We think it’s safe to say that the most frustrating part of Canon’s EOS R system is the lack of autofocus third-party lenses from the likes of Sigma and Tamron, along with the glaring wide-angle L lens holes in the line-up. As we all know, the third-party manufacturers make great value lenses and fill the perceived holes in design and price point in Canon’s own lineup.
Camera Beta recently had the chance to talk some folks from Canon in regards to this issue. The answer given is still a bit ambiguous, which will likely continue to frustrate RF shooters.
Canon says that they have opened the RF mount for third parties through licensing and that there are active conversations with various third-party manufacturers. Which is good news, but….
When a manufacturer applies for the a license for the RF mount from Canon, it seems that Canon treats each application on a case by case basis and that there are no rigid guidelines on how to qualify for approval. What are decisions based on? We don’t want to guess, but there are likely some quick assumptions to be made.
Canon views the third-party licensing and building their own lineup of lenses as separate issues.
What isn’t mentioned is what the licensing grants the third-party manufacturer. Are the manufacturers on their own to come up with the autofocus algorithms, or are those provided? Would there be ongoing Canon support through firmware compatibility updates? Perhaps there could be different tiers of licensing?
We don’t know the answers to any of these questions, but at least we have a little bit more clarity on the situation, even if it’s not as articulated as we’d like to see.
As a side not, there could be some opportunities here for the growing number of Chinese lens manufacturers to get in before the legacy Japanese makers such as the aforementioned Sigma and Tamron. They seem to be well funded and have the manufacturing chops to make it work. All of the major Chinese manufacturers are actively working on autofocus lenses.
Direct Quote from Canon (Google Translated)
Again, I can’t reveal my specific R&D plans for the future. In addition, although it is still limited to some special companies, Canon has also opened the RF mount to third-party lens manufacturers through licensing. Now, if we receive a request from a third-party lens company to open the mount, we will study whether to license it based on Canon’s own business plan and strategy. In fact, we are now communicating with several third-party lens companies in this regard.
You also asked just now whether we open the bayonet license, which means that our RF lens group is already complete. In fact, we have different considerations on this issue, whether to open the RF opening to third-party lens companies and whether Canon’s own product line is complete.
In fact, since the launch of the RF system in 2018, we have been continuously expanding our lens lineup to meet the various levels of photography needs of our customers, and currently have 37 lenses. In order to maximize the advantages of the EOS R system and to better meet the needs of customers in different fields of photography, Canon will continue to strive to enrich its lens lineup.
https://www.weibo.com/5029300214/NeNt2rpPt#comment
Some of our articles may include affiliate links. If you purchase through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you.
Go to discussion…