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For the opportunity of the Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM for Nikon lens review many thanks to Ivan Kosarekov and web studio Mcsite

View of the Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM with a lens hood

History

The Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM was the first of its kind, but eventually upgraded to Sigma 30 / 1.4 Art.

As a result, there are three similar Sigma lenses:

• On February 14, 2005 a lens model was introduced from this Sigma 30mm 1: 1.4 EX DC HSM review [for SLR APS-C]
• The receiver was introduced on January 29, 2013. Sigma 30mm 1: 1.4 DC | A (Art) [for SLR APS-C]
• On February 23, 2016, an add-on lens was introduced. Sigma 30mm 1: 1.4 DC DN | C (Contemporary) [for mirrorless APS-C]

Separately, it is worth highlighting an alternative for the Sigma 30 / 1.4 Art - a zoom lens with a very high aperture Sigma 18-35 / 1.8 DC Art and full-frame-like lens Sigma 35 / 1.4 Art.

And Sigma has another less light 'thirty' - Sigma 30mm 1: 2.8 DN | A (Art) for mirrorless cameras Micro 4/3 and Sony E.

The Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM is a good fast prime lens for cropped APS-C cameras. Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM is available for different mounts (Canon, Nikon, Sigma). This review presents an option specifically for the Nikon system. Please note that this lens will only work on Nikon DX cameras, and will not work correctly on FX type cameras. Nikon D3, D800 etc.

Bokeh on Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM. MDF Focus

It's funny, but the company Nikon in the summer of 2012 does not have a single super fast aperture for cropped Nikon DX cameras. At the same time, the Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM not only has amazing aperture, but also positioned as a professional lens, for which EX marking is responsible.

• AF HSM (Auto Focus, Hyper Sonic Motor) - built-in silent focusing motor.
• EX (EXcellence) - maximum, excellent quality of performance.
• DC - for APS-C cameras, in this case for Nikon DX

Photo by Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM. The lens pattern is very nice

Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM very fast focus. The focusing ring is very convenient and rotates in the active mode 90 degrees, in the passive mode the ring travel is not limited. But, unfortunately, the focus does not fully support the Nikon M / A mode on the lens. you cannot make manual corrections focus when autofocus mode and AF-C. When autofocus is on and you turn the focus ring with your hands, a conflict occurs between the manual and automatic focusers.

Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM. Sample photo

Important: Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM does not have a focus mode switch, with the lens attached, auto focus is always on. This is very inconvenient on the younger line of Nikon cameras (which do not have a focus motor), since in order to switch the camera to manual focus mode M (MF), you need to poke around the menu for a long time. On older Nikon cameras that have a built-in focus motor, you can switch to manual focus mode quite quickly using the special lever near the lens mount.

Sigma AF 30 1.4 EX DC HSM. Sample photo

Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM no internal focus, but the focusing method itself makes it possible to use any filters without problems, since the filter is screwed into the lens barrel, and not into the front lens barrel. The front lens in this case moves back and forth in the middle of the frame and does not rotate. The same focusing method can be found with Nikon lenses, for example Nikon 50mm f / 1.8G AF-S Nikkor и Nikon 50mm f / 1.4G AF-S Nikkor.

Sigma AF 30 1.4 EX DC HSM. Sample photo

Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM for Nikon Designed for Nikon DX cameras only. This means that when used on APS-C NIKON DX cameras, the viewing angle will be narrower than on a classic 35mm film, and EGF will fit 45mm. This is a rather convenient field of vision for a fixed lens, since the lens becomes almost universal on crop. On the APS-C Canon 1.6X, the lens almost turns into a fifty dollars with 48 millimeters of focal length. How much such a focal length will be convenient, you need to decide for the photographer himself.

Sigma AF 30 1.4 EX DC HSM. Sample photo

Fans of shooting different trifles Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM is not very suitable, since the lens has a minimum focusing distance of as much as 40 cm, and the lens simply can not focus on objects that are closer than this distance. Given the viewing angle at 30mm focal length, even photographing a flower close-up will be quite difficult.

Sigma AF 30 1.4 EX DC HSM. Photo on open aperture

The lens is very heavy. Yes, I was very surprised that such a small 30mm fix weighs as much as 430g. On my little camera Nikon D40 the weight balance is rather unusually distributed. The lens itself is made really to the highest level. The lens boasts the inscription “Lens Made in Japan”, the same is written on the front cover.

Sigma AF 30 1.4 EX DC HSM. Photo on open aperture

Lens hood

The Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM comes with a hood included. The hood can be worn backwards to the front of the lens and always carried with you. With your back on in front of the hood, access to the focusing ring is completely blocked.

Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM compared to Nikon 35mm f / 1.8G AF-S DX Nikkor

Nikon has a similar lens - Nikon 35mm f / 1.8G AF-S DX Nikkorwith a slightly larger focal length and a little smaller aperture. Nikon 35mm f / 1.8G AF-S DX Nikkor weighs two and a half times less, costs two and a half times cheaper and gives excellent quality. The Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM outperforms its native counterpart in aperture, focusing speed and distortion. If there is a choice between these two lenses, I would take my own 35-lens.

Size difference

Sample Photos

All sample photos were taken on camera. Nikon D40. I specifically used the old non-motorized camera to show that all functions work fine even on the simplest camera. All photos without processing, reduced size 1600 * 1200 and imprinted data from EXIF.

Image quality

Image quality was up to par. The sharpness in the center is high even at F1.4, at the edges the sharpness becomes good with an aperture of F2.8, from F2.8 to F16.0 the sharpness is just wonderful. Even at F16.0, diffraction has little effect on quality, therefore, shooting the landscape will be quite simple. The lens has very small HAmuch less than Nikon 35mm f / 1.8G AF-S DX Nikkor... Slight vignetting is noticeable at open apertures. The Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM delivers a “star effect” from F2.0. Using an 8-blade diaphragm produces nice bokeh that is slightly curled around the edges of the frame. The lens tolerates side and back light well, gives normal contrast and color rendition. The only drawback is the slight barrel distortion. In general, the picture quality is at a very good level.

Photo on Sigma 30 1.4

Personal experience

I personally found it strange such a lot of weight and the lack of a focus switch, and even the focus is not internal with a very large MDF. But with all this, the lens really meets the class of professional top-end lenses. On my copy stands protective filter at 62mm and the focusing is actually internal. The lens has a very large aperture F1.4, but this will not allow normal taking photos with blurry background, since the lens has a very small focal length, and infinity “begins” after 2 meters.

Sigma AF 30 1.4 EX DC HSM. Distortion

Prices for the Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM lens in popular online stores can look at this link.

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Conclusions:

The Sigma AF 30mm f / 1.4 EX DC HSM is an excellent lens for crop cameras with huge aperture and good image quality.

UPDATED

Take a look at the review of the successor to this lens - Sigma 30mm 1: 1.4 DC Art.

Material prepared Arkady Shapoval. Training/Consultations | Youtube | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Telegram