Sigma and Tamron, any good?

A while back I owned the Sigma 24-70EX f2.8 and I have to say the build quality is superb. It was a great lens. BUT, it was VERY soft, I mean, unusable.

I soon went back to the camera shop I bought it from and swapped it with a Canon 28-105mm USM lens. The Canon lens is no where near the build quality of the Sigma, but is massively better quality and focuses very fast.

I wrote a small comparison / reivew between the Sigma and Canon on my site, click here for a quick read (not exactly the best review in the world, but you get the idea). It seemed that my copy of the Sigma had front focus problems, but not only that was very very soft as well.

I've said this a few times and I'll stick to what I think, but it seems to me that non-Canon branded lenses differ quality between copy-to-copy A LOT more than Canon stuff. If the Sigma was as sharp as the Canon 28-105 I have, then it would be stunning, but mine wasn't and its put me off of non-Canon stuff.

I am planning a lens upgrade in the next few weeks, and I'm going L, cant wait

burntbizzkit wrote in post #2241969
There's nothing in the world as good as the Sigma 120-300 f/2.8 in that focal range. Best 120-300 zoom that exists. It's pretty amazing with a 1.4x as well.

Yup, am with you on that one. Focusses well, IQ is fabulous too. I know a few people who have used this ahead of the Canon 300/2.8L....although I suspect that is based on versatility as the Canon is the quickest focussing, sharpest lens I have ever used.

I found that the Sigma actually works better on the canon 1.4tc than the Sigma one - not sure why, but the IQ holds very well indeed and a 170-420 F4 lens is rather a useful piece of kit!

But that said, I do love my 70-200 Canon - its a fantastic piece of kit.

Oh my, I am getting misty eyed just thinking about it.

I think I better go lie down for a bit!!

Hi,

I have the Sigma 30MM f/1.4 prime and it is a fantastic lens. I use it for group shots, portriats, and landscapes. I got a sharp copy right out of the box from www.sigma4less.com

My Sigma 70-200 f/2.8 EX HSM is very good. Good IQ, colors and fast AF. Like it very much.
I've also the Sigma 105 EX f/2.8 Macro that is also very sharp but the AF
is not as good as 70-200's.

zenpro wrote in post #2241956
Are Sigma and Tamron lenses any good? I mean, are there Sigma and Tamron lenses that produce an IQ like L lenses. Canon lenses are so expensive (even the mediocre ones) and I know there are a few commonly bought Tamron and Sigmas, so I suspect that their quality can be quite good on the higher end, but how does it compare with L type of lenses.

Yes. The main variance between L and third party is build and AF speed. Everything else could be better/worse on a copy by copy basis.