My Panasonic 15mm f1.7 lens softness at wide open

junk1 said:

Thanks, did not research it very much for astro but wondered if it would be good for it. Didn't have much time to decide on bidding on it.

I previously used the original F1.4 Sigma 30mm on my Rebel 450d/XSi (12MP) for astro. My GF7 is a lot better in terms of noise, and I surmise the Panny is a better lens.

Albert Valentino said:

If you get into astrophotogrpahy then you are all set with this wonderful lens.

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It is a great lens because 1) it is fast, and 2) it is wide. The wider the FOV the less star trails will be visible, and the faster the lens, the faster the shutter speed to minimize star trails and noise. 30mm is a relatively narrow FOV for astro.

@cuttle (and somewhat @kolyy)

I just got min back from Panasonic service, and it's night and day. No more backfocus and it clearly shows in 1.7 and 2.8 which where I shoot the most.

It is now on par, or better then my 12-35 2.8 zoom.

I won't settle for less/inferior quality on a somewhat expensive Prime like this, and I suggest that you only get it examined. I also suggest NOT taking Kolyy's advice of just stepping back – that is just plain ignorant thinking that heavy cropping is a good option/solution with MFT. Got a bad lens? Just step back, everything will "seem" more sharp. Sorry, no sale.

Good luck.

Unklemac said:

@cuttle (and somewhat @kolyy)

I just got min back from Panasonic service, and it's night and day. No more backfocus and it clearly shows in 1.7 and 2.8 which where I shoot the most.

It is now on par, or better then my 12-35 2.8 zoom.

I won't settle for less/inferior quality on a somewhat expensive Prime like this, and I suggest that you only get it examined. I also suggest NOT taking Kolyy's advice of just stepping back – that is just plain ignorant thinking that heavy cropping is a good option/solution with MFT. Got a bad lens? Just step back, everything will "seem" more sharp. Sorry, no sale.

Good luck.

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You have completely misunderstood what I was trying to tell you.

My F1.4 12mm lens is supposed to come today (USPS). I am at work, so I'll have to drive 10 miles out of my way (and back) to get it on the way to my 30th HS reunion this weekend.

It should be the ideal lens for this (except it'll be a tad heavy on my GF7). I'll likely get the best pictures. Saturday night a classmate will have his 6DII there. I think he finally got a 50mm prime, so his pictures should be better. He used F4 lenses with it for quite awhile...argh. Prior, he wasn't happy with a Rebel - didn't take my advice to simply get a f1.4 lens (so he bought a 6D (version 1) and now v2).

I have the PL 15 1.7, mine is pretty sharp wide open and tack from F2 onward, I'm not pixel peeping or taking shots of rulers to double check, I trust my eyes.

Cagey75 said:

I have the PL 15 1.7, mine is pretty sharp wide open and tack from F2 onward, I'm not pixel peeping or taking shots of rulers to double check, I trust my eyes.

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Mine was soft - very obvious to my trusty eyes - and happily so did the eyes at Panasonic, so they fixed mine.

Maybe use your eyes to comment on the material Cuttle brought to your attention, then just stating that you have a good sample, would help his situation better? Just a thought.

Bad news (for me). Left work at noon to get home before the mailman to sign for the lens.

He had a large cardboard envelope for me to sign but no box. Told mailman it's odd because there definitely should have been a camera lens in a small to medium sized box. He advised me to go to post office after 3 to see if it's there. As I'm walking back to my house I opened the envelope and it was empty...I immediately realized I had been scammed - the envelope WAS my lens shipment!

I ran back and asked the mailman to not forget this situation in case in gets to that (no way was there a lens in the thin envelope, so no way did I receive it)...recall I signed for the "package" so it would be the seller's word against mine.

I didn't want to wait for the seller to (likely not) respond. ebay makes it VERY hard to contact them unless you give seller a few days, plus on ebay, it was not slated to be delivered until today. I eventually figured out how to contact ebay (had them call me- only took 5 minutes) and convinced them to get onto USPS site and see that it was "delivered" a few minutes earlier that day (Friday).

Ebay says not to worry, I'll get my money back (of course, if not I'd contact my CC company) but what a disaster and hassle, plus I had to use the kit lens at my HS reunion... I hope they catch and prosecute the guy, not just eat the loss.

I'm unsure if ebay verifies users. Pretty sure PayPal used to do so by charging you (or paying you?) a few pennies and wait for it to clear to ensure your bank info was real.

Hi Unklemac,

Really happy to hear from you that your lens was fixed. I will take my lens to panasonic too. Would you mind to show me a sample photo taken by your fixed lens at f1.7 and f2.8 please?

Thank you very much.

Cuttle