p.1 #1 · Is a Sigma 24mm F1.4 likely to come soon?
I realize I am asking for speculations, but here is my question....I shoot a pair of D7000s with some F2.8 zooms, but am shooting more at night and really want to add a couple F1.4 arrows in my quiver. I think 85 would be long for me, so I'm planning on first getting a Sigma 50mm F1.4. I would like something on the wide end as well, and I have looked at all the options and really it comes down to the Nikon 24mm F1.4G and the Sigma 30mm F1.4. (I don't want an F1.8 lens) The 30/1.4 is a nice little lens, but the wider the better and with the 50 I would like to be as versatile as possible.
I think 24 and 50 would make a stellar combo for me, but the Nikon 24G is ungodly expensive! (too bad we don't have a $900 version like Canon version 1) So Sigma has matched Nikon for quality primes with an 85/1.4, 50/1.4, and now the brand new 35/1.4. Is it likely that a 24/1.4 is coming soon? Would make sense to me with their pattern and the fact that the 24/1.8 is supposed to be anything but special. I don't want to sell a kidney to fund a Nikon 24G and then have a $950 Sigma come out right after! Is a Sigma 24/1.4 imminent to add to the 85/50/35 collection?
p.1 #2 · Is a Sigma 24mm F1.4 likely to come soon?
Gotta think they're working on one, I'm very interested to see how the 35 fares. From the looks of things...
Sigma is really stepping up their game. There's something about sexy affordable glass, when it delivers.
This is a company that appears to be listening to us. Can't wait to get my hands on the new and improved
120-300 f2.8 OS This is a very fast refresh over the last version and they added a focus limiter/USB
and replaced that horrible hood. If this sucker AF's worth a damn (IQ was never an issue) I'll make bank.
p.1 #3 · Is a Sigma 24mm F1.4 likely to come soon?
Nobody knows... but a hint for you: upgrading one of your bodies to D600 will give you the same result just using the 35/1.4. Also you get better low light performance.
p.1 #4 · Is a Sigma 24mm F1.4 likely to come soon?
Mishu01 wrote:
Nobody knows... but a hint for you: upgrading one of your bodies to D600 will give you the same result just using the 35/1.4. Also you get better low light performance.
And bulk.
I was in Loren's position, only wider. Wanted a 16mm 1.8/4 from anyone, noone made it, so ended up getting the D800 and having the 24 take that position.
The problem is it turns out I liked 24 on DX quite a bit, so now am saving for a 35 .
WRT the 24 1.4 on D7000 - it's worth it. It's expensive, yes, but the moment you put it on your camera any thoughs of regret will be banished.
p.1 #5 · Is a Sigma 24mm F1.4 likely to come soon?
Loren E wrote:
I realize I am asking for speculations, but here is my question....I shoot a pair of D7000s with some F2.8 zooms, but am shooting more at night and really want to add a couple F1.4 arrows in my quiver.
Some thoughts. For the past six years I've mostly been a night photographer. In winter that's especially true. I have a D300 and d5100 and do own the Sigma 30mm f1.4. It's a great lens, but I rarely use it since I have three f2.8 zooms, including the Tokina 11-16mm f2.8. The problem with f1.4 is the DoF is very shallow. Now to throw this into a different direction. As I said, I shoot at night a LOT. What I've been finding out is that any camera and lens will work. Lately I mostly shoot the D5100 at ISO 1600 with an f2.8 zoom. I also use a Chamonix 4x5 and shoot some vintage lenses (such as f4.5 Tessar made in 1916) using ISO 25 film, and a vintage 1951 Rolleiflex MX with 75mm f4.5 Tessar using Ilford HP5 ISO 400. I get great results! The most famous night photographer of all time was Brassai. In 1930 he made the first book on night photography--"Paris by Night." It's wonderful stuff! He used a 9x12cm Voigtlander Bergheil which had a 135mm Heliar f4.5 lens. He shot glass plates, which were likely about ISO 10 (ten.) Check out his work! The second most famous night photographer was O.Winston Link--my hero! In the late 1950s he shot a 4x5 Graphic using lenses such as 90mm f5.6 Dagor and ISO 100 film, usually at f8 or f11. This is the kind of photography I generally do with my Nikon, only I shoot f4 and ISO 800, using anywhere from 3 to 8 Nikon SB-28 flash along the tracks. The rest of the time I'm shooting either landscapes/cityscapes etc. at night using ambient light.
p.1 #6 · Is a Sigma 24mm F1.4 likely to come soon?
DoF is not very shallow at f/1.4 for wide angle lenses. For instance, shooting 24/1.4 wide open focused at the hyperfocal distance of 20.4 meters gives everything in focus from 10.7 meters to infinity. At f2 it is even better, so for night photography fast wide lenses are a plus, especially when you do not want long exposures. Its true that for close distant subjects the DoF is narrower but this is a nice feature mostly not something to dislike.
p.1 #7 · Is a Sigma 24mm F1.4 likely to come soon?
Kent, the nice thing about 1.4 lenses is that you can also shoot them at 1.6 and 1.8 and 2.0 and 2.2 and 2.8 and etc and etc and etc.
I agree with Mihai here. Kind of. Selling a D7000 and picking up a cheap (but still fantastic) D700 and the Sigma 35mm when it comes out is the only way I would go in your shoes. You could probably do this for just about the cost of a D600. Sigma lenses typically sell for quite a bit below MSRP.
I feel like 50mm on a crop body is clumsy. Not everyone will agree and that's fine.
To me, 35mm and 50mm are perfect FF focal lengths.
This might not be the advice you want Loren, but it is food for thought.
p.1 #8 · Is a Sigma 24mm F1.4 likely to come soon?
The problem with f1.4 is the DoF is very shallow. DOF is about 3 FEET at a distance of 8' wide open on FX.
What that means is if focus is ANYWHERE on the head....the eyes/ears/nose/chin/hair etc. will ALL be in focus
That's shallow?! Stevie Wonder could get keepers just sayin'
p.1 #9 · Is a Sigma 24mm F1.4 likely to come soon?
I'd certainly be interested in a Sigma 24/1.4 -- their recent releases have been fantastic.
Unfortunately, if Sigma history is any guide, if they announced it today, it could easily be a year or more before it's available.
I'd agree, though, that buying it specifically for use on DX doesn't make a whole lot of sense. A D700 or D600 with a 35 makes a lot more sense -- shooting a 24/1.4 on DX is essentially comparable to a 35/2 on FX.
p.1 #10 · Is a Sigma 24mm F1.4 likely to come soon?
Thanks for the input so far all. I should have clarified, my night photography is not cityscapes/landscapes etc, it is PJ type stuff. I started this thread because I covered the election night mayhem on Capitol Hill, Seattle and took both D7000s, one with Tokina 11-16 F2.8 and one with Nikon 35/1.8. Well F2.8 was a joke under just the street lights with fast moving people....I used the 35 shot at F1.8 the whole time at ISO 6400 and still was just barely getting away with fast enough shutter speeds about half the time. I realize sometimes you have to use flash, but I really really like to avoid use of flash whenever I can. For that night, the shots I did take with an SB-600 just didn't work well with nothing to bounce light off and so many people that there were lots of shadows cast, etc.
I do actually really like the 24mm focal length on DX, and I think with a 24/1.4 on one body, and 50/1.4 on the other body, I would have been in heaven that night. I'm not motivated to get a D600 (which I would get over a D700) because I have a killer DX lens lineup that take awesome shots on the wide end and gimme tele reach on the long (Nikon 10/5 fish, Tokina 11-16, Nikon 17-55). I would get a little better high ISO with a FF, but also more bulk and cost. Plus the extra DOF provided by DX is actually an advantage for me, and I could still get adequate shallow DOF effect when I wanted it.
p.1 #11 · Is a Sigma 24mm F1.4 likely to come soon?
Smiert Spionam wrote:
Unfortunately, if Sigma history is any guide, if they announced it today, it could easily be a year or more before it's available.
Sigma has been working on this 'problem', they annouced 3 new lenses in mid Sept. and they will be available next week. Two months isn't that bad.
p.1 #14 · Is a Sigma 24mm F1.4 likely to come soon?
Given how pricey the N 1.4 is coupled with Siggy's entry into the mid-range prime market, it would indeed be surprising if if did not introduce a 24/1.4 in the not too distant future. This niche is obviously there for Sigma to capture assuming of course that the soon to be issued 35/1.4 is all we think it will be.
p.1 #15 · Is a Sigma 24mm F1.4 likely to come soon?
trenchmonkey wrote:
Gotta think they're working on one, I'm very interested to see how the 35 fares. From the looks of things...
Sigma is really stepping up their game. There's something about sexy affordable glass, when it delivers. ;)
This is a company that appears to be listening to us. Can't wait to get my hands on the new and improved
120-300 f2.8 OS This is a very fast refresh over the last version and they added a focus limiter/USB
and replaced that horrible hood. If this sucker AF's worth a damn (IQ was never an issue) I'll make bank.
Totally agree. I am so tempted to sell my 300/2.8 VR II and pick up the new 120-300/2.8 OS...
TrenchMonkey,
I will look out for your user review on that lens, and will probably make my decision on what you might have to say lol
.
DOF is about 3 FEET at a distance of 8' wide open on FX.
