Originally posted by Marc Sabatella I read it a while back. Like I said, I agree the
concept of cameras and lenses not being perfect is real. I'm just saying that,
assuming one's camera is within manufacturer's spec, the *magnitude* of the
problem is not such that one should expect to be unable to focus at f/2.8. Any
camera or lens that was so far off as to not be able to do that isn't slightly out of
calibration - it's defective.
.
I think we'll just have to disagree there, I've run in to a several lenses now in
two mounts that were
slightly off at f/2.8 - with the K20D, I dialed in a +5, now
it performs perfectly for me. In the case of the D90, I sent it back (180 2.8), got another
that was perfect. I also had a Sigma 28 1.8 in Nikon mount that had FF, sent it
back, got another that had BF
, and decided to give up on that lens. If that
had been my K20D, I'd own a razor-sharp Sigma 28 1.8 right now. All my other
lenses were spot-on with the D90, so I know it's not the body.
Now, I don't know if anyone would consider either of those Nikon mount lenses
"defective" - I think most people would have just kept them as-is. For
example, here's a shot I took with the first 180 2.8 with the FF problem:
(f/3.5)
That lens was marvelous - but It FF'd just a tad. I estimated that on my K20D,
it would have been about a +3 or +4 adjustment. I would have happily adjusted
and kept the lens (got it for a song.)
Quote: I'm using "hack" in the computer programmer sense, not the sense of a "hacker"
doing something illicit. A documented feature can be a "hack" too. Something is
a "hack" if its an inelegant solution to a problem, whether the solution is
documented or not.
I'm aware of how you were using the term - I disagree with the characterization.
Actually, I think 'kludge' labels what you're trying to describe better. A 'hack'
traditionally means 'access something not meant to be available'. In the case
of the K100D and K10D, it truly was a hack, because that debug menu that
allowed the AF adjust wasn't meant to be seen and used outside of the factory
or service center.
Quote: Again, only if the sensors are *way* off am I saying they should to be corrected
physically. Otherwise, the software workaround is fine - it's probably a more
appropriate solution, since it's pretty doubtful one could turn the screws as
precisely.
Exactly. And an elegant and welcome solution, in my opinion.
Now - if someone eventually
hacks the K-x and a nice little easter-egg like an
AF adjust menu pops up, I just might buy one!
.