If you've ever looked at a portrait and wondered why there are a couple of white rings reflecting off the model's eyes, it's because the photographer used a ring flash that sits around the lens. Apart from portraits, ring flashes are best used while shooting macro, and Canon's new macro lens for its EOS-M range of mirrorless cameras comes with one built in.
The new EF-M lens from Canon takes the number of lenses for Canon's mirrorless cameras up to six. The lens has a focal length of 28mm and is relatively slow with a fixed maximum aperture of F3.5. The lens also features internal image stabilisation, and uses Canon's stepper motor tech for quiet and fast autofocus.
The Canon EF-M 28mm f/3.5 Macro IS STM lens is the company's first mirrorless macro lens and happens to include a ring flash. Canon calls them Macro Lite electronic flash units and has included two of them, which curve around the lens' front element. According to Canon, the lights can be dimmed and also programmed in a way that only one flash unit illuminates the subject.
The lens also features what Canon calls Super Macro Mode that cranks the magnification up to 1.2X and apparently features a tapered lens top that prevents the lens from casting a shadow on the subject as the user moves closer.
Canon's mirrorless EOS-M line of cameras currently includes two camera, both featuring Canon's APS-C sensors that feature a 1.6X crop factor. The 28mm lens mounted on these camera will present a field of view equivalent to that of a 45mm lens when mounted on a full-frame camera. This makes the lens a normal-angle one.
Canon's EF-M 28mm f/3.5 Macro IS STM lens will start hitting the stores in June with an estimated retail price of $299.99, and should make its way to India soon after its U.S. launch.
