peter_rowe

Sorry I an bit late to the party but I would not give up on this lens yet. It is nice to have a full-frame lens of this reach that is so compact. I have 40" photos on my walls that are crystal sharp with beautiful color. The lens new is overpriced but you can pick up great deals on Fred Miranda for 1/2 the cost. This is a specialist lens though and there are certain things you need to do to get the best out of it, I think this article describes it best: EF 70-300 DO IS USM Tips and Tricks (Fovea)

>> Do you think difference is only about editing ? Oh yes, absolutely: http://www.optikvervelabs.com/peter/wall.jpg

<p>Hi JD,<br> Sorry I am late to the party. You did good on the dollar bill test but for one thing; you need to fill the viewfinder with the dollar bill. In other words, get as close as needed so that the dollar bill takes up most of the viewfinder (15 feet maybe?). Also, ISO 1600 is a bit high and has the potential to soften images so since you are on a tripod take the shot at ISO 100, f8, with mirror lockup and timer, put some descend light on it and post a 100% portion of the shot here without any post-processing (no resizing). This will show if there's a problem with your lens, it's highly unlikely believe it or not.</p>

<p>I have the Canon and it is a fine lens. Used as a straight up prime it is sharp while at extremes it is less so in the corners mostly, still a great lens though as it can do things no other lens can. Keep in mind it is a manual focus lens. Typically Tilt/Shift lens are used on a tripod using live view so they can be a bit tricky to use especially handheld. It is easier to use the shift feature than tilt as focus is easier. From what I have read over the years I'd say they gather dust for most people who have them as it really is a specialty lens and needs some time and effort to learn and use. 24mm still has quite the DOF so when tilted the focus drop off from the focal plane may not be as apparent as you expect (this surprised me a bit when I first got the lens years ago). I see some options at lensrentals.com if that is available to you maybe you could rent a T/S beforehand to see if the whole T/S portrait idea works for your needs. If you do plan a purchase then I'd head over to fredmiranda and get a used one.<br> Good luck</p>

<p>The "U" means the manufacturing site is "Utsunomiya", the "B" means the year is "2013". The "0323" is an internal Canon manufacturing code.<br> <a href="http://eflens.com/lens_articles/canon_lens_date_codes.html">http://eflens.com/lens_articles/canon_lens_date_codes.html</a></p>

<p>I also have the 100-400mm L IS MK 1, made in 2003 with a date code of "UR". Like yours it uses "I" and "o" for the IS ON and OFF symbols. Mine works but I have to say that it is oftentimes difficult to tell in the viewfinder if it is working or not. I can here it whirring and if I watch "real close" I can sometime see that it does smooth out jerky movement but only if it is randomly moving around in a certain way. I have surely 10 other lens with IS and all are very obvious when IS it turned on - there's an immediate "smoothness" to the image and a little lag when moved but with my 100-400mm it is very difficult to see. I actually often ask myself if it is working at all. I think that we would be lucky to get 1 stop out of it. You might try putting it on a solid tripod and engaging the IS - it should slowly, but very obviously, drift the image over few seconds.</p>