Canon RF-S18-150mm F3.5-6.3 Telephoto Lens, Black

Product overview

Canon RF-S 18-150mm F3.5-6.3 IS STM: What to Know

Canon puts the critical information in its first bullet, which is unusually responsible: this is a high-magnification zoom for APS-C cameras with the RF mount, and if mounted on a full-frame EOS R-series camera it causes automatic APS-C sensor cropping. The lens will attach, autofocus and take photographs. It will also throw away most of a full-frame sensor's area while doing it. If you own an R6, R8 or R5, this is the wrong lens; if you own an R7, R10, R50 or R100, it may be the only one you need.

On the right body the range is the point. Eighteen to 150mm on APS-C covers a field of view roughly equivalent to 29 to 240mm in full-frame terms, which is wide enough for interiors and long enough for sport and wildlife at a distance, in one barrel. That is a genuine one-lens travel solution rather than a compromise.

The stabilisation figures are the best in this guide when paired correctly. Canon rates in-lens optical stabilisation at up to 4.5 stops alone, rising to up to 6.5 stops with an EOS R body that has in-body stabilisation. There is also Dynamic IS specifically for stabilising movie shooting while walking at the wide end, which is the use case ordinary stabilisation handles worst. Autofocus is a lead screw-type STM, which Canon positions for smooth video focusing.

The honest cost of a 8.3x zoom range is optical compromise, and f/3.5 to f/6.3 is a dark variable aperture, slower at the long end than the full-frame 24-105 above. Superzooms trade sharpness at the extremes and aperture for range; that is the deal, and for a single travel lens it is usually the right one.

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