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Sigma  EX DG Aspherical DG DF Macro 28mm F1.8 Review RSS Feed

Sigma EX DG Aspherical DG DF Macro 28mm F1.8

Sharpness 
 9.6
Aberrations 
 9.2
Bokeh 
 9.4
Handling 
 8.6
Value 
 9.0
Autofocus 
 9.5
Reviews Views Date of last review
13 84,948 Sun January 5, 2020
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Recommended By Average Price Average User Rating
100% of reviewers $271.70 8.92
Sigma  EX DG Aspherical DG DF Macro 28mm F1.8
supersize


Description:
Weight: 500g/17.6 oz
Length: 82.5mm/ 3.2 in
Filter Diameter: 77mm
Min. Focus: 20cm/7.9 in
Max. Magnification: 1:2.9
Diagonal FOV:
Horizontal FOV: 75.4 degrees
Horizontal FOV on Digital: 50.3 degrees
Min. Aperture: F22
Optical Construction: 10 Elements in 9 Groups
Buy Lens: Buy the Sigma  EX DG Aspherical DG DF Macro 28mm F1.8
Price: $449
Mount Type: Pentax KA
Price History:



Add Review of Sigma  EX DG Aspherical DG DF Macro 28mm F1.8 Buy the Sigma  EX DG Aspherical DG DF Macro 28mm F1.8
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Forum Member

Registered: July, 2019
Location: Kamloops B.C
Posts: 83
Review Date: January 5, 2020 Recommended | Price: $350.00 | Rating: 8 

 
Pros: Image quality, build
Cons: Size and weight
Sharpness: 9    Aberrations: 9    Bokeh: 10    Handling: 7    Value: 8    Camera Used: K-7, K-01, K-5, KP    New Or Used: New    Autofocus: 9   

First impression - what a brute! It's big and heavy, there's no arguing that. I would go as far and say that it's overkill. Nearly the same size as the Sigma 17-50 f2.8. But it is hard to be too critical about the size because I know of no other lens that has similar specs: wide, fast, macro. Even the highly regarded 31 Ltd can't boast the same minimum focus distance (however crushes this lens in all other categories).


The build quality is quite good. The smooth, well dampened focus ring makes manual focus a breeze, and the aperture ring has good solid clicks. I may be in the minority here but the push/pull focus mechanism did not bother me in the slightest. Sure, I'd prefer a quick shift focus ring, but the push/pull is much better than the fiddly switch on the lens barrel. My copy has the crinkle finish which I also quite like and have never had any problem with.

I found Image quality to be excellent on APS-C. Perhaps on a full frame camera there is some weakness in the far corners but I never experienced this on a crop sensor. My copy produced sharp images with plenty of contrast. A little soft wide open which is to be expected but certainly not unusable.


The macro function is fantastic, although I found the best results were had at f3.5-ish. Depth-of-field at f1.8 is way too narrow for decent macro results.


The auto-focus is quick and accurate, albeit quite noisy. I wouldn't be using this lens in a church for a wedding ceremony. I did have to make some micro adjustment in camera to get the focus spot on, but once adjusted I could consistently get in focus shots.

The combination of a normal-wide focal length (depending on format), wide aperture, and macro function makes this lens a great choice as a fun walk-around lens for general purpose. unless I needed the quiet focus or the versatility of a zoom I would always grab this lens over my Sigma 17-50 f2.8.


Unfortunately, the sheer size and weight of this lens made me sell it and replace it with the DA 35mm Ltd.


I would recommend this lens to anyone who are looking for a lens with these specs and are not bothered by the large size.


8/10 - decent build, great images, ridiculous size/weight




   
Senior Member

Registered: June, 2016
Location: Paris
Posts: 124
Review Date: December 11, 2019 Recommended | Price: $450.00 | Rating: 10 

 
Pros: fast, wide angle, bokeh, construction
Cons: none
Sharpness: 10    Aberrations: 10    Bokeh: 10    Handling: 10    Value: 10    Camera Used: K-1    New Or Used: Used    Autofocus: 10   

amazed by this lens, this sigma has a real personality . something like the limited 31mm, therefore hard to choose one to shoot as they are very close in angle but different in personality. i love the microcontrats especially in black&white photos. great details in shadows helped by the k-1 sensor. a great lens
   
Senior Member

Registered: August, 2016
Location: Irvine, CA
Posts: 100
Review Date: December 22, 2017 Recommended | Price: $200.00 | Rating: 9 

 
Pros: sharpness, heft, speed
Cons: sharpness, heft, speed
Sharpness: 10    Aberrations: 9    Bokeh: 10    Handling: 10    Value: 10    Camera Used: KS2    New Or Used: 10   

I picked up this lens recently from Adorama's flash sale, but had some trouble with severe front-focusing. This resulted in shipping the lens back to Sigma for AF reset and recalibration, and even upon receipt, I still need to apply -3 AF compensation on my KS2. Sigma covered this service under warranty, but shipping and insurance were pretty pricey.

I think perhaps my KS2 is the culprit as my other lenses also require some calibration...

Anyway, the lens is great. center sharpness is excellent wide open and the entire frame sharpens quite nicely when stopping down.

Note that this is sold as an f/1.8 lens, but the camera recognizes it as f/1.7. It's great to have a fast lens, but with speed comes responsibility: the focal plane is quite shallow when wide open. Caveat Emptor.

Also, to dive into semantics, it's not a true macro, but it does focus very closely. If you purchase this lens thinking it will be a good macro lens for you, you will be disappointed as it will not do 1:1.

Think of this as a CLOSE-FOCUSING prime lens with 'normalish' FOV on APSC. If you like a 'norrmalish' FOV, then this is the lens for you. It's not quite 35mm and it's not quite 50mm. It's inbetween.

Handling? It's a big lens - but only relatively speaking. It is smaller than the 16-50/2.8 and smaller than the Sigma 18-35/1.8. It is bigger than the Pentax 35/2.4 and definitely bigger than the Pentax 40/2.8 limited.

If you're used to big, heavy lenses, then this lens will be perfectly fine.

If you're not used to big, heavy lenses, then this lens will be gargantuan and will be a painful weight across your shoulders.


   
Site Supporter

Registered: February, 2017
Posts: 1,990
Review Date: December 2, 2017 Recommended | Price: None indicated | Rating: 8 

 
Pros: Sharpness, Colour rendition, build quality, focal length
Cons: size and weight
Sharpness: 9    Aberrations: 9    Bokeh: 8    Handling: 8    Value: 8    Camera Used: Pentax K3   

I had been using a Pentax A 28mm f2.8 lens, as a standard walk around for my K3. I really like this focal length on crop sensor, much more than the 35mm FL. Thing was, although the size and weight were excellent, the IQ was only satisfactory when compared to my 2 new star lenses, the DA 50mm f1.8 and PKA 50mm macro. If I had not got those two lenses I would have been satisfied with it. So the hunt began for a replacement. I considered the various Sigma 30mm offerings and the Pentax 31mm, and this 28mm f1.8 lens, before settling for the 28mm, following lots advice from the forum. So thank you everybody for that advice.
The lens itself:-
Really good IQ sharp from about f2.4 and usable wide open, easily comparable with my two benchmark lenses. Nice colour rendition. I have never worried about bokeh, so not qualified to comment. Really useful close focus facility - this was what swayed me to this lens rather than Sigma's 30mm offerings. The focus being screw thread is also quick and reliable, if a tad noisy, but I have never minded that, preferring a slight whirr to a beep. It's also nice to have the extra stop over the 2.8 I had been using. Nice also to have an aperture ring.
It's not all perfect though.There is one issue and couple of quirks.
The quirks are related to manual focus. when mounted on a K3 you have to put both the camera and lens into manual mode to use manual focus which is slightly time consuming, which does not affect my choice of subjects - places and things- but might yours. Also when mounted on an old film body (KX), it will focus beyond infinity. Not something which bothers me as I did not get the lens to use with film.
The issue is the shear size and weight of the lens, and its attendant filter thread. So, its takes 77mm filters and they do not come cheap. You will need at least a UV filter to protect the front element as this is quite exposed. Even with the battery grip attached to my K3 the camera becomes front heavy. Not a big deal if hand holding the camera, but make sure you have a good tripod mount when using a tripod. The lens also protrudes a long way from the body so its certainly not discreet to carry around, so you may want to consider this in certain environments.
So to sum up I would heartily recommend the lens to anyone who does not mind the size and weight issues, but if you want some thing small and discrete look elsewhere. In fact, since acquiring this beast I find myself thinking again about getting a K1, as it screams to be used on one as standard wide angle lens, where the increased size of that camera will balance the lens' bulk.
   
amateur dirt farmer

Registered: December, 2014
Location: probably out in a field somewhere...
Posts: 41,257
Review Date: October 6, 2017 Recommended | Price: $225.00 | Rating: 9 

 
Pros: versatility, close-focus, color rendition, clarity
Cons: size & weight
Sharpness: 10    Aberrations: 9    Bokeh: 9    Handling: 8    Value: 9    Camera Used: K-3 and K-50    New Or Used: 10   

I really did not expect to be overwhelmed by this lens, really I didn't...

My kit has been missing a solid 'normal' focal length lens, so I put the three up for sale that were not doing it for me (Sigma Mini-Wide II, Tamron 02B, DA35) and went hunting for a replacement - I almost bought a used Sigma 30/1.4 DC but for nearly the same price, I noticed Adorama was selling these 28mm refurbished lenses and when they had a sale on them, I bought one.

Cripes, this thing is big - wider/longer/heavier than the 30mm I almost bought, and the new 30's that Sigma is selling, too... but it is an impressive-looking lens on the K-3 - it overwhelms the lighter body of the K-50 and unbalances that kit, so I kept it on the heavier K-3 all month and it was fine....

This lens has a 'floating' element in it and so has a rattle to it - I was concerned when I first received the lens that there may be a problem, but in checking with members here and elsewhere, it is normal - good, no headaches with exchanging the lens - mount the thing and get on with it!

Let me address the second negative with the lens (the first being size/weight): the manual/auto clutch for using the lens manually - what a pain - you have to disengage autofocus on the lens by moving the focus ring back and then turn off AF on the body of the camera - why not either just a switch on the lens or even do without, disengaging AF on the camera body and be done it? EIther way, I got used to it and it became second nature by the end of the month...

Impressive color rendition, accurate autofocus, nice bokeh, good flare control, but all of that pales in comparison to this lens' close-focusing ability - yeah, I know it's sold as a 'macro' but I was really surprised by how close and accurately-focused this thing will allow you to shoot - amazing stuff here, guys...

As far as handling, the 28 has a large focus ring and actually has a decently-damped feel to the ring if used manually; it is a composite-bodied lens but Sigma no longer has their proprietary sticky-soft plastic finish on their lenses, just a nice matte-finish to the black plastic. There is an aperture ring, becoming a rarity, so you could use it on an older film body, I suppose, but I left the ring in the 'A' position and never moved it... A large-ish, bayonet fit hood mates well with the body and fits reversed for storage - and just makes the thing bigger when fitted for use. This hood is also still available from Sigma directly, which is important if you drop and break off part of the bayonet bits (yeah, I did and the lens itself didn't care much - no effect on it)...

Additionally, if you do choose to manually-focus, the 28 turns in the opposite direction of all your Pentax lenses, so just remember that if you are in a hurry...

Oh yeah - the pics:

surprise lilies and raindrops by Pepperberry Farm, on Flickr

Remy Jane by Pepperberry Farm, on Flickr

light trails at the roundabout by Pepperberry Farm, on Flickr

lawn chairs... by Pepperberry Farm, on Flickr

sunset pano by Pepperberry Farm, on Flickr

and the rest of my album for the Sigma 28:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/pepperberryfarm/albums/72157684828363644

Overall, if you are looking for a 'normal' lens and are not concerned with the weight/size of this 28mm, it is definitely worth a look....
   
New Member

Registered: April, 2013
Posts: 2
Review Date: January 21, 2014 Recommended | Price: $270.00 | Rating: 10 

 
Pros: bokeh,macro option
Cons: none

I have finally purchased Sigma 28mm F1.8 EX DG Aspherical DG DF Macro and I'm very pleased with the results so far. My partner wanted a lens with decent portrait ability and macro features, so she can capture our growing son "on the move" You can see some results here;

http://www.antekathome.co.uk/


After long research and hundreds of reviews read we decided that this lens will be our Christmas present! We was right.

Sharpness of the lens is great and even in low light you can get a decent result
Color aberrations is minimal however once in the park after macro shooting pictures showed some blue dots...only happen once, so I don't treat this as an issue. After that I have taken man more macro close ups and I was pleased with the results.
Bokeh is nice and mild, but you need enough DOF to achieve this.
Autofocus hunts sometimes but this is understandable especially in low light, therefore you you manual setting. I like bulkiness of the lens, makes me feel I hold decent piece of kit.
Value for what it does is great, I think you are getting a lot for your money.


here with almost 100% crop


   
Veteran Member

Registered: September, 2012
Posts: 410
Review Date: December 18, 2013 Recommended | Price: $288.00 | Rating: 9 

 
Pros: center sharpness, color rendition, build quality, aperture ring,
Cons: edge sharpness

I bought a refurbished copy of this lens from the Sigma outlet store on black Friday. I've been using it for a few weeks now and it has rarely come off my camera.

The auto-focus is pretty fast and does a good job even in very low light on my K-5iis. My pentax lenses all focus very decisively in near complete darkness while this lens will hunt a bit before settling on focus.

At f/1.7 the edge sharpness is abysmal. But that actually is totally ok for portraits and close ups, two uses that this lens excels at.

The lens is kind of bulky and the screw drive is sort of noisy.

Here are a few shots taken with it.





   
Forum Member

Registered: February, 2012
Location: Bridgewater, New Jersey
Posts: 61
Review Date: May 25, 2013 Recommended | Price: $339.00 | Rating: 8 

 
Pros: Sharp, close focusing, macro, fast and wide
Cons: big, heavy

Had this lens since I had my Kx 3 years ago. Decided to review it today. This lens just made me decide to sell my Takumar 50mm macro. The macro capabilities of this Sigma is one of its strongest points. It comes close enough to what I could accomplish with a dedicated macro lens.

Wide and fast. Not too many lenses come close. FA31 is closest but 3 times in price. This lens allows me to come close to that subject isolation on wide FL that full frame promises. So while waiting for full frame, I'll keep shooting this. Real good with environmental portraits.

Only drawback really is big and heavy so I tend to just use it at home indoors. Outdoors, I use my DA21, DA35, M28. If I do use it outdoors, I apply a fair amount of negative compensation and try to avoid flare situations.
   
Inactive Account

Registered: April, 2011
Location: near Berlin
Posts: 9
Review Date: October 26, 2011 Recommended | Price: None indicated | Rating: 9 

 
Pros: build, IQ from f/4, can use f/1.7, AF is reliable, bokeh, close focus distance
Cons: soft an some CAs wide open

I bought that lens this week and I love it. My first thought was: "This is a huge lens." But, mounted on my K-5 it feels perfect. The AF is maybe not the fastest, but I can rely on. I also was surprised, that I can use f/1.7 and not f/1.8. Maybe a bug? But my K200D shows the same on its display. Another "nice-to-have" is the possibility to do close-ups, where the bokeh is creamy. I can go on, with my list, what I like, but it will take hours

I can just critisize the CAs, which are gone from f/2.8 upwards.

Greetz from Germany,
Paul

f/1.7


f/5.6


f/3.2
   
Site Supporter

Registered: February, 2009
Location: Wisconsin
Posts: 423

1 user found this helpful
Review Date: September 2, 2010 Recommended | Price: $160.00 | Rating: 10 

 
Pros: Sharp, Close focusing, nice colors, great build quality
Cons: AF has troubles at very close distances

This is my favorite lens. I like the focal length on aps-c. It is the perfect normal lens for me. The "macro" ability is a great feature that makes this lens even more perfect for me. The slower AF at close distances is a non-issue for me since I usually MF in those situations anyway.

People claim that this lens is not sharp wide-open. I disagree. I think it is definitely sharp enough at f/1.8. At f/2 this lens is super sharp. The giant focus ring is really great when manual focusing. The build quality, like all EX DG lenses is great.

The lens is big, but that is one minor drawback for a lens that performs this good, which is why I do not list it as a con.

I would gladly pay full price to replace this lens if mine were to be stolen or break.
   
Pentaxian

Registered: August, 2008
Location: Wellington, New Zealand
Posts: 11,250
Review Date: January 8, 2009 Recommended | Price: None indicated | Rating: 9 

 
Pros: very sharp, fast, smooth bokeh
Cons: large, requires expensive filters

This is a great lens. The focal length of 28mm is very close to the sensor diagonal of APS-C cameras (28.84mm). If you are looking for a "normal" lens for an APS-C camera, then 28mm is right on the money. Note that the diagonal of 35mm film is 43.26mm and 50mm was just an approximation of the "real" film normal lens.

Images taken with this lens are very sharp.

With a minimum f-ratio of f/1.7 (on a K100D) it allows great DOF control. I'm impressed by the bokeh of this lens. Very smooth indeed. Nine rounded aperture blades help to keep it smooth when stopping the lens down. The changing aperture shape when manually setting the aperture is a joy to watch; no jagged edges with low f-ratios as one can observe with Pentax lenses.

The lens is very well-built and doesn't look cheap. The supplied lens hood can be clipped on backwards for easy storage but has no access window for polarising filters.

I like the AF/MF clutch. Although it means that you have to use the clutch and the AF/MF switch on the camera to switch between AF & MF, the advantage is that you can comfortably hold the lens in your left hand when using AF without avoiding a rotating focus ring.

AF is very quick as the focus ring rotation is just ~45 degrees. AF doesn't always work well when close focusing, but that's typical behaviour for any lens and the reason why experienced macro photographers recommend using manual focus in such situations. The trick is to set a certain magnification (focus) and then slightly rock back and forth until the subject is in focus, i.e., one focuses via adjusting the distance.

I specifically went for this lens because of its APS-C normal FL and its close focusing abilities and I was well rewarded with some impressive macro shots. The lens is not a 1:1 macro, of course, but subjects at the minimum focus distance almost touch the front element. This allows you to go from "normal focal length" to "very close focusing" without changing the lens.

Further advantages are that the lens is a full frame lens and that you can manually select the aperture through the aperture ring if needed.

The filter size of 77mm drives up the cost for obtaining adequate filters considerably. Don't go for el-cheapo versions of filters, they are no match for this fine lens.

I wouldn't mind if the lens were smaller and lighter but I guess that's what it takes to get its performance.

Comments on the individual criteria:
  • Sharpness (9): Excellent.
  • Aberrations (9): Nothing to worry about.
  • Bokeh (9): Very smooth. As the lens has a very low minimal focus distance, one can create very creamy backgrounds. I reserve a 10 for the FA 31/1.8 but the Sigma 28/1.8 EX's bokeh leaves very little to be desired.
  • AF (8): Nothing to report. Screw-drive, hence makes a bit of noise, but that's fine with me. There is a lot of glass to move, thus it isn't super duper snappy but more than fast enough. Doesn't work well for macro shots (the lens will hunt back and forth) but that's normal; Macros are best done with MF.
  • Handling (8): Pretty big lens. Ideally the focus ring would never move (-> all time manual override) which would obviate the AF/MF clutch.
  • Value (10): Awesome performance for the price. And its a full frame lens too!
   
Senior Member

Registered: June, 2008
Location: Tustin, CA
Posts: 206
Review Date: December 10, 2008 Recommended | Price: $210.00 | Rating: 8 

 
Pros: fast, sharp stopped down to 2.5 maybe, nice bokeh
Cons: pretty big, AF/MF clutch feature thing, not so sharp wide open, not as contrasty as I'd like

This lens is much bigger than the pentax FA 28mm (77mm filter), but it is also more than a stop faster, plus you can focus close. I'd assume the FA would be sharper wide open, but stopped down to 2.5, this lens is pretty sharp. Colors come out fine, but it seems like images from this lens aren't as contrasty as I would like. The bokeh is pretty nice on this lens, especially considering the aspherical elements.

Here's an example at f2.5


   
Veteran Member

Registered: November, 2006
Location: Cincinnati, OH
Posts: 419

1 user found this helpful
Review Date: August 6, 2008 Recommended | Price: $225.00 | Rating: 9 

 
Pros: Great low-light prime, cheap, great FOV, might actually be f/1.7
Cons: Not as sharp as many 28mm f/2.8 primes, bigger and heavier than others

Overall, I love this prime lens. Thanks to the 1.5X crop factor on the K10D this lens reminds me more of the FA 43mm Limited on a film camera ... only this lens is physically larger and heavier.

Sigma technically lists this lens as a f/1.8 lens, but both the K10D and *ist DL report the aperture as f/1.7 when wide open ... and the EXIF data also indicates f/1.7 when wide open. I'm not sure what to believe (1.7 or 1.8) but either way this prime is nice and fast in low light.

This lens isn't as sharp wide open as the Pentax FA 28mm f/2.8 ... but that's just the difference you expect between f/1.7-f/1.8 and f/2.8 so it's acceptable in my mind. When this lens is stopped down to f/2.8-f/4 I consider it to produce similar results to the Pentax FA 28mm f/2.8 ... and that's why I sold the Pentax lens and kept this one.

If you can tolerate the size and weight of this lens it's absolutely worth the money. I actually like it better than the Sigma 30mm f/1.4 because the 28mm f/1.8 (or f/1.7) isn't as soft wide open as the 30mm f/1.4 is.

If you're looking for a fast 28mm prime, you'll have a hard time finding a better lens than this one ... unless you're willing to sacrifice speed for sharpness.
Add Review of Sigma  EX DG Aspherical DG DF Macro 28mm F1.8 Buy the Sigma  EX DG Aspherical DG DF Macro 28mm F1.8



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