime is great for vlogging, landscapes, architecture, astrophotography and more. Designed for vloggers and creative content makers For crisp, clear ultra-wide views this lightweight and super compact full frame 16mm prime will transform your images and videos, inspiring creativity at every opportunity – from landscapes to architecture and even astrophotography. Can you afford not to have one? Ultra-wide view to capture all the detail At 16mm, the RF 16mm F2.8 STM’s full-frame focal length is ultra-wide, offering optimum vlogging potential and great creative opportunities for content creators shooting interiors and big views. Smooth and quiet STM motor, perfect for video The STM lens motor offers refined, quiet focusing and great smoothness. It is fast for photo, and provides that stunning cinematic look for video, too. Fast f/2.8 circular aperture The RF 16mm F2.8 STM has a fast f/2.8 aperture, delivering smooth, soft bokeh and highlights, great for landscapes with lots of foreground, as well as depth-of-field control when you want to vlog. Superb image quality The RF 16mm F2.8 STM features nine lens elements in seven groups with a single PMo aspheric lens for excellent colour rendition and crisp, contrasty images – great for architecture and travel. Get closer in crop mode When shooting in crop mode, the RF 16mm F2.8 STM becomes a 25.6mm wide-angle – effectively a second lens – making it ideal for content creators seeking more options. A beautifully small, light, take anywhere lens The RF 16mm F2.8 STM weighs only 165g and measures just 40.1mm 1 in length, so you can leave it on your camera all day or pack it in your kitbag and take it out for spontaneous creative moments.
in 35 offers
The lowest price for Canon RF 16mm f/2.8 STM Lens right now is $299.00 at BIG W, compared across 18 retailers.
The all-time low was $104.00 on 18 Mar 2026 — today's price is 188% above the lowest ever. It has been notably cheaper before — worth setting a price alert.
Prices last updated 7 June 2026.
Last updated at 07/06/2026 17:05:45
Canon RF 16mm f2.8 Lens - AU Version
Free delivery
Affiliate Disclosure: We may receive a small commission for purchases made through this link at no extra cost to you. This helps support our site. Thank you!
2ND HAND - Canon RF 16mm F2.8 STM Lens Ø43mm
Free delivery between Tue – Wed
Canon RF 16mm F2.8 STM Lens
Free delivery
Canon RF 16mm f/2.8 STM Lens
Delivery $9.95
Canon RF 16mm f/2.8 STM lens
Free delivery between Tue – Wed
Canon RF 16mm F2.8 STM Lens Ø43mm
Delivery $9.95
2ND HAND - Canon RF 16mm F2.8 STM Lens Ø43mm
Delivery between Wed – Sat $10
Canon RF 16mm F2.8 STM Lens
Free delivery between Wed – Sat
Canon RF 16mm f/2.8 STM lens
Delivery between Wed – Sat $10
Canon RF 16mm f/2.8 STM Lens
Delivery between Wed – Sat $10
originally posted on bhphotovideo.com
The 16mm RF F 2.8 is quite appealing for numerous reasons. Its small- Check - Its RF- Check- its 16mm -Check - The problem is that it is the MOST heavily software corrected RF lens I have used so far. Unlikely the 35mm f 1.8 macro a 5star non -L lens - this lens is not optically ideal. The camera does correct this and lightroom or Capture 1 etc... however the optics Vignette HARD its very distored precorrection- like fisheye bad. its a trade-off. I am just shocked at how bad it is UNCORRECTED - My advice is download sample raw files and disable corrections before you purchase this... if you are using for video this issue will not likely be as bad but Id suggest the same. I am still giving 4 starts because the camera (EOS r5 in my case) will correct and haveing a ... MoreThe 16mm RF F 2.8 is quite appealing for numerous reasons. Its small- Check - Its RF- Check- its 16mm -Check - The problem is that it is the MOST heavily software corrected RF lens I have used so far. Unlikely the 35mm f 1.8 macro a 5star non -L lens - this lens is not optically ideal. The camera does correct this and lightroom or Capture 1 etc... however the optics Vignette HARD its very distored precorrection- like fisheye bad. its a trade-off. I am just shocked at how bad it is UNCORRECTED - My advice is download sample raw files and disable corrections before you purchase this... if you are using for video this issue will not likely be as bad but Id suggest the same. I am still giving 4 starts because the camera (EOS r5 in my case) will correct and haveing a 16mm this small makes it AWESOME for travel or difficult night sky locations (backpack low weight) ---so the question is can you stomach mushy corners from a heavily distorted and corrected lens? I can so I dont regret this purchase.
originally posted on bhphotovideo.com
I tried to upload full size 45 MP jpegs from the Canon R5, but the file size is too big. So these 1800 width jpegs will have to do.The lens is sharp in the center, about 1/3 towards the edges. From there on the sharpness goes down quite rapidly. But sharpness (or the lack of it) is only one issue.Lightroom applies distortion correction automatically, without it the distortion would be extreme. I attached a photo where I applied both an X and Y offset of 14.9 to show you how much is corrected digitally. In other words, when you use say a 45MP Canon R5, it will throw away a substantial part of the captured photo and recreate the missing pixels digitally.Next issue is chromatic aberration. The usual automatic CA correction in LR won't do. You have to dial in ... MoreI tried to upload full size 45 MP jpegs from the Canon R5, but the file size is too big. So these 1800 width jpegs will have to do.The lens is sharp in the center, about 1/3 towards the edges. From there on the sharpness goes down quite rapidly. But sharpness (or the lack of it) is only one issue.Lightroom applies distortion correction automatically, without it the distortion would be extreme. I attached a photo where I applied both an X and Y offset of 14.9 to show you how much is corrected digitally. In other words, when you use say a 45MP Canon R5, it will throw away a substantial part of the captured photo and recreate the missing pixels digitally.Next issue is chromatic aberration. The usual automatic CA correction in LR won't do. You have to dial in substantial CA correction using the Defringe slider (often the maximum) to get rid of the nasty purple aberration. However, this can lead to other issues (green fringing), which requires manual fixing (e.g. using the brush tool).I even bought a lens hood to help prevent flair and improve sharpness, but obviously that didn't help.I posted some of the (technically) best photos I could find since there is no point in showing bad photos.The Canon 35mm f/1.8 lens I owned was a sharp lens without CA. If only the 16mm lens would have been half as good, I would have stayed with Canon. In the meantime I sold all my Canon gear as neither the RF 15-35 f/2.8 nor the RF 16 f/2.8 were satisfactory and I needed a sharp wide angle lens. I've switched to a Z7 II and the Z 14-24 f/2.8 lens which are way better in that department.
originally posted on bhphotovideo.com
I bought this lens for landscape, street, and interior photography. I also own the RF 15-35/2.8 which has been a disappointment. I hoped that a prime lens would perform better.This is NOT the case. The RF 16mm can only be used with the lens corrections enabled in LR. That wouldn't be a problem if it wasn't for the fact that only about 2/3 or 1/2 of the image was sharp.The center of the image is sharp, no problems with that. The point is that you have to cut away a big part of the image to get reasonable sharpness for any landscape or architectural photography. If I cut away the part that is totally blurred/unsharp, I'm left with less than half of the resolution my R5 offers.In addition to being blurred along the edges to a degree I never saw in a lens before ... MoreI bought this lens for landscape, street, and interior photography. I also own the RF 15-35/2.8 which has been a disappointment. I hoped that a prime lens would perform better.This is NOT the case. The RF 16mm can only be used with the lens corrections enabled in LR. That wouldn't be a problem if it wasn't for the fact that only about 2/3 or 1/2 of the image was sharp.The center of the image is sharp, no problems with that. The point is that you have to cut away a big part of the image to get reasonable sharpness for any landscape or architectural photography. If I cut away the part that is totally blurred/unsharp, I'm left with less than half of the resolution my R5 offers.In addition to being blurred along the edges to a degree I never saw in a lens before (not even the old 20-35/2.8 Nikon lens I once owned), the Canon RF 16mm features chromatic aberrations to a degree that I never saw before. The aberrations are hard to fix, and the normal automatic aberration feature in LR is just not doing the job.On top of all that, the lens profile cuts away a substantial part of the image. How do I know? Just use the Aspect slider in the Transform section of Adobe Lightroom Classic. You will discover that you can actually get a much wider view if you pull the slider to the right. Where do all the extra pixels come from? In other words, Canon is truncating a lot of the 45MP image to start with. Yet, even with truncating so much from the sides of the image, the remaining photo still needs to be cropped to get something useable.So if you think it is smart to throw away away a few hundred dollars to get an image that is sharp only in the 24-35mm crop at a much reduced resolution, go ahead. This lens is indeed quite sharp at the center, but only there.I gave it 2 stars because of the center sharpness. Perhaps that lens works for you. Next time I'd be renting it before purchase.
| Focal Length | 16mm |
| Maximum Aperture | f/2.8 |
| Minimum Aperture | f/22 |
| Lens Mount | Canon RF |
| Format Compatibility | Full-Frame |
Canon RF 16mm f2.8 Lens - AU Version
Free delivery
Affiliate Disclosure: We may receive a small commission for purchases made through this link at no extra cost to you. This helps support our site. Thank you!
2ND HAND - Canon RF 16mm F2.8 STM Lens Ø43mm
Free delivery between Tue – Wed
Canon RF 16mm F2.8 STM Lens
Free delivery
Canon RF 16mm f/2.8 STM Lens
Delivery $9.95
Canon RF 16mm f/2.8 STM lens
Free delivery between Tue – Wed
The 16mm RF F 2.8 is quite appealing for numerous reasons. Its small- Check - Its RF- Check- its 16mm -Check - The problem is that it is the MOST heavily software corrected RF lens I have used so far. Unlikely the 35mm f 1.8 macro a 5star non -L lens - this lens is not optically ideal. The camera does correct this and lightroom or Capture 1 etc... however the optics Vignette HARD its very distored precorrection- like fisheye bad. its a trade-off. I am just shocked at how bad it is UNCORRECTED - My advice is download sample raw files and disable corrections before you purchase this... if you are using for video this issue will not likely be as bad but Id suggest the same. I am still giving 4 starts because the camera (EOS r5 in my case) will correct and haveing a ... MoreThe 16mm RF F 2.8 is quite appealing for numerous reasons. Its small- Check - Its RF- Check- its 16mm -Check - The problem is that it is the MOST heavily software corrected RF lens I have used so far. Unlikely the 35mm f 1.8 macro a 5star non -L lens - this lens is not optically ideal. The camera does correct this and lightroom or Capture 1 etc... however the optics Vignette HARD its very distored precorrection- like fisheye bad. its a trade-off. I am just shocked at how bad it is UNCORRECTED - My advice is download sample raw files and disable corrections before you purchase this... if you are using for video this issue will not likely be as bad but Id suggest the same. I am still giving 4 starts because the camera (EOS r5 in my case) will correct and haveing a 16mm this small makes it AWESOME for travel or difficult night sky locations (backpack low weight) ---so the question is can you stomach mushy corners from a heavily distorted and corrected lens? I can so I dont regret this purchase.
I tried to upload full size 45 MP jpegs from the Canon R5, but the file size is too big. So these 1800 width jpegs will have to do.The lens is sharp in the center, about 1/3 towards the edges. From there on the sharpness goes down quite rapidly. But sharpness (or the lack of it) is only one issue.Lightroom applies distortion correction automatically, without it the distortion would be extreme. I attached a photo where I applied both an X and Y offset of 14.9 to show you how much is corrected digitally. In other words, when you use say a 45MP Canon R5, it will throw away a substantial part of the captured photo and recreate the missing pixels digitally.Next issue is chromatic aberration. The usual automatic CA correction in LR won't do. You have to dial in ... MoreI tried to upload full size 45 MP jpegs from the Canon R5, but the file size is too big. So these 1800 width jpegs will have to do.The lens is sharp in the center, about 1/3 towards the edges. From there on the sharpness goes down quite rapidly. But sharpness (or the lack of it) is only one issue.Lightroom applies distortion correction automatically, without it the distortion would be extreme. I attached a photo where I applied both an X and Y offset of 14.9 to show you how much is corrected digitally. In other words, when you use say a 45MP Canon R5, it will throw away a substantial part of the captured photo and recreate the missing pixels digitally.Next issue is chromatic aberration. The usual automatic CA correction in LR won't do. You have to dial in substantial CA correction using the Defringe slider (often the maximum) to get rid of the nasty purple aberration. However, this can lead to other issues (green fringing), which requires manual fixing (e.g. using the brush tool).I even bought a lens hood to help prevent flair and improve sharpness, but obviously that didn't help.I posted some of the (technically) best photos I could find since there is no point in showing bad photos.The Canon 35mm f/1.8 lens I owned was a sharp lens without CA. If only the 16mm lens would have been half as good, I would have stayed with Canon. In the meantime I sold all my Canon gear as neither the RF 15-35 f/2.8 nor the RF 16 f/2.8 were satisfactory and I needed a sharp wide angle lens. I've switched to a Z7 II and the Z 14-24 f/2.8 lens which are way better in that department.
I bought this lens for landscape, street, and interior photography. I also own the RF 15-35/2.8 which has been a disappointment. I hoped that a prime lens would perform better.This is NOT the case. The RF 16mm can only be used with the lens corrections enabled in LR. That wouldn't be a problem if it wasn't for the fact that only about 2/3 or 1/2 of the image was sharp.The center of the image is sharp, no problems with that. The point is that you have to cut away a big part of the image to get reasonable sharpness for any landscape or architectural photography. If I cut away the part that is totally blurred/unsharp, I'm left with less than half of the resolution my R5 offers.In addition to being blurred along the edges to a degree I never saw in a lens before ... MoreI bought this lens for landscape, street, and interior photography. I also own the RF 15-35/2.8 which has been a disappointment. I hoped that a prime lens would perform better.This is NOT the case. The RF 16mm can only be used with the lens corrections enabled in LR. That wouldn't be a problem if it wasn't for the fact that only about 2/3 or 1/2 of the image was sharp.The center of the image is sharp, no problems with that. The point is that you have to cut away a big part of the image to get reasonable sharpness for any landscape or architectural photography. If I cut away the part that is totally blurred/unsharp, I'm left with less than half of the resolution my R5 offers.In addition to being blurred along the edges to a degree I never saw in a lens before (not even the old 20-35/2.8 Nikon lens I once owned), the Canon RF 16mm features chromatic aberrations to a degree that I never saw before. The aberrations are hard to fix, and the normal automatic aberration feature in LR is just not doing the job.On top of all that, the lens profile cuts away a substantial part of the image. How do I know? Just use the Aspect slider in the Transform section of Adobe Lightroom Classic. You will discover that you can actually get a much wider view if you pull the slider to the right. Where do all the extra pixels come from? In other words, Canon is truncating a lot of the 45MP image to start with. Yet, even with truncating so much from the sides of the image, the remaining photo still needs to be cropped to get something useable.So if you think it is smart to throw away away a few hundred dollars to get an image that is sharp only in the 24-35mm crop at a much reduced resolution, go ahead. This lens is indeed quite sharp at the center, but only there.I gave it 2 stars because of the center sharpness. Perhaps that lens works for you. Next time I'd be renting it before purchase.
In a nutshell, this lens is excellent for Astrophotography, architecture, landscape and interiors. I also found this lens to be very good for macro because you can get in really close to your subject.There is some distortion around the edges; it hasn't stopped me from using this lens, far from it... I use it a lot and I love it.It's sharp and it gives a unique perspective. I use it mostly for Astrophotography and landscape. The thing I love most about this lens is its compact size. It's so easy to carry about in your bag or even your pocket.For the price, this is a good lens to have in your camera bag. If anything, the ultra wide angle will inspire your creativity with its unique perspective.
The type of lens is geared towards a large grouping if youre taking people and events. It would affords to take a wide group shot at a closer distance. Images that I took are pretty sharp. Since you do not have time to change one type of lens with the other, I used it to also take close up shops of subjects pretty much at a close distance and are quite satisfied with the results. Good lens to have and in your bag will save your day especially when you have a big group to shoot at. Youll not even notice your using. 16mm lens when taking smaller groups at close range distance. Rene
The promise of mirrorless, among other things, was reduced sized camera bodies. But, that promise is compromised by the fact that more electronics equals more weight. And while my R5 is a much smaller body than my 5D, there's only about 6 oz less weight. Take away the mirror assembly, shrink the body, but the added wizardry doesn't shrink the weight by all that much.The RF lenses are a correlating example of the same thing: I believe each of the RF lenses is better--better glass, better technologies--than their EF counterparts. I own many of the similar lenses, RF and EF, to be able to make that comparison.And my goal to reduce carried size and weight is difficult when the offering is the RF 15-35 2.8, and it weighs a ton. Sure, the 14-35 4.0 came out and did a ... MoreThe promise of mirrorless, among other things, was reduced sized camera bodies. But, that promise is compromised by the fact that more electronics equals more weight. And while my R5 is a much smaller body than my 5D, there's only about 6 oz less weight. Take away the mirror assembly, shrink the body, but the added wizardry doesn't shrink the weight by all that much.The RF lenses are a correlating example of the same thing: I believe each of the RF lenses is better--better glass, better technologies--than their EF counterparts. I own many of the similar lenses, RF and EF, to be able to make that comparison.And my goal to reduce carried size and weight is difficult when the offering is the RF 15-35 2.8, and it weighs a ton. Sure, the 14-35 4.0 came out and did a superb job of reduced both size/weight, but it's still not small.This 16mm 2.8 is small. Elfin. I've only had it a few weeks, and walked through a house the other day taking snapshots--not setting things up, not leveling the camera or using a flash to make direct comparisons with either the 14-35 or my EF 11-24 w/the adapter--and I have to say this: inside, there's a lot of distortion I could not correct in LR. Outside, where the view is wide and the lens doesn't have to strain within its own confines like it does indoors, I am impressed.I carried an EF 20mm on the RF adapter through Grand Canyon earlier this year, the one lens I carried for five days inside the Canyon, and I was looking to buy one for myself, it was that good.This lens was announced and I waited, and I'm glad I did: no adapter, RF qualities I'm finding in all these lenses, tiny size and minuscule weight, and the vista shots are looking very nice. Not sure I trust it like I did the 20mm, but maybe by the next trip into the backcountry I'll have used it enough to know: it's the only one I need.
Small, light and wide - that's what this lens is and why I bought it. As a compliment to the Canon RF 24-240mm f/4-6.3 IS USM Lens these two lenses offer a good combination of options for the casual traveler wanting to have a decent camera body and focal length options but not the weight of 3 or 4 L lenses. It isn't a great lens but meets my needs for casual travel with a light kit. I've attached two versions of the same photo taken in Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge Jambo House. Canon R6, 1/60 sec f/2.8, ISO 4000. Version 1 was edited in Light Room Classic (LRC), Lens Correction, Vertical Transformation, cropped plusTone, Presence and Detail edits. Version 2 is the original with only LRC Lens and Tone adjustments
At f2.8 it's very sharp in the center but definitely softer near the corners. Stopped to f5.6 it's just as sharp at the corners as the RF24-105 f4 which is a notoriously sharp lens. You must stop to f5.6 to get the full effect tough; f4 isn't any better than f2.8. With IBIS and electronic stabilization on my R6mkII you have enough stabilization for good looking hand-held walking-around video. Not GoPro stable but pretty stable.I would have preferred separate focus/control rings and L-series build, but the rear-most element APPEARS to be fixed so any dust/moisture that enters the lens may not get into the camera... I'm a mechanical engineer but I can't tell for sure.I am happy with my purchase.
I really really REALLY wanted to like this lens. I love shooting wide, and a tiny fast ultrawide would let me have one on hand everywhere all the time. Unfortunately, the rendering of this lens is quite poor. To be sure, you can still get good results depending on how and what you shoot. If you give it good lighting, forgiving scene, lots of post work... sure, you can get it to produce decent images. But the lens is very finicky and fragile (not physically, but in image quality). There are plenty of other reviews about how distorted the image is before it's corrected computationally. I have many other lenses that do this, too, and I have no problems with this technique in general, but this lens seems to have to correct so much that it still ends up with a pretty ... MoreI really really REALLY wanted to like this lens. I love shooting wide, and a tiny fast ultrawide would let me have one on hand everywhere all the time. Unfortunately, the rendering of this lens is quite poor. To be sure, you can still get good results depending on how and what you shoot. If you give it good lighting, forgiving scene, lots of post work... sure, you can get it to produce decent images. But the lens is very finicky and fragile (not physically, but in image quality). There are plenty of other reviews about how distorted the image is before it's corrected computationally. I have many other lenses that do this, too, and I have no problems with this technique in general, but this lens seems to have to correct so much that it still ends up with a pretty poor distortion and sharpness falloff. The contrast on this lens is also frustratingly inconsistent, regularly leading to an almost HDR-like flatness when the light isn't bright sunlight. An f/2.8 lens is supposed to be usable in the shade and indoors, and yet this lens just doesn't look good. Even when the image is technically fine and at its best, it's aggressively lacking in that ineffable rendering quality of microcontrast or the [Zeiss/Leica] look or 3D pop that people argue over. I've looked at samples from other photographers to see if I had a bad copy, but I see the same thing there, too. If the samples generally look good to you, maybe this won't bother you, and you'll be happy with this lens. But I have to say this is one of the worst-rendering Canon lenses I've ever owned. It's really too bad, because it's so easy on the pocket and pocketbook. If you don't have to go so wide, the 28/2.8 pancake is a much better option.
This lens is a cheap, small (tiny!), fast-ish UWA with a very close MFD (13 cm - which means the front element will be 7cm from the subject!) and these features make it pretty much unique. However, it has considerable limitations as detailed below.Firstly, it's one of those lenses that is useless without a lens profile for processing - it has drastic barrel distortion and vignetting. JPEGs are automatically corrected in the camera but RAWs aren't and having bought it when it was first released, I struggled to optimise images before a profile became available for my processing software. With a profile, images have an aspect ratio of 1.64:1 and look very stretched at the sides and corners; for some landscape and very close-up shots, this effect can be attractive but ... MoreThis lens is a cheap, small (tiny!), fast-ish UWA with a very close MFD (13 cm - which means the front element will be 7cm from the subject!) and these features make it pretty much unique. However, it has considerable limitations as detailed below.Firstly, it's one of those lenses that is useless without a lens profile for processing - it has drastic barrel distortion and vignetting. JPEGs are automatically corrected in the camera but RAWs aren't and having bought it when it was first released, I struggled to optimise images before a profile became available for my processing software. With a profile, images have an aspect ratio of 1.64:1 and look very stretched at the sides and corners; for some landscape and very close-up shots, this effect can be attractive but objects at the edge of the frame can look quite distorted.IQ isn't super sharp. Wide open, it's reasonably sharp in the centre of the frame but extremely soft in the corners. This doesn't matter for close-ups (e.g. of flowers etc.) if the subject is in the centre of the frame and nothing else will be in focus anyway - although you do have to be very close to the subject to get remotely acceptable bokeh. Stopped down, the corners do improve, but not spectacularly so and it's never a particularly sharp lens - you can take nice landscapes with it but they won't be super detailed - it's best for more atmospheric shots. And why the aperture can be stopped down all the way to f22 baffles me as it's already getting too soft at f11 - I've found it pointless to go beyond f8, which is probably the sweet spot for landscapes, unlike the other relatively cheap RF primes such as the 35mm f1.8, the 50mm f1.8 and the 85mm f2, all of which are still sharper at f14 than this lens is at any aperture, and far sharper overall.So it doesn't sound very good - why have I kept it, and kept using it? A combination of convenience (tiny and light) and MFD, the latter being a major USP for the lens. It would be great if the unusual shots the fast aperture and MFD make possible could be done in better quality, but I suspect the lens that could do that would be too big to focus that close without touching the subject! So it's a fun lens with a few unusual capabilities that can produce some striking images if you work within its limitations.
| Focal Length | 16mm |
| Maximum Aperture | f/2.8 |
| Minimum Aperture | f/22 |
| Lens Mount | Canon RF |
| Format Compatibility | Full-Frame |
