Sigma 18-125mm F3.5-5.6 DC A-mount lens reviews
reviews found: 30
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sharpness: 3.5 color: 3 build: 3 distortion: 2 flare control: 4 overall: 3.1 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | I don't have any other lenses with this sort of focal length range, so won't compare it in detail, but my impression is that it's about as good as the second, lightweight Minolta 35-105 introduced in 1988 ie a lot less good than the original heavy one. |
price paid: | effectively free |
positive: | Sharper than expected between about 24 and 125mm, although still benefits from. a stop of stopping down. Very compact for its focal length range. |
negative: | Mine is weakest at 18mm, where it needs F8 for good sharpness, and has that favourite Sigma defect of obvious decentering, which clears up by about 35mm. Linear distortion is a bit high and cannot be corrected in-camera. |
comment: | Good enough that I'd like to try one that wasn't decentered - if I could find one. |
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sharpness: 3.5 color: 4 build: 4 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 3.9 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Siggy 18-200 Sony CZ 16-80 |
price paid: | € 80,- |
positive: | Size, price and weight. |
negative: | Not the best IQ... but what do you expect? Very noisy! |
comment: | My 18-200mm didn't survived a trip in the mountains. And I discovered the long range wasn't used often. So 18-125mm suits as well and it's cheaper. |
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sharpness: 3.5 color: 4 build: 4 distortion: 3 flare control: 4 overall: 3.7 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | missing |
price paid: | 240 GBP (new) |
positive: | Small Light weight Sharper than any kit lens |
negative: | Focus hunting sometimes |
comment: | This lens was my walk around lens but went back in my bag when I got the Sigma 24-70 2.8 EX DC as focus was slow on my 7D. Now I have it on the Sony Alpha A37 this lens is transformed. The focus is now quick even in low light. The IQ is improved but more down to the A37. |
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sharpness: 4 color: 4 build: 5 distortion: 4 flare control: 3 overall: 4 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | - Sony 18-55 SAM - Sigma 28-70 3.5 UC - Tamron 28-300 LD IF 72 mm diameter - Tamron 70-300 LD Di - Minolta Beercan 28-85 |
price paid: | 100 Euro (ebay) |
positive: | - Good quality - Nice colors - Good walk around ranche |
negative: | - Tempt to hunt with low light, especially when zoomed in completely |
comment: | Bought this lens to have a good big ranche walk around lens second hand for 100 Euro. Perfect nice walk around lens. It cannot be compared to the Beercan in sharpness, but as walk around lens really a very good one. I had a 28-300 from Tamron to have a good walk around lens for the zoo or similar, but I sold that one. This is a super one and I’m about to buy the bigger brother the 18-200 as well to replace it just for the ranch, otherwise I would have sticked to this one. |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 5 build: 5 distortion: 4 flare control: 5 overall: 4.7 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Sony 18-70 Sony 18-55 Sony 18-200 Sigma 17-35 ex DG Sigma 21-35 |
price paid: | 74 GBP used |
positive: | Sharp Great colour rendition Good build |
negative: | None for the price |
comment: | Some of the reviews suggest this lens is rather mediocre - well my copy isn't. As sharp as the 17-35 and 21-35 from f5.6 and sharper than the Sony lenses at all focal lengths and apertures. My copy is usably sharp wide open at all focal lengths and sharpens up nicely with a little stopping down. I looked for the soft edges and corners and it is no worse than many other zooms (some a lot more expensive) in this respect. Wonderful colour and contrast even under grey overcast sky. I can only think that sample variation and Sigma quality control explains this. For the price, an extremely useful lens at a bargain price. Recommended |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 4 build: 5 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4.3 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Sony 18-55mm SAM kit, Sigma 8-16mm DC super wide (similar build quality), several Minolta AF lenses (prime and zoom) |
price paid: | 339 USD (new) |
positive: | The build quality is very sturdy and precise, similar to the very nice Sigma 8-16 DC that I purchased recently. Good sharpness, fast focusing, great color, good range. A hood is included. |
negative: | Perhaps a bit on the big and heavy side .. at least compared to the lower end Sony lenses. |
comment: | I am very happy with this lens. It is better than I expected in this price range. Certainly a nice upgrade of the 18-55 SAM lens which did not seem so bad until now. I am not big on pixel peeking but I see good sharpness from end to end. The contrast and color to my eyes are very good. I have not noticed any problems with distortion but I have not shot any buildings or walls where I would notice that. Nice solid build quality. The 18-125mm range seems to cover just about anything I need even though I have lenses that are longer and wider. If I could only take one lens on a vacation trip, this is as good as it gets for my budget. I think this is a great walk around lens for the average photographer. |
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sharpness: 5 color: 5 build: 5 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 5 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Sony SAL-1855,Minolta AF 50 F1.7 RS |
price paid: | 160 USD (new) |
positive: | versatile range,sharp,solid build,quick focusing, easy handling. |
negative: | non for the price |
comment: | After reading some of the reviews here, I was hesitant to get this lens. But I'm so glad I gave it a try. It's much much sharper than my Sony kit lens and is able to focus quickly in very dark conditions where the kit lens would hunt a little bit. It also shows much better color and contrast than the kit lens. All in all I'd say this is a no-brainer for someone looking for a bargain but quality lens. Either I got lucky and purchased an exceptionally good copy or this is a very under-rated lens! BTW...one reviewer here is mentioning that his lens wasn't that good on his Canon 10D! We are talking about the Sony/Minolta version of this lens. Other professional review sights have noted that the Canon version of this lens didn't turn out as good as the Sony and Pentax versions. |
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sharpness: 3 color: 4 build: 5 distortion: 3 flare control: 3 overall: 3.6 | tested on:
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ownership: | I used to own this lens |
compared to: | 18-70mm kit lens Sigma 17-70 Tamron 17-50 |
price paid: | $160 |
positive: | Range Solid build, solid lens hood Zoom lock switch |
negative: | Slow focus Soft corners Extends far at only 125mm inaccurate focus |
comment: | I had the same experience as a previous reviewer in that I brought it with me on a cruise last year, hoping that it would be a perfect vacation all-in-one lens, and ended up going back to my kit lens for the remainder of the vacation. When I got home, I tested the lens out on my book collection in my bookshelves, and found that I had to manually focus the lens to get a proper focus, and even when I got it to be as sharp as I could, the kit lens was MUCH sharper with better contrast throughout all apertures. Only when I hit f/11 did it get close to the kit lens in sharpness. Distortion with sunset photos needed to have heavy correction, and flare is pretty darn bad. I sold this lens and bought a Sigma 17-70 immediately afterwards and was BLOWN AWAY with the pictures out of the 17-70 in comparison to the 18-125. If you want an all around zoom lens, go with the Sony/Tamron 18-250mm, or stick with the kit lens combo of 18-55/70 and the 55-200mm. |
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sharpness: 4 color: 4 build: 4 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4 | tested on:
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ownership: | I used to own this lens |
compared to: | Sony SAL 18-70 Kit lens |
price paid: | $125 USD (New) |
positive: | Great range Good walk around lens with a very usable range Decent build and color rendition |
negative: | Some distortion wide open |
comment: | I bought this to use as a walk around lens on a trip to Israel. After using it for a couple of days, I went back to my kit lens for the remainder of the trip. I just wasn't as confident with the Sigma as I was with my trusty little Sony kitty. I have a marvelous version of the 18-70. It's nothing against the Sigma... I just wanted to have that extra confidence factor for this once-in-a-lifetime trip. (Like the golfer who keeps returning to their trusty old driver instead of their fancy new one.) I traded it in on a Tamron 17-50 2.8. |
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sharpness: 3.5 color: 3 build: 4 distortion: 3 flare control: 2 overall: 3.1 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Minolta 28-135, 28-105, 35-105, Sigma 28-135 |
price paid: | au$49 (Pawn shop) |
positive: | Nothing other than low price. Even with its poor reputation I had hoped for better performance. |
negative: | The softest and most inconsistent lens that I have owned. Slow and unreliable focusing. Bad distortion and very soft in the corners at all focal lengths. Very prone to flare if the sun is anywhere ahead of you. |
comment: | I took a chance - it was cheap - but it isn't worth keeping. I am selling it on eBay for whatever I can get. Some Sigmas are brilliant, but many are mediocre. This is one of the latter. |
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sharpness: 4 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 4 flare control: 5 overall: 4.4 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Minolta AF 28-100 |
price paid: | approx. 150 USD |
positive: | Build quality internal focusing price (mine was CHEAP) good range for walking around |
negative: | not super sharp zoom ring turns in reverse direction |
comment: | i got my lens off of amazon for about 150 dollars. i wanted a lens for walking around and minimizing lens changes, such as while at the park. it's not the sharpest lens i've ever seen, my 50 1.7 is sharper, but at f/8 or f/11 it can crank out some pretty good pictures. the build quality is very good. the lens is heavy and well finished with a metal mount. the zoom ring is smooth (but turns the opposite direction), and focus ring is as well. the focus ring also has a very short turn, making focusing quick. the internal focusing is nice as well since it makes it easy to use polarizing filters. (and the petal hood makes my camera look pretty sweet too) i've noticed some distortion at the 18mm end, but it's not too bad. i've never had any lens flare either. all in all, i think it was a good purchase for the purpose i intended it for and i'd recommend it to anyone looking to find a good walk around lens for a low price. |
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sharpness: 4 color: 4 build: 5 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4.2 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | 18-70 Kit lens |
price paid: | 125 USD Used |
positive: | Nice range , Lightweight , Sharp steeped up |
negative: | not quite sharp at 3.5.5.0 |
comment: | It's worth the money i paid for it...I was looking for a good walkaround lens w/ a little more reach than my Sigma 24-70 f2.8. I started using it for everyday non specialized shooting. Not the sharpest lens in my bag but it serves the purpose i intended it for . |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 5 build: 5 distortion: 4 flare control: 5 overall: 4.7 | tested on:
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ownership: | I used to own this lens |
compared to: | Sony DT 18-70 kit lens Minolta 70-210 "beercan" Tamron SP 24-135 |
price paid: | 129 USD new |
positive: | Great range Compact & light Well built Nice solid feel Great lens hood Great value for money |
negative: | Some barrel distortion at the wide end - expected Some vignetting at the wide end, particularly with a filter attached - also expected |
comment: | A very good value for money lens. Got this new on ebay. Easily replaces the Sony kit 18-70 lens. I actually bought this as a travel lens as it covers most of what I would shoot on vacation, although it's probably a little wider than I need at the short end. It has not disappointed. Along with being compact, it is nice and light which is a major factor for me carrying a digital SLR on holiday. I managed to get some wonderful shots while on holiday in Vietnam recently. It produces nice colours and reasonably sharp images when used with my Sony A100. Not the fastest lens around but this is the lens I had on my camera most of the time. (I now have a Sony A580.) AF hunts a bit in very low light but I would expect that. Use of a tripod in such situations highly recommended! I also have been using this lens for indoor sports photography but I'm looking for a faster option for this purpose. I would definitely recommend this lens to anyone looking for an all-in-one travel solution or a walk-around lens. Update September 2017: I still love using this lens on my A580. Although, my travel lens is now a Tamron 18-200 Dii which I have grown to really like. Still have the Sigma which I very rarely use. |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4.3 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | KM 18-70 Various mid-range zooms |
price paid: | missing |
positive: | Sharpness Colour rendition Price |
negative: | Slow autofocus in low light |
comment: | Very good lens for the price. Seems sharper than previou reviews suggest. |
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sharpness: 4 color: 5 build: 3 distortion: 3 flare control: 4 overall: 3.8 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Beercan Sigma EX DG 24-70/2.8 Tokina atx 24-200 Sigma EX 14mm 2.8 prime |
price paid: | 125 USD (new) |
positive: | lightweight/compact zoom range great colors |
negative: | barrel distortion at 18mm Plasticky build and hood Large zoom extension Vignetting w/slim filter @18mm |
comment: | I think this is a highly underrated lens for the price and easily replaces 18-70 kit. I was pleasantly surprised by the colors and contrast. Sharpness also belies the price. I'm looking for a lightweight foreign travel do-all lens and after testing this, I feel pretty confident. Performance at wide angle is also a pleasant surprise, with some expected distortion, but respectably sharp stopped down. Bright background like sky will show some vignette at 18mm with slim pro-1 filter. |
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sharpness: 3.5 color: 3 build: 4 distortion: 3 flare control: 4 overall: 3.5 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | KM 18-70 Tamron 18-200 KM 28-75 |
price paid: | 120€ SH |
positive: | Build Unbeatable for the price Ideal range Compact Zoom lock |
negative: | Wrong zoom direction No character |
comment: | I have this lens for 2 years, I always thought it underrated. It is my ideal walk around lens, I was never disappointed with the results of this modest lens, nothing splendid but always satisfying, which I could not say about the Tamron. |
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sharpness: 4 color: 4 build: 5 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4.2 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | 18-70 Kit Tamron 18-250 Minolta 70-210 f4 |
price paid: | 125 USD New |
positive: | Very inexpensive Longer range than kit lens Solid build Sharp from f8 Sharper than kit lens |
negative: | Not as sharp as my Tamron 18-250 or Beercan Turns in oppisite direction of other zooms |
comment: | Very inexpensive alternative to kit lens with longer range. Useful walk around lens when I don't need the extra range of the Tammy. Well worth the money. |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 5 build: 5 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4.5 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | SAL 18-70 f3.5/5.6 SAL 75-300 Tamron 18-200 f3.8-6.3 Sigma 18-50 F2.8 EX DC |
price paid: | 177EUR (new) |
positive: | Very sharp, Good build quality, Soft zoom transaction, Low barrel distortion Low CA |
negative: | Soft corners on 18mm and close, 3.5-5.6 |
comment: | Excellent lens for traveling! For this price I see no concurrents! |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 4 build: 5 distortion: 3 flare control: 4 overall: 4.1 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Tamron 24-135 Minolta 18-70 |
price paid: | 135 Euro (new) |
positive: | good range, sharp |
negative: | AF problems at 18 mm Soft corners at 90 mm |
comment: | This lens is really sharp, when you get the focus spot on. But unfortunatelly you can't trust the AF on the wide end (below 50mm). I have this problems with the 7d and with the a700. For this I really can't recommend this lens. |
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sharpness: 4 color: 4 build: 4 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Konica Minolta AF 18-70mm Minolta AF 70-210mm/4 Minolta AF 70-210mm/3.5-4.5 Minolta AF 35-105mm/3.5-4.5 Minolta AF 28mm/2.8 Minolta AF 50mm/1.7 Tokina AF 28-70mm/2.8 ATX Sigma AF 70-300mm/4-5.6 DG Sigma AF 10-20mm/4-5.6 EX Sigma AF 20-40mm/2.8 EX Cosina AF 100mm/3.5 Macro Sigma AF 105mm/2.8 EX DG Macro |
price paid: | 65 Euro used |
positive: | Better than 18-70mm kit lens Zoom range General quality |
negative: | 3.5-5.6 (would prefer 2.8-4 or 3.5-4.5) |
comment: | I am actually pretty impressed by this lens. It better than the 18-70mm kit lens on every aspect. Very useable wide open, sharpens up pretty fast when stopping down. Fairly fast AF Build is almost EX quality It is a very decent walkaround lens |
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sharpness: 3.5 color: 4 build: 4 distortion: 4 flare control: 3 overall: 3.7 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Beercan 17-50mm f/2.8 Tamron |
price paid: | missing |
positive: | Zoom range Sharpnes stopped down and with good light |
negative: | Focus is slow Misses focuspoint often In the range that you use the most min 5.6 is required for good sharpness Low contrast compared to my Tamron. |
comment: | When light conditions are good a good walk-around lens. But you need to stop down for sharpness and that means a big dept of field. |
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sharpness: 4.5 color: 4 build: 4 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4.1 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | Minolta AF 3,5-5,6/18-70mm |
price paid: | 180 € |
positive: | very easy to handle. sharp. not heavy. |
negative: | sometimes problems with the hood. plastic. |
comment: | a good allround lens. |
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sharpness: 4 color: 4 build: 4 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | 28-85 28-75 17-35 28/1.8 50/1.7 28-105 Tamron 70-210/4 |
price paid: | 270 EUR |
positive: | - sharpness - size - weight - AF-speed - 18-125mm |
negative: | - F5.6 - distortion at 18mm wide open |
comment: | Small, compact and light-weight lens with very good optical qualities and AF-speed! My travel-zoom and all-rounder. Recommended! |
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sharpness: 4 color: 4 build: 4 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4 | tested on:
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ownership: | I own this lens |
compared to: | missing |
price paid: | ± € 300 |
positive: | Allround Relatively cheap Reasonable good pictures |
negative: | F3.5-5.6 isn't very good |
comment: | missing |
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sharpness: 3.5 color: 3 build: 4 distortion: 2 flare control: 3 overall: 3.1 | tested on:
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ownership: | I have experience with this lens |
compared to: | Sigma 70-300/4,5-5,6Macro Sigma 18-125DC 3,5-5,6 Sigma 50/2,8 macro Tamron 28-80/ASP.3,5-4,5 |
price paid: | 300USD |
positive: | good travel-zoom, little weight, zoomlock |
negative: | big distortion, CA |
comment: | I think the 3,5-5,6 is not good, but tipical in this category. |
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sharpness: 3 color: 4 build: 3 distortion: 2 flare control: 4 overall: 3.2 | tested on:
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ownership: | I used to own this lens |
compared to: | 35mm f2, 50mm f1.7, Sigma 70-300 APO. |
price paid: | Ł180 (new) |
positive: | Has produced some excellent images. Good bokeh. Excellent zoom range. Decent construction - has already taken a fall and survived. Good manual focusing ring. Great sharpness when stopped down. f3.5 at 18mm isn't bad! |
negative: | Very rarely (only had it happen once) totally fails to AF when shooting into extremely bright light at wide angles. Vignettes quite heavily at 18mm with a polariser - would probably be better with an ultra thin version. Slow aparture, especially at longer focal lengths. |
comment: | Outdoors, in good light, it's fantastic. The zoom range and general quality stand out, and as long as you acknowledge the vignetting with a polariser, it's no big deal. http://china.nsrtfc.com/albums/shidu/PICT1233.jpg http://china.nsrtfc.com/albums/putoshan/xxbeach_001.jpg http://china.nsrtfc.com/albums/putoshan/well.jpg http://china.nsrtfc.com/albums/putoshan/xxbeach.jpg http://china.nsrtfc.com/albums/shanghai06/shanghai.jpg http://china.nsrtfc.com/albums/shanghai06/skyscraper_800.jpg Indoors, or for something more intimate like a portrait, I prefer primes - it's not an expensive zoom and shouldn't be expected to perform like one. Highly reccomended for the price. |
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sharpness: 2.5 color: 4 build: 4 distortion: 2 flare control: 4 overall: 3.3 | tested on:
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ownership: | I have experience with this lens |
compared to: | Minolta 24-105 (D) f3.5-4.5 KM 18-70 f3.5-5.6 KM 28-75 f2.8 Sigma 12-24 f4.5-5.6 |
price paid: | €150 (second hand) |
positive: | Focal range Build |
negative: | Sharpness |
comment: | Did several tests with these 5 lenses at 18, 24 and 28mm at f5.6, f8 and f11. The sigma came out the worst on all tests, even the 18-70 kit lens gave me sharper pictures. corner sharpness and distortion were very bad. Bought second hand, sold it very quickly. Do not recomend |
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sharpness: 4 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 3 flare control: 3 overall: 3.8 | tested on:
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ownership: | I have experience with this lens |
compared to: | Sigma and Tamron 18-200's KM 18-70 Kit Lens. KM 28-75 D. KM 100-300 APO D. Tamron SP 90 Macro. |
price paid: | missing |
positive: | Compact for the range. Fairly Lightweight. Consistent Sharpness over range. Value for the Money. |
negative: | Barrel Distortion at Wide. Pincushion Distortion at Tele. Some Vignetting. Not the best flare control. |
comment: | I really like this lens as my "walkaround" lens. My copy is pretty consistent in its sharpness at f/5.6 and up throughout the range. I like the compromise the designers took to optimize sharpness at the expense of distortion and compactness at the expense of some vignetting. The distortion and vignetting are easily corrected in PP. Is it as sharp as my Tamron SP 90 Macro or KM 28-75 (stopped down)? No, but the pics do sharpen up nicely in PP. For its intended purpose I find it hits the sweet spot compared to the 18-200's. Build is nice and solid for its weight, "tighter" than my KM 28-75. I like the black "satin" finish. |
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sharpness: 4 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 3 flare control: 3 overall: 3.8 | tested on:
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ownership: | I have experience with this lens |
compared to: | KM 18-70 |
price paid: | missing |
positive: | focal range weight and compactness contrast |
negative: | distortion at wide end flare into direct sun |
comment: | I bought this lens as an all-in-one travel solution. initially I thought it was a bit soft but it's fine stopped down to f5.6 at the wide end and f8 at full tele. I find the files need a bit more sharpening than normal and that I get better results using the High Pass filter method than using USM. Overall I'm quite pleased with this lens and it covers 95% of my photographic needs. It would benefit from better macro capability. It's not a low light solution but comes into it's own when traveling especially since air travel baggage restrictions are getting worse. |
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sharpness: 2 color: 3 build: 3 distortion: 5 flare control: 5 overall: 3.6 | tested on:
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ownership: | I have experience with this lens |
compared to: | 24-70 EX |
price paid: | missing |
positive: | Great walk around focal length, good build |
negative: | Not very sharp, poor AF, slow |
comment: | I used this lens on my Canon 10D. I cannot recommend it to anyone. Yes its a good focal length. You need to really stop it down for optimal sharpness and photos require allot of USM. My EX lens is light years ahead of this lens. Its probably better than the 18-70mm kit lens but not by much. Im not a newbie and compared to my old Canon L and Sigma EX glass this lens simply does not cut it at 18mm or 125mm. I wanted to like it but it never performed to its full potential. |
reviews found: 30
rating summary

- total reviews: 30
- sharpness: 3.85
- color: 4.13
- build: 4.20
- distortion: 3.53
- flare control: 3.90
- overall: 3.92
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