Sigma 30mm F1.4 Art DC HSM Lens for Canon

This is initial reviewing feedback - I will update later with long-term use notes. - UPDATE: Not fantastic. Dropping from 5 to 3 stars. I shot 4 weddings using this lens and found that while the f1.4 aperture did indeed give me more light and throw my background way out of focus, there is almost no sharpness to speak of until you stop down to about 1.8. For portraiture, the lens is fine. I didnt get unusable shots at 1.4, but I was just much more pleased working in the 1.8 range on this lens. I also tested this lens outdoors with night sky photography and this is where the lens really disappoints. I tested some shots wide open and the chromtaic aberration and coma issues are bad enough to give me completely unusable images. Only the very center of the images would be sharp. Soft corners ended up being large areas of coma. The chromatic aberration was so bad that I had to actually push the limits in Lightrooms manual adjustments for fringing until I was able to correct the majority of it - but if anyone has every needed to go that far, theyd know that at that point youre really making compromises. Do not buy this lens for astro work. I had only gotten satisfactory image quality at f/2.8 and for that, you can buy much cheaper lenses and still get better results. But, for basically anything else, the lens will be fine. Many of my clients favorite images came from this lens because of what that 1.4 aperture can do. They just dont nitpick the intricate image quality things like photographers do, so take that as you will. And for what its worth, I also bought the Sigma 50mm Art for full frame on my D810 and it produces significantly sharper images at f/1.4 than this does. - I bought this lens to help my wide open arsenal for indoor shots with wedding photography. This should help me get those dreamy shots with smoothly blurred backgrounds and beautiful light with how wide the aperture is. Upon opening the box (bought used, but looks mint) I notice firstly the sturdy build. It feels solid. Doesnt feel like lightweight plastics being used. The front element glass is small and overall, the lens isnt too long at all, though a bit wide, as a 1.4 lens typically may be. Its not too heavy to hold for a couple hours. It seems to focus pretty snappy and accuratlely back and forth without hesitation. I need to run it through some tests, but upon first BOC looks, it appears sharp and clean. For an APS-C lens, this is a steal. Owning the D500, I knew Id always have a crop sensor body on hand, so I saved a good chunk of change by not going with the 35mm and sticking to this guy to drop on the D500 and I think I made the right choice. we shall see.

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I love this mm for candids and street photography. 24mm used to be my favorite focal distance but lately Ive noticed how wide 24mm really is. I was using the Canon pancake and I love the light weight and small size on my SL2. However, this Sigma is an absolute beast. It excels in all areas. It is noticeably heavier but thats not necessarily a bad thing. It feels like a quality lens. The new Sigma Art series are very sleek looking. Its a fast lens with excellent sharpness and bokeh. I wish I would have bought this sooner. This is my new walk around lens.

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Bought this 8 months ago. Barely used it and now the AF stopped working. Sigma wont honor the warranty because this isnt an "Authorized reseller". D-Solution says they have a 1-year warranty, but after contacting them 3 times, they wont respond. Buyer beware.

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This is a LOW LIGHT lense. Leave the flash OFF. Perfect for around the house during holidays for portraits. Keep the lights low and you’ll be amazed by the quality of the photos. No dark shadows under peoples eyes. Excellent “bokeh” backgrounds can be achieved with this lense. Took my son’s newborn photos and I’ve had several people ask me for our professional photographer’s contact info, not knowing that I had taken them myself. I have mine mounted to a Canon Rebel T6 DSLR.

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Great lens. Using it on T6S. Replacing nifty-fifty. I had struggled with indoor photography using 50mm. It was too close on cropped-framed camera. This 30mm gives me the wiggle room I need while still delivering the wide open aperture necessary for indoor low-light conditions.

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This is a stellar lens. If you have a crop sensor this lens is worth it 100%. I attempted to use this with a full frame camera, which it does work on, creates a very minor vignette and actually created beautiful images. The reason I returned it is because it doesnt work in live view. So, if I want to hold the camera up, flip the screen out, and shoot using the touch screen, I cant. It freezes the entire camera, makes me pull the battery, and start over. I exchanged it thinking maybe just my lens was the problem, and the new one did it as well. All that to say, it WILL work on something like a 6D Mark II. But it will more than likely not do live view, and if that isnt a deal breaker for you, save some $ and skip the 35 and get this instead. If I didnt need live view, I would hands down keep it. It creates beautiful photos, and is quiet, fast, and sharp! Sidenote: a bunch of reviews on here complain about the MAJOR VIGNETTING, it is not MAJOR. It is minor and actually quite tasteful. It is only when you use it under f2.0 also, Ive noticed.

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I purchased this lense because I needed a prime lense with a focal range close enough for portraits and a wide aperture to give me that artistic bokeh without breaking my bank. I was also turned on to the focusing motor being quiet which, by the way, it is dead silent. Rear focus is definitely a must because reasons. Who wants a lense that changes in length when focusing? Its 2018, people. For the price I can easily say this lense is a steal. The quality of this lenses build is solid and feels great to the hand, not to mention the weight. It has that high quality, expensive weight. The lense hood is cool, too. The supplied lense hood is solid and made of the same material as the lense itself. It twists and clicks on secure and keeps that light from entering at an angle which is always better for contrast and stuff. Its nice knowing you dont need to buy, what I believe, is a necessity for any lense. Next up is chromatic aberration. I did notice some chromatic aberration when either subjects or background elements met with harsh contrast, especially with purple and green fringing, but this can be fixed in post production. Also Im sure a lense filter helps, too. Keep in mind this is not always the case and only happens every now and then depending on the composition. Thats the only bad thing I really have to say leading to my conclusion. To conclude this review, just buy the lense. Stop thinking, Ive just done it for you. Buy it. You wont regret it. Solid lense, fast and accurate focus, wonderful bokeh (blurry background to isolate subjects by the way incase you didnt know), silent motor, rear focus, 30mm, its a steal.

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I own the 5d2 and many other lenses, my go to lense was my Sigma 35mm 1.4 awesome lense but heavy. I looked at other smaller camera options (Sigma, Sony, etc) but was never satisfied with quality of pics. Always came around to my trusty 5d2. Now this 30mm 1.4 and my my 50mm 1.4 will be my walk around camera setup from now on. Excellent pics from this 30mm lense.

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I am using it with my new Canon D7 Mark II. The lens built quality is amazing and beautiful. Looks very professional. The lens hood is included and it feels and looks better than the standard Canon hoods. The photo bokeh with this lens is gloriously beautiful. This is my first Sigma lens and I am very impress. The Canon 1.8f 50mm is $100 less but this Sigma lens is 30mm and is design for APS-C cameras which puts me around 48mm. With a 50mm and my APS-C Ill be around 78mm which I do not want. Yes, this lens will also work with APS-H cameras as well. I am extremely happy with this lens and I highly recommend it.

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I sold my first Sigma 30mm 1.4 and regretted it because it was perfect for video and for photography as well. Now an upgraded version came out and after reading other peoples review I decided to take a chance on it. This has pretty much the same review as the original, some people saying it focuses good and others saying it doesnt. I guess that was the main issue. Upon opening the box, this new Art version looks much better than the first and quality is much much better as well. It is a little heavier, however it is a beauty. The focus ring is much smoother than the first. Overall much much better quality. Again, I mainly focus manually because I take mostly videos, but there are days when I do like to take photos. In bright light I have no problem auto-focusing, when it gets darker its a hit and miss, which isnt good because this fast lens is supposed to excel in low-light. I havent tried micro-adjusting the lens, will try that later, but as of now its a hit and miss in low light. For videos this is perfect, focus ring is smooth and bokeh is nice. No problem for videos. Things it comes with are lens pouch, front and back lens cap and lens hood. (This is what I like about Sigma) Back lens cap is wider than the canon, and will not tip over easily. Front lens cap, has the pinch style which is perfect if you have the lens hood on. Lens hood is round, like the canon 50mm 1.4. I prefer the old Sigma 30mm Lens Hood, it was the petal looking one, much better looking. Even if mines has auto-focusing issue in low-light I have no problem because I will try micro-adjusting it. If that doesnt work there is always the Sigma warranty and they can fix it, so no worries there. (Just have to wait) For videos however, I really like the smooth focus and bokeh. 4 out of 5 because it is an awesome quality built lens. Much better than anything in its price range. Picture quality is great and videos are great as well. Main issue is auto-focusing, which I hope can be fix by micro-adjusting it. The pouch and lens hood are a plus.

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