f2.8, which is also a weakness, because this one is just soft at this apperture.

Soft as crap. Inacurate color rendition. Heavy. Loud. Gets in the way of a built-in flash. Would manage these drawbacks if the lens was performing good.

Sigma 28-70 f2.8 EX DF Aspherical… What can I say. I bought this lens at B&H first for my Rebel 2000. I had 2 rolls of film taken with the Rebel using the Sigma lens before I went and bought the Elan 7E. I purchased this lens mainly because of all the good reviews it is getting and because it is relatively a fast lens at f2.8. On the Rebel or on the Elan 7E this lens produced very similar results. First I thought this was the Rebel 2000 that couldn't cope with this lens. Colors were bad and sharpness was non-existent, regardless of the aperture set. The Canon 28-80 non-usm kit lens that was included in the Rebel 2000 kit produced better results for me indoors with the flash, or outdoors. Sigma's autofocus is loud - louder then 28-80 Canon lens, but pretty fast I have to admit. The main problem with the Sigma is the sharpness - this lens is just too soft, sometimes it seems like it is simply out of focus, but the viewfinder shows otherwise. If the subject is further then 8-10 feet away from you when the picture is taken, the pictures look awful, almost out of focus. This makes this lens useless at f2.8. This is the end result despite the slower aperture(f8 and up and using tripod). Colors are on the cool side. Seems like it has a little bluish cast to it. It definitely is not development, since I tried different film, different developers, but all with the same outcome. I had to return it back to B&H after wasting about 5 rolls of film and ruining an incredible number of good pictures. This lens, at $300, is completely not worth the money. I don't know what would be the fair price that I would pay for this lens. Probably would not even want it for free. After returning this piece of art back to the store, I got 2 lenses for the price of one Sigma - Canon 28-105 f3.5-4.5 Usm and 50mm f1.8. I don't even want to start comparing those lenses to the Sigma. 28-105 USM is so much sharper and has much better color accuracy then the Sigma. Not even to mention that autofocus on the Canon USM lenses is almost silent. May it be that the Sigma I bought was defective? I was not going to find that out. Instead, I just returned it. Buy this lens at your own discretion, but make sure you buy it at the store, that is willing to take it back after you try it out on your camera. B&H is amazing in that respect. Enjoy…...

Customer Service

Called Sigma once Got pretty good response, but never sent it in. Returned it to the store for an exchange for Canon lenses.

Similar Products Used:

Canon 28-80. Canon 28-105 3.5-4.5 USM world apart from the Sigma. Canon 50mm f1.8 MkII - Great lens.

Sharp Construction Lens barrel dosn't rotate while focusing Smooth.

Weight (but which f2.8 constant lens isn´t heavy?)

I bought this lens (DF system)looking for a sharper lens than the original with my camera (Nikon F-80). At the beginning I wasn´t happy with results (first 5 rolls), ut I think you may accoplate to your camera and lens. After shot a few more, in my last travel to Lisbon, the results are very, very good. The pictures are the sharpest I´ve ever shot (13x18 cm pictures), the colors very real and naturals (I use Fuji Superia 100 and Fuji Reala). The best results I get are f5.6 to f16 but wide open the pictures are very good too. AF is fast if you don´t use matrix system. Compatibility is perfect. Well built. Manual focus is smooth and precise.

Customer Service

No need at the moment

Sharp optics at most F-stops Quality build constant f2.8 Fast autofocus (for a Non-USM lens) Great weight/balance on my Elan 7 Bright view thru lens neutral color tone PRICE!!!

A bit heavy for some casual shooting Stiff zoom (would like it a bit smoother) 77mm filter size = $$$ expensive filters

I got this lens a few months ago (the newer DF version), I needed a fast zoom in this range. I was reluctant to buy a 3rd party brand, but I had heard good things about Sigma's latest EX line, and they got good reviews. Besides, this lens was about one-third the cost of the equivalent Canon L version. I had read posts about the slow focusing of this lens... NOT TRUE! This lens focuses very very quickly. It is not as quiet as Canon's USM, but very fast, and focuses faster than many of my non-USM Canon lenses. It is somewhat heavy, but well-balanced, and shorter than other 28-70 f2.8 zooms. There is a lot of glass, so it needs to balance well. The picture wuality is fantastic, I shot several rolls of 35mm chrome and print film, and got superb results. No, I did not do any benchmark testing in a lab, but that's not what I use the lens for. I shot photos of outdoors/nature/landscapes/macro/people, and the results, even in low light were extremely sharp. I enlarged several prints with outstanding results, even at 8 1/2 X 11 size! Excellent sharpness. Distortion is present, but only a bit. But I think you would find distortion on almost any zoom lens... it's almost a given that a zoom will have some degree of distortion (that's the trade-off). What I really like about this lens is the neutral color: not too warm, not too cool. Zoom action is a bit stiff, but that is not a drawback, just a characteristic. Basically, I love this lens and keep it on my camera over half the time. The lens hood contols flare, the manual focus ring is a dream! Wonderful lens, superb quality (get the DF version!), and an unbeatable value in this price range.

Customer Service

Never needed

Similar Products Used:

Canon EF 25-105 USM Canon EF 75-300 USM Canon EF 35-135 Variety of Nikon AI and Canon FD zooms

Excellent build quality Constant f2.8 No front element or focus ring movements(on DF version) Very nice manual focus operation Vey good price

Stiff zoom ring operation Very awkward aperture ring operation(if you need it!) Lots of pin cushion distortion from 35 onwards Weight and size may be a problem Big filter thread(expensive filters)

The version I used was the DF spec. This is a very well built, well specified, heavy lens. The price is also excellent for an f2.8 constant 28-80. However, I did not keep the lens due to a number of weaknesses. I thought the zooming action was fairly stiff, although smooth. I would have preferred a lighter feel. As a Nikon F90X(N90S) user, I use a lenses aperture ring alot, and I thought this was very awkward on the Sigma, due to a very narrow ring and large body diameter. There just was not enough room to operate it. Of course, this will not be a problem for some. A final problem was the distortion from 35mm onwards. At 80mm I thought the pin-cushioning was very poor. Not all subjects are affected, of course, but it was too noticeable for my tastes. Auto focussing was fine, manual focus action was lovely. After so many good reviews about this Sigma, I was anticipating a super lens, but personally I dont think it quite lives up to expectations, on my F90X at least.

Customer Service

Not needed

Similar Products Used:

Tamron 28-200 f4.5/5.6 Nikon 35-80 f4/5.6

Price, Weight (light), Confortable to hold (nice grip), f/2.8 zoom for few bucks!

AF is too slow and hunts a lot (at least on my camera), but manual focusing ring is a delite. Not to convinced with construcción, strong but not a tank. Mines got something loose in it but does not affect picture quality, plus when zooming there's a strange barrel friction feel and noise from time to time. Cokin P series filters are no good when lens is wide open. Flare prone (just got to be aware).

(DF version) Incredible value! I've shot over 3500 pictures with the lens (mainly manual focus) on an F80 + Mb16 grip. Very sharp from f/4.0 and smaller aperatures. Many portraits taken at 70mm f/2.8, a little softer and warmer but actually love it. Also many long exposure shots. Almost too sharp (for some) from f/5.6 to f/8.0. All though it has weaknesses, once you know the lens you can work around them and get icredible images for a great price. Very pleased with the lens today.

Customer Service

Did not use when in London due to a time issue.

Similar Products Used:

-

Optically very good for the money.

A little flare. Some distortion when wide but no more than the other such lenses show.

This is the 28-70 f2.8 EX 'DF' version of this lens which is said to be optically better than ther non-DF version. I use it on a Canon D60. I tried a Canon 28-70L and was not impressed with the performamnce for the money. Next came three Tokina 28-80 f2.8 ATX Pro lenses; I was disappointed with each. They had parts of their range (not the same in each case) where they were excellent but much were they were terrible. Built very well but not optically good. I decided then to try the Sigma 24-70 f2.8 EX DG DF. That was another disappointment. Next on the list was the 28-70 f2.8 EX DF. At last a usable lens - usable throughout its range! 28 and 35mm its very good from f2.8 up. Between 50 and 70mm at f2.8 is usable though a little soft; however, it quickly sharpens up at f4. I decided to keep this one and am very pleased with it for the money. Its build quality is not as good as the Canon but then Tokina, which is made from metal and feels very solid and very heavy, was better than the Canon. But this Sigma is no piece of junk. It is plastic but so are my D60 and my 550EX flash.

Customer Service

Not used yet.

Similar Products Used:

Canon 28-70L and Tokina 28-80 f2.8 ATX Pro

Good optical performacies, very gooe and neutral colours, front lens do not rotate, good mechanical construsction, very reasonable price for a f:2.8 zoom lens.

Flare prone. Very soft at f:2.8 at 70 mm, pincushion distortion at 70 mm.

I bought the newer"dual focus" version. The lens is weell Built, the autofocus speed decent, the manual focus ring precise and well damped. The slides were sharp corner to corner and well contrasted from f:4 throughout the range of the lens.

Customer Service

Not needed

Similar Products Used:

Nikon 28-105 f:3.5-4.5

Very good to excellent optical quality. Very fast and accurate AF on a Canon body. Lightest 2.8 lens in its class. A steal at under USD300.

At this performance and price-level there are no weaknesses to speak off.

First of all, this is a review of the Sigma 28-70 f2.8 EX DF, i.e. the new dual focus (DF) version, for the EOS mount. Given the negative attitude people seem to have regarding Sigma, I was a little uncomfortable buying this lens however, I wanted a 2.8 lens in this zoom-range and did not want the Canon 28-70L for two reasons: Price and Bulk. So I purchased the Sigma and shot over 100 slides in all possible configurations and studied them carefully on a lighttable with a 22x loupe to be absolutely sure before deciding whether to keep it or return it within the 14 day return period. The verdict was very clear, this is truly a marvelous lens!! It is very sharp corner to corner at all apertures except f32. Even at f2.8 the sharpness is really good at all focal lengths, this in contrast to the "old" EX (non-DF) version which was noticebly soft at f2.8 @70mm. The only aperture that shows noticeable deterioration of image quality is f32, certainly not a limitation in my view. Then the AF, this was my biggest surprise: it is absolutely fabulous! Being used to USM, I expected some trade-off by using a non-USM lens, but AF-operation of the Sigma is very fast and spot-on without any hunting even in very dark rooms, clearly this must be attributable to the 2.8 lens-opening. Although not as silent as USM, AF-operation is quiet. This lens is lighter and slightly smaller than the Canon 28-70L lens which makes it a more preferable every-day lens or travel lens. Now, I will not claim that this lens is as good as the Canon L, it probably isn't if you would put them side-by-side. However, if I would have to rank this lens within the Canon line-up I would say it occupies a position somewhere between the best Canon consumer zooms on the one side (28-105/28-135) and the L-zooms at the other side, probably closer to the latter than to the former. Best of all, you can get this wonderful lens for less than USD300!!! Try it, you will not be disappointed!

Customer Service

Never needed.

Similar Products Used:

Canon EF28-105 (sold) Canon EF28-135 (borrowed from friend) Tamron 24-135 (sold)