[stl09]

I just got the 2nd version of the Tokina 80-400mm lens from a fellow forum member and when I attached it to the K-5 last night the camera thinks I have a Sigma 70-200mm f2.8 EX attached or at least that is what shows up in the EXIF information.

Is this going to cause issues...I've never seen this before?
I understand the lens is older but it appears to look new or at least very well cared for so I don't think that anything is broken on it.

Thanks

[Adam]

Hmm, is the focal length in the EXIF correct? If so, then the program interpreting the EXIF lens code is off, not the camera.

[Ole]

You cannot expect third party lenses to be recognized correctly in all cases.

The only thing that matters is that the focal length is transmitted correctly as you zoom so that shake reduction will work optimally.

[jatrax]

Some third party manufacturers reuse the same lens code on multiple models. The camera reads the lens code and matches it to something in its database. If the number was reused then it can only report what it can read. It is a pain but nothing can be done at the camera level. You can change the EXIF after using various programs if you want it to read correctly. Most important, as noted above, is that the focal length is transmitted correctly for shake reduction to work properly.

[jamarley]

I have a Sigma 17-70 F2.8-4.5 DC Macro that always shows as a Sigma 10-20 4-5.6 EX DC in Aperture 3. Since this is a more highly-regarded and pricier lens I only wish the software was accurate! Yes, the focal length is correct, but I chuckle every time I see that the 10-20 4-5.6 lens has taken a pic @ 70mm and F2.8!

Having said that it still seems a shame that an industry that attempts to abide by standards can't get their act together on this issue. Digital asset management programs offer search algorithms to sort by many values, including the lens used. Suppose sometime down the road you want to find shots taken with that Tokina 80-400 only to discover there are none!

As far as changing the Exif data with other software I'm still waiting for a program that I can understand. I tinkered a while back with Phil Harvey's ExifTool and felt completely lost. I wish there was a front end for it, or maybe some step by step instructions that the average Joe Photographer can grasp!

Edit: latest news announced on PF Home page - "EXIF in all photos!" Nice work, Adam. Now prove to Apple, Adobe, et al and all the lens manufacturers that this info IS important to us after all.

[jatrax]

I tinkered a while back with Phil Harvey's ExifTool and felt completely lost

There is a GUI version called EXIFTool GUI which I have used. Takes a little learning but works just fine and you can batch changes. If I know I used a 50mm Takumar for a shoot you can select the whole group and change the lens description from "unknown" to "S-M-C Takumar 50mm f/1.4" or whatever. Works just fine.

[Nowhere Matt]

Yes this is not uncommon. I cannot recall exactly but I think my Sigma 28-300 usually incorrectly reports lens info vaguely to my K10 and K-7 such as "Tokina or Sigma 28-105mm" some strange focal length. I can quote exactly tomorrow but my point is it happens and I cannot imagine it presenting any real issue.

[twitch]

This becomes an issue for AF fine adjustment when you have multiple 3rd party lenses and 2 or more are reporting as the same lens.

[jamarley]

There is a GUI version called EXIFTool GUI which I have used.

This is why I love these forums so much. Thanks, I'll see if I can find it and try it out.

Yes this is not uncommon. I cannot recall exactly but I think my Sigma 28-300 usually incorrectly reports lens info vaguely to my K10 and K-7 such as "Tokina or Sigma 28-105mm" some strange focal length. I can quote exactly tomorrow but my point is it happens and I cannot imagine it presenting any real issue.

Unless you value accuracy. I guess it's my lack of "hard" computer skills, but I believe in holding technology to a higher standard. I see enough lackadaisical effort at work to make me wonder if there is pride anymore. If something's worth doing, it's worth doing properly. Ok, down from the soapbox now and back to lurking, lol.

[twitch]

Having said that it still seems a shame that an industry that attempts to abide by standards can't get their act together on this issue.

Nothing to do with getting their act together, as I understand it it's all to do with third party manufacturers not wanting to pay licence fees to Pentax.

[stl09]

I appreciate the comments and have checked to see if things are reporting correctly.
At this point it appears that focal length is reporting correctly...I took shots at various lengths and all seem to be correct. f-stop and Iso are reporting correctly as well. I checked the exif info in both lightroom and photoshop and both report it as a Sigma Lens even though this is 10 year old Tokina Lens. Typically I use a file handler program that can view both jpg and dng which in the past has always indentified every lens correctly to initially view / review photos before moving them over to the computer.

[stl09]

Yes this is not uncommon. I cannot recall exactly but I think my Sigma 28-300 usually incorrectly reports lens info vaguely to my K10 and K-7 such as "Tokina or Sigma 28-105mm" some strange focal length. I can quote exactly tomorrow but my point is it happens and I cannot imagine it presenting any real issue.

If you have time would like to know what you come up with...

[stl09]

There is a GUI version called EXIFTool GUI which I have used. Takes a little learning but works just fine and you can batch changes. If I know I used a 50mm Takumar for a shoot you can select the whole group and change the lens description from "unknown" to "S-M-C Takumar 50mm f/1.4" or whatever. Works just fine.

Curious where can we find this software...one of the posts makes a good point if you go looking for a photo taken with a certain lens and then you can't find it.

[stevebrot]

Curious where can we find this software...one of the posts makes a good point if you go looking for a photo taken with a certain lens and then you can't find it.

I use ExifToolGUI. It works as a front-end to Phil Harvey's ExifTool (a command line utility). You download and install the most recent version of ExifTool (ExifTool by Phil Harvey) followed by the latest version of ExifToolGUI (Latest ExiftoolGUI version 5.06).

I use it to apply appropriate camera/lens information to my film shots as well as lens information for my digital work.

BTW...the mis-identification of lenses in the EXIF is mostly a matter of interpretation. The ID codes are in maker-specific proprietary extensions to the EXIF and while Pentax provides a translation algorithm for tool makers like Adobe, id failures for non-Pentax glass are common. My Sigma 50/2.8 EX DG Macro (recent build) is detected as a Pentax-F 50/2.8 Macro. Close, but no banana. While you can edit the actual id code, it is probably easier to just insert the proper lens information by editing the Equipment/Lens section of the XMP data. Tools will interpret the XMP in preference to the proprietary stuff.


Steve

[bossa]

All of my Sigma lenses get listed as 'Unknown Lens" and it doesn't matter which one either. And my K-5 doesn't record any focal length under 10mm so my Sigma 8-16 zoom doesn't get lens correction under that 10mm unless I load it up into PS and try a plug-in where I can type the focal length and manually adjust the distortion.

I spoke to a Pentax rep' here and he thought I was being unreasonable to expect Pentax to accommodate these Sigma lenses. Another factor to add to the list of reasons why 3rd party lens makers are ditching Pentax? I wouldn't mind trying the EXIF editing tools to insert a FL though.. if it was set to 8mm I'd at least get to see what the lens correction profile actually does. It's a shame LR3 doesn't allow typing in the focal length.