Sigma 17-70mm F2.8-4 Contemporary DC Macro OS HSM Lens for Nikon

I was looking for a multipurpose lens for vacation to mount on my 7D when I stumbled upon this one. I had seen the reviews for the new Sigma 35 f1.4 Art Series on canonrumors.com and was very impressed with what I was reading. So, I thought I should give this lens a try. After all, it was a mere $499 vs. $2100 for the Canon 24-70 f2.8 L II with which I have spent some real world time. You see, I have just under 100 weddings under my belt in the past 6 years. Yet I havent ever owned a zoom lens, since I shoot weddings primarily with fast primes (Canon 24 f1.4 L, Canon 50 1.2 L, Canon 85 f1.8, and Canon 100 f2.8 L macro). At times, I have rented zooms when I knew a certain event would require shooting without carrying multiple bodies or changing lenses. I have shot with the Canon 17-55 f2.8 IS and the 24-70, and I must say... this lens competes very well with both of them at a much lower price! The Sigma 17-70 f2.8-4 DC Macro OS HSM has a longer ranger than the Canon 17-55 IS, while still offering you image stabilization, which the 24-70 f2.8 L II does NOT have! And if it did, just how much would Canon think they could charge you for it? That lens already costs as much as my first car! In conclusion, buy this lens if you are looking for sharp optics, fast focus, and a decent amount of aperture to boot. Check out my sample photo of my wife cutting the neighbor girls hair... I took it from my desk, hand held at 1/60, 70mm f4, indoors with only ambient light, OS on, and at ISO 6400. Its not a great composition, but you can see the excellent color rendition and clarity of this glass. Very happy.

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I lucked out and happened to buy this at a steal of a price ($270 new). I own 5 total lenses (including this one) for my photo business. When compared to the Nikon kit 18-55mm lens, this thing absolutely blows it out of the water in picture quality, build and design. Pictures are tack sharp and it’s great to use when I’m not shooting with my prime lenses (35mm and 50mm). You won’t find a better “travel lens” for under $500. This is a gem....

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This lens is spectacular in every way. Optically it is extremely sharp. The 0.3x magnification opens up tons of creative opportunities for close-up photography. The lens is not overly heavy, but it handles very well. The zoom and focus rings are both very smooth. The zoom is well-controlled. Focus breathing is non-existent. The switches for autofocus and stabilization are solid and give reassuring clicks when moved. The mount fits my Nikon D5500 body well with no play. The autofocus is always sharp and spot on. The only way this lens could be improved is a constant f2.8 aperture, but that would result in an unacceptably huge optic.

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So far this lens is excellent, it quickly became my favorite lens to grab. I really wanted a lens i could carry around and use for 90% of my photo needs and this fits the bill. I also like how its lightweight because i take it hiking with me all the time. For me it is the perfect balance of focal lengths; very versatile.

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This is a really good lens. I have found it much more versatile for my camera than my other 24-70 mm lens. My camera is a nikon d7200 which is a crop sensor, and 17 mm is really needed in order to get a moderate wide angle. I love the color reproduction and sharpness at all focal lengths. I dont really use this for macro purposes, but the bokeh it produces is generally nice. The lens produced images that were tack sharp. This contrasts with my prior experience with sigma lenses. They seem to have improved their product significantly. I noted minor chromatic aberration zoomed all the way out, but this was easily corrected in lightroom. I also used it in September in las vegas and got some nice nighttime images. I will post some recent images I have taken using the lens.

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I have no prime lenses, and use only this lens (Sigma 17-70mm F2.8-4 Contemporary DC Macro OS HSM Lens for Nikon) and a Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-200mm for outdoor photography Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED VR II Lens Bundle W/52mm UV Filter + Lens Pouch + Xpix Lens Handling Accessories . I use a different rig indoors, so speed (f4-5.6) is no issue. . As I posted in the review of the Sigma Lens, I heavily researched lenses before purchase, and the Photography websites seem to differ on quality of lenses from Amazon reviewers. For amateur photographers, I could not find a better lens combination than this Lens for WA shots, and the NIKKOR for moderate telephoto use. Both produce outstanding photos from my D7500. This Sigma is a little pricey compared to cheaper alternatives and prime WA lenses, but to keep my lenses to only 2, and not a bag-full, I am delighted at this purchase. . Pixel counters, and pros needing exceptional sharpness to edges, no barrel issues, etc. will surely find flaws. However, as a common DSLR user (outdoor shooting only with this rig), this lens sings. It is my primary lens and I have found no issues with everyday uses. I use Photoshop elements (shooting in RAW+JPEG) and crop some of the RAWs by about 1/3 and the sharpness and details (mid tones/highlights) are great. To myself, friends, and family, these photos are "amazing" in clarity. . If damaged, I would re-purchase this same lens. . . Photo ISO 400, 1/1600, f3.5, sRGB, 5568X3717 cropped to 72X72dpi/19.3mb to 1.3mb

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I needed a lense that was 1:1 and higher. Looked at other lens and the price was between $1500 to $2300 for 24-70 mm. I wasnt sure if this was the lens I really wanted, but you dont know until you use it. I saw the Sigma 17-70mm and the price was reasonable enough to see if this was a lens like the 24-70. i figured I would try it and then if I liked the photos and quality I would get the Canon lens. Got the lens, tried it and it was just what I was looking for. The apeture allows for lots of light at 2.8. The quality of the pictures is great. Very quiet. It is like anyother lens. You have to take multiple photographs in order to learn how to use it in order to be happy with the quality of your photos. Too many people think that the lens is responsible for their unsatisfactory photographs. It is the person taking the photographs that determines the real quality of the photos. This lens is more than enough to take fantastic shots and the price is more than reasonable. Practice makes perfect and it is up to the photographer to take the photos they want

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I purchased this lens after doing a great deal of research and reading reviews until I thought my head would explode. This lens is truly a hidden gem. Paired up with my Nikon D7200 it captures beautiful images. The lens is very well built and looks classy on my camera. Like any lens there are some optical issues (but very few in my experience) and they can easily be corrected in Lightroom. This Sigma rarely leaves my D7200. Occasionally I will swap it out for my Nikon 85mm 1.8 for portrait work, or my Nikon 70-300 VR for my lighthouse photography. Other than that this Sigma is my go to lens and shines in all sorts of shooting situations. Im pretty picky and hard to please when it comes to my camera gear but this little lens impresses the hell out of me!

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I have seen many rumors that this lens is soft at 17mm. After two full days of testing I can put that rumor to rest, this lens is so tack sharp throughout the entire zoom range its hard not to cut yourself on it. At 17mm and f/2.8 the out side edges are slightly softer then the center. But to notice this you have to take multiple photos and zoom in over 300% and really "really" try to look for it. I tested this lens on a Canon Rebel T3i (600D) with a 18mp sensor. I cant say how impressed I am with this lens in terms of both optical and build quality. If you are looking to upgrade from your kit lens or just need a new lens in this zoom range without breaking the bank. Get this one. The only lens on the market for Canon in this zoom range that offer better optical quality is the much more expensive Canon 17-70 f/2.8L Lens. But its optical quality is very very marginal over the Sigma. Pros: - Half stop better lighting performance over most kit lens. - Better construction over most kit lens. - Most importantly, better optical performance over most if not all kit lens. - Does not suffer from zoom creep depute no zoom lock. - Comes with Tulip Lens Hood. - Tight yet smooth zoom even for video. Cons: - No full time manual focus override. You must turn off AF to use manual focus - The focus ring is little to close to the zoom ring. - No weather sealing Other Thoughts: I got this lens to replace my Canon EF 28-135 IS USM Lens. This lens is so much better in both optical and build quality that its jaw dropping. The OS works great, very quiet and the lens is very fast focusing. I cant comment on how this lens would be on other Camera brands like Nikon. But rest assured that if your a Canon user you will love this lens.

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I love the new generation Sigma lenses, including this one. Fast and tack sharp on a Nikon D7100 without any AF adjustment tweaking. Works great in low light. I prefer the extra 15-20mm on the long end over the shorter constant 2.8 zooms. Superior to the Sigma 17-50mm f/2.8 in terms of focus and sharpness. Light as a feather, no bulk, unlike the Nikon 17-55mm f/2.8. I also bought the Sigma USB dock: A common (focus) issue with Sigma lenses is that theyre not optimized for your particular camera model so in the past I sent them in for a lens firmware update. No longer needed with the dock, you can do it yourself if needed.

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