I've been a user and advocate of Canon products since 1995, recommending them many times to camera shoppers, but I'm rapidly losing faith in the quality of their L series lenses. In the past 6 months alone, I've had three Canon L lens failures which so far has cost me over $1200. The first failure was the 24-105mm f/4 L, which had the infamous "err 01" failure, which essentially means a ribbon cable loses connection when the lens is zoomed out. While this has been a common failure with this lens among many photographers, Canon refuses to admit the problem is a manufacturing defect. The second failure was with the 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 IS L lens, which turned out to be the same problem as with the 24-105. My third failure was with the 85mm f/1.2L II lens, which would hang up at the minimum focus distance while seeking focus. Canon wanted to replace the autofocus assembly and untrasonic motor at a ghastly price. They refused to address the problem of a possible mechanical adjustment or repair, so I sent it to Kurt's Camera Repair in San Diego and they were awesome. They actually repaired it, vice replacing the parts and it works perfectly now. Common sense prevailed. To be fair, I realize these lenses are extremely complex with lots of moving parts, but dealing with Canon's Repair support was very frustrating. Swapping out parts is not a repair. I don't know if others are having problems with their Canon L lenses, but I'm seriously considering switching to the Nikon system. Or, replace the Canon L lenses with the excellent Sigma "Art" series lenses, especially if the produce something to compete with the 85mm f/1.2L. I've already replaced the Canon 24-105L with the Sigma Art 24-105 and so far very satisfied with the results.
-
Welcome to the new forums! Please read this first. For known issues we are working to resolve, click here.
Canon L lens failures
- Thread starter blogdawg
- Start date
netgarden
Forum Pro
Hi, I've been using Canon L lenses for over 10 years and no problems so far. They all still work fine and I havnt had any dysfunction. A few problems with cameras but all my equipment has been used a lot.
i have had 13 "L" lenses and 4 canon cameras in the past 10 years with absolutely no issue! i took my 40D+17-40 f4.0+70-200 f4IS overseas for almost 5yrs under some roughest conditions you can imagine with zero issue. i guess it depends on the type of usage and in what condition that determines the probability of breakdown, IMO!
syd.
syd.
hotdog321
Forum Pro
I've been using Canon gear for 30+ years, sometimes under harsh conditions or handling: sports, banging into walls, bounced off sidewalks, rain, etc. Never had the kinds of problems you are experiencing.
I got the err 01 a couple of times on a 70-200 f/2.8 IS version 1 a couple of times--turns out the screws near the base were slowly working loose after years of use. I once snapped a 16-35 f/2.8 in two and Canon fixed it at a reasonable price. I've been using my beloved 300 f/2.8 non-IS since I bought it in 1993 and it is still one of the sharpest lenses I own.
And the latest batch of "L" zooms (16-35 f/4L II, 24-70 f/2.8 II and 70-200 f/2.8L IS II) are simply the best on the planet. Arguably, the new 100-400 II and 11-24 may fall into this same category--I don't own these last two lenses so am reticent to say too much.
--
photojournalist
http://craighartley.zenfolio.com/
I got the err 01 a couple of times on a 70-200 f/2.8 IS version 1 a couple of times--turns out the screws near the base were slowly working loose after years of use. I once snapped a 16-35 f/2.8 in two and Canon fixed it at a reasonable price. I've been using my beloved 300 f/2.8 non-IS since I bought it in 1993 and it is still one of the sharpest lenses I own.
And the latest batch of "L" zooms (16-35 f/4L II, 24-70 f/2.8 II and 70-200 f/2.8L IS II) are simply the best on the planet. Arguably, the new 100-400 II and 11-24 may fall into this same category--I don't own these last two lenses so am reticent to say too much.
--
photojournalist
http://craighartley.zenfolio.com/
Last edited:
brightcolours
Forum Pro
Hahahaha. Yeah, Nikkor lenses never have any problems, and everything gets repaired for free with Nikon anyway
.Thanks for the responses. I've had the 100-400L repaired at least 4x since 2001 and Canon was very helpful and there was no charge for at least one of the repairs. Most of the issues I've had with breakdowns and service have been recent. I switched from Nikon to Canon in 1995 because of shutter issues with the Nikons, so no equipment is perfect. However, first the red ring came off the 24-105, then the rubber zoom ring came loose, then the err-01 code. Seems the lens was literally falling apart. I'm as gentle with the equipment as possible, but it does get heavy use. I guess I'll factor extended warranties into the cost of the lenses in the future.
NancyP
Veteran Member
Who should know more than a guy who rents large numbers of lenses? go to LensRental.com, look for the blog, and search for repair data. Generalizations: Primes don't fail. Zooms fail, and longer faster zooms fail more than shorter zooms.
NancyP
Veteran Member
My personal Canon and other lens failure rate? Zero. 6 Canon, 2 Sigma, 1 Samyang, 1 Zeiss. Plus, a flock of old all-manual film lenses that have no parts that would fail. The modern lenses are much more complex due to the electronic communications.
Scott Larson
Veteran Member
Note that if you switch to Nikon, you won't be able to send anything to a third party for repair like you successfully did with your 85mm f1.2. Nikon no longer sells parts so you must send everything to Nikon and accept their diagnosis.
ed rader
Veteran Member
and I have owned quite a few and I don't baby my equipment.
ed
ed
Sorry to hear of your disappointments. I had the "err 01" thing with my 24-105mm kit lens bought in 09 and like you, was very disappointed that Canon would not accept this as a design flaw given the sheer number of failures people reported. Although it was frequently used I would not say it amounted to heavy use. I had it repaired at CS then I sold it. So far, this is the only lens failure I've had but have to say all , my other lenses are under used. If you switch brands, is there any convincing reason to think the others are more reliable? Not a rhetorical question.
brightcolours
Forum Pro
No, others are less reliable usually. Nikkors don't have failing aperture flex cables, but other parts fail like VR units, 24-70's breaking in half, AF-S motors dying. Pentax lenses have/had SDM motors being relabelled sudden death motors (and Pentax has no FF for now anyhow.
Thanks sacentre, probably no reason to think Nikon would be any better. I do like the new art series though and will probably replace more of my L lenses with them. I also have a 50mm f/1.4 Zeiss and like that there are other options out there. Seems Canon has been having production problems, which may be contributing to their moving production back to Japan. I've not had any problems to speak of with their bodies though.
"I could tell you stories that could make you cry".
brightcolours
Forum Pro
I don't think Canon produced L series lenses outside of Japan.
maiaibing
Veteran Member
Not sure lack of quality or manufacturing control is the problem.
"L" lenses are well built but like all other mechanical/electrical/optical equipment they have weaknesses and may fail due to bad luck, faulty manufacturing or wear and tear.
I've been quite lucky so far but had very bad experience with Canon "Gold" service. I also find repairs very expensive. However, our individual impressions are not very telling when it comes to failure rates etc. Some of us are lucky others not.
If you look at the stats and other info on Lensrentals' site there are certainly things Canon could do better, and - sadly - the three lenses you mention all have weak spots that are likely to fail sooner or later if you are unlucky. For example the 100-400 IS L II features several important construction improvements over the I version. While the 85L II is prone to electrical failures.
On a more general note their stats show that especially IS lenses have somewhat higher failure rates.
To consider is also that Nikon repair times in the US (according to Lensrentals) generally are longer for Nikon than for Canon.
Good luck with your choice.
NancyP
Veteran Member
Well to be exact, I have one suboptimal AIS Nikkor 50 f/1.2 that I bought as "ugly" (It has bad engraving on it) for cheapish on eBay. When I got it, the lens was optically great (yay!) but the focusing helicoid had lost some grease, so there's no silky feel and dampening as typical for the better manual focus Nikkors. It still focuses fine, it doesn't feel right (it feels like a cheapo lens), so I live with it because the optics are great. No, not as great as a Sigma Art 50 at f/1.4. The Nikkor is a pre-aspherical design, a classic double-Gauss "Planar"-type design, so there's some aberrations at f/1.2, but you can use those aberrations for some types of photos. The AIS Nikkor 50 1.2 is a fine landscape lens at f/2.8 to f/8.
I had my 70-200 F/4 L IS fail, it would not focus properly, after about six years of very hard use and travel. I thought that was okay. Canon service created a problem the first time it went in for repair, but subsequently fixed it. The price for repair was worth it and I am still using it three years later. It is a great lens.
Nothing last forever, especially mechanical things. The electronics usually fail sooner rather than later, and many of the electrical things that fail later involves a mechanical cause, loose connection, or a broken wire or circuit.
Any lens can fail, but I do believe my L series lenses are fairly robust. Mine have been lugged around the world and have been used in bad conditions, being place in a placing, non-photo specific backpack, the lenses simply placed in the bag with their thin original non-padded pouch or sometimes nothing at all. I do this to not advertise I have expensive camera gear when shooting in potentially dangerous places. I think the fact my gear still works well is a testament to their construction. The finish still looks good on the 70-200 as well.
Sorry the OP has had a bad run of luck, it happens sometimes, and it can happen with any product or brand.
Nothing last forever, especially mechanical things. The electronics usually fail sooner rather than later, and many of the electrical things that fail later involves a mechanical cause, loose connection, or a broken wire or circuit.
Any lens can fail, but I do believe my L series lenses are fairly robust. Mine have been lugged around the world and have been used in bad conditions, being place in a placing, non-photo specific backpack, the lenses simply placed in the bag with their thin original non-padded pouch or sometimes nothing at all. I do this to not advertise I have expensive camera gear when shooting in potentially dangerous places. I think the fact my gear still works well is a testament to their construction. The finish still looks good on the 70-200 as well.
Sorry the OP has had a bad run of luck, it happens sometimes, and it can happen with any product or brand.
Similar threads
- For sale
Keyboard shortcuts
- f
- Forum