XF 16-55mm - Do I have a bad copy?

Rod McD wrote:

Hi,

The f2.8 image looks awful to me, even if it wasn't the ideal aperture. Nothing seems to be in focus anywhere in the image. Which leaves various possibilities.....

• Was it focused too far (beyond infinity, if that is possible on the 16-55 - it is on many AF lenses). And how/why?
• Was it focused too near? Seems unlikely.
• Was it on a tripod with the IBIS left on?

Other than those ideas, I'm stumped I'm afraid. A suggestion.... Put the lens on a tripod, IBIS off, and re-shoot using manual focus assisted by 10X magnified view. Try several shots refocused between each. If you get the same results, it's probably the lens optics, if you nail sharp focus, it's not the optics and you may have an issue with your camera's AF accuracy at that distance.

Then try it (still on the tripod) with the IBIS on, and see if that re-induces the loss of sharpness. If it does, it's the IBIS generating movement and it will confirm that you need to turn it off when using a tripod.

You could also repeat these tests at closer distances and see what results you get.

Regards, Rod

Thanks for the suggestions, Rod.  Those are good ideas for troubleshooting.  The photos above were shot hand held with IBIS enabled.  I am inclined to believe that this is indeed a problem with the lens itself, as I get the same results when shot using my X-Pro 2.  And other lenses seem to focus just fine on these bodies, without any issues focusing at distant landscape subjects.