izen's reviews

Canon EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM

I read much about this lens on the internet and was impressed by the sharpness and the buttery soft bokeh it produced with its shallow depth of field. Decided to jump in and bought a used one when it came up. At first, when I put it on my 5D mk iii, I thought I bought a defective lens. From f2.8 to f1.2 my target focus was consistently off. Back to the internet for more research and voila, I realized it was the operator and not the lens. Into my 5D's menu and played with the AF Microadjustment and changed my focus points for vertical and horizontal shooting. Big difference, bang on focus. The depth of field at wide apertures is insanely shallow. So getting those eyes in focus each and every time demands patience and discipline, both for you and the subject. And as a result the pay off is well worth it. Because it's a non-IS lens I wouldn't shoot less than 1/60th, when going to the wide apertures. This lens can be very demanding but many of the results in the f1.2 range can be very satisfying.