17 Elements Of Awesomeness! (Meet The Sigma ART 18-35mm F1.8 Zoom Lens)

Being immersed daily with photo equipment introductions , you can say that we're a bit jaded by most of what comes out from the different camera companies. But occasionally, there is a product that raises our curiosity (and our eyebrows) and actually catches our full attention. Such is it with the Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 DC HSM Art lens, the market’s first zoom lens to achieve a maximum aperture F1.8 throughout the entire zoom range.

This revolutionary, wide aperture, standard zoom lens is created for DSLR cameras with APS-C size sensors, which translates to a focal range of 27-52.5mm on a 35mm camera. With a minimum focusing distance of 11 inches, and a maximum magnification ratio of 1:4.3, the 18-35mm is ideal for landscapes, portraits, still-life, studio, close-up and casual photography.The 18-35mm is the latest addition to the company’s Art line of lenses &  incorporates Sigma’s improved AF/MF switch and the use of Thermally Stable Composite (TSC) compound material, which has a high affinity to metal parts, consistently performs well at extreme temperatures, and reduces the size and weight of the lens. It is also compatible with Sigma’s new USB Dock, enabling photographers to update lens firmware and adjust focus parameters from their computers.

Convenient handling is achieved with internal focusing and zooming, which prevents changes to the size of the lens. Additionally, the front part of the lens does not rotate, so special filters like circular polarizers can be used.

The 18-35mm lens’ Super Multi-Layer Coating reduces flare and ghosting and provides sharp and high contrast images, even in backlit conditions. The petal-type hood that is supplied with the lens will provide extra protection from flare and ghosting. Sigma’s Hyper Sonic Motor (HSM) ensures a silent, high-speed AF function and the optimized auto focus algorithm results in smooth focusing and full-time manual focusing capability. Lastly, the nine-blade, rounded diaphragm creates an attractive, round bokeh at large-aperture settings.

OK, so much for the spin from the press release...How does the lens actually perform? Here's some shots we took with the lens on a Canon EOS 70D taken by Andriy, our newest camera salesman who shows a fondness for fast cars & fast lenses as well! (Ah, youth...)

Click onto photo 1, 2 & 5 for a closer look....Our first impressions? Well, it's well made but not too heavy with good color rendition, excellent edge to edge sharpness and EXCELLENT bokeh!. A great lens for a number of applications & incredibly bright. Any drawbacks? Well, it's only for APS-C cameras, no image stabilization (not necessary in our opinion) and there's only a 2x zoom range. But within these parameters, it's our judgment that this lens is 17 elements of AWESOMENESS! A more detailed review of the lens can be found here from Gizmodo.  Available currently in Canon mount (Nikon & others coming shortly) for $799. Check it out the next time you come in!

(Photos by Andriy Andriyevskyy)