Review: Architectural Photography with the Sigma 12-24mm f/4 Art

[Canon Rumors Guy]

Keith over at Northlight Images has completed an extensive review of the <a href="https://bhpho.to/2ysNdwk">Sigma 12-24mm f/4 Art series lens</a>. There are more than 60 high resolution samples available to look at in the review.</p>
<p>Keith came away impressed, and may even prefer to invest in the Sigma 12-24mm f/4 Art over  the much more expensive Canon EF 11-24mm f/4L.</p>

<p>Shooting this wide can be a challenge, but the payoffs can be well worth the learning curve.</p>
<p><strong><a href="http://www.northlight-images.co.uk/architecture-sigma-12-24mm/">Read the full review at Northlight</a></strong></p>
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[Aichbus]

I bought this lens a month ago and have taken it to 3 trips, one through Switzerland and parts of France, one to German countryside and one to Paris, mainly for taking photos of buildings. On the whole I am quite happy with it, but there are definitely some issues with it that most reviews don't tell you: field curvature. If you use the lens the way that Keith has described at one point: Holding the camera in level in portrait mode, have the building with straight lines in the upper part and then clipping the uninteresting bottom part, then you basically use the center of the frame and the extreme edges. Due to field curvature it is tricky to get both parts reasonably sharp. You could stop down to 11, but then you lose peak sharpness. As Keith said, 5.6 - 6.3 is a sweet spot for the lens at 12 mm. At 24 mm the issue is even worse as you HAVE to stop down even more to get the edeges sharp. However, especially at 24 mm there is a focus shift. You set the focus wide open but as you stop down, the focus shifts away from the camera. Both phenomenons combined make it rather difficult to get the perfect sharpness across the frame, as is often required in architectural photography. This mainly applies to the use of the lens on my 5DsR. I also have a 6D (I) and obviously it's less of an issue there.

Does anyone own the 11-24 L and could tell me whether there's field curvature / focus shift as well?

 

[Jopa]

Great review and great images. I have the 11-24 and recently realized I don't like the 11mm architectural images LOL. The buildings fit well but they lose feel of size, look kinda short? Even with straighten vertical lines. If I step back and take a picture @ 24mm - for some reason I like those results better. Could be just me though...

 

[SecureGSM]

Photozone has a solid write up on the Sigma 12-24 Art:

... Klaus Schroiff of Photozone

The good, the bad an the ugly - that's a movie but this also describes the Sigma 12-24mm f/4 HSM DG ART. Of course that applies to many ultra-wide angle zoom lenses and this one shows more variations than most. The Sigma lens is certainly quite impressive at the wide end of its range - the center quality is great the the borders are also very decent from f/5.6 to f/11. Conversely very high field curvature is spoiling the results from 18mm onward. At 18mm you can recover that by stopping down to at least f/8. However, at 24mm you should better stop down to at least f/13. Now you may argue that you are buying such a lens of its extreme wide-end but I'm leaving these thoughts to you. On the positive side, vignetting is surprisingly well controlled - albeit still easily visible at f/4. Image distortions are massive at 12mm but they are not so much of an issue beyond. Lateral CAs are far better than usual for a lens in this class. On the downside flare is a problem. Now that's a problem with most extreme wide-angle lenses but the Sigma didn't really impress us here with fairly strong ghostings.

The build quality is superb and as good as Canon's best offerings. No wobbling whatsoever, smooth controls, sturdy feel and weather sealing. Whether you can live with such a vulnerable front element (and as such without front filters) is a question that we can't answer for you. It's not a big deal in our book at least. The AF speed is just fine although we weren't thrilled by the focus accuracy (but that's also related to the Canon in this specific case).

So how does it compare to the mighty Canon EF 11-24mm f/4 USM L? Honestly, if money is no issue, we'd go for the Canon. The Canon lens is simply a much more consistent performer. It may have its issues at 11mm but it rapidly improves and doesn't really suffer from that amount of field curvature that makes the Sigma a bit of an unpredictable being. The Sigma 14mm f/1.8 HSM DG ART could be an alternative as well ...

I bought this lens a month ago and have taken it to 3 trips, one through Switzerland and parts of France, one to German countryside and one to Paris, mainly for taking photos of buildings. On the whole I am quite happy with it, but there are definitely some issues with it that most reviews don't tell you: field curvature. If you use the lens the way that Keith has described at one point: Holding the camera in level in portrait mode, have the building with straight lines in the upper part and then clipping the uninteresting bottom part, then you basically use the center of the frame and the extreme edges. Due to field curvature it is tricky to get both parts reasonably sharp. You could stop down to 11, but then you lose peak sharpness. As Keith said, 5.6 - 6.3 is a sweet spot for the lens at 12 mm. At 24 mm the issue is even worse as you HAVE to stop down even more to get the edeges sharp. However, especially at 24 mm there is a focus shift. You set the focus wide open but as you stop down, the focus shifts away from the camera. Both phenomenons combined make it rather difficult to get the perfect sharpness across the frame, as is often required in architectural photography. This mainly applies to the use of the lens on my 5DsR. I also have a 6D (I) and obviously it's less of an issue there.

Does anyone own the 11-24 L and could tell me whether there's field curvature / focus shift as well?

 

[Mt Spokane Photography]

I read the article last night, its been years (about 27) since I was briefly there. The town has really grown!

 

[ecqns]

I don't see anything in that article about image quality of the Sigma vs the Canon, unless I missed something.
I have the Canon and its fine for what it is but I don't like shooting wider than 14mm as nothing looks natural anymore. I do wish Canon could somehow make a 14mm TS-E, or I might have to start bringing out my shift-stitch rig to jobs again.
There is much more to architectural photography than pointing your widest lens at a building as those sample photos demonstrate.

 

[LDS]

I don't see anything in that article about image quality of the Sigma vs the Canon, unless I missed something.

"This article (there’s a gallery of all the images at the bottom of the article) looks at some of the challenges of using such a wide lens for the built environment."

You may find the information you are interested in in the detailed review linked at the beginning.

 

[ecqns]

I don't see anything in that article about image quality of the Sigma vs the Canon, unless I missed something.

"This article (there’s a gallery of all the images at the bottom of the article) looks at some of the challenges of using such a wide lens for the built environment."

You may find the information you are interested in in the detailed review linked at the beginning.

I didn't see the original review just the more recent article linked in the CR thread post. Now I see where he mentions the Sigma vs Canon at the bottom of the original review. Thanks.
Still need to be very careful when shooting at 11 or 12mm - I only use it in emergency situations - narrow streets or small residential bathrooms.
Actually the lens comparison at the-digital-picture does kind of show the Sigma looking better from 12mm to 14mm, the only areas I use the Canon. Hmm, I wonder if its worth checking out the Sigma and pocketing the price difference if its really better at those focal lengths.

 

[SecureGSM]

Sigma exhibits a very strong focus shift. it is not a problem when you shoot wide open at the maximum aperture F4, but should you stop down a stop a two, the focal plane will shift further back quite a lot. manual focusing or live view mode won't help as we focus when the lens is wide open and shoot with aperture closed as required.

Hmm, I wonder if it's worth checking out the Sigma and pocketing the price difference if its really better at those focal lengths.

 

[ecqns]

Sigma exhibits a very strong focus shift. it is not a problem when you shoot wide open at the maximum aperture F4, but should you stop down a stop a two, the focal plane will shift further back quite a lot. manual focusing or live view mode won't help as we focus when the lens is wide open and shoot with aperture closed as required.

That doesn't sound very promising. Could it be a bad copy of the lens?

 

[SecureGSM]

Nope...

https://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Sigma-12-24mm-f-4-DG-HSM-Art-Lens.aspx

...As is often the case when photographing architecture, I wanted everything in focus and f/8 was delivering both the depth of field and the sharp corners I wanted. I was quite impressed when reviewing my results on the back of the camera.

I mentioned the caveat. What I didn't notice during this shoot was focus shift. As this lens is stopped down, the plane of sharp focus shifts farther away. Because Canon cameras focus with a wide open aperture, this change is not accounted for during either viewfinder or Live View-based focusing (AF or MF). Stopped down manual focusing in Live View will account for the change, but ... this is not how we typically focus...

Sigma exhibits a very strong focus shift. it is not a problem when you shoot wide open at the maximum aperture F4, but should you stop down a stop a two, the focal plane will shift further back quite a lot. manual focusing or live view mode won't help as we focus when the lens is wide open and shoot with aperture closed as required.

That doesn't sound very promising. Could it be a bad copy of the lens?

 

[chrysoberyl]

Just so I'm clear, 'Stopped down manual focusing in Live View will account for the change,' means that I can set the f/stop while in live view and I can manually focus at the set f/stop?

I mentioned the caveat. What I didn't notice during this shoot was focus shift. As this lens is stopped down, the plane of sharp focus shifts farther away. Because Canon cameras focus with a wide open aperture, this change is not accounted for during either viewfinder or Live View-based focusing (AF or MF). Stopped down manual focusing in Live View will account for the change, but ... this is not how we typically focus...

 

[SecureGSM]

A little experiment, should we?

See if you can manual focus while depressing the DoF preview button on your camera...
Let us know if you could

Just so I'm clear, 'Stopped down manual focusing in Live View will account for the change,' means that I can set the f/stop while in live view and I can manually focus at the set f/stop?

I mentioned the caveat. What I didn't notice during this shoot was focus shift. As this lens is stopped down, the plane of sharp focus shifts farther away. Because Canon cameras focus with a wide open aperture, this change is not accounted for during either viewfinder or Live View-based focusing (AF or MF). Stopped down manual focusing in Live View will account for the change, but ... this is not how we typically focus...

 

[chrysoberyl]

We shall. You know the answer already, don't you.

Thanks for the nudge toward knowledge.

A little experiment, should we?
See if you can manual focus while depressing the DoF preview button on your camera...
Let us know if you could

 

[ecqns]

A little experiment, should we?

See if you can manual focus while depressing the DoF preview button on your camera...
Let us know if you could

Just so I'm clear, 'Stopped down manual focusing in Live View will account for the change,' means that I can set the f/stop while in live view and I can manually focus at the set f/stop?

I mentioned the caveat. What I didn't notice during this shoot was focus shift. As this lens is stopped down, the plane of sharp focus shifts farther away. Because Canon cameras focus with a wide open aperture, this change is not accounted for during either viewfinder or Live View-based focusing (AF or MF). Stopped down manual focusing in Live View will account for the change, but ... this is not how we typically focus...

I shoot Sony - would the focus wide open then focus shift issue still apply?