Last Updated on 10/01/2020 by Chris Gampat
Pretty much everyone starts out with the Nifty 50, and Canon really needs to bring one to the EOS RF system.
If you’ve been shooting photos seriously for a lengthy period of time, you’ll remember some of the first lenses you used. If you’re like me, one of your first serious lenses was a Nifty 50. If you’re a former or current Canon user, then you probably started with their Nifty 50–the fantastic 50mm f1.8. (It is fantastic relative to the price and performance for its price point.) Currently, the mirrorless camera world has nothing that high-quality that is affordable to the point of near disposability. But think about all the images you created with that lens, and how it made you fall in love with photography. Yongnuo has tried to create lenses like this, but it’s rational to ask for something a bit higher grade at a cheaper price point. In all seriousness, this is what is missing right now in the mirrorless camera world.
While photography (specifically serious photography) is becoming more and more niche as cameras are losing to smartphones, higher grade cameras are becoming more affordable. But good, cheap lenses for mirrorless camera systems are hard to come by. Sony’s 50mm f1.8 isn’t that impressive and doesn’t inspire me the way Canon’s 50mm f1.8 did. Nikon’s 50mm f1.8 is good, but sits at a higher price point. Fujifilm gets it with the lower price point, but their apertures are a bit too slow for me. Leica…well, that’s another story. But the L Mount alliance is bound to create an affordable 50mm f1.8 lens soon and I’d count on Panasonic to do it first. Canon, however, could be the first with their strategy.
Canon is currently working on populating their camera system with a lot of very high quality L glass, and I’m positive that many professionals and enthusiasts appreciate that. However, there are still lots of folks with a casual interest in a camera, and a cheap 50mm is the best way to get them hooked. I’m not talking about a 50mm with an adapter, but a straight up Canon RF mount 50mm. You know what might be even better? A nice Canon 40mm f2.8 pancake lens for the Canon EOS RP.