AskMaddi
What do reviewers say about the Canon 45mm f1.2?
As of August 2026, among the 22 reviews we compiled, optical performance drew the most discussion: 139 claims from 20 of them, which we read as 56% positive, 13% neutral, 31% negative.
Synthesized from 22 reviewer sources for Canon 45mm f1.2. Optical performance draws the most discussion: 78 positive, 18 neutral, and 43 negative across 139 sentiment markers. The most criticism lands on chromatic aberration: 7% positive, 33% neutral, 60% negative across 30 claims. Opinion is split on AF for video (46 positive, 45 neutral, 25 negative claims).
What are the Canon 45mm f1.2 specifications?
Focal Length Mm45 mm
Max Aperturef/1.2
specs: designation
What do reviewers praise and criticize?
Optical Performance
78 pos · 18 neu · 43 neg
“Okay, testing the sharpness on this lens.” — CBR By Amir
Build Quality
8 pos · 11 neu · 11 neg
“And like all L lenses, it's weather sealed, including a rubber grommet at the mount, and it's also supplied with a lens hood.” — Gordon Laing
Mount Compatibility
22 pos · 58 neu · 12 neg
“Now, let's mount the lens onto my APS-C camera, a Canon EOS R7 with its very demanding 32 megapixel sensor.” — Christopher Frost
Price & Value
50 pos · 16 neu · 27 neg
“They're very neat lenses really, but at over $600 each, they're just a little too expensive for this list.” — Christopher Frost
Weight & Portability
12 pos · 5 neu · 4 neg
“The 45mm 1.2 is actually surprisingly light at just 346 g and is decently compact as well.” — CVP
More detail — 10 additional axes
Distortion
6 pos · 5 neu · 8 neg
“Well, Canon is maybe the worst offender amongst modern lens makers when it comes to leaving things like distortion and vignette uncorrected.” — Dustin Abbott
Vignetting
16 pos · 5 neu · 10 neg
“And finally I'm sure you're asking about vignetting which is something photographers hate on their photos and it simply means that at the widest apertures of course the lenses tend to make corners darker.” — Jan Rybář
Chromatic Aberration
2 pos · 10 neu · 18 neg
“Now, one of the things you might find with a nonL lens from Canon is that you might get a lot more purple fringing and green fringing around the edges of images.” — Jared Polin
Coma
5 pos · 5 neu · 4 neg
Bokeh
30 pos · 7 neu · 5 neg
“So, as you may well know, this lens got a lot of complaints about it bokeh at release.” — James Reader
Color Rendition
7 pos · 2 neu · 2 neg
Filter Thread
8 pos · 10 neu · 2 neg
“This 45 mm has a 67 mm filter thread and a fixed barrel design, which means it doesn't uh extend outside of the lens just like the 28 mm f2.8, date, which can be a little annoying.” — GlennVanderbeke
Dimensions
19 pos · 10 neu · 3 neg
“The front is a 67 mm diameter which is impressively small considering this is an F 1.2 lens.” — ProAV
Handling
17 pos · 3 neu · 2 neg
AF Noise
7 pos · 7 neu · 9 neg
Which reviews is this based on? (22)
Every claim above traces to these original reviews. We don't write opinions — we synthesize theirs.
📹 Pro Reviews (22)
- Canon 45mm f1.2 | Better than L series? CBR By Amir
- Canon RF 45mm f/1.2 STM lens review Christopher Frost
- Which one's for you? Canon's RF low-budget prime lenses Christopher Frost
- Vintage Character, Modern Performance. ~ Canon RF 45mm f/1.2 Review CVP
- Canon RF 45mm F1.2 STM Review | Dream Lens or Nightmare? Dustin Abbott
- Let's take a look at the rf 45mm f1.2 GlennVanderbeke
- Canon EF 50mm f1.2L vs RF 45 f1.2 review comparison Gordon Laing
- The BEST Budget Setup I Just Keep Coming Back To... James Reader
- Canon RF 45mm F1.2 STM – Review + 200 Test Photos Jan Rybář
- The WORST Best Lens, EVER?! Canon RF 45 f1.2 REVIEW Jared Polin
- Canon RF 45mm f1.2 Review — Canon Did Something Big John ThruMyLens
- Canon 45mm f1.2 Review for Portrait Photography Julia Trotti
- Canon 45mm f/1.2 - unlike no other Kai W
- Canon RF 45mm F1.2: Do We Even Need Third-Party Lenses? Pascal Basel
- Canon RF 45mm f/1.2 STM Review: We Need MORE Lenses Like This! PetaPixel
- Canon RF 45mm f/1.2 vs Canon RF 50mm f/1.2 $500 or $2500! Pete Coco Photography
- Whats Canon's Best BUDGET Prime Lens? Canon RF 45mm 1.2 Vs Canon RF 50mm 1.8 Photo Feaver
- Canon 45mm F1.2 STM - Incredible value for money! ProAV
- Canon RF 45mm f/1.2 | This Lens Surprised Me Servo Images
- Canon RF 45mm f/1.2: Total Game-changer or Massive Flop? TKNORTH
- The NEW NIFTY FIFTY: Canon's 45mm f/1.2 is only $469 Tony & Chelsea Northrup
- Lens Review | Canon RF 45mm F1.2 STM - Real-World Test with the EOS R6 Mark III & R8! Wilkinson Cameras