Im looking at getting a 1D 3 and now this has come out. Whats the consensus?should I wait xyz amount of time and get a 'fixed' model or put it back on my dealer to ensure my copy is spot on? Thats probably unrealistic. Im in Australia, and not in Sydney, so this is a massive hassle if my copy is off.
I was thinking exactly the same when the former fix was released but this one had me completely off. While it is good to see that Canon still addressing this issue, one can't help wondering if there will not be a third fix in a few month's time.
I emailed Canon CPS in the UK today as I am currently deliberating over a new MK III, the response I got was the following:-
Thank you for your recent enquiry
Cameras manufactured for several months have had the benefit of the new focus calibration software which has resulted in a more accurate focussing system. We would recommend contacting one of the Canon Professional Centres which can be located by following the link below to make your camera purchase.
No hardware has been changed in the camera supporting this recent announcement, therefore any camera can be calibrated using the new software to achieve excellent results.
Don't know what to believe as people are reporting components replaced.
I contacted my dealer who I do a fair bit of business with and he emailed me straight back. He replied that the new( ie current 1d3) had the firmware and were fine.
When I said " Can you double check this as it's all over FM like a rash...."
He wrote..."I'll make a call tommorrow...."
It's all a bit hard to know which bodies may or may not be affected. Like someone suggetsed.We need a date stamp recall or similar so ppl can feel confident any problem in their 1 series body has been corrected.
Got mine back just now - they said a week, did it in 3 days. Washers (what the heck are washers?) and mirror box replaced. First impressions are pretty good. With my 24-70, some outer points were way off (arriving at a focus distance of 3 meters with an object 5 meters away) but now it's spot on with every focus point. Asked them to clear the viewfinder while they were at it and they did that as a courtesy too - no more strange blobs in sight!
Alas, I've got to run now (alas as in: take it with a grain of salt, there's champagne involved) so I can only go out tomorrow and do some field testing but I'm optimistic.
Would seem plausible that some sort of spacer would be necessary in addition to software calibration for bodies whose AF accuracy lie outside certain tolerance limits.
Lots of positive comments following this fix. It seems Canon may have come up with an AF system which works ok but took them 2 years to develop software tools accurate enough to calibrate it.
Over 24 hours and still no shipping label and I called them earlier to make sure they had the correct info. I'll get it just in time to have it sit on a dock over the weekend
It seems I've been too hasty and too optimistic. I've been shooting both test charts and outside. Center point was and still is more accurate than the outer points. Some are performing very well, but the outer lower ones (bottom left, bottom right) are consistently front focussing with all of my lenses though this of course is less apparent with slower glass or at higher apertures. I'm done shooting test charts now - will do a final series this weekend as proof for Canon where it will head back next monday. I'd almost think they replaced the hardware but forgot to align all AF points.
Mine is back: Pretty much one week exactly all in. Mine just seems to have been adjusted, no PCB board or mirror assy' or washers.
£45 all waived as goodwill. Will try it out for a while before making any assessments. If any machine needed to have parts replaced, I thought mine was a prime candidate. Ah well, time will tell.
Though I don't shoot test charts, I did shoot some random static objects and some people candids using the upper most focus point. It does seem more spot-on now, then before the fix. Before the fix, my 70-200 f/4 IS lens would be slightly OOF a lot, now it seems to work a bit better. Also, I had better luck w/ my f/4 lenses in general.
They returned mine today after only having it since Monday. It doesn't mention the washer/spacer fix, but when I called they said that spacers were inserted. They also said to make sure I call them if there are any problems after I test it. They sure seem to be trying!
Had both the 1DIII and 1DsIII done - same day service in Sydney.
So far seems more accurate (lense microadjust -2 instead of +7) only problem is ALL the settings have been put back to standard, so had to spend a while figuring out what I'd changed (like file naming ...)
RonHodgson wrote:
Hey Gene.... the Pelicans will be showing up in the next few weeks..... Just a heads up ...... And yes, I'm sending MkIII in..... if nothing else, just for a check up..... besides, I'm still on down time from my wifes surgery.
Even though my 500 is out of warranty, Canon sent me a shipping label to Irvine
Well maybe I shouldn't smile until they fix it and I have seen the bill
Got mine back earlier this week. I was quoted 10-12 days, and I think I had it back in 5. My initial testing didn't go so great... but then I realized something I should have checked when I bought the camera used, the previous owner apparently had many of the same lenses. When I went in to the AF Microadjust, I found that some of the points were up to +/- 7 points in either direction. I had to redo the focus adjustment with about 4-5 of my lenses and now I need to go do some real world testing. I was impressed that Canon did the repair without a copy of receipt or warranty card.
