Sigma 340101 35mm F1.4 DG HSM Lens for Canon, Black

Product Information

he message appears even when the software and the lens are appropriate, close the Lens System Software Updater and remove the cable and power OFF the camera. When the message “Lens update complete.” appears on the camera display, the firmware update of the lens is successfully over. Follow the instructions on the screen to close the process. After closing it, remove the USB cable from the camera and the PC. It’s interesting to me the very different approach that Sigma and Tamron have taken with dealing the challenge of focus with large aperture primes. The Sigma 35mm f/1.4 ART has a large aperture and quite fast focus but at the expense of having a very small focus throw. It barely has 90 degrees of focus throw, and the distance between 6 feet and infinity is TINY on the focus ring. It makes manual focus very difficult and even makes me wonder if this doesn’t contribute to the lens’ somewhat poor focus accuracy in that range. The type of images that the Sigma is capable of is truly impressive. That incredibly sharp resolution on the subject at wide apertures was and is revelatory. You can view many more samples in the Sigma 35mm f/1.4 ART Image Gallery. Optical Weaknesses? Both E-mount and L-mount versions of the Sigma 35mm F1.4 are very sharp lenses, and in most respects can deliver great image quality even when shooting wide-open. Although there are issues with ghosting and cat's eye, in many situations you'll be able to work around these.

My hit rate was highest when the subjects were in the range of 5-10 feet (the lens was calibrated at the recommended six-foot distance). The keeper rate with the Sigma dropped to under 64%. If you intend to shoot events, sports, or photojournalism, the Canon proved the much more reliable option in this scenario…and that might be worth the premium price in and of itself. If you need to shoot this style and can’t afford the 35L II, I might recommend considering the 35mm f/2 IS instead. It has a slower aperture, yes, but it has an image stabilizer and similar full ring USM focus that is extremely fast and accurate. I’ve used it for a couple of years and it has proven one of my most accurately focusing lenses. Above: Sigma describes the design as dust and splashproof, including a rubber grommet on the mount. You’d expect weather-sealing on a high-end lens, but remember the original DSLR version of the lens was not sealed so this is an important upgrade. Don't get me wrong - I'd buy any better, smaller and lighter lens in a heartbeat - I am completely brand agnostic - I buy whatever is best - only one sigma lens thus far and this is going to replaced soon when we'll get a GM macro from Sony - I am expecting this might beast all existing macro lenses by a good deal - given the pedigree of recent lens releases. Above: Sony’s 35 1.4 G Master here on the right is actually 14mm shorter than the new Sigma and 120g lighter. Once mounted on a body though they’re in a similar ball-park and you won’t notice much difference in a bag. The undisputed heavy-weight here is the Sigma 35 1.2 on the far right, longer and wider at 88x136mm and around 50% heavier at 1090g – you really know when you’re carrying that one. And finally on the far left, the Sigma 35 f2 is smaller at 70x65mm and roughly half the weight of the two 1.4s at 325g. Oh, and in case you wondered, Sony’s 35 1.8G measures 66x73mm and is lighter than all four here at just 280g.The wide maximum F1.4 aperture means this lens works amazingly will in lowlight conditions like photographing gigs or capturing those unforgettable moments at a wedding reception. But it can also create the most attractive shallow depth of field and blue to your images. This is a quality that a lot of photographers strive to achieve, and with this lens, it's easy. Hyper Sonic Motor Above: Next up the Sony 35 1.4 G Master at f1.4 which is delivering similarly-sized blobs to the Sigma 35 1.4 which are also mostly bereft of textures within – note any dots on the Sony blobs are due to some dust on the lens, sorry. The Sony blobs also have less outlining which may have you preferring one result over the other, but both lenses here are rendering very attractive blurred areas – a good result for the Sigma given its cheaper price, although note the Sony can focus a bit closer, allowing it to deliver bigger blobs if you prefer. Sigma made things easier in this case. The Sigma 35mm f/1.4 is clearly the better lens, according to my tests. However, calibrating focus to maximize focus accuracy is one thing. Focusing consistently is another. I owned the Sigma 35mm f/1.4 Art for three years and used it primarily for weddings and events. I can say without hesitation that it did not nail focus as consistently with phase-detect (viewfinder) AF as my Canon USM lenses. The consistency wasn't bad, but the difference was noticeable. Thankfully, there is something you can do to significantly increase your in-focus rate. Water-repellent, Antistatic type. Protector is developed to protect the lens surface from dirt and dust as well as scratches. It is an ideal filter for regular use as it is completely colorless so does not affect color reproduction.

Those familiar with Sigma’s Art series know it offers a wide range of excellent fast primes for full-frame cameras, covering focal lengths as wide as 14mm right through to 135mm. While some have a maximum aperture of f/1.8 or f/2.8, several are f/1.4, of which there are some standout examples. Sigma is arguably one of the more recognizable of the third party lens manufacturers. It is known for providing inexpensive alternatives to many of Canon's own zoom lens offerings, or filling niche gaps left in Canon's lineup. This applied to their limited selection of prime lenses as well; I briefly owned their 30mm f/1.4 EX DC and was happy with it on a consumer level, though the optics didn't hold up to some of the more pressing work I did and a move to full-frame (it's a “DC” lens, denoting it's for Digital Camera's only, and specifically crop sensors) meant I wouldn't be able to use it anyway. They released a 50mm f/1.4 EX DG that retailed for MORE than the Canon equivalent; their stance was that it performed better optically and had better build, both of which may very well be true. But pervasive issues of quality control, of batch variance where you never know for sure if the lens you get will be anywhere close to being as good as it can be, or as it is advertised, and a stigma (pun?) attached to owning something “inferior” than a first party “L” lens kept many consumers away.That's not to say the Sigma is a poor performer when paired with a high-resolution sensor. Its center is extremely sharp at f/1.4, although as you move away (to the middle and outer third of the frame) the resolution dips to about 2,100 lines, which appears slightly soft.

It's not quite the night-and-day difference we saw with the recent Sigma 85mm F1.4 DG DN Art, but it's still quite noticeable. Compared to the earlier versions of the 35mm F1.4 Art lens, this new model has shrunk by 8mm (0.3") in length, and shed a not insignificant 110-115g (3.9-4.1 oz) in weight. Above: One last close-up test with each lens focused as close as it would allow when set to manual and with the apertures wide-open. Here’s the Sigma 35 1.4 from about 30cm away where it’s reproducing 162mm across the frame. It’s fairly sharp in the middle but becomes quite soft at the edges where I needed to stop it down to f4 to f5.6 for a good result at the extremes. Last but not least, c) It's silly to compare a small Rangefinder Lens Design with an ordinary one, which is also 1000s of USD/EUR more expensive. If i'd spent rather ~2k for just a 35/1.4, it'll being Zeiss for sure, not Leica.Canon has once again leapfrogged Sigma in this area, but I would say that the Canon advantage might be seen more in the microcontrast than in green or purple fringing in typical images. In this video segment I really break down resolution and overall image quality in detail: I can't claim to know what Sigma was thinking when they produced the 35 f/1.4, but I like to think it was an evolution to their approach with the 50mm f/1.4, and a reaction to the (potentially unfounded) general opinion of their brand. It's no secret new Canon lens prices have been particularly high as new technology, coating, and build methods are integrated. Maybe this gave Sigma some more leverage to manufacture a product that they could put a bit more money into, something that would still be competitive in price while appealing to everyone who's always been on the fence about buying something from anyone but Canon with great optics as well.

The F2 version is smaller and lighter, and the F1.2 version is larger and heavier, so it’s unsurprising that it would be designed with intended dimensions between the two to cater to variant priorities. If you're a wedding/event photographer who wants the most reliable AF in a 35mm f/1.4 lens (or otherwise requires weather sealing), the Canon "L" is the best choice. It's an easy recommendation if one's budget allows for its acquisition. However, if your livelihood isn't dependent upon capturing fleeting moments with a 35mm focal length that cannot be recreated, or if Live View focusing is a tolerable solution for when the moments matter, then the Sigma 35mm f/1.4 Art can likely fulfill your needs at a very reasonable price. As we all know, I'm shallow-depth of field challenged, and have a pretty tough time gaining focus wide open. Somehow I don't have the same issue with the Sigma. This may very well be that it's auto-focus system performs excellently. Silent and fast, I had no problem achieving focus with my 5DMKIII straight out of the box. Has Sigma squashed their bad quality control rep? One lens doesn't tell the whole story, but for me it's a very good sign. Above: Moving into the far corner also shows a similar result when they’re at their maximum apertures and coincidentally both lenses capture almost exactly the same field of view – remember just because the model quotes the same focal length, doesn’t mean the coverage will be identical in practice. Function available on supported cameras only. Available corrections may vary depending on the camera model.Sigma’s Art collection continues to go from strength to strength and introductions to the series in the past couple of years include the 20mm f/1.4, 24mm f/1.4 and, most recently, the 50mm f/1.4 DG DN Art in Sony E and L-Mount fittings. A sublime performer I had the Canon 35 1.4 for 2 years and was happy with that. But i had a LOT of purple fringing and often af missed out.