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24-105 is l lens bad copys


davey h

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Hi to every one if this question has been asked before then i am sorry but

couldnt find it on Threads. I am in the market for a 24-105 lens as it fits

nearly all my requirments! however reading different reviews on the lens some

say they have had "bad copys" would anyone know if this is a common complaint?.

A big thanks for any replys.

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<P>I can only say I got a good one. At 50mm F4 it blows away my EF 50 1.4 USM and 50

1.8. Plus it's equally sharp across the zoom range and at all F-stops. That is, stopping

down to F8 doesn't increase sharpness (but does increase DOF). Very strange lens.</

P><P>As for QC, I think all lenses are subject to variance and are similar to musical

instruments in this regard. Zooms, however, are much more complicated than primes and

therefore

more stuff can to go harwire. After all, the 24-105 has 18 pieces of glass in that coke

tube.

I feel lucky the light makes it out the other side!</P>

 

<P><A HREF=http://emedia.leeward.hawaii.edu/frary/canon_ef24-105.htm"

TARGET="_blank">My Review of the EF 24-105 4L IS USM</A></P>

Sometimes the light’s all shining on me. Other times I can barely see.

- Robert Hunter

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I'm obsessing on this lens as well. Have a 24-70 with a 20D and am considering the 24-105 as main lens on a 5D. Alternately, I'd just migrate the 24-70 to the 5D. The added telephoto end of the 24-105 (plus IS) would be very nice, but I find this comparison between the two not too kind towards the 24-105:

 

http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/ISO-12233-Sample-Crops.aspx?Lens=101&FLI=0&API=2&LensComp=355&FLIComp=0&APIComp=0

 

Puppy Face, your link is broken. Could you have a look at it? I'm very interested in reading your review.

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The version i have is razorsharp, i can not see much difference in image quality compared to a canon prime. Only at the larger end its a tiny bit softer, but still better than most zooms i have tried. As the previous poster mentioned, this lens is sharp wide open and there no increase in sharpness stopped down.There have been some problems with this lens when it came out, but i am sure Canon has fixed it by now.http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/controller?act=PgComSmModDisplayAct&keycode=2112&fcategoryid=216&modelid=11924
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<P><I>"The 24-105 f4 IS USM ( is this the one you mean ? ) has very serious flare

problems on

the early versions. Canon issued a "recall" on these and claim to have cured the problem

now - suggest you go to dpreview and look there for further reference."</I></P>

 

<P>I think they did more than claim they fixed it. I have a recent copy and the 24-105 is

the

most flare resistant zoom I have owned. The Waianae Sunset below was taken with the

24-105. It would be filled with ghosting and flare if I took it with a consumer zoom, e.g.,

28-125 IS USM (sorry if I offend haters of the sunset cliche).</P>

 

<img src="http://emedia.leeward.hawaii.edu/frary/sunset_images/

waianae_sunset_0356.jpg">

Sometimes the light’s all shining on me. Other times I can barely see.

- Robert Hunter

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I recently purchased a 5D and the 24-105 lens and couldn't been happier with this

combination! They're as sharp as anything I've seen. (Thanks to PuppyFace for the advice.)

However, here is a potentially complicating issue that I've discovered. I also have a 10D

and several lenses including a 17-40 and 100-400. The 10D cannot focus the 24-105

worth a hoot! The best images look poor and the worst are looking through vaseline.

They look focused when shooting. On the 17-40 and 100-400 the 10D does as well at full

resolution as the 5D. It also does fine on my primes. For a time I was considering getting

just the 24-105 and waiting on the 5D. I'm sure I would have been screaming about the

lousy lens had I done so. As it is, the 10D and 100-400 will stay married and the 5D will

do all the rest. Interestingly the 10D did the same thing with an old 28-105 from my Elan

days. I blamed the lens then; now I'm thinking of sending it and the 10D to Canon for

focus calibration.

 

This is probably a 10D specific focus issue and your 20D would probably be fine.

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Mine worked beautifully right out of the box, but any product line can have a bad sample. I'd say the odds of getting a good one are enormously in your favor,but like any lens it should be tested at all focal lenths and apertures before the return period is up
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Apparently the ones with the flare problem has serial numbers below 1000, but by now I would imagine that all those 1000 units would have been gone off the shelves of retailers anyway, so it should be fine. Buy from a good retailer, so if you are not happy with it, just return it, but chances are you'll keep it. It is a nice lens.
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<I>Apparently the ones with the flare problem has serial numbers below 1000</i><P>The lenses which were recalled had a <i>control number</i> that read less than 1000 (UT1000 or less), not a serial number.
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Control number is UU, so well beyond those affected by the recall. I don't know which way you intended your post - I thought the lower shot at 105mm with the sun directly on the front element is amazingly flare-free, and fully expected to see every lens element with the sun in the frame at 24mm in the upper shot.
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