Slr Camera Lens
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How can you definitively test an SLR camera lens to determine whether you've got a good or bad "copy"?
I ask this question only because there is so much talk about getting a good "copy" of a lens (meaning.. returning the newly purchased lens for a "sharper" one - sometimes as many as 4 times!) in forums such as Fred Miranda - http://www.fredmiranda.com/reviews/. It often sounds more like psychobabble than anything else, but I thought I'd just ask the question here as I'm curious to see the responses.
SLR lenses, like people, vary somewhat even lenses made by the same manufacturer. This is called sample variation.
Cameras vary this way too. Thus, it's possible that one lens-camera combo will work poorly together, but for that same lens to work perfectly on a different camera, just from this normal variation.
What some professionals do is to go to their local camera store with a good inventory of lenses. They will have the salesperson bring out all the boxes ("copies") of that particular lens they're interested in. Let's say it's the Nikon 70-200 f/2.8 VR AF-S lens, and the store has 10 boxes of that specific lens (i.e. 10 copies of that lens). The professional will then take one lens, mount it on the camera and take some shots (in the old days, the pro would actually take the lens home, shoot some film and bring the lens back). With the LCD or better yet, a full-size monitor, the pro will review how that lens performs.
The pro then notes that lens serial number and sets it aside, then takes box #2 and shoots that, notes the serial number, goes to box #3, etc. Eventually, the professional will have identified the best sample ("best copy") of that lens in the store, and gets the best possible lens.
Note that the term "copy" in this instance has nothing directly to do with third party manufacturers, but instead refers simply to different samples of the same lens. Note also that every lens, both name-brand and third party makers, has sample variation and you can use this procedure when buying any lens. Simply buying a brand-name does not automatically ensure quality, as many users of the older non-VR 24-120mm Nikon will attest.
As for what to photograph to "test" the lens, that's up to you and the store. For a telephoto, I'd try to get something in the distance. For a portrait lens, photograph a person, etc.
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