God knows how many times I’ve read this question in photography equipment forums “Why are most Canon L lenses white?” or “Can’t Canon give me a black L lens?” etc…

Well first of all there are quite few Canon L lenses that are black and second Canon is not the only manufacturer that “offers” white lenses. Lenses are white for a reason.

Why Lenses are white?
As you might now, not all Canon L lenses are black. The 24-70, 24-105, 17-40, just to name a few, are all black although they are L series lenses. However all lenses with a long focal length, like the 70-200, 100-400 etc…, are white.

Those lenses are build for professional that might spend long hours shooting in the sun and/or in hot temperatures, e.g.: Wild life photography. White is known to reflect heat, rather than absorbing it, keeping the interior of the lens as cool as possible to protect glass and fluorite elements inside the lens.

All this being said and although Canon is not the only manufacturer offering white lenses, it has become a kind of branding that White lenses = L lenses.

Why nag about white lenses?
Although some people might nag about the color of their lenses just because they do not like white there is a valid reason why a black lens might be a better choice. White simple Attracts more attention: And that holds true for animals (if you are shooting wild life), people (shooting street or candid) and thieves.

So what can you do if you just hate to walk around with a big white lens in hand

1. Switch brands: Canon is far from being the only big name in cameras and photography equipments but it looks like it is the only one having only white telephoto L lenses. So the obvious solution would be to ditch Canon and switch brands
2. Paint them: Although I have seen some pictures of painted L lenses on the net I do not think it is a good idea to feel so adventurous with $x,xxx equipment
3. Hide them: I don’t mean to put them in a bag, but there are lens coats out there on the market.

Would it really matter with you if your lens was white or black ?

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