Canon to Launch a More Affordable Stereo Wide-angle Lens for Spatial Video Capture

Leading camera maker Canon today announced its next big entry into its dual-optic lens category, which allows its line of high-end EOS R7 cameras to take spatial video and photos.

Called the RF-S3.9mm F3.5 STM Dual Fisheye lens, Canon says its more affordable VR lens system is engineered to offer “a perfect balance between clarity and usability for vlog-style VR creation.”

The new Dual Fisheye lens seems to be mostly the same idea and execution as the previous model introduced in 2021, however features slightly lower specs, including a smaller field-of-view and aperture, but offered at a greatly reduced cost.

To boot, the new lens system is scheduled to be available sometime this month for $1,099.00, or about half the price of the lens initially announced for its EOS VR System from 2021.

“This APS-C Stereoscopic VR lens’ ability to achieve a 144º wide-angle view and utilize equidistant projection makes it ideally suited for every day, virtually hassle-free VR production,” Canon says in a press statement. “Also designed for versatility, this lens permits multiple methods of camera handling, from hand-holding, mounting on a gimbal, or tripod-mounting.”

Notably, the new stereoscopic lens features an interpupillary distance (IPD) of 60mm, which is very near to an average human IPD, making captured content more realistic when played back the the user.

Check out the full specs below:

Focal Length
3.9mm

Maximum and Minimum Aperture

Lens Mount Type

Interpupillary Distance / Baseline Length
60mm

Minimum Focusing Distance

Maximum Magnification
0.03x

Angle of View (Diagonal)
144° 00′

Lens Construction (each lens)

Special Elements (each lens)

Lens Coating

Filter Size Diameter (rear lens mount)

Rear Mounted Gelatin Filter Holder

Aperture Blades (each lens)
7

Lens Switches
None

Dust/Water Resistance
Not Provided

Focusing System

Left/right focus difference adjustment

Dual Pixel CMOS AF
Supported

Focus Guide
Not Supported

Full-time Manual Focusing
Supported

Control Ring
Supported

IS Mode Selection
Not Supported

Optical Image Stabilization
Not Supported

Stabilization with in-body IS (EOS R7)
Not Supported

Dimensions (width x height x length)

Weight