Camera manufacturers have to offer a first killer product when starting a new system. Nikon decided to do it via a manual focus 58mm f/0.95 for $7000 ... not sure whether this worked out for them ... whereas Canon chose a different approach - they decided to disrupt our expectations of how a 70-200mm f/2.8 should look like. Upon the first contact, you can't be anything but impressed by the size of the Canon RF 70-200mm f/2.8 USM L IS, especially at a time when lens dimensions tend to super-size rather than shrink. However, even Canon can't do miracles thus, while the lens has a substantially reduced length and weight, it uses an extending zooming mechanism. It's a matter of personal taste whether you are in the love or hate camp regarding this change. However, this doesn't have a negative impact on image quality (mostly). The results are tack sharp throughout the zoom range and at all relevant aperture settings. Lateral CAs are very low. The same goes for image distortions. Vignetting is a bit of a weak spot, though, unless you prefer to keep image auto-correction activated. The light falloff in the upper range is too heavy for such a lens. The quality of the bokeh is generally very good - the smooth out-of-focus highlights are especially impressive here. The bokeh fringing is present but quite well controlled. A bit of an ugly aspect are focus shifts (RSAs) when stopping down. This is nothing to worry about when using autofocusing - so most users will never notice it - but the issue can hit you in manual focus mode.

The build quality is great. Canon may have moved away from an outer metal shell but except for the lack of the "cold" haptic feedback, you just won't notice the difference. While the zoom mechanism does extend towards longer focal lengths, everything just feels rock solid. If you don't use a tripod, you can also remove the (metal) tripod mount making the lens even more compact than it already is. Another outstanding feature of the Canon RF 70-200mm f/2.8 USM L IS is the AF speed. We have been extremely impressed by Canon's "Nano USM" in the past, but it's even faster on this lens, thanks to two AF motors. The image stabilizer is rated at 5 f-stops. Yours truly never reaches the claimed rating but you should be able to come close at least.

Despite the few little issues, it's a no-brainer to decorate the Canon lens with our "highly recommended" badge, of course. Even so, it's worth noting that the pricing is nothing short of excessive. Professional photographers may not mind too much but it's probably over the top for most enthusiasts. If this trend continues, the manufacturers will destroy the (mirrorless camera) market that they are just trying to create. Hopefully, Canon will at least provide a more affordable f/4 lens following the same design approach for "the rest of us".