So I find it funny that Canon has managed to screw up the ultimate lens. I am talking about the Canon EF 50mm f / 1.2L USM. It is the ultimate lens. It has in the matter of three or four months eclipsed all other len’s in my arsenal. I basically toss that lens on and that’s it. No changing no wishing that I had anything different, just pure 50 1.2 glory. It also has eclipsed all other lens in my arsenal in other ways. Mainly ALWAYS BEING BROKEN!!!! Seriously in the short time that I have owned this lens it has had to repaired/replaced three times now!! The first one broke when I picked up the lens by itself with the lens hood. Shouldn’t be a big deal right!! Well the entire front of the lens broke off!!! I went storming back into the store that I bought it at (mostly cause this was not long after I bought it) and demanded a new lens. They eventually conceded and gave me one after canon said it was a defect. Trouble two happened right in the middle of a wedding ceremony. I am crouched down waiting for the bride to come down the aisle, and my camera gives me a lens error code. (ya I know most of the canon error codes by heart) After some fiddling (after the ceremony of course) I was able to discern that the aperture blades were sticking together either wide open or randomly around 5.6 to 8.0 and they would do this regardless of what aperture I would set. Fixed that problem, then now today number three, I was walking home from an engagement shoot with my camera hanging on my shoulder and without anything really hitting it the entire front of my lens fell skittering off onto the sidewalk…..  errr I paid 1500 bux for this pleasure!!! If it wasn’t the best lens optically that I have ever used I would find the designer and forcibly place it into unpleasant places. It has a flaw and I call it a flaw cause it is, the front of the lens is held together with three small screws into a preposterously thin plastic. Seriously the lens hood is made stronger and more durable then this plastic lens front is. Arrrggg…
anyway here is a photo that was taken with the lens a week or so ago.
The Best and Worst can be yours for the low low cost of 1500 bux!!
Jul 29, 2008
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Jesus. That is crap. Find other Canon users with the same problem and threaten a class action suit or something. Hire Matlock.
Can’t argue with the image quality, though.
Come to think of it, Nikon’s 50mm f1.2 has similar build issues…I’ve seen referred to as “Plastic Fantastic”. Don’t know of it falling apart, though.
Well I think that when I get it fixed I am going to toss away the lens hood. All the problems that people have with it breaking tend to be hood related. There is a lot of strain on the cheap small plastic parts when you add the leverage of a hood. Sucks though cause I think that lens hoods are as important as every other part of the lens. I am hoping that they will do the same as the 80 1.2 and release versions in the future that address these issues. < begin rant > I think the issue is weight. They use the plastic in areas that should be metal so they can save weight. To be honest I shoot all day with a Mark II and the 70-200 IS so the extra weight wouldn’t bother me the same way it would to a prosumer that is sticking it on the 5D and going to the park to take photos of the dog/kids/wife/tree/flowers (the 5D weighs less then the 50mm 1.2 does I think) I wish they would stop making things to please a wide range of consumers and tailor the products for the user. Consumers are going to buy the 1.4 if the 1.2 is to heavy. Pros are going to suck it up when it comes to weight but not when it comes to quality both optically and build. < / end rant >