Sigma 35mm F1.4 Art DG HSM Lens for Canon

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Gray market lens! Just got off the photo with Sigma Art customer service. Auto focus wouldnt work. So frustrating!

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After reading all the reviews I wanted to get this lens. I wanted a lens that was fast, both to isolate the subject but mostly for low light. I also wanted a lens that was good for video and would focus well for moving subjects. The lens does a good job, dont get me wrong. It is sharp and it is optically fast. However the deal breaker for me was its inability to reliably focus in low light and its terrible results focusing in video mode. I have a Canon T3i, so perhaps it is the communication from the older body to the lens that resulted in the poor performance. In low light (like candle light) the focus was less than 50/50. Granted this is a torture test of any focusing system, but it performed no better than the kit lens even though it is a full 3 stops faster and the exposure times were shorter everything else being equal. In normal light it focuses much more quiet than any other lens I have, but the speed isnt any better. I did a number of shots using my 10 year old Tamron 18-270 zoom and the Sigma 35mm 1.4. To my disappointment I could barely tell the difference in terms of sharpness. The 35mm was a tiny bit sharper, but not enough to justify $800. It was the video focus that was horrible. Tracking a moving subject the focus would drift and have a very hard time getting back. The kit lens and my 10 year old Tamron performed much better. So why shell out $800 when the $80 kit lens does better? As far as image quality, the Sigma 35mm was slightly better of course, but when it is out of focus for much of the time that doesnt really matter. Based on all the reviews my results may be due to the older camera body, but that is what I have and I had no plans to change anytime soon.

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All the great reviews on this lens is true. This has been permanently attached to my Canon 70D since I bought it last month. I do want to make people aware of a compatibility issue with Canon 70D. When I use the center AF point between F1.4 ~ F2.8, pictures are almost always out of focus. If I change the AF point to the one right above (or right below) the center point, pictures are tack sharp. Many Canon 70D users have reported similar problem with various fast lenses. I just took my camera into a Canon service center. They will check the camera, but they wouldnt take my Sigma lens in to check the combination. I will update this review once I get it back from them. This only happens in viewfinder mode. Live view (using LCD) shooting has no such problem. No knock on this lens as Im giving 5 stars to this fabulous lens. Just want people who are considering the Sigma 35mm+Canon 70D combination to be aware of this "minor" annoying compatibility issue. I said "minor" because at F1.4, I almost never use the center AF point anyway. Focusing with center point then recomposing at F1.4 mostly will throw the pictures out of focus (at least with my skill level). When used wide open, I shoot mostly my kids indoor and focus on one of their eyes, and that is almost never at the center of the viewfinder anyway.

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I really wanted this lens to work for me. I’ve been pining over it and took a chance on buying it. But unfortunately it doesn’t do the job. Auto focus is really bad; about 3/4 of my shots were out of focus which made me really not confident during a client shoot. When this lens hits, it hits hard and the shot is so sharp. But this only happens 25% of the time. I was weary of spending the extra money on the Canon 35mm, but I’m going to have to. This lens is a lot cheaper for a reason - it just isn’t reliable. In addition to the bad auto focus, the Sigma also completely blows out highlights. I found myself having to significantly underexpose in order to achieve a normal looking sky. And the light flares it catches aren’t nearly as beautiful as what a Canon would catch. Really hate to leave this bad review, but I hope it helps someone who is deciding between the Sigma 35mm vs the Canon 35mm. My advice: spend the extra money on the Canon!

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First of all, buy this lens. You will be so glad that you did... and I already have some pretty solid lenses at my disposal (Canon 50/1.4, Siggy 85/1.4, Canon 100/2.8is, Canon 70-200/2.8isii), but this one is easily my (current) favorite. I love the look of 35mm lens on FF (5d3). I have a young daughter and she is starting to move a lot and quickly... it really helps to have some sort of reference (landscape, surroundings) in the pictures, and it gives them a much better look and feel to just the close up, tightly-shot ones I would normally take of her with my other lenses. This lens is incredibly sharp, and it focuses extremely fast on my Canon 5d3. The bokeh is very creamy and dreamy, and I actually like the look of it by comparison to the bokeh from my Canon lenses. As for Nikon, I have a friend who shoots with a Nikon D600 and he sold his Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 35mm f/1.4G in favor of this lens because he could sell his Nikkor for more than this Sigma cost, AND he actually preferred the look of this Sigma lens. He said it was all around sharper and the pictures he took with it were just more appealing to him. The only negative that I can think of is that $900 is a lot of money, but I couldnt take a star away for it because it EASILY performs like a $900 lens (or even a lens that should be $1500). By comparison to my Sigma 85mm f/1.4, this lens seems a little more refined and perhaps a hair better quality (the 35 mostly looks newer and sleeker), but I would say the 35 is also a hair sharper and faster to focus... but the 85 is still king for portraits. :)

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When this thing gets it right, its SO good. Buttttt, it misses focus a lot on wide shots. Ive had it calibrated multiple times and have just come to the conclusion after working with it for more than a year that this lens is a gamble. Every shot is a gamble. Its pretty good for my main use, but if I want a shot from farther away from my subjects to include landscape.... Id put money on it this lens will miss focus.

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This lens is amazing. Seriously! I bought it for my business, but also kinda for our Disney World trip ;) It takes some amazing photos! Only thing is, the corners get REALLY dark and the little lens hood doesnt stay on very well. Picture quality is awesome though!

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Time and time again, Im just blown away by the images this lens produces. The colors are right where I want them to be, theres detail where the focus mark is that I can dig down into, and the AF is fast and silent. Im incredibly happy with this lens, and love what Sigma is doing lately in the lens market. I bought this lens to help me out with a few events where I wanted that classic 35mm look. Fortunately, the agility of the AF mechanism of this lens (coupled with the brains of the 5D3) means that I can stick the focus on a particular persons face, and using AI Servo, I can track that spot even if the person moves or I quickly recompose. The lens itself has a really good feel to it, and the manual focusing ring has just the right amount of resistance to it, where you dont feel like youre just slinging plastic around. The lens hood locks on with a very tight connection, and so far I havent seen any sort of glitches or lock-ups that one might worry about with a third-party lens. Well see how this handles down the line, and if Ill need to purchase the USB dock. I cant think of a single reason to drop the extra $400 on the Canon 35L over this. Ive used both, and would prefer this one even if it werent cheaper. Really hoping they make a sweep of the entire commonly-used primes line, because itd be nice to get a similarly-appointed 85mm without spending first-party prices.

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I bought this pre-owned, but the description said it was basically like new. Got it in the mail before I left on my trip and yes! Pretty much brand new! Plastic wrappings were still on it and not a scratch! It works wonderfully with my 5DMIII and works tack sharp like everyone else has said it was (compared to my experience with the Sigma version for Nikon which didnt end well and caused me to just want to get rid of all of my Nikon gear). Just need to use it for 2+ years to see if it will stay sharp for that long, as I saw some reviews saying they start getting soft photos after a while. Crossing my fingers and hoping that wont be the case!

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Just got my Sigma 35 1.4 this week. Like a lot of people on here I read some of the professional reviews and thought to myself there is no way that the Sigma 35 1.4 was sharper then the Canon 35 1.4 L. I was looking for a Lens in the 35 prime size to add to my wedding photography arsenal. I have used the 35L many times. Great little lens. Even better once stopped down to 2.8. I am absolutely blown away by how sharp this Sigma 35 is wide open! Just as the professional lens review websites have stated. Tack sharp at 1.4. Only slight improvement at 2.0. Build quality is excellent! Focusing, although the canon L is slightly faster, is quick and absolutely silent and precise. CA is very well controlled. If I have any complaint, as stated in other reviews similar to the Canon 1.4 the vignetting is obvious at 1.4, much less at 2.0 and gone by 2.8. I still cannot believe how sharp this lens is at 1.4! Cant wait to see what Sigma comes out with next

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