The new Canon RF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 is the company's cheapest mirrorless telephoto yet

The Canon RF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 in a photographer's hands
(Image credit: Canon)

Telephoto lenses tend to be both pricey and large, but Canon has just launched a new budget-friendly telephoto zoom lens. On Tuesday, April 29, Canon announced a new entry-level telephoto zoom lens. The Canon RF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 is a telephoto lens that Canon describes as a flexible entry-level lens for nature and sports photography.

With a £289 price in the UK, the lens is the cheapest native telephoto lens for RF mount so far, although a price has not yet been announced for the US. The only native RF lens listed on Canon's website for less right now is the Canon RF 50mm f/1.8 STM.

The Canon RF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 is a full-frame lens compatible with EOS R cameras. While the lens brings an entry-level telephoto to affordable full-frame cameras like the Canon EOS RP, the lens is also compatible with Canon’s crop-sensor mirrorless cameras. On those crop-sensor cameras, the lens serves as a 120-480mm lens with the crop factor applied.

Despite the telephoto reach, Canon also describes the lens as a lightweight option, with specs listing a 507g / 17.9 oz weight. When retracted or nestled in a camera bag, the lens will take up 146.1mm / 5.75 inches of space.

The lens is designed with 13 elements in nine groups, along with a seven-blade aperture to create circular-shaped bokeh. Canon says the lens’ Super Spectra coating helps reduce ghosting and flare. It uses a DC motor autofocus that’s capable of focusing as close as 1.5 m / 4.9 feet from the front of the lens.

The Canon RF mount is no stranger to affordable telephoto optics. The Canon RF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 joins a handful of other telephoto lenses that sit below the four figure price point, including the RF 100-400mm f/5.6-8 IS USM, the crop sensor RF-S 55-210mm f/5-7.1 IS STM, the RF 600mm f/11 IS STM, and the RF 800mm f/11 IS STM.

The RF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 itself carries a similar zoom range and aperture rating of one of the company's DSLR lenses, the Canon EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III.

Canon UK says the lens is expected to be available at the end of May 2025. The lens is already listed for pre-order in the UK for £289, which is roughly $387. Canon US has yet to share any price or availability information on the lens, which could be impacted by tariffs.

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Hillary K. Grigonis
US Editor

With more than a decade of experience reviewing and writing about cameras and technology, Hillary K. Grigonis leads the US coverage for Digital Camera World. Her work has appeared in Business Insider, Digital Trends, Pocket-lint, Rangefinder, The Phoblographer and more.

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