Canon 50 1.4 USM can not Auto Focus?

[chong_xu]

Hi I have a Canon 50 1.4 which I haven not dropped or anything, but recently sometimes it can not auto

focus. Whenever I try to focus it to a close or faraway object it stops autofocusing, seemingly stuck there

and most of the time twisting the focus ring a little bit will help it recover.

 

Manual focus works fine all time.

 

Anybody recognize the problem please help me out...

It is over 1 year warranty so I can not simply send it to Canon for fix. I dont know where else I could go

for a fix and how much it is gonna cost me Thanks a lot!

[PuppyDigs]

Last summer I was at Canon Hawaii's service center and the minimum charge was $150. So I

imagine you're looking at least 150 clams...

[jcolwell]

You could try cleaning the contacts at the base of the lens. Maybe a bit of lens cleaner or (gasp) water on a soft, lint-free cloth would do it.

[james_sawle]

Not ever had a problem with the 50mm lenses, if anything they are the most trouble-free lenses I have, I got the 1.4 some time back, then the 1.2 and just recently I have managed to locate a 1.0, all are just great lenses, I would go with cleaning the contacts on the lenses and the camera, can not think of anything else, they are fairly bomb proof lenses.

[adzy]

The 50/1.4 is actually well-known to suffer from this problem- google and you shall know.

 

I have a 50/1.4 which decided to behave this way too. It occasionally autofocuses, never sent it in for repait though. If you get an estimate, do let us know.

 

Azi

[picturesque]

I sent my 50mm 1.4 to Canon and paid about $140, about a year and a half ago. I did drop it though--if only about an 8" drop onto carpet. After repair, it's been perfect.

[catchlight]

Mine quit focusing altogether, AF or manual, and is on its way to Canon for an estimate. No trauma, it just quit in the middle of a shoot.

 

Question: does anyone else's 50/1.4 rattle if gently shaken? Mine rattled from new, but worked perfectly for 5 years.

[eric merrill]

My 50/1.4 quit autofocusing, too. No trauma. Didn't drop it. I didn't use it to cushion my fall from 2500 ft when my main chute failed to deploy. No rational explanation at all.

 

It's been a few months. There have definitely been times that I've missed it, but not as many as I thought there might be. I've heard lots of other issues with this particular lens, too. So I'm wondering if I'd be better served going with the 50/1.2L, instead.

 

 

Eric

[chong_xu]

Thanks everybody for answering.

Well, $150...at least I know I am not the only unlucky one now. Kind of hoped that it's just a minor problem that I could somehow fix since I didn't do anything to it, sigh.

James Colwell, thanks for recommending the cleaning of contacts. I tried it and didn't solve the problem...but thanks a lot anyway!

If anyone had luck solving the problem cheap please do let me know, thanks!

[jim_b5]

I recently dropped my 50 1.4, still in its Lowepro case, onto a carpeted floor and broke the focusing mechanism. I sent the lens to Canon Canada in Mississauga, Ontario and was charged C$270 for the fix - approximately half the price of a new lens.

 

The lens was not fixed in-house at Canon. The return shipping label shows it came from Sun Camera Service in Toronto. Sun Camera's website (http://suncameraservice.ca/index.htm) says, "Sun Camera is the primary photo, digital and video repair center for Canon Canada in Ontario and parts of Quebec as well as a national depot of choice for Future Shop/Best Buy Ltd and Henry's."

 

My lens is now working well and I have no complaints about the workmanship. However, when the lens was returned I received no documentation or receipt explaining what was done to the lens. For my own records, interest in what I paid for and protection in case the repair fails within the next few months, I'll have to go after Canon Canada for some kind of documentation.

[jon_austin]

All these reports of failed AF mechanisms in this kludgy microUSM 50/1.4 over the years are why I won't buy one. And the 50/1.2L just isn't worth the price for the amount of use I'd give it.

 

I'll continue to get by with my excellent (if buzzy) 50/2.5 CM until Canon decides to put true ring USM into the 50/1.4 (or /1.6, /1.8, whatever).

[uncle git]

Mine just packed up as well - sending it to canon this week for repair.

 

$93 was the standard rate quoted - but they reserve the right to crank that cost up once they get a look at it.

 

Again no trauma - it just quit working - both AF and MF.

 

Sounds like a design defect - which stinks as it's a lovely lens to use.

[terry_smith2]

I'm on my third and last one of these lenses. The AF quit on the other two for no particular reason. When this one quits, I have a 50/1.8 in the original version on the shelf waiting to replace it. Canon should have owned up to this years ago and redesigned the AF mechanism of this lens.

[emre]

Mine died due to sand in the barrel. I will send it in when I have $150 burning a hole in my pocket.

 

Why didn't they seal this thing properly?

[robin_sibson1]

Sand can ruin almost anything, but you don't need sand to stop the AF on the 50/1.4 from working. By now it's a very well-known problem, and is associated with the unique design of the 50/1.4 which is the only non-ring-USM lens that allows full-time manual focusing. The mechanism is plastic and under-specified, and collapses at the slightest provocation. How do I know? The technician at Fixation in London explained it to me when I had my own 50/1.4 sorted out.