Wide Angle Zooms (non Canon)

[Synomis192]

Anyone know which Ultra Wide Lens is best out of this group:

Tamron 10-24mm
Sigma 10-20mm
Tokina 12-24mm

I'm thinking of getting an Ultra Wide lens. I like shooting wide for some reason, but I also would feel bad if I got an ultra wide, because I'd like to replace my kit lens too. Should I replace my kit lens with something like the Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 or go wider like the Tamron 10-24mm.

[akiskev]

Sigma 10-20 f/3.5 or Sigma 10-20 f/4-5.6 ?

Between these lenses I'd go either for Sigma 10-20 f/3.5 or Tokina 12-24...

[jthomson]

See Rogers comments at LensRentals on the wide angle zooms.
Basically they are all about the same so get the one that suits your budget.

Personally I chose the Sigma 10-20mm f4.5-5.6. 

[pierceography]

You didn't list it, but the Sigma 12-24mm is a fantastic lens.  I bought it last year knowing that I'd eventually like to upgrade to a FF.  The 12-24mm is 2mm wider than the 10mm lenses you listed, but is compatible with my new 5Dm3 and 7D.  Happy I went with it over the 10-22mm.

[Synomis192]

You didn't list it, but the Sigma 12-24mm is a fantastic lens.  I bought it last year knowing that I'd eventually like to upgrade to a FF.  The 12-24mm is 2mm wider than the 10mm lenses you listed, but is compatible with my new 5Dm3 and 7D.  Happy I went with it over the 10-22mm.

OH thanks for reminding me about that lens I do plan on getting it. It seems like a really great FF UW. It's pretty darn expensive though. I'll think about it. How wide is 12mm on a FF camera anyways?

[pierceography]

You didn't list it, but the Sigma 12-24mm is a fantastic lens.  I bought it last year knowing that I'd eventually like to upgrade to a FF.  The 12-24mm is 2mm wider than the 10mm lenses you listed, but is compatible with my new 5Dm3 and 7D.  Happy I went with it over the 10-22mm.

OH thanks for reminding me about that lens I do plan on getting it. It seems like a really great FF UW. It's pretty darn expensive though. I'll think about it. How wide is 12mm on a FF camera anyways?

12mm.  :-)

The math for the Sigma on a crop sensor would be 12 x 1.6 = 19.2.  So it would be roughly 19mm on any camera < 5D.  I noticed a pretty big difference when I popped it on my 5Dm3 for the first time... REAL happy I decided to spend the extra money on a FF UW than get a crop UW.

As for the additional price, building lenses for larger sensors means more glass, more engineering, more cost.  Hence why all the EF-S lenses in Canon's lineup (except one) are under $800.

Personally, I refused to buy an EF-S lens, even though I had my 7D for almost three years before getting my 5Dm3.  I'm real happy I did, as all my lenses are interchangeable between my two cameras.

[killswitch]

You didn't list it, but the Sigma 12-24mm is a fantastic lens.  I bought it last year knowing that I'd eventually like to upgrade to a FF.  The 12-24mm is 2mm wider than the 10mm lenses you listed, but is compatible with my new 5Dm3 and 7D.  Happy I went with it over the 10-22mm.

OH thanks for reminding me about that lens I do plan on getting it. It seems like a really great FF UW. It's pretty darn expensive though. I'll think about it. How wide is 12mm on a FF camera anyways?

12mm.  :-)

The math for the Sigma on a crop sensor would be 12 x 1.6 = 19.2.  So it would be roughly 19mm on any camera < 5D.  I noticed a pretty big difference when I popped it on my 5Dm3 for the first time... REAL happy I decided to spend the extra money on a FF UW than get a crop UW.

As for the additional price, building lenses for larger sensors means more glass, more engineering, more cost.  Hence why all the EF-S lenses in Canon's lineup (except one) are under $800.

Personally, I refused to buy an EF-S lens, even though I had my 7D for almost three years before getting my 5Dm3.  I'm real happy I did, as all my lenses are interchangeable between my two cameras.

How is the build quality of the Sigma 12-24? Also image quality? Does it have filter thread? I also was thinking going for the Sigma or the Tokina's UWA for FF body but was not sure whether their image quality and build quality.

[cliffwang]

You didn't list it, but the Sigma 12-24mm is a fantastic lens.  I bought it last year knowing that I'd eventually like to upgrade to a FF.  The 12-24mm is 2mm wider than the 10mm lenses you listed, but is compatible with my new 5Dm3 and 7D.  Happy I went with it over the 10-22mm.

OH thanks for reminding me about that lens I do plan on getting it. It seems like a really great FF UW. It's pretty darn expensive though. I'll think about it. How wide is 12mm on a FF camera anyways?

http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=12mm+5D&f=hp

[pierceography]

How is the build quality of the Sigma 12-24? Also image quality? Does it have filter thread? I also was thinking going for the Sigma or the Tokina's UWA for FF body but was not sure whether their image quality and build quality.

I was very impressed with the build quality of the Sigma.  It's the first Sigma I'd ever purchased, and I have to say if the rest of their higher end lenses share similar builds, I'd definitely purchase another.  Focus/zoom rings are smooth, but not loose.  The lens is very sturdy, and zooming is handled semi-internally -- the front element moves slightly, but does not lengthen the lens as it is a unified body.  Overall, I'd say it's pretty darn close to L build quality... as close as I've seen from a third party, anyway.

Image quality is decent.  It's sharp in the center, but a bit softer on the edges.  This doesn't bother me a ton though, as edge softness is expected once you get into the Ultra-Wide realm, and this is mostly minimized once you stop down to f/8+.  Lines remain very straight, with obvious distortion at the edges -- but again, this is typical of any UW.  There's only very slight pincushioning at the center, but I've never felt it noticeable enough (if at all) to bother correcting.  Chromatic aberration is the only thing that gives me pause when pulling this lens out of my bag.  It's more than I'm used to out of my Canon lenses, but this very well could be due to the lack of in-camera lens correction for a non-Canon lens.

As for a filter thread, it kind of has one.  The lens has a built in hood, with an attachment that covers the hood providing filter threads.  However, I noticed some very slight, but tight vignetting even when attached to my 7D, so I haven't even bothered using it while on my 5Dm3.  Also, using a polarizing filter on an UW can get you mixed results...

I'm also including one of my favorite shots with this lens.  Looking up at the Manhattan facing tower of the Brooklyn Bridge last year.  It's a three exposure HDR shot for contrast reasons, but even f/4.5 (wide open) it's still reasonably sharp on the edges.  Oh, and this was on my 7D, so you can only imagine how wide it would be on a FF.  :-)

[dr croubie]

Anyone know which Ultra Wide Lens is best out of this group:

Tamron 10-24mm
Sigma 10-20mm
Tokina 12-24mm

Basically, of all the Crop Sensor Ultrawides, these are the 3 that I culled from the list first. The 3 to choose from are the Sigma 8-16, Tokina 11-16, Canon 10-22.
Sure, they're more expensive than the first 3 New, but second-hand you can get the Sigma/Tokina for $450-500, the Canon for $600.
Choose between them for: Sigma: slow, outdoors, no filters, widest, landscapes. Tokina: fastest, least zoom range, better indoors, or handholdable in lower light (bit more CA than the rest, apparently mk2 just announced will be better). Canon: halfway between the two, holds up value a bit better (but any of the three, if you buy 2nd hand you can sell later for not much profit).

If your budget really really doesn't stretch that far, then:
Tokina 12-24 is fairly old and got replaced by the 11-16, i don't know much about it.
Tamron just avoid, it's the cheapest for a reason.
Sigma 10-20 i reckon the f/4-5.6 version is a bit sharper than the f/3.5 version.

Or if you don't want absolute widest now (but will if/when you go FF later), the Sigma 12-24 are a good upgrade path. mk1 for almost completely rectilinear the whole way, mk2 is sharper.

Still, my vote lies on the second-hand Sigma 8-16 or Tokina 11-16 (mk2 if you can get it, but it'll be more expensive new because there will be no second-hands for a year).

[crasher8]

Tamron 17-35 is highly underrated. Great buys on ebay and KEH

[pwp]

I've had the Sigma 12-24 for years which I use 100% on FF. It's definitely not a day to day lens, but there are plenty of occasions where the 12mm wide end absolutely saves the day. Provided I shoot at f/11 this lens delivers. Forget it wide open, it's a mushy mess. Provided you don't expect the world of this lens, it represents great value. Around a year ago Sigma gave this lens a refresh and I believe the QC & IQ have improved somewhat.

For APS-C, the gold standard wide zoom would have to be the Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5.

-PW

[tron]

For APS-C, the gold standard wide zoom would have to be the Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5.
-PW

I concur. I used the Canon 10-22 with my 40D (until they were stolen  ). It was a very nice (and practically L-quality) wide angle zoom.