ccook2004 Loc: Rockledge FL

I have two lenses that need calibration Canon 100-400 II and Canon 100mm. Has anyone used this product? I have watched several Utube videos and think I can do it but really am confused as to how to determine the distance for the calibration for each lens. I have a Canon 7D Mark II camera. Thanks for your help.

TBerwick Loc: Houston, Texas

I just bought one but haven't used it yet. Maybe you can be my coach? Not really, but let us know how you do.

CO

I've had one for years and have used it a lot. They can't make up their minds as to what the optimum distance is. There's one manual on their website that states the distance should be 25-50 times the focal length. Another SpyderLensCal manual online recommends 5-10 times the focal length. I use the 5-10 times focal length guideline.

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abc1234 Loc: Elk Grove Village, Illinois

I bought it, tested it and returned it. The big problem is reading the lines. Too subjective and confusing for me. The device is made well but even with the most careful technique, way to unreliable for my taste. Another issue is that the target is too small for long lenses. Please do not ask me how long is too long because I did not get that far in my testing.

You are as well off making or finding your own target because you can make one big enough for the long lenses. Another thought. Just put the target on a flat, vertical surface and shoot at different micro-adjustments. Shoot at least three at each adjustment to check the reproducibility. Make sure to refocus at infinity for each shot.

I bought the Reikan FoCal and hope to finish evaluating it around the end of the month. When it works, it is far superior. More work taking the pictures but much less effort interpreting the shots. FoCal does that for you. Besides getting the correction, it finds the sharpest aperture. So far, the old saw of two stops down from the max holds true. I am testing four lenses but so far have completed two. The main negative finding is that on my Sigma 18-300, FoCal does not work at 300. The developer does warn that FoCal does not work with low quality optics and I presume that is what is happening. I need to retest at 200. My Sigma 24-70, f/2.8, is sharp at both ends.

FoCal also maintains the history of your tests so you can compare over time.

jeep_daddy Loc: Prescott AZ

Chances are they DON'T need calibrating. I've never had a Canon lens that needed calibrating. If you use a lens that is really really fast (f/2.8 to f/1.2) you might want to calibrate that kind of lens for those occasions when you are shooting wide open. Otherwise, most lenses are fine because of the DOF when set to a more stopped down range of F/stop.

MikeT9

It is a problem deciding on the distance, I think the thing to do is to set up at the distance you would normally take your pictures at when shooting at 400mm for the telephoto end. Focal Pro, which is what I use, recommend 25x the focal length. 400mm focal length would test at 10 metres. Their tests indicate the calibration difference between testing at 25x and 50x is minimal.

MikeT9

With regard to calibration, I don’t have a single Canon lens that hasn’t required calibration. All my lenses are calibrated wide open and if DOP came into it, the calibration wouldn’t pick up any need to adjust.

ccook2004 Loc: Rockledge FL

Well I am going to try using the recommendations here. I have not been satisfied with either lens even though I have had them for a long time. Sometimes the photos are kinda sharp but not like most people have reported their lens are. Thanks for your help

ccook2004 Loc: Rockledge FL

You may be right but I just have not been satisfied with the sharpness of either lens with my 7DII. Going to try it

gordone Loc: Red Deer AB Canada

Go with Reikan Focal. Tried the manual lenscal approach and it is too subjective and does not take into account focus inconsistency between shots. I use Reikan to focus every lens to every body. Well worth the effort and the graphs out afterwards give you a full picture of your lens IQ at every aperture

jeep_daddy Loc: Prescott AZ

Ok, you said sometimes they are kinda sharp. What does that mean? Here's what you do, put your camera on a tripod and make your settings the same as you normally do for the type of photography you do. Example: If you shoot birds, and you use aperture priority and ISO 400, and you shoot wide open with the 100-400 then make it the same. Set up a test subject, anything with detail, and zero in on that subject. I've been known to use a $5 bill since they have a lot of intricate detail. But Amazon sells special targets for calibrating lenses that you should be using. https://www.amazon.com/DSLRKIT-Focus-Calibration-Alignment-Folding/dp/B012F8G1DO/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1544209396&sr=8-4&keywords=lens+calibration+chart

After you take a pic, import it to your computer and check it out at 100%. If you have a sharp pic, it's not in need of calibration. Chances are that you don't have setting correct and you need to improve your skills and settings. When you shoot at 400mm, you need a fast shutter, especially if you aren't skilled at keeping your camera and lens steady when taking pictures. If your shutter is less that 1/800th of a second, you need to bring it up or shoot on a tripod.

abc1234 Loc: Elk Grove Village, Illinois

I can send you a target and advice for free. Use a tripod, mirror up, self-timer or remote shutter release. Use strong lighting and no image stabilization.

johntaylor333

Buy Reikan FoCal - works pretty well, including my 24-70, 70-200 and 100-400 L series lenses on a 5DIV and 7DII. It was on sale at B&H the other day - you can also buy it direct, but I got it from B&H for $90 (including a hard target). My recommendation is to not buy the hard target and just print one out on a good printer and save $20. FoCal also tells you the relative sharpness of your lens at each f/ stop - was quite illuminating.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

👍👍 Right answer!