Hi Brock
I don't notice CA unless I look for it so generally speaking I don't look for it in order that I don't get dissatisfied with bins through an aberration that doesn't normally grab my attention.
Can rolling ball be like this? I mean would it be possible for someone to use affected Swaros and be perfectly OK with the view while panning until some fateful day when they notice RB and thereafter can't live with the darn things?
Lee
Lee,
I remember Stephen Ingraham on BVD warning "Folks, don't try this at home" in regard to testing for CA since he made himself more sensitive to it by testing for it. Once he saw it, he could not keep from seeing it in every roof bin he tried.
With RB, however, it seems that either you adapt or you don't. Looking for it might make you more aware of it, but either it bothers you or it doesn't. Only two members have reported that RB "crept up on them". That is, at first it didn't bother them, but eventually it did and they couldn't tolerate it. One of those members was Dennis for whom RB went from a "non-issue" to a "deal killer".
But there was one other member for whom it took about two weeks to bother him. Perhaps he hadn't used it in environments where RB is most noticeable, for example, open space with a treeline in the background.
In any case, it seems pretty rare when that happens. It's much more common for it to go the other way, that is, people see it but eventually become less and less aware of it or it disappears completely. Mooreorless holds the record for quickest adaptation: 3 seconds. The slowest seems to be around two weeks.
One interesting trend that I suspected but wasn't able to confirm until Pier posted his observation on the SV EL, is that I always recommend that while going through the period of adjustment on the SV EL or Nikon Premier or Kowa Genesis or any other bin you see RB in, is to stop comparing the bin with others with higher distortion since it could delay the adaptation period.
Pier tried the SV EL, adapted to the RB or at least was able to tolerate it, but then didn't use it for a period while he tested other bins including the Zeiss HT, which has a fair amount of pincushion. When he went back to the SV EL months later, the RB returned! He eventually adjusted again, but it shows that "once adapted, always adapted" is not a given. If you had to go through a period of adjustment with the SV EL and you're away from the it for awhile, and then pick it up again, you might have to start from square one.
Unlike CA where it's best not to look for it, with RB, I recommend looking for it. If you can't induce it with panning, chances are very good that you are an immunie. If you can induce it, then you are susceptible and will have eventually seen it under the right conditions anyway, so you might as well see it during the store's return period.
Then it's a matter of giving yourself time to adjust by using the bin regularly. Most people adjust, so the odds are in your favor, but I suspect that many people who see RB in the SV EL while trying them in a store and find it objectionable, and haven't read up on RB, don't bother giving the bin a chance, but simply buy something else. The SV EL has many good features, so it's worth finding out if you can adapt if you otherwise like the bin.
While it's possible you could be one of those rare birds who doesn't see RB at first or who sees it but isn't bothered by it at first, but for whom it eventually becomes intolerable. However, if BF members' experiences are typical, it seems that scenario is pretty rare.
Brock
