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01-07-2013, 10:50 AM   #1
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Sigma 30mm/f1,4

http://www.photozone.de/Reviews/298-sigma-af-30mm-f14-ex-hsm-dc-test-report--review?start=2

Oh, is optical quality so awful ? Two stars??

01-07-2013, 11:06 AM   #2
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I won't debate that review. However, someone asked to start a Sigma 30/1.4 lens club in the club forum so stay tuned for images.

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/lens-clubs/211118-sigma-30mm-1-4-lens-clubs.html

Last edited by Blue; 01-08-2013 at 08:08 PM.
01-07-2013, 11:37 AM   #3
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Why do we need "lens clubs" for individual lenses, when there is a lens sample section that has the opportunity to input good samples of an individual lens (https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/lens-sample-photo-archive/165489-sigma-30...c-samples.html). It just feels like the lens club section is getting convoluted into tiny clubs. Fine, if there is a popular section, like the DA 15 limited, but a lot of the sections are pretty redundant and should be combined with existing sections, or use the lens sample section.

My 2 cents...

Last edited by Rondec; 01-07-2013 at 01:46 PM.
01-07-2013, 11:40 AM   #4
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QuoteOriginally posted by czech user Quote
http://www.photozone.de/Reviews/298-sigma-af-30mm-f14-ex-hsm-dc-test-report--review?start=2

Oh, is optical quality so awful ? Two stars??
I think photozone tries to over-quantify things at times. The 30mm is a really popular lens that lots of Pentax users love!


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01-07-2013, 01:44 PM   #5
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I tried one a year ago and it was very sharp in the centre but the edges of the frame were not that good even at F8. Since I wanted to use it as a standard lens, it was returned. I acquired an FA 31 three months ago and the results are amazing and it is a much better standard lens in my opinion, the down side is of course cost. If you have caught the Limited bug as I have you might be disappointed. My suggestion is try it for yourself and see if it meets your needs, you could sell it later if necessary.
01-07-2013, 02:48 PM   #6
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QuoteOriginally posted by Rondec Quote
Why do we need "lens clubs" for individual lenses, when there is a lens sample section that has the opportunity to input good samples of an individual lens (https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/lens-sample-photo-archive/165489-sigma-30...c-samples.html). It just feels like the lens club section is getting convoluted into tiny clubs. Fine, if there is a popular section, like the DA 15 limited, but a lot of the sections are pretty redundant and should be combined with existing sections, or use the lens sample section.

My 2 cents...
Those sections serve to different purposes. The Lens Club Forum was created to put all the "club" type threads in 1 place. The Lens clubs are more like a post your photos but with the criteria that they be with a certain lens. The lens samples should be more technical in nature to show what a lens can do, and of course there will be overlap. Many of the lens clubs have been around a long time and have 100s of pages of photos.
01-08-2013, 07:02 PM   #7
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QuoteOriginally posted by czech user Quote
http://www.photozone.de/Reviews/298-sigma-af-30mm-f14-ex-hsm-dc-test-report--review?start=2

Oh, is optical quality so awful ? Two stars??
I think it's a great lens in terms of optics. Edge-to-edge sharpness is admittedly not its strong point, but it is very sharp in the center and is actually one of the sharpest lenses at f/1.4 you'll find anywhere, even sharper than the 31mm ltd. I tend to think the amazing center performance, at the expense of edge sharpness, was probably a conscious design choice when they were deciding what's most important in a good, affordable, large-aperture lens. It's become one of my favorite lenses, and I love the images I get from it.

I like Photozone, but I agree with Adam's assessment about them sometimes over-quantifying things. When you're talking about an art like photography, objectivity only goes so far. And giving such a great lens two stars really doesn't tell the whole story.

I also think that the people at Photozone also tend towards a different style of photography than me, so they may value something like edge-to-edge sharpness much more than I do. Their sample photo galleries are usually filled with street photography, architecture, and pictures of inanimate objects. You rarely see people as subjects in their photos, and portraits are rare. (I sometimes wonder if the reviewers don't have any friends or families!) Whereas I am shooting people more often than not, and so for people and portraits edge-to-edge sharpness is often irrelevant and is certainly much less important than sharpness towards the center of the frame.

01-09-2013, 02:30 PM   #8
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I've had mine for about four months now and am quite happy with its performance. The faults are there and well documented but whether they're showstoppers for you depends on what you expect it to do for you.

Corner to corner sharpness? Not there. Coma? Definately there. Field curvature? Sure. Close focusing? Not even close.

What it is is a reasonably priced very fast normal FOV lens with good image quality in the center even at wide open (provided that you nail the focus, which is not a given). There are not many alternatives to it and all of those that I know of have their own shortcomings.

I must say that I'm very curious about what the new Sigma 35mm/f1.4 is like. What I've read seems quite promising. The price seems to be nicely between the FA31 and Sigma 30mm/f1.4, too.
01-09-2013, 03:08 PM   #9
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Well for a f1.4 lens intended to be used wide open, from an artistic point of view, center performance is certainly the most important thing to take in consideration as the edges of the images will anyway be out of focus most of the time - depth of field is very small.
If you tend to use this lens as a "standard" lens for various usages, edge to edge performance when stopped down at f4 or f5.6 is most important. Then the 31 limited has the edge.
01-09-2013, 03:09 PM   #10
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QuoteOriginally posted by Blue Quote
Those sections serve to different purposes. The Lens Club Forum was created to put all the "club" type threads in 1 place. The Lens clubs are more like a post your photos but with the criteria that they be with a certain lens. The lens samples should be more technical in nature to show what a lens can do, and of course there will be overlap. Many of the lens clubs have been around a long time and have 100s of pages of photos.
I sort of understand, but the redundancy is hard, because often there is significant repetition between them. So, there is a 15 limited club and a 35mm limited club and a DA limited club. Many of the photos in the 35 and 15 clubs are posted in the DA limited club as well. There is a DA * club, but maybe there should be a 55 * club as well and maybe a 16-50 club as well?
01-09-2013, 03:24 PM   #11
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I got an FA35 instead, but I can tell you that the Sigma 30 1.4, from my own testing, would have been a close second because of its qualities. People are overquantifying things, absolutely, and not seeing how a photographer works the qualities of the lens into the composition.

I really like the lens and something think about snatching one from the used market.
01-09-2013, 03:27 PM   #12
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QuoteOriginally posted by Rondec Quote
I sort of understand, but the redundancy is hard, because often there is significant repetition between them. So, there is a 15 limited club and a 35mm limited club and a DA limited club. Many of the photos in the 35 and 15 clubs are posted in the DA limited club as well. There is a DA * club, but maybe there should be a 55 * club as well and maybe a 16-50 club as well?
There is some redundancy but that is the nature of the "web" which is why it is called the "web." The clubs aren't a new thing but news one require a request before than can be set up and the requesters of the club followed the Club Forum guidelines. If it turns out to not be popular over time, we may merge it with the Sigma Lens Club- All Lenses. If you look at the club threads, they are many pages long and are more about photography with a certain lens or series of lenses where as the sample forum is more about the capabilities of a specific lens. Likewise, they don't replace the lens review section.
01-10-2013, 02:08 AM - 3 Likes   #13
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QuoteOriginally posted by goubejp Quote
Well for a f1.4 lens intended to be used wide open, from an artistic point of view, center performance is certainly the most important thing to take in consideration as the edges of the images will anyway be out of focus most of the time - depth of field is very small.
Here's a recent picture I took of one of my silly kids at her preschool. It represents the typical usage of my lens, and I think it demonstrates the scenario you're describing where edge sharpness is almost irrelevant. The picture was taken with my K-30 using natural light from windows to her right. (click on the image to pixel-peep a larger version)



And here's another picture of one of her friends also taken by the Sigma 30mm:



Now could the Pentax 31mm 1.8 take a similar picture? Probably. But does it cost a lot more? Yes. And can it go to f1.4 when the situation calls for it? No. And is it as sharp towards the center of the frame, where my subjects' eyes will typically be? No. Would I like to own the 31mm? Sure, but not when the Sigma 30mm is available, and for much less.

Last edited by Edgar_in_Indy; 01-10-2013 at 02:45 AM.
01-10-2013, 06:05 AM   #14
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QuoteOriginally posted by Edgar_in_Indy Quote
Here's a recent picture I took of one of my silly kids at her preschool. It represents the typical usage of my lens, and I think it demonstrates the scenario you're describing where edge sharpness is almost irrelevant. The picture was taken with my K-30 using natural light from windows to her right. (click on the image to pixel-peep a larger version)

What wonderful pictures of your daughter and her classmate. Both really show how wonderful this lens is.
01-10-2013, 06:19 AM   #15
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Has anyone tried to use the lens in a club/concert setting?
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