How did Canon got white color lenses?

[MarkM6]

I was wondering how did Canon end up making lenses in white? What was the reason? Marketing or there is more to it?

[langelis]

I was wondering how did Canon ended up making lenses in white? What was the reason? Marketing or there is more to it?

I am guessing it's marketing. People come from all around me when I am shooting and ask that silly question: "are you a photographer" I don't think they would notice me if I had the common black lenses on.

[cmason]

I was wondering how did Canon ended up making lenses in white? What was the reason? Marketing or there is more to it?
Said to reduce the tendancy of metal to warp and shrink when heated by the sun... white reflects, black absorbs.

not all "L" lenses are white, some of the shorter ones are black...but ALL have the "L" red ring

[gus]

Said to reduce the tendancy of metal to warp and shrink when heated by the sun...

:dunno I had always assumed it was to reduce air expansion inside due to pressure build up from heat. Maybe a bit of both.:scratch

[pathfinder]

There are those who think it is just maketing hype, but stick a black lens in the hot sun all day long and feel it, and then do that with a white lens.

I know most of us do not spend the entire day in the sun, but think of the shooters at the NFL games or the World Soccor League games - those lenses may be in the sunlight all day long and still have to work. Canon says the Flourite lens elements tolerate high temps more poorly than glass lenses.

I would prefer black lenses, as white lenses just draw too much attention, but there you go. Then I'd have to shoot a Nikon I guess.:dunno:scratch

[Bob Bell]

:dunno I had always assumed it was to reduce air expansion inside due to pressure build up from heat. Maybe a bit of both.:scratch

I have heard the heating up the inside of the lens often and the pressure thing is probably the technical reason but I can tell you why I like it. Shooting in AZ, the white lens don't get too hot to touch unlike black bodies and lenses.

[ivar]

:dunno I had always assumed it was to reduce air expansion inside due to pressure build up from heat. Maybe a bit of both.:scratchHey, i never thought of it like that, but that makes sense. Composite glider aircraft are usually white because of that reason too.

[DanielB]

what you said is probably true gus, but i think its partly marketing too, i mean. you can have a 70-200 f/4L on there, and people still look at you like you have a 600 on it. they're just baffled by the white, and the next thing they always look at is my neck-strap... so i think its part legitimate reason, part marketing.

[cmason]

what you said is probably true gus, but i think its partly marketing too, i mean. you can have a 70-200 f/4L on there, and people still look at you like you have a 600 on it. they're just baffled by the white, and the next thing they always look at is my neck-strap... so i think its part legitimate reason, part marketing.
well, then why isnt the 17-40L white? or the 85L, etc etc...but guess that goes both ways :)

[DanielB]

well, then why isnt the 17-40L white? or the 85L, etc etc...but guess that goes both ways :)

they're smaller:thumb even though i don't think the 17-40 could be considered small... *shrug* maybe they set the bar at 70-200 zooms and up for primes?:dunno

[gus]

I would prefer it black in a heartbeat. As PF said it draws lots of unwanted attention.

Some good ..

marshal #1 "..whos that flamin' idiot hangin' over the track wall with the huge white lens ?" ..

marshal #2 "..:dunno dunno, ive been ignoring him...just another bloody stupid freelance photographer ..i bet he will move quick when a car hits the wall there though"

Some bad ..

Me under a tree in the park on my knees using a tripod aiming vertically into a tree with maybe 300 screaming fighting rainbow lorikeets in it.

Passerby ...".. what are ya takin' a photo of mate ?...the birds ?"

[cmason]

they're smaller:thumb even though i don't think the 17-40 could be considered small... *shrug* maybe they set the bar at 70-200 zooms and up for primes?:dunno

right...warping would makes sense on the longer lenses, but likely not as big and issue on the shorter, leading to the conclusion that it aint all marketing....

[wxwax]

Stuff and nonsense, just your typical urban legends being repeated here.

Good grief.

The truth, as usual, is a lot less glamorous. On February 13th, 1984 at the Canon Oita manufacturing plant on Kyushu Island, Fujin Dansei was on the catwalk above the long lens assembly line. The plant was undergoing some renovations and Dansei, notoriously stumblefooted, or as they say in Japan, "amai", kicked the bucket of whitewash off the catwalk and right onto an assembly line. Whitewash completely coated the lenses.

As luck would have it, Canon President and CEO Fujio Mitarai was touring the manufacturing facility that very afternoon. When the whitewash made a splash, everything came to an abrupt stop. It was one of those terrible, infinitely long pauses when nobody moved, nobody said anything. They all just looked in horror at what had happened, and waited to see how President Mitarai would react.

You may not be familiar with it, but in Japan the concept of saving face, or "boke bonkura", is a big deal. Mitarai, although the CEO, was very aware of lowly Dansei's "bijin bishonen", literally translated as "nakedness to exposed rear." Always a quick thinker, Mitarai saw the whitewash all over the expensive, immaculate production line... and broke out into a huge smile and clapped his hands with approval, a tradition known as "aho." In order to save Fujin Dansei's face, he declared that Dansei had given Canon a bold new look, and that from that moment on, all Canon big glass would be white instead of black. To further cover Dansei's "bonkura", the Canon lab came up with the heat dispersion story.

So there you have it. The real reason why Canon long lenses are white instead of black. By the way, here's (http://www.angelfire.com/anime4/jslang/jibiki.htm) a handy guide to all those Japanese words.

[DanielB]

Stuff and nonsense, just your typical urban legends being repeated here.

Good grief.

The truth, as usual, is a lot less glamorous. On February 13th, 1984 at the Canon Oita manufacturing plant on Kyushu Island, Fujin Dansei was on the catwalk above the long lens assembly line. The plant was undergoing some renovations and Dansei, notoriously stumblefooted, or as they say in Japan, "amai", kicked the bucket of whitewash off the catwalk and right onto an assembly line. Whitewash completely coated the lenses.

As luck would have it, Canon President and CEO Fujio Mitarai was touring the manufacturing facility that very afternoon. When the whitewash made a splash, everything came to a abrupt stop. It was one of those terrible, infinitely long pauses when nobody moved, nobody said anything. they all just looked in horror at what had happened, and waited to see how President Mitarai would react.

You may not be familiar with it, but in Japan the concept of saving face, or 'boke bonkura", is a big deal. Mitarai, althought the CEO, was very aware of Dansei's "bijin bishonen", literally translated as "nakedness to exposed rear." Always a quick thinker, Mitarai saw the whitewash all over the expensive, immaculate production line... and broke out into a huge smile and clapped his hands with approval, a tradition know as "aho." In order to save Fujin Dansei's face, he mandated that Dansei had given canon a bold new look, and that from that moment on, all Canon big glass would be wite instead of black. To further cover Dansei's "bonkura", the Canon lab came up with the heat dispersion story.

So there you have it. The real reason why Canon long lenses are white instead of black. By the way, here's (http://www.angelfire.com/anime4/jslang/jibiki.htm) a handy guide to all those Japanese words.


:lol3 thats funny. does anyone have any examples of long lenses that were made black before this happend?:dunno

[MarkM6]

Sid,
I laugh out so fraking loud that my boss is asking what the hell...

Mannnn that was a good one. Tell me you waited for this reply!:evil

[wxwax]

Sid,
I laugh out so fraking loud that my boss is asking what the hell...

Mannnn that was a good one. Tell me you waited for this reply!:evil
:lol3 Hey, I'm a history buff, what can I say?

[DanielB]

Hey, I'm a history buff, what can I say?

i know you got that from an article, please tell me where. i have to bookmark it and show it to my Nikonian friends.:D

[wxwax]

i know you got that from an article, please tell me where. i have to bookmark it and show it to my Nikonian friends.:D
Nope, wrote it based on my exhaustive research of Canon history.

I got more. Wanna know why they only spell Canon with one 'n'?

[DanielB]

I got more. Wanna know why they only spell Canon with one 'n'?

share your wisdom sid. :D

[Bob Bell]

Sid, I think you should save this knowledge for around the dinner tables in Utah :) LOL

[MarkM6]

I got more. Wanna know why they only spell Canon with one 'n'?

Please!!! Pleaseeeeeeeeee.....:clap

[JimM]

Count me in on the 'N' story!

[David_S85]

While we're all sitting on our hands waiting for the Canon with one "n" story, here's the poop on why their lenses are white (or off-white).

This page tells the story of the white lenses. Click #22, uses FLASH:

http://photoworkshop.com/canon/lessons/lessons_21-25.html

[Red Bull]

Why are they white? Because the good guys always wear white.:D

[Blurmore]

Since it is only the biguns, I'd say it is so the TV audience can tell Canon from Nikon on the football sidelines, ofcourse Tamron made a few big whites as well, but most are Canon.

[Blurmore]

:lol3 thats funny. does anyone have any examples of long lenses that were made black before this happend?:dunno

80-200 f2.8 L aka "the magic drainpipe" aka highest rated Canon zoom ever on photodo

[DanielB]

80-200 f2.8 L aka "the magic drainpipe" aka highest rated Canon zoom ever on photodo

thought the 70-200 2.8 was canon's highest rated zoom...:scratch

[ziggy53]

Nikon also has "white" (actually light gray) colored lenses as an option for some of their more expensive entries:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=242161&is=GREY&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=242161&is=GREY&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=242161&is=GREY&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=248293&is=USA&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=278173&is=GREY&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=242157&is=GREY&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

-------- ad nauseum.

[DanielB]

jesus look at the size of that thing!
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=242157&is=GREY&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

[MarkM6]

Nikon also has "white" (actually light gray) colored lenses as an option for some of their more expensive entries:

You know... I, really am starting to believe that they [Nikon] are catching up to Canon! That's put them at 2nd palce.

What is said about the 2nd place; the first loser!

P.S. It does make me sad since I have never own any other SLR (Film or Digital) than Nikon.

[Cyclops]

I was wondering how did Canon end up making lenses in white? What was the reason? Marketing or there is more to it?

I was told that the reason for the white paint is because the fluorite elements are much more temperature sensitive than glass.

[JamesJWeg]

I always thought the white/gray lens just looked cool, then I started shooting races, in the heat of the summer, no shade, black lens, all day, now I truly understand it isn't about the looks. Ever burn your hand on your lens? I have. Cooked the greese right out of one lens, it squeeks when focusing now. :wxwax

James.

[ziggy53]

You know... I, really am starting to believe that they [Nikon] are catching up to Canon! That's put them at 2nd palce.

What is said about the 2nd place; the first loser!

P.S. It does make me sad since I have never own any other SLR (Film or Digital) than Nikon.

I really can't think that way, that there is a first-place camera, etc. I eventually want three camera systems (very much IMHO):

Canon based system:

It is well known that Canon has the most extensive lineup of lenses and the best 3rd-party lens support of all the brands. I am underway in acquiring, within reason and bank-account, a good spread of lenses for my planned purposes.

Canon 50mm, f1.8
Pentax 50mm, f1.4 (w/mount adapter)
Sigma 18-50mm, f2.8
Canon 24-85mm, f3.5-4.5
Canon 70-200mm, f2.8
Tokina 80-200mm, f2.8
Tamron 75-300mm, f4-5.6
Vivitar 500mm, f6.3 (w/mount adapter)


While I currently have a Canon 1.6 crop camera, Canon full-frame bodies have a very smooth texture, which I would appreciate for portrait and sky work. The creamy-smoothness is hard to duplicate in software, and the FF chips produce it (smoothness) right out of the box. (Note that most of the lenses I have will also work on FF bodies.)

Nikon based system:

The D2X is what I consider the ultimate sports-shooters camera. A fast capture rate at full crop becomes super-fast in high-speed-crop mode. I would value the ability to see peripheral parts of the view in the viewfinder, while banging out 8 frames per second.

You also see a lot of birding and wildlife photographers using Nikon, because the long lenses are very well supported and extremely high quality. The slightly grainier look of the Nikon sensor is more conducive to nature and, I think, preserves edge structure better, which is extremely important with feathers and fur.

Konica-Minolta based system:

The 7D and 5D both have image stabilization built-in, so every lens benefits. For travel photography, this can mean a very small kit, which covers almost every circumstance. I really think 3 lenses would give me almost all that I could envision for travel and hiking.

17-35mm f/2.8/4
28-75mm f/2.8 G
70-200mm f/2.8 APO G


While I think they, Konica-Minolta, could do better on the short end (wide-angle), the long APO, and especially the APO "G" series lenses, are world-class, and some are a genuine value.

I realize that it's gonna take a while to build all these systems, and the money required is pretty severe, so my plans are going to change considerably and evolve as the companies change and evolve their products. I realize that this, the above, is just my opinion.

More than likely, I will stay with one brand. :cry More than likely, money will be the determinant factor.:cry :cry

I can still dream. :D

ziggy53

[JamesJWeg]

--chop--

Nikon based system:

The D2X is what I consider the ultimate sports-shooters camera. A fast capture rate at full crop becomes super-fast in high-speed-crop mode. I would value the ability to see peripheral parts of the view in the viewfinder, while banging out 8 frames per second.

You also see a lot of birding and wildlife photographers using Nikon, because the long lenses are very well supported and extremely high quality. The slightly grainier look of the Nikon sensor is more conducive to nature and, I think, preserves edge structure better, which is extremely important with feathers and fur.
--chop--

ziggy53

owning both a D2X and a D2H and shooting sports I have to say that the D2X at this point does not live up to the D2H in action situations. Having to jump trough 5 hoops to get in and out of crop mode kills crop mode for me. As such for me the D2X does not have a usable frame rate as high as the D2H. Also I have yet to get the D2X to do focus tracking correctly, the D2H never had a problem with it. I can't seem to get the idea of using part of the view finder through my head ether, playing with it I got plenty of missing body parts. Also the in camera noise reduction on long exposure shots takes so long that you miss MANY shots if you are using it. I have not done a comparison to see how the frames would be without it. I tried to shoot some fireworks on newyears and only got a few frames because it was taking 10+ sec for the noise reduction to run. Bottom line, I love my D2X, but the D2H is not for sale.

James.

[zigzag]

I really can't think that way, that there is a first-place camera, etc. I eventually want three camera systems (very much IMHO):

Canon based system:
...

Nikon based system:
...

Konica-Minolta based system:

The 7D and 5D both have image stabilization built-in, so every lens benefits. For travel photography, this can mean a very small kit, which covers almost every circumstance. I really think 3 lenses would give me almost all that I could envision for travel and hiking.

17-35mm f/2.8/4
28-75mm f/2.8 G
70-200mm f/2.8 APO G


While I think they, Konica-Minolta, could do better on the short end (wide-angle), the long APO, and especially the APO "G" series lenses, are world-class, and some are a genuine value.

I realize that it's gonna take a while to build all these systems, and the money required is pretty severe, so my plans are going to change considerably and evolve as the companies change and evolve their products. I realize that this, the above, is just my opinion.

More than likely, I will stay with one brand. :cry More than likely, money will be the determinant factor.:cry :cry

I can still dream. :D

ziggy53

If you are looking for a small travel kit and already have system #2 for birding or whatever, then just buy an 18-200 VR2 lens. It covers the whole range you're talking about covering with three, and the quality is said to be excellent (surprisingly for such a range). And every (1) lens benefits from image stabilization. :): Plus I've found that traveling in some countries means that conditions are not ideal for opening up the camera, not to mention the shots you miss while changing lenses. It's the perfect travel lens, perhaps paired with a small/lightweight 50/1.8.

[zigzag]

jesus look at the size of that thing!
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=242157&is=GREY&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

This one is affectionally called "the Beast" in another forum. It's not just the size; at over 2 lbs, it's the weight too! It's also a really phenomenal lens that I'm considering for my next purchase.