Erik Moore
Offline
• • •
Upload & Sell: Off
|
 p.8 #2 · Sigma 35 f1.4 now available 899.00 | |
Got mine from my local shop last night. First impressions:
This is the nicest "feeling" piece of glass I own. Super solid, heavy, beautiful finish. There are also details that make the build feel better than all my pro Nikkors: the hood has a rubber lining for grip around the edge that your fingers fall on when reversing the hood. The feel of removing and replacing the hood is easy, solid and smooth. The lens cap is a new design for Sigma (I HATE the old Sigma lens caps, and always replace them with Nikon caps). The jury is out with me as to whether I would keep the Sigma cap or use a 67mm Nikon cap on this. The focus ring is smooth and solid, but doesnt feel like it has as much throw as a MF lens. I rarely MF except when shooting macro, I don't see this affecting me.
The lens is sharp, sharp, sharp. Probably... no, easily.. the sharpest f/1.4 glass I have ever owned. (For reference, I currently have the 24G, 35D, 50D, Sigma 85, Tamron 90, Sigma 150, Nikkor 200/2. I have previously owned the 35G, Sigma 30, Sigma 50, Sigma 20/1.8 and Sigma 28/1.8).
Focus is fast and silent.
But here's the problem. It won't focus correctly on my D800. It backfocuses on about 80% of shots. AF fine tune doesnt help because the problem is inconsistent. WHen it hits, it is ridiculously sharp, so much so that twice, I had to double check that I was shooting wide open. But it rarely hits. Under controlled careful tests last night, with good contrasty focus targets and plentiful light, I would carefully lock on and take a shot, force the camera to rack to min and max, take the same shot again, and the results would be different, usually backfocused significantly.
Oddly, using the the outermost left and right focus points, the lens NEVER focuses correctly. It is very consistently backfocused, beyond what AF fine tune can address. I tried this again this morning with different subjects and different lighting conditions and the result is the same.
I'm pretty bummed about this, but my hopes are still high that I can land a good copy. This copy is going back today.
And for what it's worth, I've now had problems with 4 brand new lenses, 2 were Sigmas, and 2 were (very expensive) Nikkors.
|
I'm celebrating with a nice Scottish Ale. Hope your next one is perfect, Jon 
I'll find some peeps to shoot, or somethin' else soon.