Sigma 8-16 mm f/4.5-5.6 DC HSM
11. Summary
- high build quality,
- very good, momentarily even sensational image quality in the frame centre,
- good image quality at the edge of a very large field of view,
- chromatic aberration quite well-controlled in the focal range of 12-16 mm,
- moderate distortion,
- sensible performance against bright light,
- silent, fast and accurate autofocus.
Cons:
- high chromatic aberration at the shortest focal length,
- huge astigmatism,
- significant vignetting at the shortest focal length,
- you can’t use any filters.
Let’s start with the biggest slip-up so huge astigmatism. We must say if it wasn’t for this flaw, the Sigma 8-16 mm at all focal lengths and wide open would reach results at the level of 50 lpmm or higher. With such results it would be the best zoom lens we have ever tested. What’s more, even with the current astigmatism level it is still among the top devices. This fact just shows its constructors did very well because such image quality with those angles of view is no mean feat.
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Was the astigmatism slip-up unavoidable? Perhaps not. We can’t exclude the possibility that this instrument’s optics constructors simply allowed the astigmatism to be pronounced at the shortest focal length gaining in return lower price and smaller dimensions. Maybe there wouldn’t be any problem with constructing an even optically better Sigma 8-16 mm but its price and dimensions would increase significantly (say, two times). Would such an instrument find a lot of prospective buyers? It seems that the present variant of the lens will be more popular – and it was, after all, exactly the point of Sigma.
We are very pleased that Sigma did so well with a difficult task of presenting such an atypical construction with no equivalent in any of the competitors’ line-up. Designing ultra wide angle zooms is nothing easy as several companies personally have found out.
You must remember about one more thing, though. A lens with such wide angles of view is a very specific device. You must like that range and you must know how to use it. When these conditions are met, the Sigma 8-16 will repay with really sharp, well done shots.
Sample shots
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Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 16 mm, f/6.3, exp. 1/200 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 6.35 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 12 mm, f/8.0, exp. 1/100 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 5.79 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 8 mm, f/4.5, exp. 1/1000 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 4.91 MB |
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Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 12 mm, f/5.0, exp. 1/30 s, ISO 800 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 4.85 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 8 mm, f/4.5, exp. 1/50 s, ISO 800 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 4.98 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 9 mm, f/6.3, exp. 1/800 s, ISO 100 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 4.93 MB |
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Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 13 mm, f/5.0, exp. 1/160 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 5.24 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 8 mm, f/7.1, exp. 1/100 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 5.35 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 8 mm, f/5.6, exp. 1/100 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 5.23 MB |
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Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 11 mm, f/5.0, exp. 1/100 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 5.17 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 12 mm, f/5.6, exp. 1/640 s, ISO 100 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 4.3 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 8 mm, f/5.6, exp. 1/640 s, ISO 100 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 5.8 MB |
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Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 10 mm, f/6.3, exp. 1/640 s, ISO 100 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 5.35 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 12 mm, f/7.1, exp. 1/500 s, ISO 100 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 5.58 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 9 mm, f/7.1, exp. 1/500 s, ISO 100 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 5.31 MB |
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Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 12 mm, f/8.0, exp. 1/320 s, ISO 100 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 6.15 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 11 mm, f/5.0, exp. 1/800 s, ISO 100 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 6.47 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 8 mm, f/4.5, exp. 1/1000 s, ISO 100 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 7.09 MB |
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Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 16 mm, f/8.0, exp. 1/400 s, ISO 100 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 6.4 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 16 mm, f/8.0, exp. 1/400 s, ISO 100 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 4.88 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 13 mm, f/5.6, exp. 1/2000 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 4.7 MB |
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Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 8 mm, f/6.3, exp. 1/800 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 5.1 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 8 mm, f/4.5, exp. 1/1000 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 5.1 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 11 mm, f/5.0, exp. 1/800 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 5.45 MB |
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Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 16 mm, f/8.0, exp. 1/400 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 5.41 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 8 mm, f/4.5, exp. 1/200 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 6.58 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 12 mm, f/5.0, exp. 1/125 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 6.49 MB |
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Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 16 mm, f/8.0, exp. 1/60 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 6.32 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 16 mm, f/5.6, exp. 1/200 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 4.16 MB |
Camera: Canon 50D Parameters: 12 mm, f/5.0, exp. 1/60 s, ISO 200 File: JPEG, 4752×3168 pix, 5.76 MB |
