If you're a filmmaker who shoots on Canon RF-mount cameras, today is your lucky day: Canon has launched an adapter that enables you to mount Arri PL lenses on your RF body.
For those unaware, the world of cinema cameras and cine lenses is dominated by two mounts: Arri PL and Canon EF, which have become the industry standard for moviemakers across the world.
However, with Canon moving away from the old EF mount and doubling down on its new RF mount, it's important for shooters using the new generation of Cinema EOS cameras like the Canon EOS C400, EOS C70 and EOS R5 C (and, indeed, Red cameras like the Komodo 6K) to be able to natively use PL glass.
While there are already adapters available from third parties, the Canon Mount Adapter PL-RF is the first official product that meets the brief – and, crucially, it is fully compatible with Cooke's i/Technology to enable metadata communication between lenses and the camera body.
The adapter also fulfills a second purpose for Canon's growing line of RF Cinema EOS products…
As noted, PL and EF are the de facto mounts in the cinema world – so traditionally, Canon has made its cinema cameras available in either PL or EF mount.
With the move to RF, the clever decision has been made to release the Canon Mount Adapter PL-RF instead of offering cameras like the C400 in a PL configuration – in effect, Trojan horsing the RF mount for anyone upgrading to the latest cameras, and making sure they are part of the RF ecosystem.
The Canon Mount Adapter PL-RF is set to arrive in September (along with the EOS C400) priced $1,599 / AU$2,600 (UK pricing TBC).
