 Sigma got it right |
| Review Date: July 27, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Baltic Books, Portland, OR USA |
We've been using this Sigma AF 18-200 lens for a couple of months now. Recently we compared the Sigma with Canon's 28-135mm image stabilized lens on a Canon 30D. We shot side by side photographs at 28mm & 135 mm both, set to ISO 100 with camera in Program mode. Our lenses were set to autofocus with image stabilization on.
The good news which I really didn't expect was to see both lenses produce images that were nearly identical-- I thought for sure Canon's optics would far surpass Sigma's. Color saturation, light exposure through the lens, and detail were indistinguishable. The autofocus worked equally well on both. Both weighed about the same and were about the same size. The Sigma has a 72mm diameter aperture which I liked (so does the Canon). Of course the Sigma is 18-200, and at this time Canon does not have a competing option in the same digital SLR lens class with image stabilization.
The only aspect of the Sigma that differed significantly from Canon's lens was the noise of Sigma's autofocus motor. Sigma produces noticeable motor noise, though it wasn't overly loud. Still if you were shooting in a spot where silence was critical such as a ceremony, it may become an issue but probably not. In comparison, the Canon autofocus motor is silent and fast every time.
Sigma places a locking mechanism on the lens barrel to eliminate any possibility of lens creep (lens extending when pointed down). I doubt this would be a problem with the Sigma anyway. The zoom ring is a little stiff, but not too stiff. The manual focus ring is designed to be used with AF set to off to avoid manipulating the motor when focusing.
The image stabilization works well allowing you to shoot lower light photos without a tripod. I was quite satisfied with Sigma's newest effort here.
I'd say this Sigma makes a great choice for amateur photographers like us looking for a single lens option on Canon digital SLR cameras. The only dissuading factor 'might' be the motor noise if you hope to match Canon's silent motor system. Until Canon produces the same class of lens at a competitive price, Sigma has this round sown up.
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UPDATE: "LENS CREEP" September 18, 2007
We did just notice the Sigma lens starting creep for the first time (extend while pointed down). So apparently while the zoom mechanism starts off stiff enough to hold the lens in position, over time it will loosen up enough to move on its own with gravity assisting. Still love the lens though. |
Excellent solution for many Photographers.
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| Review Date: January 9, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Ozarkhawk, Ozark, MO |
This was shipped to my office yesterday, so I naturally had to play with it. I have an old Nikon D50, and had gotten use to the kit lens that was on it. This Sigma is CONSIDERABLY larger and heavier. I expected that of course, and maybe I'm just getting old, but IMO its a pretty hefty lens.
I bought this lens expressly for the Optical Stabilization, so that was the first thing I tested. My office has a logo painted on the far side, so I handheld, indoors, at 200mm and focused on one letter. The lens setting was f6.3 at 1/30 sec. Looking side by side at the OS and non-OS shot in the camera lcd screen, they looked almost identical.
However, puting them in Photoshop and blowing them up revealed a whole other story. The non-os picture was blurred - and no amount of sharpening in Photoshop could correct it.
The OS picture was sharp. I'm not easily impressed, but I was really surprised at how well it worked. When I enlarged it to 200 percent in Photoshop, it seemed to be a bit soft, so I applied a small bit of sharpening from the software - and ended up with a photo that looked like
it had been shot with a macro lens from 3 feet away on a tripod. It was outstanding.
I bought this lens for 2 reasons.
First I am a Realtor. All of my listings need indoor shots, and I stay away from flash if I can - natural light seems to create warm home interiors. Problem was, most of these shots ended up in the 1/8-1/15 range - so I packed a tripod around. This lens should be far more convenient.
Second, I am a photographer. I shoot a lot of weddings and reunions, and I often try to drag the shutter, especially in churches or large halls, where I want some ambient light to fill in the background. This lens will allow me to shoot all day at 1/15 sec. with a TTL flash, and create some nice balanced portraits without the background blur found in most of these sort of images from the slow shutter speed.
I have read in other reviews that this lens is slow. It is. If it were a straight lens with f6.3 at 200 mm, I wouldn't even consider it. However, the OS allows you to handhold safely at least another 2 fstops slower, so IMO, that makes up for the slow speed of the lens. Besides, it's ridiculous to compare a $500 lens to a $1700 lens in the first place.
The lens also has a bit of distortion. If you primarily shoot architecture, and don't want to correct all of your images, this isn't the lens for you.
I haven't noticed any lens creep yet, the zoom ring is pretty stiff, but that may change over time, and there is a lock, anyway.
One major complaint I have about this lens: the focus ring is prominent, and easy to grab. TOO easy to grab. Sigma warns against turning the focus ring when you are in autofocus mode, for fear of damaging the lens. I trained myself after about 15 minutes to keep my hand off of it, but I noticed that anyone that picked up the camera had a tendency to want to turn the focus ring, thinking it was the zoom ring. If you hand this lens to someone to take your picture, be sure to instruct them how to handle it, or risk damage to the lens.
The focus mechanism and OS are a bit noisy, but mostly because my ear is about 4 inches from the camera when it operates. I care very little about the noise factor.
Overall, this is a great lens. Inexpensive, will probably be on your camera exclusively, and allows you to handhold the camera in low light situations. I never got to test it against Nikon's version, but the difference in price made the choice easy. I recommend this lens highly. |
Much better than just a "walk-around lens"
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| Review Date: April 6, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Jonathan H. Ward, Reston, Virginia USA |
I purchased this lens for use with a new Nikon D40 and have been blown away! I really enjoy having the flexibility to go from 18mm to 200mm in a single lens, rather than swapping between my 18-55 and 55-200 lenses. I took it for a "test drive" on a hike in the mountains this weekend, and I will never go back to carrying my two other lenses again when I'm walking around! Images were crisp and the colors were great. I forgot to take my circular polarizing filter with me, but it wasn't a problem with this beauty.
The optical quality is much better than I expected. There is some barrel distortion when you're zoomed back to wide angles - it was noticeable through the viewfinder. If it bothers you, it's corrected easily enough using Capture NX or Photoshop to work on your images.
The lens is noticeably heavier than its brethren, but I don't believe that will be an issue. It's also almost an inch bigger in diameter than my 55-200mm lens, but I actually think that's good. It feels better in my hand.
I found myself switching to manual focus on several occasions, as I was shooting through trees into the valley several miles from the mountain. As others have noted, the focus ring is larger than I have come to expect on other lenses, and I did find myself grabbing it by mistake a couple of times when I meant to go for the zoom ring. I'll learn, though...I'll be using this lens almost all the time, so I know I'll get used to it.
I have noted that in extreme close-ups (macro range), the lens does a great deal of "hunting" to find the right focus. The Nikon lenses often do the same thing, but the hunting is a little louder with the Sigma lens. I wonder if the wider lens barrel partially blocks the camera's autofocus sensor. Again, this is not a big issue for me...especially in macro shots, where I prefer to focus manually anyway.
The Optical Stabilization feature worked great. I didn't have a single blurred picture from my shoot on the hike, even though I was shooting at f10 or narrower most of the time, at many zoom angles, in a variety of lighting conditions, and without a tripod.
The biggest problem I had came from the embarrassment of riches at having so wide a zoom range available to me! On many occasions, I found myself shooting the same scene from the same spot, all the way from 18mm to high zooms, and every one of the pictures had its own artistic interest and merits. How do I choose which one I like best?!
All in all, this is a great lens. I'm very happy with it and I know I'll be doing a lot more photography with it than I would have been doing without it. |
Winner
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| Review Date: January 9, 2008 |
| Reviewer: William P. Benedict, NYC |
| This lens is phenomenal. It is the perfect walk-around lens. 28-300mm lenses don't compete, as I find the 18-28mm range to be far more useful than the 200-300mm range for APS-C sensor cameras like the Rebel and 40D. Sigma has an 18-250mm lens, but its lack of image stabilization is a deal-breaker. This lens isn't too heavy, isn't too large, and it zooms like a bastard. If I had to have one lens for an APS-C sensor camera, with cost as no object, this would be it. Second would be Canon's 10-22mm. I would pay big bucks for a faster version of this lens. |
Best bang for buck at this price point
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| Review Date: March 28, 2008 |
| Reviewer: B. Li, Hong Kong |
I bought this lens about a month ago and it has not come off my camera since. the OS function works wonders and I love the range. I have gotten extensive use of both wide angle and telefoto focal lengths and it hasn't disappointed at either range. I have taken this lens around SE Asia and the colors that come out when shooting in sunlight was much better than I originally expected. I've even taken some nice portrait shots with this.
My one annoyance would be the loud autofocus but you get used to it and I haven't been shooting in conditions where absolute silence was needed, such as a ceremony.
This lens came out for canon bodies since at this price point canon doesn't have something that rivals the Nikon 18-200mm VR.
My travel lens kit now consists of:
1. Sigma 18-200mm OS
2. Canon 100mm 2.8 USM Macro
3. Canon 50mm 1.8 (better for lowlight)
If I'm not taking macro shots specifically, the Sigma is on my camera 99% of time during the day. I absolutely feel that it is the best value you can get for a Canon body in terms of a walk-around lens at this price point. |
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