I have a four month old MKII that just will not produce a nice sharp, crisp image on par with my other L lenses. Not at 1.2,2.8 or f4. It does not seem to be front or rear focusing. Its just soft. Do you think this is some thing Canon can fix or do I just have a bum lens?
It's usually user error... Crazy shallow DOF requires VERY steady hands. Try to do the same with MF & a tripod to compare against the AF on the same tripod. Make sure that you're using a remote cord or a timer and that you and/or your subject do not move. The 85 f1.2 has a bit of a learning curve to master.
camera? is it soft with any camera, work other lenses fine on the body, also soft on a tripod?
since I am a "shaky" guy ;-) I try to have a shutter speed of 1/100 or better (1/160 is ok for me). below that I use a tripod.
Keep in mind the DOF at apertures of 1.2 to 4.0 is veeery thin... how do you focus? do you move your camera after focusing?
without examples and exifs it's hard to tell....
send it to Canon for calibration that's all I can say without images and further informations.
Let me take a couple of days to do a good photo evaluation and then I'll post the results here for a more informative example. Thank you for you replys........Max
mordicai wrote:
I have a four month old MKII that just will not produce a nice sharp, crisp image on par with my other L lenses. Not at 1.2,2.8 or f4. It does not seem to be front or rear focusing. Its just soft. Do you think this is some thing Canon can fix or do I just have a bum lens?
Post a sample. There are many things that could be going on: technique, unrealistic expectations, front/back focusing, etc.
If it really is out of adjustment Canon can fix it. If the issue is something else there may be other remedies.
I think the problem with these very fast primes is that many people want to use it wide open all the time, even when they are so close to their subject that they end up with too narrow a dof. If you find yourself being challenged by the dof, either back up, or stop down. Some will disagree, but these primes are not about shooting only wide open.
There is difference between sharp optics and OOF AF. When I shoot people at F1.2/1.4 I only expect one eye in focus (must use MF for glassess wearers for get focus on a pupil). I shoot bursts of shots and either rock my body or the MF.
Do NOT focus and recompose, especially wider open. You will be disappointed. Select your AF point specifically. Also realize that at f/1.2 the DoF is ridiculously thin. Finally, this lens is sharp from wide open all the way down; if yours isn't in light of the above, get it fixed.
mordicai wrote:
Let me take a couple of days to do a good photo evaluation and then I'll post the results here for a more informative example. Thank you for you replys........Max
Not tack sharp like it is stopped down but still "sharp" (in my opinion)
