24-70 2.8

I've done a lot of reading on this lens and the synopsis of it is that if I can

get a good one, that it is an excellent lens. However, what concerns me is

that there are so many people complaining that they either have to go through a

couple of lenses before getting a good copy or have to send it to Canon for

calibration. Some give up and go for another lens. I read of poster?s

problems with back-focus and lack of sharp images - specifically with the 24-70

2.8. All this concerns me as a potential buyer.

 

I want this lens for the 30d and to potentially be able to use is on a full

frame later on (hence not the 17-55 - which is an excellent lens). It would be

an investment in quality for me.

 

Bottom line: Is Canon's quality control on this lens as poor as some of the

posters would make it appear? Or, does this lens get jostled in shipment

causing to go out of calibration. Or, is it impossible, with as many elements,

to make ?em all perfect and I should expect this?

 

I want this lens for the 30d and to potentially be able to use is on a full

frame later on (hence not the EF-S 17-55 - which is an excellent lens). And, I

don't want to spend this amount on a lens that doesn't yield as sharp of an

image as I would expect for the price.

No problems with mine.

This type of thing gets asked ALL the time.

 

Some will come here and tell you they have been using Canon equipment for 20+ years and never had a single problem with any body or lens. Or maybe 1 thing wasn't quite right in all that time and it was fixed in no time by Canon, for free.

 

Others will bash the company saying their quality control is terrible and that you have to buy Zeiss and Leica to get anything worth their price tag.

 

Well, as a quick heads up, my case is basically:

 

Purchased a brand new Rebel XT a year and half ago from a reputable authorized dealer in New York. The camera was DOA. Right out of the box it was just error 99 and I couldn't take a single picture.

 

Sent it back for exchange. The next one had a massive clump of blazing hot pixels that were viewable as a big red ball even in 4x6 prints.

 

Bought a 135mm f/2.0L: front focus like you wouldn't believe. Exchanged for a new one which works fine.

 

Bought a 35mm f/1.4L: extreme back focus. Sent to Canon for adjustment

 

Bought an 85mm f/1.2L II: Works perfectly :D My first Canon item that works lol.

 

Bought a 16-35mm f/2.8L II: The most extreme front focus I've ever seen. Also, very dissapointing optically. No better than my kit zoom except at the extreme corner of the frame.

 

And NO, it isn't my camera body causing the focus problems. That was sent in as well and is in tip-top shape.

 

So anyway. Just hold your breath and hope you're one of the lucky ones. Not to scare you or anything. As I said, some will claim absolutely no problems with Canon in years in years of use. I guess it's just my luck. Good luck, sir.

I was also weary of the quality control issues specifically with the 24-70. Sooooo... I bought it refurbished from Adorama and it works perfectly. They still have one available also (which kind of tells you again about the QC with this lens as I do see it frequently in the refurb bin). The reason I got a refurb is that someone has gone through it with a fine toothed comb to make sure it is within specs. I shot a recent wedding and engagement pics with it. I have some pictures on my website (OK I have minimal skills when it comes to making a webisite, also it still is under construction, but hey it works). It's tanweddings.com. The pics from the 24-70 are under portfolio and they are the Jay and Jamie wedding.

No problem with mine either.

No problems, Excellent lens.

Mine's spot on too.

I'm still in love with mine!

Since going digital a little over three years ago, I've put well over 100,000 images through my 10D and 5D bodies combined, with probably 40 per cent shot on the 24-70 2.8L (another 40 per cent on the 16-35 2.8L and the remainder on the 70-200 2.8L IS). All three lenses have worked flawlessly, and I find the 24-70 to be the best glass of the three.

I do portraits and street photography, nearly 70% of my pictures are from this lens. It is a great lens and I can't imagine what it will be like without it.

 

I use in on full frame and 30D as well. You will never regret getting this lens!

It is not a problem specific to Canon. Other brands have problems too. But I would say that for every "bad sample", there are what, 1000 good ones? 100 good ones? In the end, the chances of getting a bad sample are very small indeed.

 

I have been using the EOS system since 1991, never had one problem. I have also used nikon and Pentax gear a few times, no problem there. I have always bought the gear from local and reputable dealers (in my case in Portugal, where I am from). In the past few years I have been living abroad (in Oman), and I buy the stuff from B&H or Adorama. Again, reputable dealers.

 

Having said that, problems will occur, you can not beat statistics. I am sure that Canon, as every other company, will have their own rules as far as QC goes. Perhaps they deem acceptable to have one or two "bad" lenses in a batch of 100, I don't know. I think they do not inspect every lens manually; that is what Leica do, and that is one of the reasons why their lenses are priced the way they are.

Thank you, Paulo, for saying almost literally exactly what I said somebody would say :) You didn't hate on Canon though which is nice ;)

I entered the Canon (d)SLR world 4 years ago, and have purchased 3 bodies and 9 optics (5 zooms, 3 primes and 1 TC), of which I still have 2 bodies and 6 optics.

 

I've never had any problems with any of them in the "focus department," but then again, I've never shot test targets either. But I am pretty picky about image quality, and I've printed 13x19 from just about everything in my bag, and I'm very pleased with the results.

 

Buying a Canon body or lens is not a guarantee of purchasing perfection, but it's not Russian roulette, either. If you should get one of the (IMO) rare duds, send it back during the merchant return period for an exchange, or send it in to Canon for a free tune-up.

 

(Don't worry, be happy.)

Thanks to all who replied to my question. I ordered the lens.

 

I guess the thing that got me is was that some of the negative opinions seemed seriously seated in their level of aggravation and it got me wondering quite a bit.

Well, the focus was a 'lil soft on mine... bad luck I suppose.