EF 85mm f1.2 ii - Dust Issues?

[ramk2206]

Friends - I am about to realize my long cherished dream to be challenged by the legendary 85 f1.2 ii prime. Its coming my way in the next 2 days and have already ordered UV filet to go with it. My only concern is that - does this lens suck lots of dust in due to its moving / extending front element during focusing? Considering that this is a beauty of a lens I don't want this potential issue to weigh against this purchase but want some advice on how best to avoid it. I intend to not hold back this lens for indoor use only but also want to use it for street photography occasionally along with my 35L and 135L.

Would greatly appreciate any suggestion from the 85L f1.2 owners.

[Daniel Flather]

Mine is clean, but I bought it new in November.  You'll love the bokeh and shallow DOF.  Enjoy!

[dorkus99]

My mark i version has a bit of dust inside (very little) but in no way does it impact my photos, so I would not worry about it.  Very small specks of dust inside lenses should not be a problem since they are in no way on the focal plane and wont show up in the shot anyway.... in most cases.

[ramk2206]

Thanks for the response. Hope I can take the lens out for street shots and street portraits without worrying about dust. The fact that a 2 grand lens without weather / dust sealing (front element popping out of the barrel during focusing) is causing some anxiety but not stopping me from getting this gem.

[Axilrod]

Mine is 5 years old and clean as a whistle, no worries on that front.  And I don't think the AF is fast enough to suck up anything anyways

Now my 50L did end up with quite a few dust specs somehow...

[Gaf]

I've had the mark II version for a couple years.  I am careful with it, but use it outdoors, at events, etc.   My lens has definitely collected some internal dust and I also have a few specs that have settled near the rear element as well.

I doubt there is anyway practical way to avoid this.  The dust has not noticeably affected image quality and I feel the amount of dust inside after a few years of use is tolelrable.  With this much glass it's pretty easy to notice even the smallest dust particles...I think it was only a couple days after I purchased the lens that I noticed my first dust spec.  It's kind of like a new car though, once you get past that first scratch...you care less and less about subsequent dings

On a side note; someone attempted to steal my 85mm (while attached to a camera) once at a wedding I was shooting.  I got the lens and camera back, but in the process it was dropped - the B+W UV filter was trashed and lens barrel has a nice scratch near the front element, but other than that the lens was fine.  It's a solid lens and I wouldn't hesitate bringing it outside to play with.  BTW the guy trying to steal the camera was not as lucky as the 85mm in terms of damage received.

[ramk2206]

Thanks for sharing your experience. Fell better and reassured now.

[bchernicoff]

I had one and it got a noticeable amount of dust inside the rear element after use outside on a windy day. The gap is quite large between the lens body and and the barrel containing the front element. This barrel is what moves in and out when you focus. I was able to clean the rear element* and decided to sell it in favor of the Sigma. I don't regret this decision at all. The Sigma was roughly half the cost, had much better AF, and with a UV filter on the focusing barrel is contained.


*the rear element is mounted to the lens mount, so removing the four screws holding the lens mount in place will allow you to pivot it out where you can blow off the dust. I did this while wearing a dust mask and un-powdered latex gloves to avoid adding anything worse to the situation. It came out looking like new, but the whole process made me quite nervous.