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D5D and Sigma 17-70 focusing issue

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OscarW

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Hi all,

I bought a new Sigma 17-70 f2.8 zoom lens two days ago for my D5D kit lens replacement. After I found out that the lens cannot focus perferly with my D5D, I went back to the shop and replaced another one. Since the second lens also cannot focus right, I called local Sigma serivce center today for help.

Sigma technician told me that he had received few 17-70 f2.8 lens from KM users with my same problem for the last few months. They tested and found no problem with their lens and suggested their KM customers to check the camera instead.

The Sigma 17-70 focusing problem is :
  • there are more that 50% that D5D focus more than it should be with the Sigma lens, especially at 17-35 wide sides.
  • examples : for 1m focus, Sigma moves to 1.5m marking; for infinity focus, Sigma moves to beyond infinity marking ...
I send my D5D to SONY/KM service center today and hope they can find out if my D5D is having the problem.

The Sigma 17-70 is my fourth lens. My existing KM 75-300, KM 18-70 (kit lens) and Tamron 90 Macro are focusing fine with the D5D.

Hardly can I remember any focusing issues with my lens before (less than 10 shoots with bad focus). I have taken more 12,000 shoots with my D5D for the last 10 months, it is also one of the reason that I send my D5D to SONY for checkup.

I still don't know it is the D5D or the Sigma lens problem yet.

Any experience like mine ???

Thanks.

Oscar
 
I have both the 17-70 and 5D and I have never expierenced any focusing problems. Try to find someone else with a 5D and try your 17-70 on their camera. You might learn something.

Good luck - I hope you resolve your problem as the 17-70 is an excellent lens.
--
Thanks, Ed
Torrance, CA
 
My experince with sigma lenses are bad. Being as ex-canon guy, they always have compatiblity issues where tamron or tokina does not have. Their equipment breaks easier.

Therefore, I do not buy their stuff anymore.

If I were you, if your camera is OK with other lenses, I would not bother to send it for repair and keep myself with anything else but sigma.

--
  • burak.
====================
http://www.thephotopia.com
====================

It's weird that photographers spend years or even a whole lifetime, trying to capture moments that added together, don't even amount to a couple of hours. [James Lalropui Keivom]
 
uniqua97 said:
My experince with sigma lenses are bad. Being as ex-canon guy, they
always have compatiblity issues where tamron or tokina does not
have. Their equipment breaks easier.

Therefore, I do not buy their stuff anymore.

If I were you, if your camera is OK with other lenses, I would not
bother to send it for repair and keep myself with anything else but
sigma.
Click to expand...
Hi uniqua97,

Thanks for your comment.

Actually, this is my first Sigma lens and may be the last one too. I choose this because I had been waiting too long (months) for the CZ 16-80 or the Tamron 17-50 f2.8 KM/SONY mount. Once I learnt that the CZ 16-80 is delayed and there is still no sign for the 17-50 KM mount, I went for Sigma.

I am having a long vacation in China next month and I also have promised one of my friend to give away my KM kit lens to him after he bought the A100 body (he just did).

Before I selected this Sigma lens, I did many searches on the lens and found very little negative comments on this lens and hardly can I remember any focusing problem with D5D too.

SONY/KM service center called me this morning saying that my D5D focusing system is not consistent and requires adjustment. It seems reasonable for my 12,000+ shoots in ten months.

It will take them 1 week to do so. Let see what happen by then.

Thanks anyway.

Oscar
...
 
As previously mentioned, I have the Sigma 17-70. I also have the Sigma 70-300 APO DG Macro (Red Ring Version) and the Sigma 70-200 f2.8 APO EX DG. All three lenses work perfectly on my 5D. Many Minolta users on this fourm and Dyxum agree that all three of these Sigma lenses are excellent and are very good value for the money.

Based on what I have read, some older Sigma lenses don't work well or don't work at all on newer Minolta cameras. I don't pretend to be a lens expert but many third party lenses including Sigma are excellent and represent excellent value for the money.

While I'm surprised that you have had such bad luck with the 17-70, I don't think you should give up on Sigma lenses in general. I don't know what to suggest under the circumstances, but I hope you enjoy your up coming trip.
--
Thanks, Ed
Torrance, CA
 
OscarW said:
Hi all,

I bought a new Sigma 17-70 f2.8 zoom lens two days ago for my D5D
kit lens replacement. After I found out that the lens cannot focus
perferly with my D5D, I went back to the shop and replaced another
one. Since the second lens also cannot focus right, I called local
Sigma serivce center today for help.

Sigma technician told me that he had received few 17-70 f2.8 lens
from KM users with my same problem for the last few months. They
tested and found no problem with their lens and suggested their KM
customers to check the camera instead.

The Sigma 17-70 focusing problem is :
  • there are more that 50% that D5D focus more than it should be
with the Sigma lens, especially at 17-35 wide sides.
  • examples : for 1m focus, Sigma moves to 1.5m marking; for
infinity focus, Sigma moves to beyond infinity marking ...

I send my D5D to SONY/KM service center today and hope they can
find out if my D5D is having the problem.

The Sigma 17-70 is my fourth lens. My existing KM 75-300, KM 18-70
(kit lens) and Tamron 90 Macro are focusing fine with the D5D.

Hardly can I remember any focusing issues with my lens before (less
than 10 shoots with bad focus). I have taken more 12,000 shoots
with my D5D for the last 10 months, it is also one of the reason
that I send my D5D to SONY for checkup.

I still don't know it is the D5D or the Sigma lens problem yet.

Any experience like mine ???

Thanks.

Oscar
Click to expand...
...
Follow up

I bought my Sigma 17-70 for my KM D5D about 2-3 weeks ago. Below are my experience with my first Sigma lens.
  • The first lens had serious 'back-focus' issues and I changed another one one day later.
  • The second one was a bit better but still not okay.
  • I sent my D5D to SONY for focus system checkup. After checkup, it was better but was not
perfect.
  • I sent the Sigma with my D5D to Sigma service center for checkup. After that it is much better, but again, not perfect.
The point is - my D5D focusing system works very well with my KM 18-70 kit lens, Tamron 90 Macro and KM 75-300 for almost 1 year.

If you have the lens, you can check it as follows:
  • set f-stop to 2.8 at 17mm
  • take some far landscape picture at 'infinity'
The 'infinity' point with my D5D is about 1mm pass the 'infinity' marking of the lens.

I got 30% of the autofocus points pass the lens' infinity marking by more than 2mm and the photos will be out-of-foucs.

Below are some good foucs samples taken this week.
1.



2.



3.



4.



5.



Thanks for viewing.
...
 
You cannot judge focus accuracy by looking at the distance mark. The distance mark on the lens is just for rough indication. All lenses could focus beyond the infinity mark to compensate for temperature change. The real infinity position could change slightly depends on temperature.

Do you have some samples of bad focus shot?

Biu
 
Biu said:
You cannot judge focus accuracy by looking at the distance mark.
The distance mark on the lens is just for rough indication. All
lenses could focus beyond the infinity mark to compensate for
temperature change. The real infinity position could change
slightly depends on temperature.

Do you have some samples of bad focus shot?

Biu
Click to expand...
...
Hi Biu,

I think I know what I am doing, especially if you have been using Nikon FM, FE, FM2, F2AS, F3 and tens of Nikon lens for tens of years. Thanks for your 'temperature' theory.

Below are the markings.

1. Good infinity mark of Sigma 17-70 at 17mm



2. D5D Out-of-focus infinity mark of Sigma 17-70 at 17mm



3. Sigma 17-70 maximum infinity mark



Sets of samples taken for your reference:

Set 1: 1/1600, f2.8, ISO100 (reference)



Centre crops at 100%
1.



2.



3.



4.



5.



6.



Set 2: 1/400, f2.8, ISO100 (reference)



Centre crops at 100%
1.



2.



3.



4.



5.



6.



7.



Photo sets were taken within seconds apart only.

I hope that help.
...
 
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