Build Quality Smooth Manual Focus. F5 on up it is very sharp with colors matching L series Canon lenses. Price.

Isn''t tack sharp at F2.8 but I really didn''t expect it to be. A little Unsharp Masking goes a LONG way

Got this lens on a lark as I needed a faster zoom for doing weddings and the 17-35 just wasn''t enough. After doing tests side by side on resolution with the Canon 28-70L, it of course was no competition wide open, but stopped down past F3.5 and they were neck and neck. Considering the 3X price difference I figured I''d stick with this for a while. Frankly I find the build quality remarkable. Solid with a nice balance on MY sample anyway. The focal length adjustment does require a good grip, but the damping on the manual focus is buttery smooth (better than my 28-135IS Canon lens by a mile). Basically this lens is way better than it was thought to be when I ordered it, and that extra 4mm is wonderful as compared to the typical 28-70.

Customer Service

N/A

Similar Products Used:

Canon 28-70 2.8 L

Build Quality, sharp and contrasty pics

tight zoom ring, but that seems normal...filters will break the bank....

Without getting into a long review, just buy it. I was real hesitant to purchase this lens as no one around here is shooting it yet, however, I bit the bullet and purchased it. Al I can say is great lens..sharp contrasty pics at most apetures. AF is fast enough, build quality seems extremely good for Sigma....

Customer Service

have not had to use..btw, has a 4 year warranty

Similar Products Used:

Canon L lenses

None really. Oh, the pouch is about the best I''ve seen that comes with a lens.

In my case the zoom is horribly difficult. Also, the lens hood feels as if it''s just holding on. The slightest bumb would send mine topling.

I just picked this lens up yesterday. I actually ordered it without even seeing it in store. I should have gone to a store that had the lens in stock instead of ordering blindly. Ther reason I did this, I stupidly presumed that this lens would be of equal quality to the last Sigma Pro or 2.8 lens I owned which was the AF70-210D for Nikon which was beautiful in both build quality and superb optically. That was a lens which I would have rated a 9 out of 10. This lens is nothing like it. I was horrified when I saw that it was made entirely of plastic except for the metal bayonet mount. This was totally unexpected. The optical quality seems pretty good, about equal to my Nikkor 28-85 f3.5-4.5. The thing I hate most about this lens confirms what I hate about most plastic lenses, is that mine is horribly notchy in the focus when switched to manual focus. But this problem is tiny compared to how hard and rough the zoom is to use. From 70mm down to about 28 isn''t too too bad, but bad non the less. But twisting from 28 down to 24 feels like it going to break something in the lens. It is really bad on my example. You can actually feel the inside awkwardly twisting like something is possibly going to give for good. I can''t at alll imagine that this would get better with time. Now, I accept that this may not be the case with all of these lenses, but non the less, Sigma deserves some negative feedback for allowing this one (if bad) out of the factory. There quality control people need a kick in the butt. Anyway, this one is going back to the store tomorrow morning. I would be annoyed even if I paid half of what I did for this sort of quality. I just find it difficult to accept that a Tamron 19-35 which was half the price is built much much better and isn''t of plastic. I bought this for a D1 and F5 Nikon by the way.

Customer Service

Hopefully they give refunds

Similar Products Used:

Nikkor 28-85 f3.5-4.5 Nikkor 18-35 f3.5-4.5 Tokina 19-35 f3.5-4.5

Construction, AF, low distortion at min and max focals. Excelent from 28 to 50 at 2.8

Nothing of special

I bought this lens a month ago and I''ve taked about 100 pictures. Very robust, the best results are from 28 to 50 mm if you want the max f/2.8. Excellent lens for the $ I paid.

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Canon 28-80 USM 3.5-5.6

24mm adds extra range for landscapes
Low light shooting ability
Internal autofocusing
Price

Filter Size (82mm!!)

I bought this lens because my trusty Canon 50mm prime can't always get everything I need into the frame. I do a lot of landscape photography, and the added range from 24mm really fills my need for those wide photos. So far, I've only had a chance to work with an Elan 7E and Kodak Supra 100/400 film, but the shots I've taken, both day and night, have come out wonderfully - no flare apparent, and the 24mm landscapes in low light are great. I really fell in love with the internal focusing mechanism on my Sigma 70-200, and am grateful that they decided to equip this lens with it as well. I would have given it 5 value/5 overall, but the 82mm filter size added quite an expense for even a standard UV protector filter. But for the price, this lens is a steal (compared to the Canon 28-70 f/2.8 @ around $1200USD)!!

Customer Service

N/A

Similar Products Used:

Canon EF 28-80mm f/3.5-5.6 V USM
Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 APO EX HSM

Really sturdy this one!
Very grippable, both zoom & focus rings rubberized in a good vay.
Wellbalanced on all but the smallest cameras (fex not so good on a EOS 300(Elan something in USA), but very nice on EOS 600 which I used trying it out.
Good AF, better on a EOS 33 (Elan 7/EOS 7) than on 600, as it should be.
VERY good feel of focus ring in manual mode.
I do actually like the so lamented "spreckle2 "gold flake" finish, attractive and grippable (but the old "zen" was even better, especially more insensitive for getting damaged after longer use).
Good close docus limit, 40 cm at all f-lengths.
2,8 gives bright viewfinder image.
Looks the business, for what it´s worth.
Easy mounted and well finished hood included, as is a ditto bag.
AF/manual-button & focus ring shift for AF/manual is well designed, albeit a little awkward that both must be moved to do the shift.
Very sharp at 8 (and 11) through the range, best at shorter f-lengths than 40mm.

My sample has way too much distorsion, especially from around 40mm and up where lines really start to bend inwards.
Soft at around 4,5 and larger apertures, more so at 40mm and longer f-lenghts.
Not good at all at 2,8, possibly usable center sharpness, but edges...no.
A smidgen too low in contrast/color saturation (compared at 70mm with Canon 70-200/4 L at 70mm, perhaps a little unfair...but the Canon has it there...)

Wanted this lens badly when I knew it was coming, but I think it´s softer at larger apertures than I´d like to get.That is, even if the price is very, very fair compared to fex Canon 28-70/2,8 L.
The distorsion at the upper half of the range is much more obvious than the Tokina ATX 28-70 showed.
This Ex can only equal it in sharpness at around 8 and lower down the aperture range, but contrast/saturation was better with the ATX at all settings even if that lens too had a degree of softness to it at 2,8, but not as much.
Center sharpness is much better than edges at larger apertures, though, and at shorter f-lengths at 5,6 and smaller ap-settings this do deliver very good general image quality.

Sorry to say it, but I decided to change it for the Sigma17-35/2,8-4EX. As it has a very good reputation it might do the trick (another trick, really...) letting me think another while for a lens choice between it and the canon 70-200/4L.
I had not time to try another sample, and I don´t think that the distorsion is a sample-thing, more differnce can be expected to exist with sharpness than with dist.
(I know, a 17-35 might distort also, but at f.ex 17mm it´s sometimes a part of the fascinating thing with it, that´s NOT so at 70mm...)

Of course I could as well go for the 28-70EX, but was more tempted to take the plunge at REAL wide angle, already having used Sigma´s excellent old 24mm/2,8 about 9 years making me want to see if something is to be had at the "few mm range"...

Want to take most images at 24mm-35mm but still have access to up to 70mm?Do get a hold on the 24-70EX, but don´t expect too much at the 2,8 regions...

"Value/overall" is hard to decide on...I´ll try, but take it not too literally since this lens seems to be such a mixed bag...and I am NOT a Sigma hater even after this experience
(took 2-3 rolls, on tripod and without, in very bright light with 100ISO color negative and 400ISO B/W with a EOS 600)

Customer Service

Not needed.

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For my Nikons:
Tokina AF ATX 28-70/2,8 very good one!, (better at 2,8 to 5,6 than the 24-70EX)
Sigma AF 28-80/3,5-5,6 Believe me, that IS a good lens, at all but wide open.

Fast focusing on my Fuji S1. Optics are great and the fit and finish are excellent.

None right now. Time will tell if the mechanicals will hold up to my Nikon lenses.

This is one heavy lens but it balances nicely on my Fuji S1. I contemplated purchasing a Tamron 24-135 but eventually settled for the Sigma because of the constant aperture.

I have shot outdoor and indoor assignments with this lens. I am switching from prime manual Nikon lenses to this lens. It is my first autofocus lens. I wanted a wide zoom range and auto focus capability for my first lens so this Sigma is the only game in town as far as bang for the buck goes. Images I have shot with this lens are crisp and the contrast is excellent. I have not done any critical evaluation nor a comparison with my Nikon prime lenses. But for the money, the flexibility and the overall value I would not worry about the critical differences between my Sigma and a Prime Nikon lens. I am also waiting for the Sigma 15-30 to hit the stores. That would be my next purchase. The only problem I have with tihs lens is really no fault of the lens itself but the Fuji S1. Where the 24mm becomes a 36mm lens and that is not wide enough for extreme wide shots.

Customer Service

Have not had any experience with them yet.

Similar Products Used:

Nikon AF35-105 f3.5-4.5
Nikon AF35-70 f2.8