Customer Reviews

Sigma 10-20mm f4-5.6 EX DC HSM - Canon fit lens

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

First up let me say that I am not a professional photographer or even a very experienced amateur. I might not know all there is to know about photography but what I do know is that I LOVE what comes through this lens.

I was pleased with the build quality (as I have been with all my Sigma EX series lenses) and initial testing showed the autofocus to be fast, accurate and VERY quiet. This might not be surprising to those of you with a bag full of Canon L USM lenses but coming from consumer grade lenses this was a revelation.

I was seriously taken aback by just how wide 10mm is on a 1.6 crop camera (Such as Canons xxD and xxxD ranges). I could stand almost on top of subjects and still manage to get them all in. The extreme angles involved creates some distortion effects but these add to the pictures in my opinion.

The real joy however was when I returned from my first outing and began sorting through the pictures. The colours were fantastic, the images were, without exception, very sharp and the creative possibilities on a lens this wide made the photos stand out far more than the usual "snapshots" that a photographer of my calibre produces.

The ultra wide zoom made by Canon may well be better and I've no doubt that a full frame camera with professional grade lenses might yield better results but for this price I cannot find fault with Sigma's offering.

Anyone looking at this will know the technical stuff so i'm not going to bother with that!

I bought this for a trip to San Fracisco, Yosemite & the Grand Canyon. I am so glad I did. It is a fantastic lens, quick, responsive, quiet and above all the photos are sharp!

At it's widest setting there is a a good deal of vignetting if the lighting isn't spot on, but once you get used to it, it's fairly easy to overcome. I am using it on a Canon 350d and have been really impressed with the results.

I have had a canvas made from a photo of the Golden Gate bridge at sunrise and a photo at sunset taken at Rossnowlagh beach in Donegal, Ireland.

I would recommend purchasing the Sigma EX 77mm circular polarising filter as it works wonders on this lens.

The picture in the gallery was taken mid afternoon (not always the best for photos) at 10mm, F/9, 1/200sec.

I'm a pretty well seasoned photographer type but a bit a few hours spent with this lens has convinced me that I needed one of these lenses immediately.

This is one of their Sigma EX range which according to the bumf means it's better engineered, better built, higher quality materials, at least on the outside, and to be fair that's about right. The focus ring is not too loose, not too tight, the motor is quick and quiet and it's all finished in a nice kind of grippy tactile stuff. It's got a good solid metal mount but as expected it is fairly weighty lump when bolted to the camera, but not in a bad way, just solid and well balanced.

It's internally focussing which is good. Because the lens is physically fairly short no outside part of the lens will spin wildly in your hands when focussing, all the spinny bits are inside so it turns out to be a bit of a joy to handle.

Probably best to note right now this is a superwide lens so look elsewhere if you're after something other than this. However, the depth of field on this thing is enormous so watch out of you'll be noting the accidental inclusion of your feet in many snaps. For the right application though, this lens is a stormer. I've used it for some stunning travel shots, big moody sky landscapes, funky nightclub shots and portraiture snaps with a fun exaggerated perspective. You can pull off some very funky modern photography techniques very easily with this one.

Results are great, err spectacularly wide, sharp (far outer edges are less so but it is superwide so that's expected), well controlled aberration and no obvious loss of colour. All very good and a bargain price. I also looked at the Canon and Tamron equivalents. The Tamron cost a bit less, was lighter but felt a bit cheap and plasticy in terms of build quality. I couldn't fault the Canon other than its more offensive price.

I'm now a happy Sigma convert. I can also recommend the Sigma 18-200mm DC OS if you're after a big image stabiliser zoom too.

Anything else, umm, yes, it's an uncomfortably large glass area to damage at the front so make sure you grab yourself a 77mm UV filter. That'll protect it and is easier to swallow financially than the cost of a new front element repair. About £25-30 high street of £10 to you sir from Ebay.

Anyway's - Sigma 10-20mm is recommended.

I'm a newbie to DSLRs and went in for this lens for winde angle photos.Went through a couple of review sites and zeroed in on this lens.Got it yesterday and after a few test shots,gotta say this is one amazing lens.The quality is amazing and pictures are quite sharp.As someone above me said,there's a fair amount of vignetting but if you get used to it you can overcome it.Overall,an amazing lens at an amazing price

I bought this lens 6 months ago and am pleasantly surprised with it's image quality. I have had mixed results with Sigma lenses in the past and was looking at the Nikon equivalent which is twice the price of this lens. However, I had a good play with this lens in my local camera shop (London Camera Exchange) was impressed enough to buy it on the spot (physicaly handling a lens is something a camera shop can offer which the interenet cannot!!).

Pictures are sharp enough for my requirements and the unit seems sturdy and well built. Reccommended!

I owned this lens for about 3 years and loved the combined ability to shoot ultra wide and from very close in to the subject. I used it with my Canon 20D and 40D bodies and had a lot of fun with it. Before I bought this lens I had been contemplating the option of upgrading to a full frame body. Once I had this lens that desire ceased. This lens gave me ultra wide shooting without losing the "advantage" of the 1.6 x crop factor for my longer lenses.

In December 2009 all of my camera equipment was stolen in a burglary and this lens fell victim to me deciding to replace my body with the more expensive 7D rather than the 50D which would have been the current direct replacement for my stolen 40D. I got the 15-85mm IS kit lens with the 7D and I thought "that'll be wide enough".

I was wrong! I ended up missing this lens so much that I have recently replaced it, and at the current price on Amazon of £377 it's seems to me to be an absolute bargain.

Sigma have now released their 8-16mm lens, but you'll pay nearly twice as much. I know all too well that every mm counts at the wide end, but I couldn't justify the expense for the extra 2mm of width.

There is now also an f3.5 version of this lens, but as I very often stop down to f8, f9 or more then I also couldn't see the point in paying quite a lot more for that either.

I've had the replacement for about a week now and have been very happy with the image quality, just as I was with my original copy of this lens. My only slight gripe is with the lens cap, which seems to have been revised since I had my previous copy of this lens and seems to be rather tricky to lock properly into place. I'm worried that I'll soon lose the lens cap.

One thing I've not yet tried, which I think might be a lot of fun, is shooting high definition video on my 7D using this lens. It's wide enough that camera shake shouldn't be much of an issue and I think it might provide some stunning video footage in appropriate locations.

If you want to shoot wide, without going fish-eye then I think this lens represents wonderful value for money. Over the years I have used this lens I have to say that it is the lens which has given me the most photographic fun (I think maybe even more than my Lensbaby). Stop it down to f8 or f9 and you'll be in the sweet spot for sharpness (from my own experience), although I don't have any complaints even when shooting at f4.

THis is quite simply one of the great Sigma products. It is well built. Highly accurate rectilinear lens which means there is little bending of straight lines. There is a little of course but this is easily correctable. Wonderful for interiors. Good bokeh. Very reasonable edge sharpness. It gives the FOV of a 15-30mm lens in a 35mm camera.

Other lenses from the camera manufacturers are good but much more expensive. Yuo may wish to loook at the Tokina 12-24 as well, however it is better built than the Tamron 11-18 & with a better range. Buy it!!

I have been researching wide angle lenses for my canon 450d for the last few months. I was considering canon's 10-22mm lens, however the price was particularly steep. I came across sigma's 10-20 and read MANY comparisons between this lens and the canon 10-22, and decided to go for the sigma. This was mainly due to the price, but many photographers that I chatted to said that the sigma lens performed pretty much as good as the canon.

I've had this lens for a couple days now and my first impressions are as follows:

-the build quality is fantastic, with a beautiful finish (love the matt black lens hood that is included!)
-the focus and zoom rings have a very smooth action
-the HSM focus is near silent and very fast
-it is WIDE, of course i was expecting this but i was still stunned at the images it produced

for the price you cant beat it!

I also had a quick look at the tamron 10-24 and immediately noticed a significantly lower build quality, and was advised against this lens. although it has been said that this lens is very sharp, the sigma was still the obvious choice.

if you are in the market for a affordable wide angle lens then look no further.

I bought this lens to provide a bit of wide-angle variety for a Canon EOS 400D digital SLR and have been extremely satisfied with the results so far. A great value lens for the price!

NIKON DX fit
I won't bore you by repeating what everyone else (5 stars and most 4 stars) is saying. Sharp, great at 10mm and f5.6 - 16, little soft at 20mm, CA not too bad at all, and in my particular lens easily fixed in photoshop, no sign of vignetting (no filter fitted) and distortion control was very impressive. Lens looks pro and it DOES autofocus on Nikon D3000 / D5000 etc, as the motor is built into the lens, NOT dependant on the built into camera body versions, such as D90 etc.

I bought mine on amazon uk with 3 years extended warranty, but, when it arrived, it was NOT a UK official item, but rather a 'grey import' so Sigma UK do not want to know. They 'say' its illegal as the lens may have been imported without paying duty and vat - but my view is, they want to control the high street prices. It is the same lens, and the seller has given me an extra discount and promised to replace or repair in 12 months if it goes wrong, so fingers crossed!

I would have preferred a UK fully guaranteed (by Sigma) but if they insist on playing silly b***rs then you have to make your own choices. Howeve, none of this detracts from what is a really fine lens at a great price. I have taken lots of seaside / landscape / architectural shots, and am getting used to the really unusual perspective it gives. Hope to become more expert with it when our UK weather picks up a little - even a nice sunset is no good if it's pouring down!

The lens then, definite buy, and definite 5 stars - where you buy it, your choice - Sigma UK, a definite zero star rating.

The lens IS Sigma, it IS new, it should be covered worldwide - what if I was travelling the globe taking pictures and it broke down in Africa, even a UK 'proper' version they'd say, sorry mate, not bought in Africa, no warranty! Shame on you, Sigma! still a great product though.