Stopped down, it (star)bursts like a champ, delivering starburst-filter like results. Wide open into the sun, the Sigma has a soft quality with minimal flare, giving photos an almost ethereal look. I am big on shooting into the sun and other bright light sources, so performance in those conditions is important to me. The bokeh is smooth and creamy wide open, and creates a serious sense of separation between subject and background. As important, or perhaps more important, to “the look” of the images coming out of this lens is the bokeh quality. The lens produces images that pop, that have a polished, almost glossy look to them. Although all of the photos in this article have been post-processed to various degrees, they all looked great right out of the camera. Its other strengths include contrast and color rendition, both of which it delivers beautifully. I actually can’t think of any lens I’ve ever used that has been sharper.Įven at f/1.4, it’s incredibly sharp (albeit in a very shallow area), and at around f/8, you have front to back sharpness (in most cases), that make this lens very suitable for field of vision landscapes. I won’t go as far as to say its considerably better (as some have claim), but it is noticeably better. I shot with the Nikon 35mm f/1.4 two weeks before I bought the Sigma, and I think the Sigma is a tad sharper than the Nikon. No more problems exchanging your first copy because it had a front or back focus issue.Īs far as sharpness goes, this lens is ridiculously sharp. Starting with the auto-focus, I was incredibly happy to find that focus locked quickly and accurately, with no front or back focus issues.īased upon what I’ve read online, there aren’t focus issues with this lens. Zaius is smart and all, but he’s no King Kong. While not exactly comparable to that lens, in terms of performance (and moreso quality), this new lens makes my old Sigma 30 look like a toy. When I moved from crop to full frame, one of the lenses I lamented losing was the Sigma 30mm f/1.4. Since pretty lenses are nothing but expensive paperweights if they can’t produce excellent image quality, let’s move on to what really matters: performance. Here’s hoping Sigma builds on this momentum with the new Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 lens. Given that Sigma has been plagued by issues of quality control among other issues in the past, I think this stylistic reinvention was a good move. It’s really not just a matter of excellent build quality, this lens truly feels and looks nice. Everything from its large build to its lens hood to even the cap just reeks of high quality. The lens has considerable heft to it, and its brushed aluminum construction just feels good in the hands. The lens looks less like something you’d expect from Sigma and more like something you might expect from Apple, if they made lenses. It’s sleek, well built, and has a beautiful industrial design. Quite simply, it doesn’t look like a Sigma lens. It also won’t work with point & shoot cameras or iPhones, just in case there’s any confusion.Īs soon as the Sigma 35mm f/1.4 is unboxed, it’s clear that it’s part of a reinvention of the Sigma brand. If you don’t know what “full frame” and “crop sensor camera” mean, there’s a 99% chance you’re using a crop sensor camera, in which case this lens isn’t for you. If you’re using a crop sensor camera, you’re definitely better off purchasing a cheaper crop lens, like the Sigma 30mm f/1.4 (read my review of that lens), unless you are planning lens purchases about a future upgrade to full frame. (You probably should check that out regardless–you’re welcome for it, America.)īefore getting to the performance of the lens, it’s important to note that this lens is designed for full frame cameras. I’ll warn you from the outset–this is my new favorite prime lens, so if you don’t want to drop $900 today, you might want to stop reading now and look at these GIFs of cats and shoes. And given that it’s superior to the Nikon 35mm f/1.4, what a first effort it is! This review will cover the strengths and weaknesses of the lens, with sample photos along the way that I’ve taken with the lens. The Sigma 35mm f/1.4 DG HSM lens is the first in Sigma’s new “Art” line.
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