SIGMA Announces the 14mm F1.8 DG HSM Art Series Lens

[3kramd5]

Am buying.

I probably will, too. I've had the Rokinon/Samyang 14mm 2.4 on order since 12/30/2016, and now it is not expected until late March. I've about had it with Rokinon/Samyang. And this Sigma is a full stop faster!

My buy decision will be largely based on how much it distorts.

 

[chrysoberyl]

My buy decision will be largely based on how much it distorts.

I'm greedy - I want reasonably low distortion, sharp edges wide open, low coma, low lateral and longitudinal chromatic aberrations wide open, reasonably low vignette and spherical aberration and good flare control. I can live with heavy weight and don't care much about AF.

 

[tron]

Tron,

at least vignetting is not too bad at 2EV in extreme FF corners wide open. Good starting point though

beautiful bokeh effect my @_ _

Not a single word about coma...

Hello Alex,

if this Sigma has low coma I will go running for it against my beliefs that I want to shoot only with Canon for future compatibility reasons - OK I will get the dock too

Where did you see the 2 stop vignetting at the corners for the new 14 1.8 Sigma? This is a very good number indeed!

 

[NancyP]

Coma? Here's hoping that "Lenstip" Polish review site gets its hands on a copy soon. It's the only site that routinely tests for coma (with a laser pointer as image).

 

[chrysoberyl]

Coma? Here's hoping that "Lenstip" Polish review site gets its hands on a copy soon. It's the only site that routinely tests for coma (with a laser pointer as image).

I'm with you; LensTip provides the most thorough and objective reviews I have found. But other sites do provide astro shots for coma evaluation.

 

[chrysoberyl]

This lens is now on B&H's site. I have placed one on 'notify when available'.

 

[Ozarker]

"Distinctive bokeh effect" even at 14mm. I'd like to see that.

According to my calculator: 3ft from the subject at f/1.8 / 14mm... focus kicks in at 2.4ft runs 1.62ft deep to 4.02ft and then back out of focus. Hyperfocal distance at these parameters is 11.91ft. None of this, of course, means the bokeh is any good.

6 ft. from the subject gives a depth of field 8.11 ft deep.

Some of you that are gonna buy right away ( before testing or reviews) are brave souls.

Then again, surely there will be some independent testing before it hits the store shelves.

I'll never be that brave.

 

[sanj]

My wish: Good autofocus, edge sharpness, less than 3 stop vignetting.

My use will be low light crowd shots.

 

[Botts]

Pro: Distortion control seems solid!

Con: 2+ stops of vignetting in the corners wide open.

All in all, looks like a pretty awesome tool!. Sigma tech data here.

 

[tron]

Thanks for the link. Actually 2 stop vignetting at 1.8 is good news not bad news.

I have yet to see such an uwa lens with less vignetting than that. On the other hand there are many with 3.5 to 4.5 stops of vignetting...

Now back to coma... 8) 8) 8)

EDIT: Since I shoot astro during summer I can have a little patience

 

[RGF]

anybody noticed that is has 1170gr ??? Lol ;D

not surprised. F1.8. the canon F2.8 is 645 gms. So doubling is not surprising Thought it might be a bit heavier

 

[chrysoberyl]

Hello Alex,

if this Sigma has low coma I will go running for it against my beliefs that I want to shoot only with Canon for future compatibility reasons - OK I will get the dock too

Where did you see the 2 stop vignetting at the corners for the new 14 1.8 Sigma? This is a very good number indeed!

Well, according to LensTip, the Sigma 12-24 has very little coma. I would expect the 14mm to be similar. flaring is my worry, as I intend this for landscape as well as astro.

 

[3kramd5]

"Distinctive bokeh effect" even at 14mm. I'd like to see that.

According to my calculator: 3ft from the subject at f/1.8 / 14mm... focus kicks in at 2.4ft runs 1.62ft deep to 4.02ft and then back out of focus.

MFD is 10.6 inches, not 3 feet. DOF in that use case is about 1.3".


I often use my 25mm f/2 that way (ultra close thus shallow DOF at wide angles). It's a unique look, but doesn't play in many situations.

Some of you that are gonna buy right away ( before testing or reviews) are brave souls.

shrug... BH and Amazon have great return policies. If it's a dud, I'm out a couple grand for a couple weeks. NBD.

 

[transpo1]

Looks like an awesome lens- I'd rather have a Canon L equivalent but I will be buying this one.

 

[tron]

Hello Alex,

if this Sigma has low coma I will go running for it against my beliefs that I want to shoot only with Canon for future compatibility reasons - OK I will get the dock too

Where did you see the 2 stop vignetting at the corners for the new 14 1.8 Sigma? This is a very good number indeed!

Well, according to LensTip, the Sigma 12-24 has very little coma. I would expect the 14mm to be similar. flaring is my worry, as I intend this for landscape as well as astro.

Well the 20 1.4 was bad but indeed the latest 12-24 was OK. So if this one has low coma it's definitely the Astro King...

 

[Mac Duderson]

Conspiracy theory. ;D What the heck is up with Sigma. These announcements are just insane! WHAT IF....
K so here is my conspiracy theory. I'm sure I don't have the details right but here I go. So Nikon finished that lengthy lawsuit last year and they came to terms somehow which I'm not sure if anyone knows what they were.
I always believe competition is good for companies. Nikon, Canon, Sony, Sigma.... all work together. Each year one leapfrogs the other. One year Nikon dominates and everyone sells their Canon stuff and buys NEW Nikon gear. Then its Sony's turn and everyone sells their Nikon gear to buy NEW Sony gear. Then its Canon's turn and so on.
Maybe Canon and Nikon "sued" Sigma to buy in. They then make tons of crazy cool lenses and share part of the $moola$ with Sigma now. Everyone buys new. Then when they are finished putting out a ton of crazy amazing lenses and sigma is kinda out and back to 18-55mm's then say in 5 years then its Nikon and Canon's turn.
Nikon and Canon come out with their versions of those or better lenses so that everyone AGAIN sells their Sigma's to buy NEW Canon and Nikon upgrades AGAIN.
For example Sigma came out with their 35mm ART and shortly after Canon released their MKii. I know a few people including myself that jumped to the Canon MKii. Thankfully I never bought the Sigma first. But lots have.
Sigma just put out their 85mm ART and lo and behold Canon is getting ready to release their 85mm....
Same with the 50mm we know is coming.
I don't follow Nikon much now but I'm sure they are doing the same thing.
"A good businessman makes money on both sides." 8)

 

[chrysoberyl]

Conspiracy theory. ;D What the heck is up with Sigma. These announcements are just insane! WHAT IF....
K so here is my conspiracy theory. I'm sure I don't have the details right but here I go. So Nikon finished that lengthy lawsuit last year and they came to terms somehow which I'm not sure if anyone knows what they were.
I always believe competition is good for companies. Nikon, Canon, Sony, Sigma.... all work together. Each year one leapfrogs the other. One year Nikon dominates and everyone sells their Canon stuff and buys NEW Nikon gear. Then its Sony's turn and everyone sells their Nikon gear to buy NEW Sony gear. Then its Canon's turn and so on.
Maybe Canon and Nikon "sued" Sigma to buy in. They then make tons of crazy cool lenses and share part of the $moola$ with Sigma now. Everyone buys new. Then when they are finished putting out a ton of crazy amazing lenses and sigma is kinda out and back to 18-55mm's then say in 5 years then its Nikon and Canon's turn.
Nikon and Canon come out with their versions of those or better lenses so that everyone AGAIN sells their Sigma's to buy NEW Canon and Nikon upgrades AGAIN.
For example Sigma came out with their 35mm ART and shortly after Canon released their MKii. I know a few people including myself that jumped to the Canon MKii. Thankfully I never bought the Sigma first. But lots have.
Sigma just put out their 85mm ART and lo and behold Canon is getting ready to release their 85mm....
Same with the 50mm we know is coming.
I don't follow Nikon much now but I'm sure they are doing the same thing.
"A good businessman makes money on both sides." 8)

Wow! I guess I am unusual because I rarely sell any gear. I do buy new gear when something interests me, though. Especially if it is a technical quantum leap, rather than just a so-so upgrade.

 

[chrysoberyl]

Well the 20 1.4 was bad but indeed the latest 12-24 was indeed OK. So if this one has low coma it's definitely the Astro King...

I agree on the 20mm 1.4; it could have been in my bag now, but the reviews stopped that. I'm excited about the 14mm 1.8, but if the reviews show serious flaws... The same goes for the mythical Rokinon 14mm 2.4. But I'll get one of these if only for caves and landscapes. I love having a choice!

 

[DtEW]

Why is anybody at all hopeful about this lens being coma-free enough for astrophotography?

Sigma had the 24mm f/1.4 Art, and especially the 20mm f/1.4 Art, to show that they were willing to (capable of?) achieve this important characteristic for astrophotography. Famously, they didn't. Why does anybody think that they are suddenly going to do it with the 14mm f/1.8 Art, an even more unprecedented lens spec?

When Canon was introducing their Mk III version of the EF 16-35mm f/2.8L, they made sure to release it with a Milky Way shot to show that it was indeed as coma-free as was hoped. It seems pretty obvious that manufacturers are indeed aware of the pent-up demand for good astro lenses. They'd brag about it if they could. It's not Sigma marketing being stupidly unaware, or just playing coy. Marketing does not play coy.

 

[chrysoberyl]

Why is anybody at all hopeful about this lens being coma-free enough for astrophotography?

Because the 12-24 has very good coma.