Lots of dusts in a brand new Zeiss?

I know that dusts inside lenses are more common than one usually thinks, and that as far as I know, they have almost zero impact on the image quality.

But it still leaves me with a bizarre feeling finding out about it. Having just forked out $1000+ on a brand new unopened Zeiss, I did not think this would be a problem. But there you go!

Don't think I should return it though.. What are your thoughts?

If I were you, I'd return it.

I don't think I'd mind. After some use there will be dust in the lens like this anyway.

Can you clean it from the other side of the lens? In otherwords, the side of the lens facing the sensor?

snapa said:

Can you clean it from the other side of the lens? In otherwords, the side of the lens facing the sensor?

--
Life is short, make the best of it while you can!
http://grob.smugmug.com/

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Nope it's inside the lens. It's rather hard to check this because the default position of the aperture blades on most Sony lenses is close.

Angrymagpie said:

I know that dusts inside lenses are more common than one usually thinks, and that as far as I know, they have almost zero impact on the image quality.

But it still leaves me with a bizarre feeling finding out about it. Having just forked out $1000+ on a brand new unopened Zeiss, I did not think this would be a problem. But there you go!

Don't think I should return it though.. What are your thoughts?

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Is this a zoom lens? If it's a zoom you could have sucked the dust inside while zooming.

Either way I'd probably exchange it. 1000.00+ for a lens is a lot of money, it should be either dust free or be able to handle/prevent it better at that price. my .02.

rlyons said:

Angrymagpie said:

I know that dusts inside lenses are more common than one usually thinks, and that as far as I know, they have almost zero impact on the image quality.

But it still leaves me with a bizarre feeling finding out about it. Having just forked out $1000+ on a brand new unopened Zeiss, I did not think this would be a problem. But there you go!

Don't think I should return it though.. What are your thoughts?

Click to expand...

Is this a zoom lens? If it's a zoom you could have sucked the dust inside while zooming.

Either way I'd probably exchange it. 1000.00+ for a lens is a lot of money, it should be either dust free or be able to handle/prevent it better at that price. my .02.

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It's the 55mm 1.8 Zeiss, retails locally at about $1070USD.

I normally wouldn't have a problem with this, but the store is sneaky and told me that if I wanted to exchange it I only get one shot and it has to be 24-hour within purchase.

I'd exchange it. No way should a sealed unit of that cost start off with dust inside it. I have a few legacy Minolta lenses from the 70s-80s that have less dust in them than that one. Shouldn't really show on pictures but for brand new premium items, they should be in premium condition in my opinion.

Angrymagpie said:

rlyons said:

Angrymagpie said:

I know that dusts inside lenses are more common than one usually thinks, and that as far as I know, they have almost zero impact on the image quality.

But it still leaves me with a bizarre feeling finding out about it. Having just forked out $1000+ on a brand new unopened Zeiss, I did not think this would be a problem. But there you go!

Don't think I should return it though.. What are your thoughts?

Click to expand...

Is this a zoom lens? If it's a zoom you could have sucked the dust inside while zooming.

Either way I'd probably exchange it. 1000.00+ for a lens is a lot of money, it should be either dust free or be able to handle/prevent it better at that price. my .02.

Click to expand...

It's the 55mm 1.8 Zeiss, retails locally at about $1070USD.

I normally wouldn't have a problem with this, but the store is sneaky and told me that if I wanted to exchange it I only get one shot and it has to be 24-hour within purchase.

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Hmm... I may rethink purchasing from a place that tells me something like that. I'd probably go with B&H, Adorama or Amazon. Either way, at a minimum I'd exchange it or return it and buy elsewhere. That lens has too much dust in it for a $1k lens.

Angrymagpie said:

rlyons said:

Angrymagpie said:

I know that dusts inside lenses are more common than one usually thinks, and that as far as I know, they have almost zero impact on the image quality.

But it still leaves me with a bizarre feeling finding out about it. Having just forked out $1000+ on a brand new unopened Zeiss, I did not think this would be a problem. But there you go!

Don't think I should return it though.. What are your thoughts?

Click to expand...

Is this a zoom lens? If it's a zoom you could have sucked theenslens dust inside while zooming.

Either way I'd probably exchange it. 1000.00+ for a lens is a lot of money, it should be either dust free or be able to handle/prevent it better at that price. my .02.

Click to expand...

It's the 55mm 1.8 Zeiss, retails locally at about $1070USD.

I normally wouldn't have a problem with this, but the store is sneaky and told me that if I wanted to exchange it I only get one shot and it has to be 24-hour within purchase.

Click to expand...

I wouldn't even exchange it, return it and deal with store which has a better policy. I honestly think they didn't deserve your money. Not to mentioned, that lens looks old, with so much dust inside already

Angrymagpie said:

I know that dusts inside lenses are more common than one usually thinks, and that as far as I know, they have almost zero impact on the image quality.

But it still leaves me with a bizarre feeling finding out about it. Having just forked out $1000+ on a brand new unopened Zeiss, I did not think this would be a problem. But there you go!

Don't think I should return it though.. What are your thoughts?

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i'd replace it too.

dust may or not affect image but dust does affect resale.

just about every one of the tens of thousands of used lenses ads i've seen refer to dust or no dust inside.

also...there is dust where you can see it...is there also dust where you can not see it...as in the focus motor(s) or such?

brand new item should be mint.

--
Thanks,
Paul

Angrymagpie said:

I know that dusts inside lenses are more common than one usually thinks, and that as far as I know, they have almost zero impact on the image quality.

But it still leaves me with a bizarre feeling finding out about it. Having just forked out $1000+ on a brand new unopened Zeiss, I did not think this would be a problem. But there you go!

Don't think I should return it though.. What are your thoughts?

Click to expand...

My 1980s Canon FD 50 doesn't even have that much dust in it. For $1000 lens brand new I'd take it back, at that price it should be 100% perfect. Or at least they should sell it as used or something and knock $100-200 off

That's a Zeiss dust - it enhances contrast even more than regular T*. It's made of negatively charged Zeiss anions and they reduce CA and corner softness.

I hope you exchanged it already, since there should be no dust in new prime. It looks like it was refurbished not by Sony and thus dust got in.

Silmarion said:

That's a Zeiss dust - it enhances contrast even more than regular T*. It's made of negatively charged Zeiss anions and they reduce CA and corner softness.

I hope you exchanged it already, since there should be no dust in new prime. It looks like it was refurbished not by Sony and thus dust got in.

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Doesn't look refurbished to me. But maybe they did a thorough job? It even comes with that Zeiss certificate with the "signature" of the person who inspected the lens. I did not know that it's a standard process to refurbish problematic lenses and resale them again as brand new.

I have to say, I'm a little surprised by the comments so far. When I posted the image, I thought people would be telling to get over it, that it happens even to the most expensive premium lenses like Zeiss and Leica, and that it has no effect whatsoever on the image quality.

I wonder if the store would tell me the same thing and argue that dusts inside the lens is not enough ground for exchanging. Is there a Sony policy on dusts in the lens?

I am in the return it category and buy it somewhere else. Sure, dust may get in lenses as part of your routine, but for $1k it shouldn't start out like that from the factory. Good luck to you.

Angrymagpie said:

Silmarion said:

That's a Zeiss dust - it enhances contrast even more than regular T*. It's made of negatively charged Zeiss anions and they reduce CA and corner softness.

I hope you exchanged it already, since there should be no dust in new prime. It looks like it was refurbished not by Sony and thus dust got in.

Click to expand...

Doesn't look refurbished to me. But maybe they did a thorough job? It even comes with that Zeiss certificate with the "signature" of the person who inspected the lens. I did not know that it's a standard process to refurbish problematic lenses and resale them again as brand new.

I have to say, I'm a little surprised by the comments so far. When I posted the image, I thought people would be telling to get over it, that it happens even to the most expensive premium lenses like Zeiss and Leica, and that it has no effect whatsoever on the image quality.

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i'm surprised too. i've seen plenty of these threads and they are most often littered with the "get over it" advice.

*i bought a brand new 'black' vehicle. when i arrived to receive it i found several scratches on the exterior upon inspection.

i was not impressed and let the salesman know.

"but it's black and black shows scratches way more than other colors" was his response.

"it's a brand new vehicle that should have no scratches to show" was mine.

Angrymagpie said:

I wonder if the store would tell me the same thing and argue that dusts inside the lens is not enough ground for exchanging. Is there a Sony policy on dusts in the lens?

Click to expand...

Angrymagpie said:

Silmarion said:

That's a Zeiss dust - it enhances contrast even more than regular T*. It's made of negatively charged Zeiss anions and they reduce CA and corner softness.

I hope you exchanged it already, since there should be no dust in new prime. It looks like it was refurbished not by Sony and thus dust got in.

Click to expand...

Doesn't look refurbished to me. But maybe they did a thorough job?

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I may be wrong, as well as you. However, it's at least very strange to get that dusty lens as "new".

Angrymagpie said:

It even comes with that Zeiss certificate with the "signature" of the person who inspected the lens.

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It may very well come, but what prevents seller to put very same certificate in the box after it was refurbished? I'm not saying it was necessarily refurbished or used - but when you take into considerations amount of dust in a supposed to be new lens - it looks suspicious to be honest.

Angrymagpie said:

I did not know that it's a standard process to refurbish problematic lenses and resale them again as brand new.

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It's not. However, the seller you got it from is not your regular honest Sony official retailer right? In addition 24h return period is not reassuring either. Fishy. But then again I'm not familiar with your country return rules - but I bet it's not common to have 24h return window.

Angrymagpie said:

I have to say, I'm a little surprised by the comments so far. When I posted the image, I thought people would be telling to get over it, that it happens even to the most expensive premium lenses like Zeiss and Leica, and that it has no effect whatsoever on the image quality.

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If it was zoom - then yes. For new prime - it's rare and usually tells there's something more to the lens story.

Angrymagpie said:

I wonder if the store would tell me the same thing and argue that dusts inside the lens is not enough ground for exchanging. Is there a Sony policy on dusts in the lens?

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I bet they would, but if they'll gave you 24h - just return it. If you were buying used then I can understand, but for a new lens to pay full price and get such dust in the lens and 24h return - is very fishy. IMHO. Of course in the big picture - this dust won't do any harm by itself and won't affect IQ. I'm more worried about what if dust is due to "fixing" or "refurbishing" that was done not by Sony (where they have all equipment needed and negative pressure to avoid dust and so on) - then this could mean they may have done something else wrong. Have you checked the lens optical IQ itself - like any decentering, aperture visual inspection any focus AF issues, noise or some marks at lens bottom cover and screws etc? If all is good - then it's up to you. If you still feel that's a right price and you won't get it elsewhere for same price and store seems not fishy to you -then just relax and enjoy the lens and photography.

I wonder what would happen if one goes to a Sony retailer and inspect all their lenses in stock with a torch prior to purchase. I am suspecting that this is perhaps surprisingly common?

Do you guys shine a torch into the lens before/when the purchase?

How many of you have the 55mm 1.8 Zeiss? I wonder if you did check for internal dust at the point of purchase. And if you didn't, I'd be very interested to hear what you find out now with the help of a torch

(actually, doesn't need to be the 55mm 1.8 Zeiss, could be any prime really, or zoom for a comparison)

I would take it back to. I did exchange a SEL55210 due to dust inside but no where as bad as yours.

in Australia, The boxes for Sony lenses are taped sealed with a Sony sticker, so you will know that it has not been removed from the box. Japan does not do this and I think the same for US as well.

Angrymagpie said:

I wonder what would happen if one goes to a Sony retailer and inspect all their lenses in stock with a torch prior to purchase. I am suspecting that this is perhaps surprisingly common?

Do you guys shine a torch into the lens before/when the purchase?

How many of you have the 55mm 1.8 Zeiss? I wonder if you did check for internal dust at the point of purchase. And if you didn't, I'd be very interested to hear what you find out now with the help of a torch

(actually, doesn't need to be the 55mm 1.8 Zeiss, could be any prime really, or zoom for a comparison)

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there is no need to be curious, obviously something was wrong with your particular lens.

how can there be any dust in a brand new lens?

i cant think of any reason for that to happen.

dont need to bring a torch light to any camera shop to check their lens, i assure you brand new lens will not have that.

but it is totally possible if your lens was manufactured in the open air and dusty road side.