Canon 85L II AF speed on 5D III???

[Hector1970]

Personally I love this lens. I suppose it's more of a specialised portrait lens. I love the shallow depth of field and te bokeh. Focusing is noticeably slow but to be honest I think it improves your photography when it takes a bit more effort. It's quite a stubby lens, short fat and a bit heavy. Could be easy to drop . The rear glass is quite flush to the back. Attaching it isn't difficult but not as easy as others. I'd recommend it. F1.2 is special
I have a few recent photos near the top of my Flickr page with it (two dogs)
www.flickr.com/FergalO'Callaghan

[neuroanatomist]

Just confirmed - camera off, mounted the 85L II (set to AF), powered camera on, touched no buttons/dials/etc., and as soon as the self-clean finished, rotating the focus ring extended the front element.

[RunAndGun]

I think some people are overstating the fact when they say the focus speed on the 85 1.2 is really slow.  I have this lens(mkII) and the 1.8 non-L version, as well.  I think the 1.8's focus speed is faster(and MOD is closer), but the 1.2 isn't as bad as it has been made out to be.  For the type of photography that most people will use this lens for, it's more than adequate. 

I will tell you two things that I learned early on with this lens, though:

1). It is not a 70-200 2.8 vII.  You aren't going to "track" anything with servo focus (especially anything moving towards you) and get it "in focus".

2). I've found I get the best focus results shooting with One-Shot Center Point Four Point Expansion.

[infared]

Just confirmed - camera off, mounted the 85L II (set to AF), powered camera on, touched no buttons/dials/etc., and as soon as the self-clean finished, rotating the focus ring extended the front element.

Ditto.

[dmills]

It's slow, but it's never been so slow for me that I've missed a shot. You just have to be realistic about what you're using it for. I've even shot some indoor sports with it, but you have to remember that with such a shallow depth of field, you'll want to take a few more shots than you would if you're shooting at f2.8 or f4. I've shot 95%+ of my images with it at f1.2 though, so take that advice with a grain of salt. To my way of thinking, if you're using it much above f1.2, then you're not getting anything out of it you couldn't get with the faster focusing f.18 or a 70-200 2.8...

[Pinchers of Peril]

Just confirmed - camera off, mounted the 85L II (set to AF), powered camera on, touched no buttons/dials/etc., and as soon as the self-clean finished, rotating the focus ring extended the front element.

Hey Neuro (and Infared) thanks for testing that.  I was doing some research and found this: "If you have the shutter button half pressed, you can override the focus manually, or if you have it set to back button focus, you will always be able to override it."  So low and behold I switched to back button focus and I was able to manually focus without touching anything else.  If you get a chance can you switch your camera to shutter button focus and verify that the front element doesn't move when you turn the focus ring if your not holding the shutter button half-way down.  I'm just super (neuro)tic and since I bought this lens from a seller on craigslist, I just want to make sure it is working properly.  Anyway, sorry to totally hi-jack this thread, but I really appreciate the help.  This is only my third day with this lens but I am totally loving it.  It's nice to be able to just open a small window in a totally dark room and have enough light to get great pictures. 

[fegari]

Just confirmed - camera off, mounted the 85L II (set to AF), powered camera on, touched no buttons/dials/etc., and as soon as the self-clean finished, rotating the focus ring extended the front element.

Hey Neuro (and Infared) thanks for testing that.  I was doing some research and found this: "If you have the shutter button half pressed, you can override the focus manually, or if you have it set to back button focus, you will always be able to override it."  So low and behold I switched to back button focus and I was able to manually focus without touching anything else.  If you get a chance can you switch your camera to shutter button focus and verify that the front element doesn't move when you turn the focus ring if your not holding the shutter button half-way down.  I'm just super (neuro)tic and since I bought this lens from a seller on craigslist, I just want to make sure it is working properly.  Anyway, sorry to totally hi-jack this thread, but I really appreciate the help.  This is only my third day with this lens but I am totally loving it.  It's nice to be able to just open a small window in a totally dark room and have enough light to get great pictures.

Your 85L is fine. Mine behaves exactly like that (85L II with 5D3)

- if shutter button controls AF: MF override only works after pressing the shutter half way (and in AF one shot mode only, not in servo)

- if back AF-ON button controls AF: manual focus override is enabled all the time, regardless of the AF mode.

[neuroanatomist]

Thanks - you learn something new every day!  One more reason to love back button AF...

[Pinchers of Peril]

Just confirmed - camera off, mounted the 85L II (set to AF), powered camera on, touched no buttons/dials/etc., and as soon as the self-clean finished, rotating the focus ring extended the front element.

Hey Neuro (and Infared) thanks for testing that.  I was doing some research and found this: "If you have the shutter button half pressed, you can override the focus manually, or if you have it set to back button focus, you will always be able to override it."  So low and behold I switched to back button focus and I was able to manually focus without touching anything else.  If you get a chance can you switch your camera to shutter button focus and verify that the front element doesn't move when you turn the focus ring if your not holding the shutter button half-way down.  I'm just super (neuro)tic and since I bought this lens from a seller on craigslist, I just want to make sure it is working properly.  Anyway, sorry to totally hi-jack this thread, but I really appreciate the help.  This is only my third day with this lens but I am totally loving it.  It's nice to be able to just open a small window in a totally dark room and have enough light to get great pictures.

Your 85L is fine. Mine behaves exactly like that (85L II with 5D3)

- if shutter button controls AF: MF override only works after pressing the shutter half way (and in AF one shot mode only, not in servo)

- if back AF-ON button controls AF: manual focus override is enabled all the time, regardless of the AF mode.

Thanks for the reply and subsequent peace of mind.  I was beginning to think that the good deal I got on my lens wasn't such a good deal after all.  Now I can sleep well at night knowing I didn't spend all this money on a lens with a busted focusing system

[ishdakuteb]

i do not have this lens to play with (wish that i have it, but it is kinda expensive.  i can not justify the price, yet i do not really have a need of it.) so i do not really know what is the real problem of retracting.  but to retract, you can put the cap on, point your camera to the sky or anywhere that does not have details to archive the focus , half press the shutter... then done.  i am not sure if this way would harm any thing, but i think it would not

[melbournite]

Thanks - you learn something new every day!  One more reason to love back button AF...

Neuro, I took your recommendation and tried the back button AF setup a few months ago.  I used it for about a week (personal use) and switched back to normal on my first job (I would have been terrified otherwise).  I like the idea, and it's very useful in situations but not sure I can use it for long enough to get really comfortable with it.

[Studio1930]

To my way of thinking, if you're using it much above f1.2, then you're not getting anything out of it you couldn't get with the faster focusing f.18 or a 70-200 2.8...

This is a common comment on lenses but it is not accurate.  The 85L shot at 2.2 is not the same as the 1.8 version shot at 2.2.  Just like the 70-200 shot at 200mm f/2.8 is not the same as the 200 f/2 shot at f/2.8.  You will get more light with these more expensive lenses and focusing is usually much better. I have done side by side comparisons and there is definitely a difference and an advantage to the more expensive lenses, even when stopped down.

Now whether it is worth it to you for the more expensive lens is subjective.

[pdirestajr]

I'm also a huge fan of back button AF. I only use it on my 5DII because I only use the center AF point. I feel with this camera it becomes extremely useful with all the focusing and recomposing needed.

It also is great when mixing MF with AF, as the shutter button won't try to refocus after you just made an adjustment. It really allows full time manual focus to be useful.

[ahab1372]

Thanks - you learn something new every day!  One more reason to love back button AF...

Neuro, I took your recommendation and tried the back button AF setup a few months ago.  I used it for about a week (personal use) and switched back to normal on my first job (I would have been terrified otherwise).  I like the idea, and it's very useful in situations but not sure I can use it for long enough to get really comfortable with it.

I learned to like it because I now can have AI Servo on all the time. If I need to focus-recompose, I just take the thumb off the button. No more need to switch back and forth between One Shot and Servo

[jasonsim]

Love the AF performance on my 1Dx.  I need to check it out on my 5D III, where I've only used it for portraits. 

Got these a few week's ago:


 


I am very pleasantly surprised by the results from the 85mm f/1.2L II on the 1Dx in AI Servo.