Sigma 12-24mm Mk II has landed

[markd61]

I have the original and it has made me  a lot of money over the years photographing interiors on first a 5D and now a 5DII.
The corner sharpness is not good wider open but gets better at f11-f16. That said, most images made with it did not have critical subjects in the corner and thus was not an issue.
I still have to say that I was not pleased with the softness a the edges at 12mm. What that meant was cropping in a touch to eliminate the worst of it and thus giving up some angle of view.
Overall, I did get images that I could otherwise not get.

Here is a thread on one happy new owner's experience.
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1032&message=39051968

[mackguyver]

Aucilla River, FL

[Frankie T Fotografia]

Here's a couple of samples using the Sigma 12-24mm Mk II on a T2i @ 12mm f/10 iso 200

[mackguyver]

^^^Nice photos and what a great and colorful contrast to my middle of nowhere shots!

[Frankie T Fotografia]

Thanks! I like how you tested the lens for chromatic aberration with those images. This lens is a great addition to anyone's lens collection.

Here's another image with the Sigma 12-24mm Mk II on my T2i @ 12mm f/4.5 iso 800

[1982chris911]

First Shot at 12mm on 5d mkII with the Gen II today ... will post more comments on it later


St. Emmeram Regensburg von 1982Chris911 (Thank you 100.000 Times) auf Flickr

[K-amps]

First Shot at 12mm on 5d mkII with the Gen II today ... will post more comments on it later


St. Emmeram Regensburg von 1982Chris911 (Thank you 100.000 Times) auf Flickr

Beautiful composition and color contrast. Focus seems a bit softer compared to Frankie pics which are amazing. Was this deliberate ?

[1982chris911]

First Shot at 12mm on 5d mkII with the Gen II today ... will post more comments on it later


St. Emmeram Regensburg von 1982Chris911 (Thank you 100.000 Times) auf Flickr

Beautiful composition and color contrast. Focus seems a bit softer compared to Frankie pics which are amazing. Was this deliberate ?

[/shadow]

Not sure if it is the HDR processing what you mean ...if you look at it in full size it is a quite sharp one even in the corners

[Edwin Herdman]

Looks like a great lens.  Interestingly, when I went to look it up a lot of places, DPReview included, called it the "12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II."  However, [url=http://www.sigmaphoto.com/shop/12-24mm-f45-56-dg-hsm-ii1]Sigma's website does not include the "EX" designation.  I'm not sure there's enough in the way of differences to really warrant the loss of the EX moniker - but in the end it means nothing in particular.

About the church picture - some closely-packed blue and red effects on some areas (especially on the polished surfaces of the wooden pews) does give the impression of loss of contrast.  The image looks great however.

I'm seriously interested in this lens!  It looks great for both APS-C and full frame.

[AdamJ]

Looks like a great lens.  Interestingly, when I went to look it up a lot of places, DPReview included, called it the "12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM II."  However, [url=http://www.sigmaphoto.com/shop/12-24mm-f45-56-dg-hsm-ii1]Sigma's website does not include the "EX" designation.  I'm not sure there's enough in the way of differences to really warrant the loss of the EX moniker - but in the end it means nothing in particular.

This lens no longer has the EX designation. The only reason for this is that Sigma has decided that, from now on, EX lenses must have a constant maximum aperture. Be assured, though, this lens is EX quality.

[mackguyver]

I finally got my 5DMkII yesterday and all I have to say is WOW 12mm is W-I-D-E!!!  If Tropical Storm Lee doesn't wash me away this weekend, I'll take and post some samples.

[mackguyver]

The Photozone review is up: http://www.photozone.de/canon_eos_ff/676-sigma1224f4556iiff

[1982chris911]

Street Crossing at Times Square von 1982Chris911 (Thank you 100.000 Times) auf Flickr


The Mighty Heart of New York's 1930ies von 1982Chris911 (Thank you 100.000 Times) auf Flickr


Metropolitan Museum - Roman Court von 1982Chris911 (Thank you 100.000 Times) auf Flickr

[savale]

Looks like some have corner sharpness troubles at 12mm... What are the alternatives in the same focal length / price range?

[J. McCabe]

Looks like some have corner sharpness troubles at 12mm... What are the alternatives in the same focal length / price range?

AFAIK, there are three alternatives -

* Sigma 8-16mm on an APS-C body. Uncertain regarding quality.

* Defish a fisheye lens (circular, diagonal, maybe Samyang 8mm stereographic fisheye).

* If the subject is static, stitch photos from a longer lens.