I bought a 35f1.4l from adorama and found it to be not tack sharp. Sent it back and got a second. Still not sharp. Has anyone had the same prob. I rented one from lensprotogo and that was extremely tack sharp.
I bought a used 35/1.4L last year and it wasn't so good. In fact, it was carp at close range. I sent it in to CPS Canada for a CLA, and now it's exactly as expected - sweet!
Did you check it using manual focusing also? Did you try the micro adjust to see if that would improve it? Canon will adjust the focusing also if you send it in to them.
donsj3cub wrote:
I bought a 35f1.4l from adorama and found it to be not tack sharp. Sent it back and got a second. Still not sharp. ...I rented one from lensprotogo and that was extremely tack sharp.
Because of the very narrow depth of field at f/1.4, fast lenses are very sensitive to manufacturing tolerances. If two out of three lenses weren't sharp, it may be that the combination of tolerances in the lens and the camera are adding up to an out of range total.
If that's the case, having the camera and lens calibrated by a Canon service center may help.
I talked to a Canon tech and he said the same thing send it to adjust it. There is a micro adjustment we can adjust? Manual was a tiny bit better but not to where I would call it sharp
BrianO wrote:
Because of the very narrow depth of field at f/1.4, fast lenses are very sensitive to manufacturing tolerances.
There's a very interesting article for anyone interested in this sort of thing.
donsj3cub wrote:
I bought a 35f1.4l from adorama and found it to be not tack sharp. Sent it back and got a second. Still not sharp. Has anyone had the same prob. I rented one from lensprotogo and that was extremely tack sharp.
Very likely lensprotogo performs regular maintenance on their rental stock and has it calibrated for optimal performance. If you're lucky, you might get one that works well with your camera but more often than not you need to calibrate--sometimes both lens and camera--for best performance.
My 35L is very sharp at f/1.4, but you have to get the focus just right at that aperture. Sometimes I have to take a couple of shots because I would move ever so slightly, which is enough to throw it off. At f/1.4, your DOF is very small.
I would second the suggestion of trying a shot on a tripod.
Tried tripod. With the lensprotogo lens being very sharp I guess the next option is to send it in. I tried manual and af today. To me still looks soft. I'll try to put some shots on tonight.
