| Reviews : Sigma 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG IF HSM Aspherical Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras |
Sigma 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG IF HSM Aspherical Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras Product By SIGMA Available From 6 Sellers |
Technical Details
- Ultra wide angle zoom lens offers 122 degree view along the diagonal axis
- 12-24mm focal length
- f4.5-5.6 maximum aperture
- Super Multi Coating reduces flare and ghosting
- Hyper Sonic Motor
Product Description
This ultra wide angle zoom lens offers 122 degree super wide angle of view along the diagonal axis. The super-wide angle's useful range of view offers the photographer greater freedom of expression. This lens is equipped with a fixed Petal-type hood to obtain a superior extraneous light-blocking effect. Four Special Low Dispersion (SLD) glass elements are provided for effective compensation of color aberration, which is a common problem with super-wide angle lenses. Two pieces of molded glass and three aspherical lenses, including two molded glass aspherical lens elements, offer excellent correction for linear distortion as well as all types of aberration. It is easy to revert to Manual Focus by simply turning the focusing ring and overriding the AF. An inner focus system provides high performance and convenience. The non-rotating lens barrel perfectly suits the matched petal shaped lens hood. Except fish-eye lenses, this super-wide angle lens is the only lens that has 12mm focal length and can be used with Digital SLR cameras as well as film SLR cameras. Maximum Magnification - 1 - 7.1 Filter Size - Rear Type (Gelatin Filter) Dimensions - Diameter 87mm x Length 102.5mm, 3.4 x 3.9 inch Weight - 21.6 ounces (600 grams)Similar Products
Customer Reviews
By Nick (DC)
I use this lens on a full frame camera (D700) - so the review is geared for full frame users. There are wider choices (with relative advantages / disadvantages) on the cropped sensor side - don't get this lens for DX.
Pros:
- the widest rectilinear lens for full frame. The difference in coverage between 12 and 14mm (the next closest candidate, at least for Nikon) is HUGE (from looking at it - at least 15% - 20% more on 12mm).
- vibrant color rendition. I don't know why this is - but compared at the same settings with the 24-120 and a 50mm 1.8, the reds rendered by Sigma are deeper and more vibrant.
- relatively light - only a pound (compare at an arm breaking 2.1 pounds for Nikon 14-24)
- good build construction.
- relatively inexpensive.
Cons:
- Horrible vignetting. The corners are significantly (2+ stops) darker than the .
- Corner softness at any aperture (just horrible wide open)
- Overall image sharpness. I compared sharpness from this lens with my Nikon 24-120mm VR zoom, which itself is not supposed to be a benchmarch of image quality. The Sigma image is significantly softer throughout the image. Both lenses tested at 24mm, stopped down at f11. It bears to say that the difference in resolving power is greater the closer I placed the lens to the test subject (a textured wall).
- Very flare prone, especially at night with multiple light sources.
- Front element protrudes - so no filters.
I can live with the cons for now because honestly for full frame, there's not much alternative this wide. The closest competitor (Nikon 14-24mm) does not go as wide, it's twice as heavy and twice as pricey. While reports are that the Nikon 14-24 has amazing image quality, it is also not a walkaround lens.
By Nikonian (Boston MA USA)
as i researched for this lens i saw people comparing this lens to the tokina 12-24 f/4 or even the tokina 11-16 f/2.8 and sigma 10-20. people say those lenses are half the price with wider f/stops. people should realize that all other wide angle lenses are dx they are not full frame. this is the widest full frame zoom there is (as of date) it is wider than the beast 14-24 f/2.8 nikon by only 2mm s but at those angles even 2mm s matter.
if you ask me which i would prefer the nikon 14-24 or sigma 12-24 of course the nikon no question but the nikon is more than twice the price and even though people call it the sharpest wide angle there is i do not know if the difference would be worth the price. f/2.8 is nice to have but this wide it does not make too much of a difference. most of my shots with this lens are night photography or landscape and for both it is better to use a small aperture. mostly i go down to f/32.
this lens is extremely sharp and on my d700 it focuses really fast. and i am talking about night time so literally no light i shine a flash light to where i wanna focus and bam it is focused. i have taken a night photography class everyone including the instructor was shocked how wide this thing is and how sharp the pictures are.
i consider myself a tough grader but this lens earned the 5 stars. yes it glares but look at the pictures of the lens there is a half a sphere on the front end of this thing how wouldn't it glare.
i put 2 pictures of the lens and 14 of some of the night pictures i have taken with it on amazon. [...]
By D. Bradshaw
This lens is fantastic... Takes brilliant photos, no fish-eye, incredibly wide, just what I wanted.
ONLY thing that seems an obvious mistake is that Sigma doesn't have a clear way to mount a CPL (circular polarizing lens) on this baby. I've had to search and search for 'workarounds'. Other complaint is that there doesn't seem to be anywhere I can get replacement parts (the lens-cap/hood assembly broke on mine and I can't seem to find a replacement).
Sigma, you're making a lens born for landscape... you MIGHT want to think about polarizing options, and not just rear-gel filters...
By RonAnnArbor (Ann Arbor, MI United States)
I got this for my Nikon D700 when looking for a wide-angle lens that wouldn't break the bank and had a large wide angle view.
Wow, was I surprised by the quality of this glass. It is the widest you can get for a full-format dSLR, and it is sharp across the entire focal range. I won't go into a detailed review here of the the glass -- you can google the reviews and the technical specs.
This is a fine wide angle lens for landscape shooting. It's a bit heavy and large, but the D700 is a great home for it!...One note: there is no way to put a standard filter on this lens, though there are workarounds. Still - with photoshop you can go back and create the filter effects you might have wanted. For purists, you will need to read about how to attach external filters if you need to use one.
By M. Potvin (SC PA)
I'm lucky in that this lens has apparently jumped in price since I purchased to when I'm getting around to this review.
My first experience with Sigma was a 28-300 I had on a camera ages ago. The barrel oil canned and picture quality was so-so. I needed this lens for performing interior and exterior home remodeling pictures as part of a contract job.
First impressions when unboxing. Wow. This is a different breed of lens than my first Sigma. The lens feels solid and well made. Has a nice carry case that comes with it, even though I don't use them.
My first day of playing with the lens was a cloudless day at a tree preservation high up on a hill. First couple of shots I noticed a lot of vignetting on the LCD. I realized then that the lens hood on the end of the lens slides off easily to expose, Popeye!
When not shooting with the hood, you have to be very wary of the sun angles, as you'll get immense flare from the intense curvature of the lens.
The lens takes some learning because of distortion and your physical relationships to your subject. Don't expect, as with any lens, to throw it on and start shooting keepers.
I've found far more uses for this lens that I originally anticipated. In addition to the interior photography, I've found it quite useful in providing a unique venue snapshot when shooting weddings. I will try to upload some customer photos from the lens.
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