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Reviews

Sigma 30mm f/1.4 Review - First Thoughts

sigma30mm14There is an obvious lack of wide aperture lenses for Canon & Nikon’s 50mm equivalent focal length for cropped sensor cameras. While canon has some great L lenses in this category such as the 24mm f/1.4L and the 35mm 1.4L, these lenses are often over $1,500 placing them out of reach of most prosumer camera owners. Canon also offers a 28mm f/1.8 which is a decent lens though fairly expensive for what it offers, and the cheaper 35mm f/2.0. While these lenses cover the focal ranges, they do not offer wide apertures for primes and have fairly poor results. Sigma has come to the rescue though offering quite a few lenses in this range, most notably though, the Sigma 30mm f/1.4.

After receiving this lens, the first item that speaks to Sigmas quality was the included lens case and lens hood. These items are only found in Canon L lenses and must be purchased separately for high prices with all other lenses. This is a nice touch and should be a standard across the board. The next impression happened when I took the lens out of the case: it was heavy, not too heavy mind you, but it felt like a quality peace of glass was lurking beneath the plain black exterior. For a 30mm lens, the Sigma feels right in the middle of canons 50mm f/1.4 and the higher end L models. I have often found the cheaper wide angles difficult to use because of their small size and cheap build quality so this was a welcome change. One of my favorite features of Sigma lenses in general is the pinch tabs on the lens cap. Such a simple item but a welcome alternative from Canons horrible lens cap design. In the end though, performance is what matters and this is where Sigma may have an uphill battle. 3rd party lenses will often have focusing issues and may not consistently work with new cameras. The few pictures I quickly snapped seemed to focus correctly, though there was some slightly obvious and expected softness at f/1.4 which will likely improve when stopped down. Though the ability to shoot at f/1.4 will make anyone jump for joy and opens up a new found joy for indoor, flash-less, handheld shots that would otherwise be impossible. A full review is planned in the near future after I am able to fully test the capabilities of the Sigma 30mm f/1.4. Because this lens is suited for cropped sensor cameras, I will be testing this lens with the Canon XTi and Canon 60D. Stay tuned.



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