Sigma 19mm F2.8 EX DN Art (Black) for Micro 4/3

Well, I feel kind of silly writing a review for an item that already has over 200 reviews, and almost a straight five-star rating, but I have to say that this is one of the most impressive lenses I've used on the micro 4/3 format cameras. This lens is actually made in Japan (!), and is part of the Sigma "Art" series. There is a reason most people rave about it. The lens is extremely sharp, has very accurate color, and controls very well for pincushioning and barrel distortion. It's extremely well built, but in spite of that, it is light, which somewhat seems like a contradiction in terms. But it's true: both quality manufacturing and light weight are hallmarks of this lens.I purchased this lens because I was using the very nice Olympus 14-42mm EZ lens for museum photography. I got lots of great shots with that lens, also due to its characteristics, build, and its light weight. The Olympus 14-42 EZ, too, is a surprisingly sharp lens. But that Olympus lens does not control for barrel distortion very well, and when you are photographing a painting in a museum, you'll get some serious distortion at certain zoom lengths (it's also the kind of distortion that takes a lot of time and effort in post-processing to remove). This Sigma Art lens, however, has almost no distortion to speak of. And although this Sigma Art 19mm is physically longer than the Olympus 14-42 EZ lens (which is essentially a pancake lens, in spite of its nice 3x zoom factor), the Sigma 19mm weighs almost the same amount. And not having to spend nearly as much time in post-processing when shooting, say, in museums, really is what I was looking for.At $200, this lens is a steal. Right now (August 2018) it's on sale for $169, which is an absolutely terrific price. And I still marvel that it is made in Japan. You can certainly feel it, and the images it produces echo that. (The manual focus ring, for example, is as smooth as lenses that are much, much more expensive, and certainly smoother than most Olympus lenses I've used.) Colors are very accurate, with little "bias" in the color palette, too. Oh, and I can't refrain from saying this: IT COMES WITH A NICE CASE! I've purchased lenses that cost over $1,000 and are supplied with no case whatsoever.This is a real winner, and I, like the 200+ people before me, can HIGHLY recommend it. Five Stars.PLUSES++ Extremely sharp, accurate picture renditions++ Pretty wide aperture (F/2.8)++ Barrel/pincushion distortion very well controlled++ Generally fast focusing++ Silent operation++ Excellent, neutral color output (so, when you shoot with a standard color setting it actually WILL be standard; if you shoot in a vivid color setting it will BE vivid without bizarre colors showing up)++ Made in Japan with extremely high manufacturing quality++ Lightweight++ Case supplied (Incredible! I've seen no shortage of $1,000+ lenses that come with no case whatsoever!)++ Inexpensive++ Good lens cap that stays in place, and is easy to get on and off (don't underestimate this)MINUSES-- A small bit of rattle may be heard if you shake the lens. This is something that many people over the years report with Sigma Art lenses. There is argumentation as to the cause, but most people report no functional problems with their lens, and I haven't run into any, either, so I would not be concerned. Most people have settled on the theory that the rattle is present only when optical image stabilization is not being used. I have no idea if that is true, or not, but I have not run into problems, and it must be part of the specification of the lens' internal functions.-- I'm trying to think of some others, but can't really find more. I'm sorry, I'm not trying to be biased, but when you look at what you get for the price, along with the lens' characteristics, I'm kind of at a loss to list a real minus. If I run into one over time, I'll return to this review and update it.

Sigma 19mm f/2.8 DN SE Fit Lens - SilverI purchased this lens to fit my Sony a6000 camera.Having read some great reviews on this lens, I was not surprised that it performed well. I was surprised to find it performed much better than I expected though. The contrast and sharpness of this lens is at better than I thought it would be for the price.My camera has an APS-C sensor rated as a 1.6 crop which makes this roughly 30mm equivalent on a 35mm film camera. This is a great focal length for everyday sightseeing pictures as well as having great creative potential.The max aperture of f2.8 means that, compared to normal kit lenses, you have a couple of stops more light and significant control over depth of field.Wide open it is very acceptably sharp hitting its peak performance around f5.6~F8. This so called 'sweet spot' fits in nicely with most general photography settings.I purchased the silver version just as a matter of choice and it looks great on my black Sony a6000. The finish is a matt silver with a polished silver focusing ring should you use it on manual focus. I have read in some reviews that this polished focusing ring slips in your hand, nonsense, it has a good grip and does not slip at all.The supplied good quality black lens hood is made of a fairly hard and strong plastic and bayonet clicks onto the front of the lens very firmly. This lens hood is so designed that it can be clipped on backwards for storage and is a welcome item.Speaking of storage, the lens comes with a very well made zip topped semi rigid pouch, much better protection than a soft drawstring pouch. It also comes with a pinch clip front lens cap and a rear lens cap.In appearance, the lens is very plain. There is a focusing ring and nothing else. No aperture ring, this is controlled by whatever means your camera uses and no focus scale. Again, this is, in my case, displayed in the viewfinder. I personally have no great issues with this but I know that a lot of photographers, especially with medium to wide angle lenses, like to pre set the focus point when using manual focus. It can be done but not as intuitively or as quickly as lenses that have a focus scale.On the Sony a6000, the auto focus is fast and accurate in my experience and I have not had any issues with auto focus at all.You may read in some reviews that the lens has a strange rattle. This is normal and is not a fault. It is simply the way that, I assume, the focus drive connects and when it is mounted on the camera and switched on, there is no rattle. Again, this is how the lens works and is not a fault at all.In conclusion, the lens is a beauty in operation and looks. Picture quality is very good and handling is very easy. I would not hesitate to recommend this lens, great value for money.Please note that I have written a virtually identical review for the Sigma art 30mm F2.8. It is identical because other than technical specifications and focal length, it operates and performs beautifully as this 19mm one does. I would definitely recommend getting both.

This may be THE best-buy for MFT users, period. As far as value-for-money is concerned, it simply can't be beaten. For just over £150, you get the lens complete with lens hood, caps and pouch. Olympus, you should be ashamed of yourself!The lens is very well made, with a slight 'rattle' when the lens is unpowered. This is nothing whatsoever to be concerned about, and the 'rattle' stops once the camera is powered-up. Apparently, the Mk I version of this lens also had a similar 'rattle', and it's due to a floating element. As I said, nothing whatsoever to be concerned about and not at all reflective of the construction quality of this lens, which is very good.Now onto image quality and performance. First things first, this is NOT a Panasonic 20mm f1.7. What do I mean by that? Well firstly, I used to own a Panasonic 20mm. No doubt about it, it's a great lens and it's razor-sharp in the centre right from f1.7. The edges aren't too bad either, with sharpness across the frame. The reason I eventually sold it, was that I acquired the Panasonic 25mm f1.4, which eclipsed the little pancake in most areas, albeit at a size/weight disadvantage.After using a combination of the P25, the Olympus 45mm f1.8 (another great lens) and Panasonic's 14-42 'kit' lens (which isn't half as bad as people make out, IMHO), I missed the 35-40mm (35mm equivalent) focal length in a prime lens on both my GX1 & G3 bodies. On a MFT body, this lens is the equivalent of 38mm on a 35mm system, just a little wider that the P20.Initial impressions? Build quality is great, and the included hood and case are a great bonus. Focussing is a damn sight faster than the P20, with internal focussing and no movement of the front element. And apparently, the Mk II version of the P20 is no better than the version I used to own...Image quality is great throughout the aperture range, and is a demonstrable advance on the 14-42 zoom at the same focal length. Plus of course, it's 'faster' at the same length, with the maximum f2.8 useful in low-light. OK, it's not as sharp as the P20, but few lenses are.But there's the 'rub'. The P20 Mk II is over twice the price of this little Sigma. And even if prices of the P20 Mk II fall a little after launch, it will probably remain at twice the price. Don't get me wrong: I don't mind paying 'top dollar' for a lens that is worth the money. I have a collection of Canon 'L' lenses for my 5D which although expensive, are absolutely superlative. And although the P25 is even more expensive than the new P20 Mk II, I personally think it's worth every penny. The P25 is 'special'; the P20 (however capable) isn't IMHO.Which brings us back to the Sigma. What makes this lens special for me is the VFM. It produces lovely images, is reasonably priced (unlike many MFT lenses from both Olympus and Panasonic) and handles well with snappy focussing.The only negative comment I have about this lens is the manual focussing ring. Rather than being ribbed, it's smooth and slippy. I don't manual focus much with the MFT system anyway (a pain using the EVF's!) but Sigma could have stuck with the ribbed ring as on the Mk I version.Other than that, it's perfect.

I am a huge fan of the 28mm (This lens equals 28mm in 35mm format) lens and since I started focusing on Street Photography it is rare that I use anything else. Looking at the choices Sony offered there is not much to get excited about so I finally decided to try this lens out even though reviews stated it was soft and it being only 2.8.The lightness and size makes this lens a joy to have on the a6000. Its not a pancake there really is none worth having yet in the 'E' family as of this review. Sony's 16 & 20 are just terrible and I would not recommend! I also enjoy the non rubberized focus ring which adds some class from other lenses and it also focuses very fast.Having no Optical Steady Shot (OSS) is a real disappointment. While not a "must have" at this focal length it really would of added to the enjoyment of this lens. Another miss for this lens is the slow 2.8 aperture. That's fine for zooms but this being a prime, it really needs the light gathering ability of a f/1.8 aperture. I know the smaller size of the lens compared to say the A-mount of the DSLR's play a part here but still, we've seen it done.If you have read any reviews online then you would of heard the lens is soft in the corners. I agree. Center is wonderful but it does drop a bit more than I would like towards the edges and I did notice some Vignetting in the corners that Light room removed in about 2 seconds so I have no problems with thatAll in all I think this is a really good lens especially at this price and I am really enjoying it. No, its not perfect but we need to remember its a two hundred dollar lens on a still very new format. I am unsure why Sigma would put the "A" on it. This lens is in no way up to say there  Sigma 311205 50mm F1.4 DG HSM Art Lens for Sony Alpha Cameras  in quality or in price for that matter.For version 3 lets see 1.8 f-stop and OSS and a better corner sharpness. Then this lens would be about perfect. Oh, and a little deeper lens-hood be nice too.7.5 out of 10 Sigma 311205 50mm F1.4 DG HSM Art Lens for Sony Alpha Cameras

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