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Maximum sharpness for sigma 18 35. Dmitry Evtifeev's blog. Manufacturing and design

Designed specifically for APS-C crop cameras.

The model was released in April 2013 and made many connoisseurs of high-quality photographic equipment buy this model.

Just watch how he makes videosSigma 18-35mm F1.8 DC HSM Art:

Deciphering the marking of the Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 DC HSM Art lens:

art- lenses from the new Sigma Global Vision line. This line collects models created with an emphasis on artistic drawing. Application: landscapes, portraits, still lifes, close-ups and other genres, where, according to the manufacturer, photography allows you to "show the inner artist." The main part of the line is occupied by fast lenses with a fixed focal length.

HSM (Hyper-Sonic Motor)- Sigma autofocus lenses with ultrasonic focus drive. They have increased speed and focusing accuracy, work almost silently, work out clearly in the tracking autofocus (servo-AF) mode.

DC (crop)- Lenses designed to work only with digital cameras with a non-full frame APS-C sensor.

This model has already won many awards, thus confirming the high class of the Art line.

Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 DC HSM Art In Minsk for SLR cameras Canon, Nikon, Sony, Pentax you can without leaving your home. Call by phone, or make a purchase through the website, and the lens will be delivered to youat any convenient address.

What can boast of Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 DC HSM Art?

Internal focus and zoom(trunk doesn't come out). The dimensions of the lens will remain unchanged, which is convenient when working. In addition, the front lens does not rotate, which allows you to apply different filters.

Constant aperture throughout the F1.8 range (makes it possible to shoot sharp shots in the evening);

At Ultrasonic motor (HSM) for fast and quiet autofocus

Multi-layer anti-reflective coating that can protect against glare, reflections and distortion.

Reliable metal, brass bayonet.

We advise, help with the choice and deliver the order for free in Minsk!

Also, if you want to test the lens before buying, you can do it at Photobuba rental

Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 DC HSM Art Lens Unboxing Example

Equipment:

⇔ Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 DC HSM Art Lens

⇔ Convenient lens case

⇔ Blend

⇔ Instruction in Russian

⇔ Box and warranty card

Online store specialists photo equipment Sigma always in touch and ready to provide detailed information about the selected lens model. We guarantee efficiency in the formation of orders and fast delivery on the day of the order within the Moscow Ring Road.

In addition, wide payment options include not only cash and cashless payments, but also webmoney, ERIP, and for residents of Russia, it is possible to pay to a Sberbank card.

Improve your photo equipment with our online store!

Your attention to the video shot on the Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 DC HSM Art:

Customers who purchased the Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 DC HSM Art note:

Excellent build quality and case materials;

The zoom and focus rings are very comfortable and rubberized;

The kit comes with a functional hood with an internal corrugated surface;

Quiet and fast work ultrasonic motor, as well as accurate and confident autofocus;

You can buy lens Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 DC HSM Art in the online store of photographic equipment Sigma. To do this, click the "buy" button, enter the data and wait for the manager to contact you. And if you don't want to wait, call yourself:

good picture, sharpness, detail, pleasant blur

Minuses

lack of a stabilizer, slow autofocus (subjectively), misses in the dark

Review

At first glance, the zoom seemed short. After analyzing my photos, I realized that it would be a good replacement for a whale lens. The analysis showed 70% shot within focal lengths With this lens, 25% is shot at 50mm, only 5% from 50mm to 135mm. When testing in the store, I felt heaviness, I gradually got used to it, I don’t feel it. In normal light, the picture gives amazing, the maximum aperture is working, I like the blur. There is a nuance: aperture allows you to shoot in a dark room, but the lack of a stabilizer and the size of the lens "do not allow" to set shutter speeds longer than 1/40 sec, in order to avoid "shake" you have to raise the ISO, after which noise appears. I shoot on the Canon 600D in the same conditions as on the whale "dark" lens, the aperture allows you to set faster shutter speeds, blur the background well, while excellent detail, volume, saturated colors, no aberrations. The disappointment that came after buying the camera, from the faded photos of the whale lens, has passed.

Use period: 5 days

Strengths:

1) High sharpness with open.

2) Aperture 1.8!

3) Excellent build.

4) Nice view.

5) Lack of HA and strong distortions.

6) Kit.


Weak sides:

Except for autofocus, there is nothing to complain about. Is that the lack of dust and moisture protection.


Comment:

This Sigma has been stirring my heart for more than a year. Two years ago, before the crisis, an announcement about such a sigma for canon popped up, but I thought too long. I was embarrassed by the small spread of focal lengths and the heavy weight. Two years later, he acquired many glasses and carcasses, and again in December this sigma came out (though under Nikon). I decided that it was fate and it would be unreasonable to miss it a second time, so I bought it. Now let's go through the pros and cons.

The sharpness at the open aperture was very surprising. I have already read a lot of reviews and reviews on this sigma, but I was sure that it was far from fixes. Nevertheless, the MTF graphics, reviews and recommendations are confirmed - the sigma is very sharp right from the open across the entire field of the frame. At 35mm, it is comparable in sharpness to Nikon 35 1.8dx, even better in the corners.

Aperture 1.8 at zoom is a dream of many photographers. And then sigma rolled out this lens for adequate money. And with sharpness from the open. It's a miracle! In fact, we get the equivalent of a zoom from 2.8 to ff. At the same time, an extremely sharp equivalent. At one time I had 24-70 2.8l2 and now I have 24-70 2.8l, and so the sigma lens of the first version (set to ff) is noticeably ahead in sharpness, and almost comparable to the second version. And despite the fact that even the first used version costs like a new sigma!

The collection is superb. Metal, glass and special plastic. Everything is very strong. The zoom and focus rings rotate extremely pleasantly, for me it’s even better than most electric ones. Nothing hangs anywhere, there is no trunk, everything is done with the highest quality.

Nice view. Sigma does not attract too much attention and without a lens hood it is very similar from a distance for most to 18-135 or 18-105, that is, it does not look too cool from afar. This is nice both in terms of harassing the photographer, and in terms of visibility for thieves.

Returning to the image, I note the absence of ha on all focal lengths with an open one. They exist, but they are vanishingly few. The distortion inherent in wide-angle lenses is almost completely absent as well. All minor flaws are easily corrected on the computer.

I always set the sigma kit as an example for other brands. Hard on the outside and soft on the inside, the case and lens hood are a big plus for the purchase. I also got an excellent rodenstock filter from a used one. The same sigma 150-500, in addition to the above, due to its size and weight, also had a tripod foot. Why canon with its 70-200 4l does not give us the same, I don’t know. Why the lens hood does not work with 10-18is is also a mystery.

Now for the cons:

Autofocus. As expected, as they wrote in the reviews, this is the main jamb of the lens. The d5200 has front focus on all focal lengths. It's a shame that this problem didn't work for me. On d70s, the focus hits the target. There is still a check on the d5100, d80, d200, fuje s5pro and d7000. But most likely there will be problems there. And the docking station will not help me - it will be too tiring to set up a new camera every time, except to write down the values ​​\u200b\u200bfor each and make corrections before shooting (but this is too dreary). It’s a pity that Sigma made an excellent optical lens, sells it cheaply, makes a good kit, but hasn’t come up with a way to get rid of autofocus problems. It is clear that Nikon and Canon do not disclose focusing algorithms, and in each new camera jambs can happen with this lens (the canon 70d and 7dm2 squint, probably 80d), but it's still a pity. The autofocus speed is quite acceptable, but again after 70-200 2.8lis2 it is noticeably lower.

The lens does not have dust and moisture protection. For me personally, this is a problem. I like to shoot a reportage and you don’t know what the weather will be like there. I understand that the same 70-200 4l also has no protection, moreover, it is also expensive and seems like an Elka. But at the same time, the inexpensive 17-40 4l has protection, Nikon's 70-300vr and 16-85vr also have. And then they got stingy.

If sigma made 18-35 1.8 protected and with perfect autofocus, I think few would overpay an extra 200-300 bucks for this innovation, but I would strangle the toad :)

Also, before the purchase, I saw three aspects as minuses:

Small range of focal lengths. Trying to set focal lengths from 18mm to 35mm at 18-55, it seemed that these same 35-55mm were not enough for complete happiness. But only a little like 18-35, it turned out that these are quite convenient focal lengths. And there is no feeling that you are working with a fix - adjusting the frame with a zoom movement is still just as simple as with other zooms. Let the scale and not super, but quite good. At one time, using 17-40 4l on the crop, I had enough range, but here it’s about the same, only with aperture ratio of 1.8.

Weight two years ago seemed too big to me. 800-odd grams was too much. At that time, the heaviest lens I had was Nikon 70-300 vr, which is lighter than this sigma, but still seemed huge. Two years later, after working with 24-70 2.8l, 70-200 2.8lis2, sigma 150-500os, as well as a number of heavy manual glasses, I realized that the weight of the sigma is quite adequate. Moreover, with carcasses like d200 or fuja s5pro, working with light lenses is not even as convenient as with heavier ones. And the sigma is quite comfortable on them. With small carcasses like d5200, the bunch nods, but again it’s convenient to shoot. It is even more convenient than on the Canon D650 with 24-70 2.8l or even 24-105 4l - the dimensions of the sigma seem much more modest.

No stub. I still regret it, but I understand that the price would have increased greatly. And in general, 18mm with f3.5 (on a whale) and a stub are approximately equal to 18mm with f1.8 and without a stub in shutter speed. So you can live.

Let's get back to the positives. A separate pleasant moment of sigma 18-35 1.8 is the possibility of working on ff. On the this moment I don't have ff nikon, but I have ff canon. I put on this sigma through an adapter and get 28-35 1.8 on ff, which is just awesome! Of course, a small vignette remains, but it is quite possible to fix it (you can’t fix it on shorter focal lengths). In fact, it turns out a replacement for 24-35 2.0 from sigma, which is noticeably more expensive. Albeit with a loss at a short angle, but with a gain in money, and most importantly, in aperture ratio (1.8 versus 2, although not significant, but very nice).

I also note the artistic value of glass. Aperture wide is a very interesting combination. Covering a large angle of view, you can blur the background, which looks extremely unusual. Shooting a group portrait with background blur at 18mm is worth a lot. The difference between whale 18mm with 3.5 and these 18mm with 1.8 is very noticeable. In addition, with a small MDF lens, you can blur the background into a mess, like on some 50 1.4. I can't wait for the New Year holidays to experiment with this glass - garlands, tinsel and all kinds of decorations taken from bokeh at a wide angle will be very original.

In conclusion, I will say that this lens casts doubt on the need for anything else in this range of focal lengths on a cropped camera. Nikon 35 1.8dx or Canon 24 2.8stm are now only interesting in size, expensive 28 and 24mm fixes become unnecessary. Amazing sharpness makes you forget even about longer zooms. Autofocus remains the only noticeable problem, but this problem can be solved with the help of a docking station if you have only one carcass, or you plan to use the lens on only one.

Thank you all for your attention, good shots.

Review and test results of the Sigma Art 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM lens on the Canon EOS 70D

Sigma Art 18-35/1.8 DC HSM

The latest history of Sigma lenses began in September 2012, when the first models of each of the three new lens lines (Art, Contemporary and Sport) were introduced to the market:

    Sigma C 17-70/2.8-4 DC Contemporary

    Sigma S 120-300/2.8 DG OS HSM Sport

The hero of today's review - Sigma Art 18-35 / 1.8 DC HSM - "the fastest mass-produced zoom lens for SLR cameras in the history of photography", was announced in April 2013, the novelty became the first zoom model in the "Art" line of lenses . The lens still stands apart and it is difficult to find direct competitors for it: the nearest analogues, starting from f / 2.8, are “darker” by an impressive 1 and 1/3 stops.

Sigma Corporation is kind to the Art-line and its representatives: today there are only 4 zooms in it:

There are no complaints about the materials and workmanship: the plastic is of high quality, the bayonet mount is metal, the base of the body is made of metal and “heat-resistant composite material TSC”, the rubber non-slip coating of the focal and manual focus rings is pleasant to the touch. Sigma's "Thermally Stable Composite compound material - TSC" looks and feels like metal, but is actually a type of polycarbonate with thermal properties similar to aluminum. Its use allows you to reduce the weight of the product, without losing consumer characteristics, durability and strength. The Sigma Art 18-35/1.8 DC HSM looks and feels solid and solid.

View from above

The controls are represented by a distance window, rings for changing focal lengths and manual focus, and an autofocus mode switch. The rings are arranged traditionally: focal changes - in the place of the natural grip, closer to the rear element; manual focus ring - closer to the front cut of the lens.

The focusing ring is perfectly damped, comfortable, wide (35 mm, 26 of which are covered with ribbed rubber), sits like a glove, the move is smooth, the effort is uniform and comfortable. Does not rotate in autofocus mode. The course of the ring is about 125 degrees, distributed unevenly - almost 100 degrees are given to the range from the minimum distance to 1 meter.

Rear element

The lens does not change its external dimensions either when zooming or when focusing, the front element does not rotate, the use of filters is not difficult. The middle part of the lens, not occupied by the distance window and the focus mode switch, is ribbed, which is designed to make it easier to attach and remove the lens. The autofocus mode switch is conveniently located. The size is comfortable, the shifts are clear. The zoom ring is wide (30 mm, 20 mm covered with non-slip corrugated rubber), perfectly damped, sits like a glove, rotates with uniform force, without jerking or jamming. The effort is more than usual, but does not go beyond the comfortable. On the front of the ring there is a scale of focal lengths - 18, 20, 24, 28 and 35 mm. The zoom ring travel is short - about 45 degrees.

The Sigma Art 18-35mm f/1.8 DС HSM definitely belongs to the upper segment of interchangeable lenses and inspires respect in design, construction, assembly and materials used. The lens causes only positive emotions. You can complain about the considerable weight, find fault with the lack of dust and moisture protection.

geometric distortion

Sigma Art 18-35 / 1.8 DC HSM successfully controls geometric distortions, but I expected slightly better results: 29 mm equivalent cannot be attributed to “extreme wide angle”, and the lens magnification is quite modest.

The behavior is predictable: wide-angle barrel distortion changes to pincushion distortion as focal lengths increase. The change in the nature of geometric distortion occurs in the focal area of ​​24 mm, where the lens is practically free from distortion.

The “barrel” of 2.05% at a focal length of 18 mm decreases to 1.35% already by 20mm. At the 24mm focal length, Imatest detects pincushion distortion at 0.15%, the "cushion" grows to 1% at the 35mm focal length.

Distortion at 18mm

Distortion at 20mm


Distortion at 24mm

Distortion at 35mm


I repeat: the indicators are decent, they are by no means inferior to competitors, and in most cases the distortion in the pictures will be invisible. The nature of the distortions is correct, if necessary, they can be easily eliminated in post-processing.

Resolution and sharpness

Sigma Art 18-35/1.8 DC HSM deserves the highest praise: excellent resolution in the center even at full aperture and convincing uniformity of sharpness across the entire field of the frame make it possible to use the lens even at full aperture. F / 1,8 the review hero actually has a “working” value, and not an optional one, as happens very often with fast lenses. Look at the "center sharpness vs aperture" graphs plotted by Reikan Focal .

Center sharpness vs aperture value at 18mm

Sharpness vs aperture at 24mm

Sharpness vs Aperture at 35mm


With a resolution comparable to the best representatives of the family of "prime focus lenses", and the behavior of the Sigma Art 18-35 / 1.8 DC HSM, I definitely pleasantly surprised (if not even amazed).

You can read about the method of presenting the obtained data in the material "Starting point" .

Chromatic aberration

Sigma Art 18-35 / 1.8 DC HSM convincingly fights chromatic aberration: the conditionally acceptable level of 0.06% is not exceeded.

The coloring of out-of-focus areas is present at open aperture values, but is relatively modest and ceases to annoy when the aperture is covered down to f / 2.8.

XA 18 mm f/1.8

XA 24 mm f/1.8

XA 35 mm f/1.8


Everything is in perfect order with control over spherical aberrations: focus shift is not determined.

Vignetting

The Sigma Art 18-35/1.8 DC HSM controls vignetting quite confidently: the effect is clearly pronounced at full aperture, the lens covered up to f/2.8 does not raise any complaints.

Vignetting 18mm f/1.8

Vignetting 24mm f/1.8

Vignetting 35mm f/1.8


Given the range of focal lengths, one could hope for lower performance, but do not forget that the peak of vignetting falls at f / 1.8, and at f / 2.8, with which the main competitors “start”, the hero of the review is all right.

autofocus

The Sigma Art 18-35 / 1.8 DC HSM autofocus drive uses a ring ultrasonic motor. The process is virtually silent. The hero of the review does not belong to the champions in autofocus speed, but he cannot be considered an outsider either: the run over the entire distance takes about 1 second, which is an average.

Back focus on EOS 70D (left to right at f/1.8: 35mm, 24mm, 18mm)

The autofocus performance of the tested Sigma Art 18-35 / 1.8 DC HSM was so puzzling that the lens was tested on two cameras: Canon EOS 70D and Canon EOS 5D mark II (if you forget about vignetting, then the hero of the review works quite calmly on full-frame Canon EOS).

Vignetting on the Canon EOS 5D: 18mm, 24mm and 35mm

Anticipating the story about the work of phase detection autofocus, briefly about the good: everything is in order with contrast autofocus, regardless of the focal length - convincingly fast, confident and accurate. Reikan Focal estimates the repeatability of results of contrast autofocus at 99 percent or more over the entire focal range. Let me remind you that a result above 98% is considered “excellent”.

Contrast AF stability at 18mm

Contrast AF stability at 24mm

Contrast AF stability at 35mm


The test specimen on the Canon EOS 70D showed a slight back focus over the entire range of focal lengths, on the 5D mark II it was right on target. But the words “right on target” need to be supplemented with a sad one: phase focusing at a wide angle on the EOS 5D mark II slightly alarmed, on the Canon EOS 70D it simply discouraged. The results on the 70D are unsatisfactory, and errors and misses are more frequent, the wider the angle: at a focal length of 18 mm and open apertures, an acceptable result is rather an exception. Reikan Focal rates phase focusing repeatability at 18mm at best at 92%, typically 85-90%. The attached screenshots show the result of several runs.

Phase focus stability at 18mm

Another run at 18mm

And one more


Repeatability of only 90% is critical in itself, but in reality the problems at 18-24mm focal lengths are deeper: Reikan Focal evaluates repeatability by taking a series of shots with lens refocusing after each one. Accordingly, repeatability in terms of the program is the spread of focusing results in a series without assessing the accuracy of focusing itself: if the lens takes 10 equally unfocused frames, the repeatability will be close to 100%. Please note: when evaluating contrast autofocus at 18 mm, the values ​​on the y-axis (contrast of transitions, i.e. exaggerated "perceived sharpness") are in the range of 2020 - 2050 units, with phase - on the best shots only approaching 1900 units. Accordingly, in itself, the unimportant repeatability of 90% is the repeatability of initially insufficiently accurate focusing.

At the focal length of 24 mm, the situation is relatively better: the repeatability is 94 - 96%, the indicators often lie in the region of 1900 units and above. At a focal length of 35 mm: more than 99 percent inspiring respect, but - again - this is the stability of the results, not up to the quality of contrast focusing.

Phase detection autofocus stability at 24mm

Another run at 24mm

Phase AF stability at 35mm


The behavior of the test instance is not the result of bad alignment, back or front focus. The randomness of the results does not allow one to point a finger at the problem, and Reikan Focal refuses to evaluate accuracy: the results are so unpredictable that the program cannot use the built-in evaluation algorithms. A search for information on the Internet did not give a definite answer, but reading forums and owner reviews led to the conclusion that the phase autofocus of the Sigma Art 18-35 / 1.8 DC HSM is extremely rarely “friendly” with the Canon EOS 70D and is often naughty on the Canon EOS 7D mark II. Whether dual-pixelAF is the reason for this is not clear, but there are quite a few Canon EOS 70D owners on dpreview complaining about the need to use only contrast autofocus on an otherwise completely outstanding lens.

Reikan Focal cannot evaluate focus

As an example of what this looks like: screenshots of consecutive frames taken at f/1.8 in phase and contrast focus, viewed at 100% and 200% magnification.

Viewing at 100%

One more time at 100%

Viewing at 200%


Picture, backlight

Sigma Art 18-35 / 1.8 DC HSM pleases with an excellent picture with rich and attractive color reproduction. The lens has character and "pattern".


Aperture f/6.3

Aperture f/9.0


At wide apertures, the Sigma Art 18-35/1.8 DC HSM blurs out-of-focus areas carefully and diligently. The quality of the bokeh in general is not satisfactory. The transition zones are smooth and natural not only behind but also in front of the sharpness zone. Positively on the overall impression is the effective control over spherical aberrations.

Blur 35mm f/2.8

The coma is better than expected: it is expressed only very close to the edge of the frame. Stronger in the range of 18 - 24 mm, more modest - when shooting at focal lengths of 24-35 mm.

Conclusion

  • #1

    I used this lens on a Canon 7D (mark 1) and the phase detection AF was similar (unpredictable). At a wide angle, the focus very often did not hit. Quite accurately behaved at 35mm. I even bought a docking station, but I could not rebuild it. I noticed that the focus almost does not shift if you focus on 35mm and zoom to 18mm, so you can shoot with it like this at a wide angle :) The image quality from this lens is certainly amazing.

  • #2

    Anthony, thanks for the comment! On the first 7D, I, having climbed the forums, did not find any particular complaints - it turns out that such behavior happens not only on DualPixelAF models?

    By parfocality: I got the impression that at close distances (up to 5 - 7 - 10 meters) the lens does not shift the focus point, but at far distances there is a slight shift.
    By the way, the lens very confidently struggles with changing the size of objects / angle of view when changing the focusing distance - it seemed to me that it was absent in principle.

    I agree with the assessment: the quality of the generated image is simply excellent, even misunderstandings with phase focus were perceived not as an ambush, but as a small misunderstanding :)

  • #3

    I completely agree with Anton K. Autofocus on the first 7d practically does not work. Especially at 18mm. The docking station does not help. I shoot in life view. Looks very stupid. I tried several times to get rid of Sigma. But I really like juicy ones. oily colors, super sharpness (with contrast focus, of course). There is a smoldering hope that someday the magic firmware will fix everything. I no longer buy original optics.

  • #4

    Michael, good day!
    Thanks for the info, I was leaning towards the idea that the dual-pixelAF algorithms on the 70D are causing problems, but it looks like the lens needs to be carefully tested for phase-focusing on other Canon EOS models as well.

  • #5

    Vladimir, hello!
    Thank you so much for the site and for such wonderful detailed reviews! I sincerely hope for the replenishment and growth of your site :)

    If you have a minute, I would really appreciate a little advice - I am a beginner amateur photographer, I bought a 70D with a Tamron AF 18-270mm f / 3.5-6.3 (which obviously does not give that beautiful picture, although it is convenient for travel versatility). I decided to take myself the most universal fix for shooting at home, small, portraits (it’s clear that I want too much :) it seems to be more practical and even cheaper, and it deserves your laudatory reviews, but at the same time there seems to be a "universal" lens and I want maximum beauty :) Will I get a noticeable difference in sharpness, quality with Sigma 35 / 1.4? If it is not difficult to answer, I will be very grateful for your advice, what is the best place to stop?
    Sincerely,
    Edward

  • #6

    Edward, hello!
    Thanks for the kind feedback! I propose to participate in filling the site with materials - I will be happy to post reviews and reviews: share your opinion about equipment or accessories.

    In a direct "pixel-by-pixel" comparison, the Sigma 35/1.4 Art will outperform the 18-35/1.8 in quality at 35mm, but lose in versatility.
    However, in this case, the question is more complicated (comments and information on the forums confirm this): 18-35 / 1,8 Art is extremely rarely “friendly” with phase autofocus on the Canon EOS 70D, and contrast focusing (albeit confidently fast on this camera ) can be a limiting factor. Accordingly, if we are talking about choosing specifically between 18-35 / 1.8 and 35 / 1.4 Art on the EOS 70D, then I would advise you to stop at 35 / 1.4.

  • #7

    Vladimir, thank you very much for your reply!
    I was glad to hear that your advice coincided with my choice :) Having decided that I still need to touch the lenses live and see with my own eyes, I went to the store where they both were. I was completely sure that I would not be able to immediately see the difference in the pictures and was very surprised when, when viewed on a laptop (which I took with me), I liked the pictures with 35 / 1,4 subjectively more (it’s even hard to describe what - maybe it was that difference in the aperture, making more beautiful bokeh and adding zest to the picture). Of course, at that time I was still tormented by doubts about the greater versatility of 18-35, but they dissipated almost immediately, because indeed autofocus at 18-35 with my 70D behaved somehow, well, very insecure compared to 35 / 1,4 (much slower, with skating back and forth and misses). As a result, I don’t regret my choice at all and, as it turned out, for the tasks I set, 35 mm, even despite the crop, does an excellent job and captures the necessary composition. :)
    Sincerely,
    Edward

  • #8

    It is known that Canon specifically tries to prevent non-original lenses from focusing normally on their cameras. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct tests on Nikon. For example, the same Tamron officially licenses the bayonet mount and electronic connection to the camera from Nikon, it is possible that Sigma does the same. I mean, I was full with this lens on the Nikon D7200 for a month and it focused not only faster than the native 17-55, but there were also 0% misses.

  • #9

    For testing on different systems: I can only remember a song about how "a magician suddenly arrives in a blue helicopter and ... he says - here are the carcasses of Nikon and other systems, otherwise all Kenon and Kenon ... Don't you know such a magician?: )

    Seriously, I have not heard that Nikon and Kenon open the algorithms of their autofocus systems to anyone. Maybe missed something?
    With Tamron, I would rather believe in the possibility of a license from Sony (after all, Sony is the second largest shareholder of Tamron with 11% of the shares).

  • #10

    Interesting lens. About two years ago I tried to buy it, but they stopped reviews about poor autofocus, and there weren’t enough optics then, I wanted more universal glasses. And then again there was an opportunity to take this glass cheaply. And again I am in doubt. It seems like a nice picture, but on the other hand, there are shoals of autofocus. In addition, at that time there was a version for canon, and now for nikon. And Nikon in life view has C-grade autofocus. Especially tormented by doubts about the picture. Will it differ greatly from 24-70 2.8l at ff. In theory, the flu plus or minus is the same, and the focal lengths are smaller. But on the other hand, the old elka is less sharp (although there was a second version, but it seemed to me not so beautiful, and for sharpness it is better to turn to fixes). In general, some doubts. If there was a stub in it, I would take it without options for landscapes after sunset. But there is no stub. And here the canon 10-18is will be even better than this sigma - the stub compensates from 3 to 4 stops, which is generally equal to or more than compensation from aperture ratio. It turns out that at 18mm on a canon 10-18is it will be easier to remove static, but for dynamics, sigma will be a little better. And here again the question is about autofocus, which, most likely, will lose to ff zooms. If at 70-200 2.8lis2 I am sure that I will focus in almost any conditions, then there are doubts. In general, I don’t even know whether to take this sigma or not. I would take more for the sake of interest, to touch the zoom from 1.8 :)

  • #11

    The lens, I agree, is ambiguous due to the work of phase autofocus on some models. And, probably, the decision should be made precisely on the basis of this parameter (for the rest, Sigma will definitely please). Alexander (the owner of the lens, who visited the test - thank you very much!) could hand over the lens without any problems, but left it: the image quality for him outweighed the misunderstandings with phase focusing.

    But I have not heard about problems with contrast autofocus on Nikon. C grade - in terms of accuracy or speed or repeatability?

  • #12

    C grade speed. In d750, they seem to have finalized - there normal speed it feels like the d500 is even faster, but I haven’t touched it yet. But even on the d750, in my opinion, the speed is lower than that of the 650d from canon. I'm not talking about 70d (I think 80d is even better, but again, I don't have it). And for old Nikon cameras, the speed in life view is very mediocre. My d7000, d5100 and d5200 are equally slow, and it doesn’t always cling, the d3300 is a little better, but still far even from the canon 650d. Sony DSLRs have the best autofocus, but they have their drawbacks, so I abandoned them. Yes, and three systems are expensive to maintain. In principle, I also tend to think that it is necessary to buy, and even if something is either manual or sold, if it gets it at all. As far as I understand, the adjustment in the lens works all the time, regardless of the carcass. Well, here is the problem - there are several cameras, so adjusting to one is tantamount to losing accuracy on the other. There is really hope that at least some will be all right.
    For example, the same canon 70-200 2.8lis2 mercilessly smeared on 50d, while working perfectly on 7d, 40d, 5d and 5dm3. At the same time, other 50d glasses hit the target. Nikon 50 1.4g smears on the d7000, while working perfectly both on the more pixel d5200 and on the less pixel d80, d200, d70s, fudges5pro. Again, with most other lenses (including 50 1.4d), the d7000 does not miss. I can't draw any meaningful conclusions from these studies. I just put up with the fact that some glasses on some carcasses are smeared and I don’t use them in pairs. I hope the same will happen with sigma.
    I also note the charm of the Nikon mount - without any problems it will be possible to use this sigma with autofocus on Nikon, and without autofocus with Canon. So there will be an opportunity to compare the work on Nikon and Canon, and on crop, and on ff.
    Thanks for the quick response!

  • #13

    It is difficult to compare the contrast one with the phase one in terms of speed, although there are shifts and there are models where the difference is difficult to determine. More unpleasant "features" of work with a lack of light.

    And the hit / miss of specific instances of the lens and camera happens quite often. Mystery...

  • #14

    Master ACE (Thursday, 29 December 2016 10:40)

    Thanks for your reviews, they are one of the best in runet!
    It is a pity that problems with autofocus spoil the impression of an interesting lens. I wonder if there is a chance that they will be fixed by the firmware.

  • #15

    Thank you for the flattering review, it's nice)

    I think that at Sigma they are working hard on this, but so far I have not heard of significant results. Will hope...

  • #16

    I became the owner of this lens on the d7200.
    I ordered a few pieces to buy. They brought two lenses. Knowing about the nuance of changing the focus point from the light, I took pictures in daylight and with lamps. One lens did change the focus point from weak front focus to normal. The second had a more pronounced front focus - but did not change the focus point when the illumination changed. This one I chose.
    I'll start with a fly in the ointment. On usd dock distances for focus editing 0.28; 0.35; 0.5; infinity. Most shots are taken from 0.5m to infinity and it would make more sense to combine 0.28 and 0.35 and correct for 2m instead.
    I also noticed that you can hit it several times exactly, and once the focus point moves out decently. But this practically does not happen on contrasting objects.
    A huge plus is sharpness from 1.8. It is something. On the d7200, everything is fine in terms of weight, the dimensions do not change. Feels whole with the carcass.
    In general, a very good lens, I am very satisfied.

  • #17

    Peter, thanks for the detailed comment!

    I never had a chance to get acquainted with the work of the docking station from Sigma, but this choice of distances actually raises questions.

  • #18

    The other day I took this miracle. Picture, sharpness, focus - everything is perfect. Paired with the D7200, there are no problems. I'm just pissing with happiness. At the same time, I took a boo, in perfect condition, for 500 ye.

  • #19

    Tell me, how will this lens behave with Nikon d5300?

  • #20

    I have not tried the lens in such a bundle. Maybe one of the readers will respond with their own experience,

  • #21

    Hello, I own a pentax k-70 and this lens and I can personal experience to state the following: 1) I agree with you, phase autofocus at the wide end is very blurry, and if you use the lens correction in the carcass and adjust the exact hit at the wide end, it also goes astray at the far end.
    2) contrast autofocus also smears, but surprisingly, it smears when using one point, and if you use everything, it hits. Miracles and more
    3) noticed that if you shoot closely spaced objects, then it practically does not refocus (in phase mode)

    What do you think, should it be given for adjustment, or is this problem incurable (misses with phase focusing)?
    Like many, I would like to thank you for your reviews, one of the best in runet

  • #22

    Good day and thank you for the kind review!

    Information about problems on Pentax somehow passed me by, more often they complain about compatibility with Kenon. Plus, the first point hints at a misalignment, not a systemic problem.
    I would call the warranty engineer at the Onlinetrade service (they have an exclusive for Sigma in Russia and, yes, a person who is really passionate about photographic equipment) and explain the situation. What will he say?

  • #23

    I got a joke with this lens. I set it up in the dock-station at the beginning of the year, then adjusted it after filming reports and seemed to set everything up - it beat more or less accurately. But one day I went to shoot a portrait photo session and almost all the photos were in front focus. After the next setup, I had to add from 2 to 3 units to the dock station for all focal lengths, now it seems to fit)))

  • #24

    Corrections to previous comment.
    The trick turned out to be that if the central point is a normal focus, then the side ones have a huge front focus, i.e. the farther from the center, the larger the front. Those. in the center works fine. But the sides can not be used at all. This is such a lens.
    So that there are no questions that this is a carcass. I checked on the d750 and d7200, sigma 18-35 and nikkor 24-70 lenses. If 24-70 behaves well on both carcasses, then 18-35 is also the same on both, with such a nuance. Compared to 35mm.

  • #25

    Good afternoon, daughter, beginner amateur photographer. Give advice, carcass kenon 650D. We want to take glass 18-35 f1.8. Will the carcass pull, but in the future we plan to change the carcass, but this is in the distant future

  • #26

    Denis, good day! I do not quite understand what you mean by "pull the carcass." If there is any doubt that the camera will not be able to reveal the full potential of the lens, then it seems to me that this is good - you will have fewer limiting factors.

  • #27

    I'm looking for advice. All of the above completely coincides with my sigma, I put up with it. The problem is that when photographing in the cold, from -3 and below, it refuses to focus, it freezes, the focus rings are very tight, and autofocus fails at all. The lens is 1.5 years old. I wrote to the service office, they unsubscribed that the operation of the lens is not provided for at low temperatures. There is also Tokina, he has no problems. What to do, I have no idea...

  • #28

    As for 650d, sigma 18-35 paired with it will normally cope with autofocus in video, just like canon 70d?

  • #29

    Victor, often encountered stories about a similar problem on Western forums. Moreover, even there, the service provider vaguely responds to complaints.
    What can be done - I will not prompt.

    Roman, I didn’t have a chance to test with 650D, and the “theoretical” opinion and “correspondence assessment” are unlikely to be of value)

  • #30

    The fastest zoom in the history of photography? Shaw? Have you looked at f/1.4 zooms on c-mount for 3-7k? I understand that the text is copied and "quoted", but please follow the text.

  • #31

    Kolenka, I am very grateful to the indifferent readers and visitors of the site. Be sure to write more! I would very much like to learn more about "copied and cited." But in fact: did you pay attention to the word "mirror" in the phrase? Although empty. I'd rather quote you:
    “At the table, the conversation went more amicably, they began to seem to forget about Gleb Kapustin ... And then he popped on the candidate.
    - In what area do you identify yourself? - he asked.
    - Where do I work, or what? the candidate did not understand.
    - Yes.
    - At the Philology.
    – Philosophy?
    – Not really… Well, you can say that.
    - Necessary thing. - Gleb needed to have philosophy. He revived. Well, what about primacy?
    - What primacy? - again, the candidate did not understand. And he carefully looked at Gleb, And everyone looked at Gleb.
    - The primacy of spirit and matter. Gleb dropped the glove. Gleb, as it were, stood in a casual pose and waited for the glove to be raised.
    The candidate raised his glove.
    “As always,” he said with a smile. - Matter is primary...
    - And the spirit?
    - And the spirit - then. And what?
    Is this included in the minimum? Gleb also smiled. - Excuse me, we are here ... far from community centers, I want to talk, but you won’t run away very much - there’s no one to talk to. How does philosophy now define the concept of weightlessness?
    - As always determined. Why now?
    “But the phenomenon has only recently been discovered. Gleb smiled straight into the candidate's eyes. “That's why I'm asking. Naturphilosophy, for example, defines it this way, strategic philosophy - quite differently ...
    - Yes, there is no such philosophy - strategic! the candidate was excited. – What are you talking about?
    “Yes, but there is a dialectic of nature,” Gleb continued calmly, with general attention. “Nature is defined by philosophy. Weightlessness has recently been discovered as one of the elements of nature. That's why I ask: is there no confusion among philosophers?"

    Forgive me for the verbosity, I would give the whole story. I advise you to re-read at your leisure, Shukshin's story, "Cut off" is called.

  • #32

    Dear, I'm racking my brain after reading everything. Now I'm shooting on a Nikon D7200 crop. I want to change Tokina 11-16 / 2.8 and Sigma 30 / 1.4 to something more versatile and in the form of one lens (tired of juggling). I will not switch to FF soon (whether I will switch, whether I will stay on Nikon with such a policy - questions with an asterisk *). And now there was a choice between the subject and Tamron 15-30 / 2.8. I understand that Tamron is darker, maybe a little less sharp on crop, and the barrels are a beautiful hunt. I saw enough pictures from both, I looked at the comparison on DxO. I often shoot a la reportages in bad light, but the studio also skips. If there is a choice between hitting autofocus and prettiness, then hitting comes first for me. In my steppes, with the choice of a successful instance, you can’t accelerate, and even with after-sales service trouble-trouble. Which way to look, huh?

  • #33

    Nikkor 24-70 2.8

  • #34

    Tell me how this lens behaves on the carcass of the EOS 200D?

  • #35

    a lot has been written, but I still don’t understand, is this lens for a full frame or for cropped matrices?

  • #36

    For crop

  • #37

    And then how did he get on your 5d?

  • #38

    I want to buy for 77d Canon. I tried 17-50 sigma 2.8. wanted to take for portraits .. but did not like the colors. And the distortion of space at 17 was very felt. What can be considered for canon 77d for shooting portraits indoors?

  • #39

    Peter, it works on full frame (if you close your eyes to vignetting.

The Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 DC HSM Art is the world's first zoom lens with a constant f/1.8 aperture. It is cropped and provides 29-56 mm EGF with Canon cameras and 27 - 52.5 mm with Nikon cameras. It is designed to equate cameras with APS-C sensors to full-frame, provided that the latest standard fast zooms of 24-70 mm with f / 2.8 aperture are used. Did Sigma succeed? - Read below.

Video review of Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM Art:

External qualities

Yes, he's big. 121 mm in length and 78 mm in diameter will not look harmoniously on all cropped cameras. Yes, he's heavy. 810 grams is a lot for any fast zoom, and not only for cropped zoom. With small cameras like Canon EOS 100D/1300D/750D/760D, Nikon D3300/D5500, this bunch will noticeably nod forward, so you will need to hold the lens more than the camera. But you get used to it and after half an hour of shooting you do not feel much discomfort. But it looks very presentable from the outside.


I really like the design concept of the entire line of Sigma Art series lenses. The key features characteristic of all glasses in the series are impeccable assembly, high-quality and pleasant to the touch materials, minimalism, stylish appearance, convenient, informative and wide zoom and focus rings. The Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 DC HSM Art is no exception in this regard. The part of the body between the bayonet and the zoom ring is metal, and the central part is made of heat-resistant composite materials. The kit comes with a petal plastic hood, on which notches are applied, as if there is also some kind of ring there. This design is a great addition to the overall look. The manufacturer does not claim any dust or moisture protection, so owners should not use this glass in extreme conditions shooting. Nevertheless, reliability is evidenced by the fact that the lens does not change its dimensions either when zooming or when focusing, unlike almost all standard fast zooms. Naturally, the front lens does not rotate either, so you can use any polarizing and gradient filters. All this tells us that the lens is weakly susceptible to dust and other small particles being sucked into the structure. The automatic and manual focus switch will not accidentally change its position when carried in a case.

The built-in HSM focus motor is quiet and fast enough, although it has to move a massive group of 17 lenses in 12 groups. You can’t call the lens a leader in terms of speed, but you can’t call it slow either. Due to the large aperture and, as a result, the small depth of field, the lens is at risk of back- and front-focus. If possible, be sure to choose the most suitable copy for your camera. If this is not possible, then there are three options for solving such an issue (if it arises at all) - use the in-chamber adjustment in older devices, or take it to a service center and perform professional mechanical adjustment (the most the best way). The last, average in efficiency, but convenient way achieve focusing accuracy - get a branded Sigma USB dock accessory that connects to any modern Sigma lens and allows you to more accurately align the lens at different focal lengths using proprietary software. The cost of such a gadget is not so great - only $60. This option is especially relevant if you plan to purchase two or more Sigma lenses.

The filter diameter is 72 mm. The aperture is 9-bladed, with rounded edges, so you won’t see gears in the bokeh (see photos in the gallery). During auto focus, manual sharpening is always available.

Optical qualities

The detail on the Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 DC HSM Art is simply amazing. Already while viewing the pictures on the PC, I repeatedly repeated the phrase: “Come on, it can’t be!”. Well, you don’t expect that a zoom lens on a cropped 24-megapixel Canon EOS 760D matrix can produce such good sharpness right from the widest aperture. And this applies not only to the center of the frame, but also to the edges. As expected, in the range of 28-35 mm the picture is inferior to shorter focal lengths. At f/1.8, the detail in the center is still good, while the edges are satisfactory. To get a noticeable increase in clarity, just cover up to f / 2.2. At 18-24mm, sharpness is immediately excellent at f/1.8 in the center, and just good at the edges. Peak detail on any FR, both in the center and at the edges of the frame, is in the f / 2.8 - f / 4.0 range. Starting from f / 5.6, the effect of diffraction comes into play and the clarity of the images gradually decreases. In general, we have never seen such results in terms of sharpness during testing of any f / 1.8 prime lens.

Distortion at the wide end of the lens does not exceed my expectations from a fast premium zoom. They are, they are sane, they are well treated in Lightroom/Photoshop. That's all you need to know about them. See below for examples of shooting with the same composition at different focal lengths.

18mm, 1/500, f/1.8, ISO 100

24mm, 1/750, f/1.8, ISO 100

35mm, 1/1500, f/1.8, ISO 100

And these photos have already been taken from one place on different FRs to understand the range.

18mm, 1/180, f/1.8, ISO 100

24mm, 1/250, f/1.8, ISO 100

35mm, 1/180, f/1.8, ISO 100

The vignetting is simply ridiculous at 18-24mm. Consider it doesn't exist at all. At 28-35 mm, the darkening of the corners is already much more noticeable, but it is easily corrected by in-camera correction in modern cameras, or in one click in the same Lightroom, or Photoshop.

The lens copes well with the backlit sun. Below are photographs at different focal lengths and apertures, where the microcontrast practically does not drop from the direct presence of the luminary in the frame.

Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 @19 mm, 1-2000 sec at f - 2.8, ISO 100_Canon 760D

Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 @18 mm, 1-750 sec at f - 4.0, ISO 100_Canon 760D

Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 @32 mm, 1-1500 sec at f - 4.0, ISO 100_Canon 760D

Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 @24 mm, 1-4000 sec at f - 1.8, ISO 100_Canon 760D

Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 @24 mm, 1-4000 sec at f - 2.8, ISO 100_Canon 760D

Even expensive top-end fast primes often suffer from strong and clearly visible chromatic aberrations wide open. But our experimental Sigma is not. The aberrations are so tiny that they can, in principle, be neglected. This is a huge advantage of the Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 over competitive fast zooms and primes, especially when it comes to video shooting. Indeed, during video recording, it is impossible to turn on in-camera aberration correction, and even at the post-processing stage, such an optical defect is quite difficult to remove, and in some cases it is a critical problem.

Working with Panasonic GH4

It's no secret that we use Panasonic GH4 and G7 mirrorless cameras to shoot videos for our 4 content sites - kaddr..com, zaddrot channel and for video production komandda.com. As optics, we took Canon full-frame optics and a Metabones to Micro 4/3 mount adapter. Thus, we get a 2x crop due to the M4 / 3 matrix, a 0.71x crop due to the adapter and a 2x increase in aperture with any lens. But what happens if you mount a Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 cropped lens this way? I will answer you - you will see clearly, because you will get the equivalent of focal lengths of 25-50 mm and a constant aperture of f / 1.2 throughout the range. Reread the previous sentences again. Now let's continue. This range of FR is very versatile in everyday life and covers many tasks of a videographer-blogger. In those cases where 50 mm is not enough, the next noticeable step is already about 100 mm EGF. The same goes for the wide angle position. A noticeable difference will be in lenses from 15-16 mm EGF and wider. This aperture allows you to shoot in any lighting conditions without bullying the ISO (which is not very popular with the GH4 and G7 in terms of noise). It also allows you to significantly blur the background, even at the wide-angle position of the lens. Naturally, the detail at the widest aperture is worse than at f / 1.8 - the picture is soft. In creative shooting, this can even be a plus to create an unusual atmosphere and get beautiful picture. Apart from the lack of stabilization, the Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8, together with the Metabones adapter, is the best solution in terms of a standard lens for Micro 4/3 cameras.

Liked

Looks great (IMHO)
Assembly
Well-implemented focus and zoom rings
Reference sharpness at all focal lengths and apertures
Low level of distortion in the range of 18-24 mm
Weak vignetting, especially after f/2
Fixed dimensions when zooming and focusing
Fast and quiet focus motor
Glare resistance
Low HA at all focal lengths and apertures
The ability to get similar results on an APS-C camera with zooms on FF
f/1.2 aperture and 25-50mm FR with Metabones adapter on Micro 4/3 cameras
Adequate price

Bigger weight and dimensions than we would like for an APS-C lens
You need to choose an instance without back / front focus, or buy a USB dock
No built-in stabilizer for video shooting

Snapshot gallery

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Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 @35 mm, 1-1500 sec at f-1.8, ISO 100_Canon 760D

Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 @24 mm, 1-750 sec at f-1.8, ISO 100_Canon 760D

Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 @18 mm, 1-500 sec at f-1.8, ISO 100_Canon 760D

Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 @35 mm, 1-180 sec at f-1.8, ISO 100_Canon 760D

Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 @24 mm, 1-250 sec at f-1.8, ISO 100_Canon 760D

Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 @18 mm, 1-180 sec at f-1.8, ISO 100_Canon 760D

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