Hi all,
I just received a Canon 50/1.4 LTM, and, first of all, I'm already sending it back thanks to another issue. So this isn't a "should I keep the lens" thread! It's more of a "should I bother trying another one" thread.
Basically, the thing has all sorts of focal plane issues, and I'm wondering how common they are in other copies. The big one is field curvature that I could best describe as "mustache shaped." Though I know that that's usually reserved for distortion, so maybe I'd say it's shaped more like...a ripple in a glass of water? Dramatic backfocus in the center that curves back toward the camera as it moves outward, then into the distance again at the edges. The effect is somewhat visible in these two shots - the tree, as well, is totally out of whack, with the bottom in focus and the rest of it a blur. Both are at f/4 at slightly different focus distances.
Now, I'm definitely not ruling out the camera being somewhat at fault here. The lens does focus well past infinity on it, which could be down to an issue with the mount. However, the weird curvature is still present on my digital camera (which is APS-C and therefore not wholly useful here), and a 35mm lens I have seems to do alright with infinity focus.
So...anyone have any experience with the lens? If I try another one, am I likely to be equally disappointed? I've perused Flickr a bit, and the results have been kind of inconclusive, with a couple of hints here and there that it might not be unique to my copy. There's one person with a set of sample shots that definitely seem a lot better than mine, but you never know. I definitely don't need pixel-peeping quality out of a film setup, but I find unevenness really distracting.
Oh, and might there be a diffference between the two versions, even though they seem to have the same optical design?
Thanks!
I just received a Canon 50/1.4 LTM, and, first of all, I'm already sending it back thanks to another issue. So this isn't a "should I keep the lens" thread! It's more of a "should I bother trying another one" thread.
Basically, the thing has all sorts of focal plane issues, and I'm wondering how common they are in other copies. The big one is field curvature that I could best describe as "mustache shaped." Though I know that that's usually reserved for distortion, so maybe I'd say it's shaped more like...a ripple in a glass of water? Dramatic backfocus in the center that curves back toward the camera as it moves outward, then into the distance again at the edges. The effect is somewhat visible in these two shots - the tree, as well, is totally out of whack, with the bottom in focus and the rest of it a blur. Both are at f/4 at slightly different focus distances.
Now, I'm definitely not ruling out the camera being somewhat at fault here. The lens does focus well past infinity on it, which could be down to an issue with the mount. However, the weird curvature is still present on my digital camera (which is APS-C and therefore not wholly useful here), and a 35mm lens I have seems to do alright with infinity focus.
So...anyone have any experience with the lens? If I try another one, am I likely to be equally disappointed? I've perused Flickr a bit, and the results have been kind of inconclusive, with a couple of hints here and there that it might not be unique to my copy. There's one person with a set of sample shots that definitely seem a lot better than mine, but you never know. I definitely don't need pixel-peeping quality out of a film setup, but I find unevenness really distracting.
Oh, and might there be a diffference between the two versions, even though they seem to have the same optical design?
Thanks!
