Sigma’s 30mm f/1.4 DC DN Contemporary is a fast, affordable prime. On paper, it looks like it should be a great piece of glass. I go through its steps to see if it’s a good fit for marketing hype.
I never read other reviews before testing the lens, this is true for this lens. I don’t want any preconceived ideas. Furthermore, I don’t own any Sigma lenses, so I’m not making any assumptions. I didn’t even look at the B&H website to see the retail price of the lens; Retail price is a good indicator of image quality.
Lenses are available for sony e, Canon EF-USA, leica is, FujifilmXand Micro Four Thirds mounts. It is currently not available to Nikon users. I tested the Micro Four Thirds version on my OM-1.
Two lenses from Sigma for me to check out. There is this and the wider one 16mm f/1.4 DCDN which I also agreed to take through the factory. I will look into that shortly.
At first, 30mm for a Micro Four Thirds camera struck me as an odd focal length. Come to think of it, though, it offers a 39.6° field of view on Micro Four Thirds cameras, thus similar to the popular “Nifty Fifty” lenses on full frame cameras. Mounted on full frame, on Sony E mount, field of view is 50.7°.
So this should be a good portrait and street photography lens. There are no OM systems (Olympus) or Panasonic lenses that match these specifications. However, with Micro Four Thirds, it will compete with the slower Olympus 30mm Macro lens at f/3.5, 25mm f/1.8 and the faster Pro 25mm f/1.2 lens. From the Lumix camp, there’s the Summilux 25mm f/1.4 ASPH.
I’ve only used the OM System PRO lens, so I’m used to sharper results than a scorpion sting, so I’m curious to know the performance of this lens.
The lenses are packaged in recyclable packaging and the box that Sigma packed for postage has been reused. That is a big mark for me.
Upon opening the box, I found a sleek looking lens that is sturdy yet lightweight. Interestingly, it has a metal stand. The Leica L Mount and Fujifilm X Mount versions are sealed to improve weather sealing, but the Micro Four Thirds version I use or the Sony E-mount and EOS-M-mount versions are not. The body is made of what Sigma describes as a Thermally Stable Composite Material, which it claims is the least deformable over time. The focus ring is made from textured rubber.
The lens is supplied with a lens hood and sturdy lens cap. There must be a 52mm filter that can be used with the hood.
The lens features nine elements in seven groups, two of which are aspherical. The nine rounded aperture blades help create nice-looking out of focus areas.
Practical test of the contemporary Sigma 30mm f/1.4 DC DN . lens
I equip it for me OM System OM-1 and walk it around, both during the day and in low light before dawn.
I’m a fan of prime lenses; they make you work for the photo. You are forced to position yourself for the best possible image and do not depend on adjusting the zoom level. 30mm is not a focal length I work with, so it took me a while to get used to it.
The lens is firmly attached to my camera without sag. The large focus ring and textured rubber feel comfortable. It has just the right amount of drag to prevent it from being accidentally nudged. But when I start spinning it, it works smoothly and evenly. I did a lot of manual focusing and was pleased to find that it activated the focus feature on my camera to outline the edges of the area in focus.
My first shots were distortion testing. I found that the vertical verticals were nice and the horizontals were parallel to the top and bottom of the frame, even at the edges — a good start.
When the lens profiles in the development software are turned off, there is no obvious vignetting.
Check for chromatic aberration
Then I shot some high-contrast edges, using the town’s memorial clock tower. Usually, with third-party lenses, especially the more affordable ones on the market, there will be some purple or green fringing marks around the edges. Even with 100% zoom and lens profile turned off in software, edges in focus are clear. However, I see very little fringing around the edges of the out-of-focus areas.
Even when shooting in bright sunlight, lens flare is well controlled and the aperture blades produce a pleasing starburst effect.
The maximum aperture of f/1.4 means that a narrow field of focus can be achieved either on purpose or by accident. It also means that you can capture very low-light images hand-held, especially when combined with the camera’s superior in-body image stabilization. I successfully held this lens for two seconds, as seen in the next photo.
concentrate
Fast autofocus. Occasionally, I’ve noticed this lens trying to focus in situations where my Olympus PRO lens wouldn’t. It has a very close minimum focusing distance of 30 cm.
The out-of-focus area is creamy and smooth. As I mentioned, it exhibits some chromatic aberration in the bokeh, but this is not distracting and can be corrected in processing.
Check the aperture for the lens
For a lens in this price bracket, it’s incredibly sharp. Despite minimal blur at the extremes, fine details are still present across the aperture range from f/1.4 to f/16. Even at 100% zoom, at the smallest aperture, f/16, there is hardly any blurring caused by diffraction; images will be used.
The following series of photos are of the same scene. The first is an uncropped version. The following sections are cropped to 1,000 pixels on the long edge.
What I like and what can be improved.
I can happily recommend this lens. It’s sharp, the optics are excellent, it’s well-built, and the price tag is more than reasonable. When mounted on the OM-1, its wide aperture, coupled with the camera’s image stabilization, makes it a great combo. If you’re looking for a fast, affordable, well-made prime, this should be on your list for serious consideration.
Will I buy it? No. Not because it’s not a great lens. The main reason is that it is not weather sealed. Much of my photography takes place on sandy beaches with smooth sea water and flying sand. Or, I can place my camera in a stream near the water. I don’t want dust and moisture to get into the body of my IP53 sealed $2,000 camera. If I were mainly shooting indoors, that would be a different matter.
There’s also another reason: it’s a fun lens, but I don’t know what I’m going to use it for. I’ve got that focal length covered. Furthermore, I’ve owned prime lenses with a focal length close to it and have rarely used them. It would be a different story if I was primarily a portrait photographer, and even then, I would be more likely to use Olympus 25mm f/1.2 lens in the studio. However, that costs almost five times that, so photographers on a tight budget will be very attracted to Sigma.
Like I said, this would be a good street photography lens, but only if it’s not raining; I live in England! It’s small and light, weighing between 260 g and 280 g, depending on which version you buy.
It would be perfect for indoor still life. Unfortunately, with OM System cameras, however, this lens does not allow for focus stacking, so one cannot take full advantage of that shallow depth of field as one can with the Lens. Olympus Pro OM System.
That wide aperture is ideal for low-light shooting, and I could find it appealing to some nightclub and event photographers. Also, even though it’s not primarily a video lens, 30mm is a great focal length for video and I can see people buying it for vlogs.
In short, this is a quality lens, good value for money and a worthwhile purchase for anyone who needs this focal length. You can buy it here.
