Quick question — are you on full-frame or APS-C, and are you cool with 3rd‑party AF or do you want “Canon-safe” reliability? Option A: Canon RF 28mm F2.8 STM (tiny, great street, but not super dreamy for portraits). Option B: Canon RF 16mm F2.8 STM (cheap + fun, but distortion/edges wide open kinda meh). Option C: Viltrox AF 35mm F1.8 RF (better blur/price, but I’ve had occasional AF quirks tho).

Story time: I went through this last year when I moved to RF and tried to keep each prime in that $300–$600 lane… and yeah, it’s doable.

Option A vs B vs C (what I actually used):
- Canon RF 50mm F1.8 STM vs Canon RF 35mm F1.8 IS Macro STM: 50/1.8 is stupid good for the money (sharp-ish wide open, better by f/2.2). The 35/1.8 feels more “do everything” for street, plus IS helps a ton at night.
- Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG DN Art (via adapter doesn’t exist, so ignore lol) → BUT adapting EF: Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM + Canon Mount Adapter EF-EOS R was my cheap hack. AF was fine, just a bit more bulky.

Only caution: STM lenses can hunt a bit in low light, so dont expect USM snappiness. cheers

Ok so when I jumped to RF I had the same “pls dont make me buy $2k glass” panic lol. Before I start name-dropping, quick Qs so I don’t steer you wrong:

- Are you on full-frame or APS-C RF? (35/50 feel *way* different depending.)
- For portraits/street, do you care more about low-light + background blur, or compact size + fast AF?

In my experience, the “budget prime” sweet spot on RF is either:
- Canon’s own smaller primes (usually the best AF reliability), or
- Third-party AF primes (often sharper per dollar, sometimes noisier AF / quirks)

Answer those 2 and I’ll point you at the best-value 35/50-ish options in your $300–$600 range (and what to avoid). cheers

Ok so when I switched to RF I went “cheap primes, lets go”… then realized reliability matters more than hype lol. If you want safe picks in your budget:
- Canon RF 24mm F1.8 Macro IS STM: sharp, fast AF, IS helps street.
- Canon RF 85mm F2 Macro IS STM: killer portrait look, IS, decent AF.
- Canon RF 28mm F2.8 STM: tiny street lens, just be careful in low light.
Lesson learned: buy from a retailer w/ easy returns + test AF at f/1.8 day 1. gl!

Yep, this is the way

Hmm, I’ve had a different experience… I’d actually suggest a slightly different approach than jumping straight to “best 35 vs best 50” lists. On RF, budget primes can be awesome, but the *right* pick depends hard on a couple details.

Quick Qs first:
- Are you on full-frame or APS-C? (35/50 behave totally different for street + portraits.)
- When you say “portraits,” do you mean tight headshots or more environmental stuff?

Reason I ask: if you’re mainly street + environmental portraits, a small, light Canon prime (or even a compact third-party AF option) is usually the best value. If you’re doing tighter portraits, I’d prioritize longer focal length + reliable AF over chasing f/1.x sharpness wide open (which gets $$$ fast). i get it tho… budgets are real. cheers!