Need help diagnosing fall damage.

namdas · 06-10-2016, 10:14 PM

Hi!

A couple of days ago, my K3-II with a 55-300 WR fell off my backpack onto hard concrete. Luckily it had it's own camera bag that hopefully cushioned part of the impact when it fell lens-first to the floor.

After inspection, y detected nothing more than a cracked lens hood and the lenscap that was hit deeper into the lens, leaving some scratches on the inner plastics, but nothing on the glass. I thought I'd dodged a bullet, but after taking some bird shots I noticed them a lot more softer that what I'm used to, so I retake a shot I made prior to the fall to compare the IQ and sadly it confirmed my worst fears, there was a clear loss of sharpness.
So I was wondering if you could help me to see if the damage is on the lens, body or both

Here are some pics showing the quality loss.

Before damage.

After damage.

Here's a 1:1 close-up comparisson, wide open @f5.8. Damn

It gets a little better when stepping down, but it's not the same

Thanks.

Adam · 06-10-2016, 10:17 PM

Looks like the lens may have indeed been damaged. Do you have another lens you could take some snaps with to verify that the body is OK?

screwdriver222 · 06-10-2016, 11:44 PM

You could try the AF fine tune.

**UncleVanya** · 06-11-2016, 05:42 AM

Could it simply be decentered?

Not a Number · 06-11-2016, 09:56 AM

Originally posted by Adam

Looks like the lens may have indeed been damaged. Do you have another lens you could take some snaps with to verify that the body is OK?

Yes, swap the lens out if you can. That way you can isolate if the damage is to the lens only.

namdas · 06-11-2016, 06:40 PM

Originally posted by Adam

Looks like the lens may have indeed been damaged. Do you have another lens you could take some snaps with to verify that the body is OK?

I will check tomorrow with my 40mm and try to replicate a previous photo. Hope it's ok.

Originally posted by screwdriver222

You could try the AF fine tune.

That's what I first thought but (At least on liveview with 100% zoom) trying to manually focus, it never achieved that level of sharpness. I also notice that this gets worse while at 300mm and focusing near infinity.

Originally posted by UncleVanya

Could it simply be decentered?

Googling what decentered means, it looks that often presents itself as blur or softness on part of the image rather than the whole photo. I will take more images to test the "softness" and if there it's left some sharp spot. Also I have no idea if there are cases of decentering causing full image bluriness. If this was the problem how difficult/expensive would be to fix it?

Thanks for your answers!

06-10-2016, 10:14 PM	#1
namdas New Member Join Date: Apr 2016 Posts: 3	Need help diagnosing fall damage. Hi! A couple of days ago, my K3-II with a 55-300 WR fell off my backpack onto hard concrete. Luckily it had it's own camera bag that hopefully cushioned part of the impact when it fell lens-first to the floor. After inspection, y detected nothing more than a cracked lens hood and the lenscap that was hit deeper into the lens, leaving some scratches on the inner plastics, but nothing on the glass. I thought I'd dodged a bullet, but after taking some bird shots I noticed them a lot more softer that what I'm used to, so I retake a shot I made prior to the fall to compare the IQ and sadly it confirmed my worst fears, there was a clear loss of sharpness. So I was wondering if you could help me to see if the damage is on the lens, body or both Here are some pics showing the quality loss. Before damage. After damage. Here's a 1:1 close-up comparisson, wide open @f5.8. Damn It gets a little better when stepping down, but it's not the same Thanks.

06-10-2016, 10:17 PM	#2
Adam Administrator Site Webmaster Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Arizona Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 51,595	Looks like the lens may have indeed been damaged. Do you have another lens you could take some snaps with to verify that the body is OK? Adam PentaxForums.com Webmaster (Site Usage Guide \| Site Help \| My Photography) PentaxForums.com server and development costs are user-supported. You can help cover these costs by donating or purchasing one of our Pentax eBooks. Or, buy your photo gear from our affiliates, Adorama, B&H Photo, KEH, or Topaz Labs, and get FREE Marketplace access - click here to see how! Trusted Pentax retailers:

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06-10-2016, 11:44 PM	#3
screwdriver222 Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Plymouth Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 139	You could try the AF fine tune.

06-11-2016, 05:42 AM	#4
UncleVanya Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2014 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 28,401	Could it simply be decentered?

06-11-2016, 09:56 AM	#5
Not a Number Moderator Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Venice, CA Posts: 10,526	Originally posted by Adam Looks like the lens may have indeed been damaged. Do you have another lens you could take some snaps with to verify that the body is OK? Yes, swap the lens out if you can. That way you can isolate if the damage is to the lens only.

06-11-2016, 06:40 PM	#6
namdas New Member Join Date: Apr 2016 Posts: 3 Original Poster	Originally posted by Adam Looks like the lens may have indeed been damaged. Do you have another lens you could take some snaps with to verify that the body is OK? I will check tomorrow with my 40mm and try to replicate a previous photo. Hope it's ok. Originally posted by screwdriver222 You could try the AF fine tune. That's what I first thought but (At least on liveview with 100% zoom) trying to manually focus, it never achieved that level of sharpness. I also notice that this gets worse while at 300mm and focusing near infinity. Originally posted by UncleVanya Could it simply be decentered? Googling what decentered means, it looks that often presents itself as blur or softness on part of the image rather than the whole photo. I will take more images to test the "softness" and if there it's left some sharp spot. Also I have no idea if there are cases of decentering causing full image bluriness. If this was the problem how difficult/expensive would be to fix it? Thanks for your answers!