Luv my Canon EF 24mm f/1.4L II lens EXCEPT for starscapes

I've had my Canon EF 24mm f/1.4L II lens now for 18 months. Super lens for landscapes and architectural work with my full-frame 5D Mark III. Also works great on my 7D for sports, and wedding wedding candids (with an APS-C crop). I love shooting wide open and getting those dreamy-soft backgrounds.

HOWEVER, the main reason I bought this lens was to shoot Milky Way starscapes, using it wide open at f/1.4 so I could lower my ISO's (from 6400 down to 1600) and reduce noise. What a disappointment! I checked all the reviews before buying this lens, but none of them mentioned its severe coma aberration when shooting wide open

Canon 24mm @ f/1.4: enlarged area near the edge shows stars with severe coma distortion.

Most of the coma goes away by the time I stop down to f/2.8...

...however, I paid dearly for an f/1.4 lens, NOT an f/2.8 !!

I've since discovered several other prime lenses that have much better coma correction, and at 1/3 the price, but there is another trade-off (however, it is one I can live with). Read my blog review for more details.

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Royce Bair
Into-the-Night Photography
(featured photographers, tips, tutorials, and reviews)
http://intothenightphoto.blogspot.com/