Sigma 30mm/1,4

[Paul.R.Lindqvist]

Hi guys just picked up this lens. (demo from my retailer, got 100usd rebate and free shipping)

I didnt plan to get it, but the price was to good to pass up.

I havent had to much time testing it, hopefully i will be able to test it outdoors tomorrow. The weather is plain horrible here, windy and snowing..

Anyway,first thing i wanted to see it the performance wideopen. Thus far it seems to focus correctly (been reading alot of stuff about bad af on this lens)


Here is a test shot of my wonderful wife
Iso:100, 1/250 S F/1,4

(bare strobe behind a lastolite skylite frame (1x2m) with a 1 1/4 diffuser fabric)



So from the few test shots iv taken thus far, it seems to perform alright, and the sharpness surpassed my expectations.

/Paul L.

[smarti77]

What a stunning 'test shot'. Looks very sharp.
Im really impressed by this shot overall. Was this spontaneous or planned? The black wall and the white chair and clothing works a treat to emphasis the colour in her face. Great lighting and a beautiful subject... Her expression makes me wonder whats she listening to?
Make sure you show us more from the new lens.
Shane

[Paul.R.Lindqvist]

Thanx Shane.

I planned it, the wife didnt she was sitting listening to her mp3 player, i setup the gear around her and snapped away.

The skylite does great job diffusing a single light source. Im very pleased with it, and plan on using it this weekend for a session if the weather allows it.

Will post a few more images tomorrow when i will try it outdoors hopefully.

Thanx for lookng.

/Paul L.

[slejhamer]

Looks sharp. That was really at f/1.4???

[Paul.R.Lindqvist]

Yes thats what the exif says anway. Also its cropped at the top (portrait framing)

/Paul L.

[adam]

wow nice

[Russt]

G'day Paul, good to see ya (so to speak)

the new lens looks the goods...........very nice

looking forward to seeing some more

[Paul.R.Lindqvist]

Hi Russ, yea iv been occupied with alot of things lately.

Will see if i can manage to produce something worth showing today.

Thanx for looking.

/Paul L.

[Wedding Shooter]

I would also like to see some more from this lens Paul - thanks for being a guinea pig for us

[Paul.R.Lindqvist]

Bugger! i found out that the manual focus doesnt really work, and i have gotten a few lens error msg on my d2x. Seems this demo wasnt working 100% :-(

Im returning it today, oh well. I might just get a brand new later on.But i want to see if nikon comes out with a new WA F/1,4 prime, since the 28mm/1,4 is out of production.

But i got to say, that i was suprised by its performance.

Postive:
Sharp wide open, fairly good build quality.
Pleasing "bokeh" to my eyes anyway.
Silent foucus

Negative:
Overexposed by 1/3
Wa distortion (not that you cant get rid of it, but it does exhibit a little more then it should i think)
DC (only for digital)

If your really need a fast "normal" lens on digital i would really recommend this one.
BUT make sure you can test your copy, numerious reports shows that there seems to be quite a varation in QC.

For the price nothing can beat it.

/Paul L.

[Toad]

Great user review, Paul. I've gotten lazy in my old age and don't use many primes. maybe, I should reconsider.