Returned WA.
In the interest of being able to reach wide angles, there aren’t many options for those using 1.6x factor sensors. My Canon EOS 20D has just a few options, for zooms. Planning ahead for a larger sensor, I thought I’d be smart and order a Sigma 12-24mm EX HSM, which will function on a full-frame. This one’s going back today, after testing (and really wanting to like the lens) for the following reasons:
1. Unsharp at any speed. Less sharp than the cheap $100 EF-S 18-55, which is only average in itself. A significant letdown from my recent Tamron 28-75mm 2.8 purchase. That lens is a gem.
2. F/8 was the best and only ‘nearly acceptable’ sharpness.
3. Autofocus was useless. Manual focus on infinity, let depth of field handle the rest. Don’t even think about close focus.
4. Right side, esp. bottom, had prismatic breakup of detail. Smear.
5. Unpredictability. You could use the same settings on two different shots, and get out-of-focus *infinity* detail in one.
6. Random “ERR-99” communication problems with the 20D.
The only benefits?
1. Sturdy construction, heavy (I count that as a plus), excellent fit and finish.
2. Beautiful rectilinearity [less time-intensive workflow].
So many others have had problems with this lens [scroll down; this is the unsharpness I was seeing]. I was hoping that I had stored up some sort of “Sigma Karma”, because all my previous Sigmas had been sharper than my Nikon equivalents. I love most Sigmas, but I count this one as not recommended. I just don’t have time to do the return-and-exchange stuff to end up with a random sharp model (which may not be sharp enough for my tastes anyway).
I’ll be putting the “dead-end” Canon EF-S 10-22mm on order. I’ll live with PTLens for defishing.
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