5Dmk3 doesnt play with kenko teleconverters

[bchernicoff]

I just popped on my Kenko extension tubes on to my 5D Mark III and they work just fine.  I bought them about 2 years ago.

Extension tubes have no electronics, they simply pass through the signals between lens and body. There can't be a compatibility issue with extensions tubes. I suppose if you stack enough of them there may be an increase in electrical resistance which could interfere with the signaling. This is not what is being discussed with regards to teleconverters. They have a cpu in them and intercept/modify communications between the lens and body making the process potentially prone to incompatibility.

[pst]

Even after reading the troubles with Kenko TC's I purchased a Kenko 1.4x PRO 300 last week.

I've tried it with both 100mm f/2.8L Macro and 70-300mm f/4-5.6L and it works smoothly, no problems no matter what the mounting order is. The autofocus on 5Dmk3 has no more problems than usually. I'm very happy with the extended reach on the 70-300mm.

[bchernicoff]

An update. I received a CPS loaner 35mm f/1.4L and it works fine with my extender so does my first gen Sigma 12-24 (not that anyone would ever want to), so at this point it works perfectly with every lens I have tested. I ordered mine from the Amazon link that Marus42 shared which is filled by Adorama: http://www.amazon.com/Kenko-1-4X-Teleconverter-Canon-Digital/dp/B002C6QC3E/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1334522186&sr=1-1

[lmcgahey]

I have the Kenko 1.4x Teleplus PRO 300 DGX and I have had a problem with the 5Dmk3 & Kenko TC.
When I use it with the EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM. It doesn't take a picture of any kind even when I shoot a landscape. The screen goes blank, the camera makes a grinding sound, the grinding can be felt as well.  Even when I turn the camera off the grinding continues. The only way to stop the grinding is remove the battery from the camera. No picture is saved to the card.
This lens & Kenko 1.4x TC still work fine on my 5Dmk2 in all applications the lens is intended for.

[Marsu42]

When I use it with the EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM it causes the camera to go into a grinding loop when I shoot.

Um, what's as "grinding loop"? Does this happen at all subject distances? The 1.4xtc + 100mm USM works fine with my 60d, too, it just fails when going to macro range because the effective aperture gets even smaller and thus af couldn't work.

[wickidwombat]

I just got back from 3 weeks in china and got my replacement 5d3 this morning and tested it briefly and all the problems i had with my previous model are no longer there, it works with my kenko TC no problems now
I've only tested it on my 70-200 so far but focusing seems accurate and fast. So far looking good, I'm looking forward to testing it out properly and seeing how it goes

There was definately something not right with that other body though that this one is pretty much spot on right out the box. glad i exchanged it

[nickstefani]

bcherincoff, I have a question about your 5D III and the Sigma 12-24. Is it the 1st gen 12-24? And if so does the camera communicate with it ok for aperture and autofocus? And the 1st gen has a gel holder on the rear of the lens?

Thanks
Nick

[bchernicoff]

bcherincoff, I have a question about your 5D III and the Sigma 12-24. Is it the 1st gen 12-24? And if so does the camera communicate with it ok for aperture and autofocus? And the 1st gen has a gel holder on the rear of the lens?

It's the first gen version. Aperture and autofocus worked. It does have a gel holder on the rear. Again, I only tested it with the extender just for the sake of seeing if it worked. Why someone would want to use an extender on a lens that is purposely made for extreme wide angle is beyond me.

[mikiort]

It seams to be that I have the same problem with my 5D MkIII and Kenko Teleplus PRO 300 DGX 1.4x AF Teleconverter.
I successfully used it previously with Canon EF300 f/4 L IS and EF135 f/2 L on my 7D body.
Now the brand new 5D MkIII refuses to work with the same converter and the same lenses.
Is there any solution to the problem?
The same lenses and 5D MkIII body of cause working with the original Canon EF 1.4x III converter.

[bchernicoff]

The situation isn't straightforward. After reporting perfect success with this extender I suddenly had trouble Memorial Day Weekend. Mounted on my 70-200 II it was working and then it wasn't. It would lock up the body when using any of my lenses. Then Canon updated firmware for the 5D III to address an issue with Canon extenders. This resolved my issue with this extender for every lens I have except my 400mm 2.8 L II (non-IS).

I really have no idea why it suddenly stopped working, but the firmware mostly resolved it.

[mikiort]

I searched the net and it looks like that the problem is only with this particular Kenko Teleconverter:
Kenko Teleplus PRO 300 DGX 1.4x AF
Other Kenko products are probably not effected.
It is also possible that the problem is only in some particular version of the firmware, because I've seen reports of some people using the Teleplus PRO 300 DGX 1.4x with 5D mkIII.
Since the problem doesn't effect a large number of customers it is highly unlikely that Kenko would invest any efforts in solving it.
I don't believe also that it is in any way connected to the 5D mkIII firmware version, at least for me, having the last version (1.1.3) doesn't help much.

[Marsu42]

It is also possible that the problem is only in some particular version of the firmware, because I've seen reports of some people using the Teleplus PRO 300 DGX 1.4x with 5D mkIII. Since the problem doesn't effect a large number of customers it is highly unlikely that Kenko would invest any efforts in solving it.

You're wrong there - Kenko obviously already *has* solved the problem but in a very customer-unfriendly way by silently updating the tc - there are two 1.4dgx with different ean numbers. This seems to be the reason for the confusion, apart from the various tc versions (dg, dgx, whatever).

[51m0n]

Weird thing! When I bought the 1.4 extension I tried it on Canon 100mmL and Tamron 70-300mm, worked fine. But after reading this thread I tried again, it failed on 100m. It just hung and have to take out battery to restart. The only difference is the firmware has been updated to 1.1.3.

[Mt Spokane Photography]

I have the newest version of the Kenko Teleplus Pro 300 (blue dot) and can happily report that it autofocuses well on my 5DII and 60D with such lenses as the 100L, 135L 70-200 f/4L IS,

The topic is about issues with the extender with a 5D MK III.  It has problems with some lenses like the 100L, apparently due to the new AF system. 
 
We know it works with older bodies, but Kenko needs a update to work with all 5D MK III lenses.

[TWI by Dustin Abbott]

My bad.  I'll pull my comments