Sigma EX D 24-70mm f/2.8

I decided to try get a really good allround lens when I bought my Minolta Dynax/Maxxum 7 for film. I didn't think much once I saw the specs of the Sigma EX D 24-70mm f2.8. That was my kind of lens, and at a price, which was quite fair in comparison with original Minolta lenses in the same quality. Original glass might be great, but it's also very expensive.

The Sigma is a fairly large lens, but that is what you get when you ask for good optical quality and good large aperture.

I have always liked the image quality of the Sigma, particularly the colors, which are clear and saturated. The lens makes tack sharp images, and it's large aperture enables you to stop it down to get even more sharpness. I have always preferred the wide end of the zoom range, particularly on my film camera, but on the digital 24 millimeters is not quite wide enough to my taste.

Mechanical

The Sigma is built to last and works great even today, meny years after I bought it. It's fairly large and heavy, but I have never considered that a drawback.
The focus and zoom rings are tight and firm, but not overly so, and there is absolutely no creep or the like. The focus ring can slide in and out of a coupled and non-coupled mode, but will turn during autofocus when locked in.
The lens hood is a durable, petal-shaped hood with a bayonet, which enables the hood to reverse on the lens when not in use.

Before the 24-70 I owned a Sigma 28-70 f2.8 Aspherical, which was an equally great lens... until it was stolen from me on a trip back from Belize. I was very happy to get the wider lens, particularly when I went digital.

The 24-70 and digital

I have used the 24-70 extensively on my Dynax 7D and I have been very happy with it. The crop factor of course influences the image angle ("focal length") and I get an image crop, which is more like a 35-100mm, and I have missed a bit more umph in the wide end, but apart from that the lens has been great to use.



The lens had to be rechipped to work on the 7D, but Sigma did that with very little hassle and a small fee (because I had bought the lens abroad -- else it would have been done for free). The AF and image quality is excellent, and -- as is the case with most full frame lenses on digital -- maybe even better than full frame, because the crop factor ensures that you only see the sweet spot of the lens, and not the edges and corners where lenses are usually optically weaker than in the center.