Photography Thailand Forum

[Chris Savery]

Well, looks like my 70-200/2.8 has got a stuck aperture.

Getting err99 - cleaned contacts and still no go with only that lens.
Can shoot ok on 2.8 (wide open) but any other aperture and I get err99.

Does anyone have experience with taking a lens into Canon here in Bkk? How long do they generally take for a fix/cleaning and how much is a typical charge? Just trying to get an idea of what I should prepare for.

I suspect this is the result of ignoring moisture conditions so it would likely be a good idea for me to get that better under control. Anyone with a small humidity cabinet they want to sell for a good price?

Thanks,
Chris :)

[Marc Schultz]

I have taken lenses to Canon Thailand, but only for cleanings so not sure the turn around time or price on a lens repair. On average though it is one week for most things with them. Best to give them a call I think and ask. Also, I believe they will look at the lens and give you a quote for repair first without committing you to having them fix it before they tell you the cost.

[Chris Savery]

Thanks Marc, will be doing that next time I get in to town.
What is a typical cleaning fee? I wouldn't mind getting my 24-70 brought up to snuff.
Do they calibrate when they clean as well as standard procedure?
Chris :)

[Marc Schultz]

I think the cleaning fee should be no more than 1,000 Baht from memory. There is another shop called AV Master down by the Taksin Bridge which I heard also does good cleanings, but have no personal experience. On calibrating I don't know, but are you talking about calibrating the aperture? Not sure it is necessary. Normally calibrating is done mainly on lenses that contain shutters built in to them like Hasseblad lenses for example which may require shutter speeds to be calibrated over time. But apertures I don't believe are something that need calibration.

[Chris Savery]

I've read many times on the net (mostly on the FM forum) about people sending their lenses into Canon for calibration. I don't know exactly what they do but I presume it's something to do with calibrating the focus mechanism so that it aligns with what the body thinks it is. That is, when I've read people's posts it has always been in relation to getting correct and optimal focus. I'm more or less assuming this as I haven't done it. People have often written about their lens back-focusing or front-focusing (even posting images to show the mis-focus) and by sending it in to Canon the focus is calibrated to focus where it should. It's not just once or twice I read it so there is definitely something in that. Anyway I guess I'll have to ask Canon about it when I'm there.

I'm hoping that the aperture is stuck due to moisture or fungus and that a cleaning is all that is needed to make it work correctly. If they need to replace parts then I'm sure the fee will run higher.

Chris :)

[Marc Schultz]

OK, so you were referring to focus calibration. Unless you are having focusing problems I wouldn’t worry about it and I have never had any of my Canon lenses needing focus calibration as far as I know. In my experience though, even the top of the line Canon lenses mounted on the top of the line Canon bodies back focus from time to time. If it happens once in a while then that is normal and nothing to be alarmed about. And if that is what is happening to people from time to time and they bring their lenses to Canon for calibration, then they are probably just wasting their time I think.

There are situations in my experience where a back focus situation might occur. These include dark lighting, a small object being focused on, the object is too textured for the camera to focus on it, and there might be other more obscure situations which might cause it as well. After all, any intuitive technology in my opinion is never going to produce results without occasional error, or should I say an occasional misunderstanding of what is the desired task.

So to be sure, especially if you are in one of those challenging focus situations, it is always good to shoot things twice to be absolutely certain you don’t miss focusing correctly for the shot. Sometimes I even focus on the object, take a shot, then focus somewhere else, then focus back on the subject, and then take another shot. This clears the focus in a way and forces the camera to refocus on the same point. Manual focus in tricky situations is a good idea as well at times. This way you reduce the camera's natural tendency to error. And if focusing was an exact science, then back or front focusing should never occur, but I am afraid that unfortunately it is not.

If though you believe your lens has some auto focusing problems the best way to test it is to take a shot of a large blue or green colored object which has direct front lighting on it against a distinctively different textured background. Then if you get back focusing you may have a problem. But before coming to that conclusion, try shooting the same setup with a different lens and see if the same back focusing mistake occurs. If it does, then you might want to investigate further to see if there is a problem with the camera body itself, rather than the lens.

Another thing is when people shoot at F/4 or F/2.8 and focus lock, move the camera a bit before taking the shot, and end up with a soft focus shot it might be an issue of the short depth of focusing plane changing because of the moving of the camera rather than it being a back focus issue.

Sorry for the long technical explanation, but just wanted to explain why I don't believe back focusing is normally a problem of auto focus calibration.

[Chris Savery]

Thanks Marc. No need to apologize for the length.

I have learnt to always shoot several exposures from trial and error. In many cases even when shooting an "interesting" wall if I take 3 shots, often at least 1 of them will be soft. I can get very sharp images though. It just seems to be random even when I very carefully focus and have all the time in the world to steady my hand. I will be the first to admit that this is more of a sense of something not quite right. I don't use a tripod for my shooting and if I wanted to test properly I would have to set one up and do very careful shots like you suggest.

I was thinking more along the lines that if I had it calibrated then I could rule out that as a cause and would just try to improve my technique further. I am actually surprised at how well I can hold a slow shutter shot sometimes. But other times even a shot at 1/1600 second comes out soft. Even when I refocus several times before firing the shutter.

So. Who knows. I appreciate the suggestions though.

[Bryan Bondurant]

 If you value your lens I would send it to Japan for service. I have had nothing but negative experiences dealing with simple fixes on analog lenses so more complex lenses with issues I would not consider having worked here by anyone.

 One consideration is a sterilized environment in which to even open a lens to prevent it from ingesting hair, lint, and fungus. While its true that lenses can shoot clear even with detectable flaws there is nothing more disgusting than having a lens sent for cleaning coming back dirtier than when you sent it. I even had one camera off for a month that was never even checked and when confronted with it on my arrival from Cambodia to pick it up after I was called by the shop it was hastily  repaired removing some value from the body and getting dust inside the rangefinder.

  I think anyone reading can see where I'm going with this, If its a hundred dollar ugly shooter, no problem. If its a year old Carl Zeiss or Leica prime lens it gos back to its place of origin for cleaning no matter what the expense.     

[Chris Savery]

Bryan,
Have you had your problems with the official Canon service centre here in Bangkok (near Sathorn)?
I would NOT be surprised of problems in general with a poor level of competence around town here but I would be surprised if Canon themselves did not have properly trained people and facilities here. I am quite interested in this as it will cost a lot more to send it to Japan - perhaps more than the repair itself. It's a heavy lens that would need to be insured and traceable. I once had to get a Sigma lens repaired under warranty and they sent it to Japan - it took more than 6 weeks. Both time and cost are a major downside to this and if your concerns are not directly related to the Canon service centre I would feel better about taking it there.
Chris :)

[Marc Schultz]

I have pretty much always had good experiences with Canon here in Thailand. What is said about them not having a dust free environment to work in is true though. But I have had lenses cleaned and they have always at least come back cleaner then when I brought them in. I think though as you said, they do have competently trained service people here. Afterall, they have surely seen every sort of problem you might have with a piece of Canon equipment many times already. My experience is if something can't be done they will tell you. If you are going to make a trip into the service center to drop something off then I would suggest you insist discussing your problem with a technician while you are there to get all of your questions answered before leaving. I can see there being communication problems and the girls who take in the equipment have very little if any technical background. So if people have problems then I suspect it could be because of lack of communication. The technicians may also have limited English language abilities as well so the solution would be either your fluent in Thai or you bring someone along who is fluent in both languages to help translate. This may not be always necessary, but if you are worried about having a problem with the service then ensuring the communication about your problem, and the possible solutions, then it might not be a bad idea. If it was me though, I would not venture sending Canon lenses back to Japan.

[Bryan Bondurant]

I have pretty much always had good experiences with Canon here in Thailand. What is said about them not having a dust free environment to work in is true though. But I have had lenses cleaned and they have always at least come back cleaner then when I brought them in. I think though as you said, they do have competently trained service people here. Afterall, they have surely seen every sort of problem you might have with a piece of Canon equipment many times already. My experience is if something can't be done they will tell you. If you are going to make a trip into the service center to drop something off then I would suggest you insist discussing your problem with a technician while you are there to get all of your questions answered before leaving. I can see there being communication problems and the girls who take in the equipment have very little if any technical background. So if people have problems then I suspect it could be because of lack of communication. The technicians may also have limited English language abilities as well so the solution would be either your fluent in Thai or you bring someone along who is fluent in both languages to help translate. This may not be always necessary, but if you are worried about having a problem with the service then ensuring the communication about your problem, and the possible solutions, then it might not be a bad idea. If it was me though, I would not venture sending Canon lenses back to Japan.

  Good answers Marc, My experience is with second hand Leica lenses and more obscure gear like Rollie TLRs and other classic cameras. I have also had issues with camera bodies getting fungus within the rangefinder which was handled about like sending a new car to a junk yard to get waxed applied with a wire brush. I dont have any experiance with Canon in Thailand nor Nikon but I would expect more from them since they have a large presence here, unlike Leica, Zeiss, Cosina, Sinar, and smaller more specialized companies.  Do you know anything about Nikon service in Thailand?

                                          Sorry about the mini rant but once bitten twice shy

[Chris Savery]

Thanks Bryan for clarifying and Marc for your input as well.

I'll be visiting Canon with my girlfirend who speaks English and Thai fluently so will be able to communicate fairly well. Will try to nail down a technician with a clear plan for getting it fixed and keep my fingers crossed.
Hopefully will get into Bangkok tomorrow now that the holiday is done with.

One last small question - if coming from BTS Chong Nonsi and heading towards South Sathorn Rd would it be left or right to the Canon building? I'm guessing left as otherwise it would make more sense to get off at Surasak.

Chris :)

[Marc Schultz]

The building is called Bangkok Tower and is on the northeast corner at the Sathorn/Chong Nonsi intersection.

[Chris Savery]

Thank you! Now I'm planned out.
Chris :)

[Paul Whitehead]

.......  Do you know anything about Nikon service in Thailand?
                                      ..............

Its excellent. The service centre is at NIKS on Silom.