24-70 f/2.8 L II front coating peeling off?

[Mt Spokane Photography]

I wanted to let everyone know that I am also experiencing a Defective Coating on the front element of my Canon 24-70 version ii lens that was purchased in March of 2014 from B&H. I talked to canon CPS today and they told me they have never heard of this happening, but obviously this is a defect. I have cleaned this lens the exact same way as I treat all my other L glass and this is the only one I have ever had a problem with. It seems like the lend coating is rubbing off and scratching very easily.

Canon definitely needs to address this Defect. I will be sending the lens to them and will let you know the results.

Here is a Pic of the coating.
http://s14.postimg.org/ijuob2npd/IMG_7611.jpg

They will fix it, send it in. A very few have seen this happen, and they almost always post in many places on the internet which makes it seem a big issue. A large number of long time CR members have the lens and few have seen the issue.

 

[dorianiribarren]

After sending in my 24-70 mk ii to Canon CPS because the lens coating is rubbing off, they state that since the lens is out of warranty it is going to cost me $428 to replace the front glass. I strongly feel that the defective lens coating should be their responsibility. The lens is only 18mo old. Each day I am one step closer to switching to Nikon. Below I have included an image link to the repair estimate from CPS.

http://postimg.org/image/jkac999vh/

 

[hvnguyen13]

The front coating on my 24-70L 2.8 II also came off. Lens was purchased in 4/2015 from B&H Photo. Used the lens to shoot the northern lights over Godafoss in Iceland. With the blowing mist I had to wipe the lens dry for each shot. Next day I noticed the rubbed off coating. Lens was brought to Canon today for repair. They wanted to charge me, stating I wiped the lens too harshly. I said, sorry the lens needed to be clean and I used the softest cloth available. Also, my other Canon lens do not exhibit this issue. The advisor took the lens back and came back to say Canon will repair under the warranty this one time. I mentioned other users experiencing the same issue. Of course, Canon proclaimed ignorance, claiming no advisory has been issued.

My Zeiss 15mm did not experience such issue even after all the cleaning. I'm leery about cleaning the 24-70 ii the next time. Here's the shot taken.

 

[bmwzimmer]

Amazing Photo. Looks like its from a different planet almost...

 

[Click]

Awesome picture, hvnguyen13....And welcome to CR.

 

[tron]

hello hvnguyen13,

the photo is fantastic (and may I say worth the trouble?). But, have you considered putting a high quality filter in front?

I have the same lens with a Hoya HD2 in front.

 

[peterzuehlke]

Dorian,

If you purchased the lens with a credit card, you may have an extended warranty. Some of the cards will extend your warranty to two years. (same coverage as factory warranty) So long as Canon CPS doesn't determine it was accidental damage that neither they nor the card companies will cover.

Unfortunately that was my experience with a failed Canon 6D a couple of months out of warranty. error 20. CPS said it was accidental damage due to water exposure. The camera had been exposed to high humidity but never had a drop of water on it. So CPS misdiagnosing it saved the credit card company some money. CPS estimated over $650 of repair, replacing a lot of major assemblies. I took it to a local shop and they found one of the ribbon cables had a plating failure on one contact. about $15 part. They said the camera was perfect inside. It's been working for over 6 months now.

 

[hvnguyen13]

hello hvnguyen13,

the photo is fantastic (and may I say worth the trouble?). But, have you considered putting a high quality filter in front?

I have the same lens with a Hoya HD2 in front.

Thanks for the advice although I'm not much of a filter guy. Also, my other Canon lenses did not exhibit such an issue before so I was rather taken with the coating problem.

My trip to Iceland was spectacular and surely worth the hassle. Here's a shot taken with the Zeiss 15mm using the hard stop infinity since I arrived very late, couldn't see anything due to complete darkness, and was unfamiliar with the territory (didn't want to fall into the ice lagoon at Jokulsarlon).

Thanks for the kind comments.

 

[hvnguyen13]

Thank you everyone for the kind words. I'm waiting for the Canon 1DX II, having liquidated my version I. I intend to sell my 24-70mm II once Canon is done repairing the front element. I'm not confident the coating won't come off again. I do shoot in inclement conditions frequently so I can't afford to have defective lens coating. Anyway, I'm looking forward to the Nikon D5 or Canon 1DX II and go from there. I'm not vested heavily in either so can switch at a whim.

Have to say from a newbie this forum is great.

 

[drmikeinpdx]

A peeling front coating is a manufacturing defect!

It's sad that Canon still isn't giving better treatment to customers who experience this obvious manufacturing defect. A peeling or cracking coating has nothing to do with exposure to water or incorrect cleaning methods. You can scratch or abrade a coating, but nothing you can do will make it peel or crack without destroying the rest of the lens.

Batches of lenses are placed inside a coating machine where the various layers are applied under very tightly controlled conditions. It's a tricky process. I would bet a lot of money that a machine was not functioning properly while some of these lens elements were being coated. That's why coatings break down like this. I speak with four decades of experience in the ophthalmic industry.

It would be good if everyone who experiences a defective coating could post the serial number of their lenses.
I think there is a good chance that they would be in a small range. But if not, then Canon has a continuing problem in their coating department.

(I've had my 24-70 II for several months and so far no signs of coating issues.)

Dr. Mike

 

[tron]

hello hvnguyen13,

the photo is fantastic (and may I say worth the trouble?). But, have you considered putting a high quality filter in front?

I have the same lens with a Hoya HD2 in front.

Thanks for the advice although I'm not much of a filter guy. Also, my other Canon lenses did not exhibit such an issue before so I was rather taken with the coating problem.

My trip to Iceland was spectacular and surely worth the hassle. Here's a shot taken with the Zeiss 15mm using the hard stop infinity since I arrived very late, couldn't see anything due to complete darkness, and was unfamiliar with the territory (didn't want to fall into the ice lagoon at Jokulsarlon).

Thanks for the kind comments.

Can I ask you your opinion regarding coma at 2.8 for Zeiss 15mm

According to

http://www.trichardsen.com/blog/zeiss-15mm-f28-distagon-review

there is somewhat strange coma that cannot be removed when closing down.

To observe this though one has to expose for just a few seconds to make sure it is coma and not star trails (the author of the review exposed for 2 seconds).

 

[hvnguyen13]

hello hvnguyen13,

the photo is fantastic (and may I say worth the trouble?). But, have you considered putting a high quality filter in front?

I have the same lens with a Hoya HD2 in front.

Thanks for the advice although I'm not much of a filter guy. Also, my other Canon lenses did not exhibit such an issue before so I was rather taken with the coating problem.

My trip to Iceland was spectacular and surely worth the hassle. Here's a shot taken with the Zeiss 15mm using the hard stop infinity since I arrived very late, couldn't see anything due to complete darkness, and was unfamiliar with the territory (didn't want to fall into the ice lagoon at Jokulsarlon).

Thanks for the kind comments.

Can I ask you your opinion regarding coma at 2.8 for Zeiss 15mm

According to

http://www.trichardsen.com/blog/zeiss-15mm-f28-distagon-review

there is somewhat strange coma that cannot be removed when closing down.

To observe this though one has to expose for just a few seconds to make sure it is coma and not star trails (the author of the review exposed for 2 seconds).

I have noticed the coma on the edges as well but I don't mind it as much since I don't have to fiddle with focusing in complete darkness. Focusing in the cold and dark is no fun and live view is nearly impossible during new moon nights. I had the Nikon 12-24mm but returned it for the Zeiss because in the end the easy focusing was more important.

 

[kaihp]

Re: A peeling front coating is a manufacturing defect!

It would be good if everyone who experiences a defective coating could post the serial number of their lenses.
I think there is a good chance that they would be in a small range. But if not, then Canon has a continuing problem in their coating department.

(I've had my 24-70 II for several months and so far no signs of coating issues.)

+1 on Dr.Mike's analysis.

I bought mine in October 2012 and haven't seen this issue.

 

[Bondiphoto]

I have the same problem.

Canon 24-70 f2.8 II front element has deterioration of the lens coating 13 months of use. I bought this in Switzerland and as i live in Australia i called the Australia / NZ warranty which gives 2 years warranty on lens but Europe give 1 year. Unfortunate i have to go via Europe warranty and i contacted them, they replied with as it is out of warranty i have to pay for the new parts and to use Australia repairer.

I am also glad their are other cases and i suggest if you have the same problem to post as well it may help canon listen.

Really this is not fair, after paying for a top lens and getting a dud with no responsibility taken from canon this is not the quality i am use to having...

i will try to elevate the problem with Canon but i suspect ill be paying for for a fix...

 

[Charlie_N]

I've shot the lens for a while, but first time at the beach the other day...... FML, $300 samyang no issues, $60 OM no issues, $1500 24-70mm coatings are a mess after cleanup. Is this really happening smh....

 

[Charlie_N]

welps, repair for the lens $631

I'll just use it the way it is for the time being, then get the repair down the line through a local guy. They offered a discount, but F that, it's 230 for the front element alone, and I really dont feel like paying anything to fix this. I'll probably sell it down the line and take the loss.

 

[Bondiphoto]

I also had the same problem(Re: 24-70 f/2.8 L II front coating peeling off?), i found this forum indicating this has happened to others and you guys helped me make my case.

My lens i bought in Europe it had expired its 1 year warranty, I live in Australia we have 2 year warranty but since i purchased this in Europe i was stuck with this lens that is 13 months old.

My first contact to Canon was not very helpful, it was quite blunt, making out it was my fault, after reading this forum it's obvious that this is a manufacture flaw or fault.

i started with face book messages and emails to canon to get real support and answers, after a week i had some help from Canon UK liaising with Canon Australia.

i was told to send my lens in for inspection and it was returned fixed with no charge and no explanation. - Bonus..

I called to find out what it was, and they said it was a faulty part.

- advice, If this is the case with your lens, insist on them fixing the problem, i'm sure they are well aware of the problem seems to happen a lot.

Good luck.

 

[lay85]

Yes, I have the same problem. Bought in Australia and noticed peeling off 1 month out of warranty so not happy, lens is worthless for resale now. I originally thought I had been knocking it but then found this topic.

 

[Laktibrada]

last time i wrote on this forum i was seeking advice on which lens to buy - and most people recommended the 24-70 II. I bought it and enjoyed it for the last 2,5 years - it really is awesome and i had no regrets concerning the deal... untill a couple of days ago

I had a CPL on it all the time and as such had no reason to clean the front element (cleaned it exactly 3x with rocket blowers and lens paper). With the spare holiday time coming, i thought id give all my lenses a thorough cleaning and for the first time ever the glass coating on my 24-70 II came into contact with a liquid - my regular lens solution which i use on all other lenses. I went on doing exactly what i did with other lenses - nice slow wipes from the center towards the edges... let the solution evaporate... and check under silly angles for any signs of irregularity looking towards light.

At first i though i left a partial fingerprint near the edge, but no wiping nor more solution helped. The surface wasnt really scratched - there was no noticable height difference... but the edges of the smudge had weird purple colour to it. A quick google search lead me here and it looked exactly like the pic provided by somebody before me in this thread - only on a much smaller scale and fortunately on the edge.

With great luck i managed to pass the lens on with an awesome resell value lossing roughly 200 EUR in the process (which is a great rent price for 2,5 years ). But i still cannot get my head around the fact, that i paid a ridiculous amount of money for a product, that despite babying the crap out of it, gets damaged in spots that make it loose value and usefulness.

The test pics i took with it were ok, unless i shot close-ups or against the sun. But anyone buying a 1000+ EUR lens (second-hand or new) would either stay away completely or haggle the price down by 2-300 easily.

As somebody previously mentioned - i guess the best thing i imagine a company the size of Canon do is getting the data (read serial numbers) from its repair-services on front element damaged lenses, analyze it, and offer a free exchange of the front element? Or at least notify repair-services that they shouldnt ask for money if something like this pops up? Dont get me wrong, the lens was everything i hoped for it to be - but you have to be able to clean your gear regulary without the fear that you will ruin your lens and spend 400 each 2 years on a new front element.

I was going to buy the 35 II with the money, but there is this worm of doubt frolicking around in my head now - is it worth the risk?

 

[tron]

hello hvnguyen13,

the photo is fantastic (and may I say worth the trouble?). But, have you considered putting a high quality filter in front?

I have the same lens with a Hoya HD2 in front.

Thanks for the advice although I'm not much of a filter guy. Also, my other Canon lenses did not exhibit such an issue before so I was rather taken with the coating problem.

My trip to Iceland was spectacular and surely worth the hassle. Here's a shot taken with the Zeiss 15mm using the hard stop infinity since I arrived very late, couldn't see anything due to complete darkness, and was unfamiliar with the territory (didn't want to fall into the ice lagoon at Jokulsarlon).

Thanks for the kind comments.

Can I ask you your opinion regarding coma at 2.8 for Zeiss 15mm

According to

http://www.trichardsen.com/blog/zeiss-15mm-f28-distagon-review

there is somewhat strange coma that cannot be removed when closing down.

To observe this though one has to expose for just a few seconds to make sure it is coma and not star trails (the author of the review exposed for 2 seconds).

I have noticed the coma on the edges as well but I don't mind it as much since I don't have to fiddle with focusing in complete darkness. Focusing in the cold and dark is no fun and live view is nearly impossible during new moon nights. I had the Nikon 12-24mm but returned it for the Zeiss because in the end the easy focusing was more important.

I understand what you say about focusing since I have the Zeiss 21 2.8 lens. However when take astro photos the sky is full of stars and I find that I can focus manually (in Live view) with my 14 2.8L II. So this is my go to lens for astrophotography.