Sigma 8 16mm F4 5 5 6 DC HSM Review | 54 Data compared

The Sigma 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6 DC HSM lens is recognized as an exceptionally wide rectilinear zoom for APS-C cameras, offering impressive sharpness, good contrast, and a fast, quiet HSM autofocus system. It effectively controls flare and chromatic aberration through specialized glass elements, delivering high-quality imaging results. Conversely, the lens has a fixed, bulbous front element that prevents the use of standard filters, and it produces significant barrel distortion at the 8mm setting. It is also considered a "slow" lens due to its variable aperture and suffers from peripheral vignetting, which often requires stopping down to fix.

According to Ken Rockwell, the Sigma 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6 DC HSM is an ultra-wide rectilinear zoom designed specifically for APS-C/DX cameras, boasting a record-breaking 8mm focal length that provides a 121-degree diagonal angle of view equivalent to 12-24mm on full-frame. The lens features solid build quality, fast and quiet HSM autofocus with full-time manual override, and produces good center sharpness and minimal distortion when properly leveled, making it excellent for dramatic, wide-perspective photography. Conversely, the lens has a slow variable aperture of f/4.5-5.6, and the bulbous front element with a fixed hood prevents the use of standard screw-on filters. A major design flaw highlighted by Rockwell is the poorly designed, tight-fitting metal lens cap system, which scrapes and destroys the lens's black finish over time.

The Sigma 8-16mm F4.5-5.6 DC HSM lens delivers impressive improvements over its predecessor, the 12-24mm f4.5-5.6 EX DG, particularly for APS-C sensors on Canon and Nikon cameras. This ultra-wide-angle lens stands out for its high resolution metric, which scores over 10 points higher when tested on camera bodies like the Canon EOS 7D and Nikon D7000. It also provides better light transmission and superior overarching image quality across its entire focal range. When tested on different camera mounts, the lens scores slightly higher on Nikon bodies due to sensor differences, though the performance variance is ultimately negligible. A direct comparison against the Nikon AF-S DX Nikkor 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5G ED highlights the clear performance trade-offs, pros, and cons of choosing this Sigma lens. On the positive side, the Sigma lens offers a wider angle of view, maintains sharp resolution all the way up to f/11, and is roughly 25% cheaper than the Nikon alternative. On the negative side, its maximum aperture makes it a slower lens overall, and it falls short of the Nikon competitor in terms of central sharpness. Additionally,...

The Shutterbug review spotlights the Sigma 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6 DC HSM lens as a potent tool for environmental portraits, utilizing an extreme 121-degree view to merge subjects with their surroundings. Key advantages include its fast, quiet Hyper-Sonic Motor (HSM) and the utilization of FLD and aspherical glass elements to effectively manage contrast and chromatic aberration. Conversely, the lens, designed with a convex front element, lacks filter threads, preventing the use of standard screw-on filters. Additional drawbacks include a slow, variable f/4.5-5.6 aperture, and the need to work at very close distances, which can lead to significant perspective distortion at 8mm.

The Sigma 8-16mm F4.5-5.6 lens review by Scott Gietler evaluates this tool as the widest rectilinear lens available for cropped-sensor dSLRs. A standout feature is its ultra-wide 8mm focal length, which provides a unique 3D perspective and allows photographers to capture expansive reefs, schools of fish, and shipwrecks without the curved distortion of a traditional fisheye lens. The lens boasts solid build quality with a metal mount, fast and silent HSM autofocus, and excellent center sharpness across all apertures, with corner sharpness improving significantly when stopped down to F8 or F11. Its minimum focusing distance allows underwater photographers to shoot extremely close to a subject, maximizing image clarity and color saturation.

The Sigma 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6 DC HSM is highly regarded for APS-C K-mount cameras, offering an exceptionally wide field of view that is 20% wider than standard 10-20mm alternatives, making it ideal for landscapes and architecture. It delivers superb sharpness, robust build quality, and a quiet, reliable HSM autofocus system within a compact, inner-focusing design. Drawbacks include the inability to use screw-on filters due to a bulbous front element, which is also highly susceptible to smudges. Additionally, the lens has a slow variable aperture (f/4.5-5.6) and suffers from a minor compatibility issue on Pentax bodies that results in missing focal length EXIF data between 8mm and 10mm.

The Sigma AF 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6 DC HSM is an extreme, rectilinear ultra-wide zoom lens designed specifically for APS-C format cameras, providing a full-frame equivalent field of view of roughly 13-26mm. A major technological highlight of this lens is the inclusion of four innovative FLD glass elements, which mimic the properties of expensive fluorite glass to aggressively correct color aberrations. The lens boasts a very high build quality made of tightly assembled metal parts, features a hypersonic AF motor (HSM) that ensures fast and nearly silent autofocusing, and maintains a constant physical length during zooming and focusing. However, the lens's extreme design introduces several notable compromises. A prominent drawback is the "bulb"-like protruding front element which prevents the use of standard front-mounted filters and leaves the glass somewhat vulnerable, though it is partially shielded by a fixed petal-shaped hood. Additionally, the dedicated lens cap requires an extra attachment tube that causes severe edge shading if left on during shooting, even at the 16mm setting. The lens is also unusually elongated for an ultra-wide zoom—measuring over 10cm in length—and exhibits only average...

The Pentax Forums review highlights the Sigma 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6 DC HSM as a high-performing, robustly built, and compact ultra-wide-angle lens for APS-C, delivering exceptional sharpness, vivid contrast, and minimal chromatic aberration. It is particularly praised for its superior optical performance and versatility in tight interior or architectural photography. Key limitations include the inability to use standard screw-in filters due to the bulbous front element, necessitating expensive, specialized filter systems, and a quiet but slow autofocus motor. Additionally, the lens exhibits a slight drop in edge sharpness compared to narrower alternatives, which is a trade-off for its extreme 8mm perspective.

The Sigma 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6 DC HSM is an ultra-wide zoom lens designed for crop-sensor cameras that stands out by shaving 2mm off the shortest focal length of its competitors. This reduction boosts its diagonal viewing angle to a massive, eye-popping 121 degrees. Built with a solid and sturdy metal mounting plate, the lens is a third longer and twice as heavy as Canon's 10-18mm lens. It features a ring-type ultrasonic autofocus system with full-time mechanical override, four top-quality FLD elements, and Super Multi-Layer Coatings to combat ghosting and flare. Performance-wise, it delivers impressive image sharpness across the entire frame even at its widest apertures, alongside well-controlled colour fringing and distortions. The review highlights several distinct pros and cons regarding the lens's design and functionality. On the positive side, its main pros include an extreme, class-leading viewing angle, excellent overall optical quality, and a durable, solid build construction. However, the lens does have notable cons, such as a complete lack of weather seals. Additionally, because of its bulbous front optical element, it requires a built-in lens hood that prevents the attachment...

Darwin Wiggett's field test of the Sigma AF 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6 DC HSM lens concludes that it is an exceptionally fun, high-utility ultra-wide zoom specifically tailored for APS-C sensor cameras. The primary pros highlighted in the review include its rock-solid build quality, beautifully smooth manual focus, and rapid, accurate zoom mechanism. Optically, the reviewer was highly impressed by its outstanding edge-to-edge sharpness across all focal lengths, particularly when shooting wide open at 8mm between the apertures of f/4.5 and f/8. Furthermore, the lens features advanced FLD glass that successfully minimises chromatic aberrations (color fringing) while exhibiting excellent flare control in backlit landscape environments. Conversely, the review outlines notable cons and technical limitations inherent to this extreme wide-angle design. The most prominent disadvantage is the lens' bulging front element, which entirely prevents the use of standard screw-on filters; this makes using graduated neutral density (GND) filters impossible, forcing landscape photographers to shoot multiple exposures and blend them in post-production instead. Additionally, the lens suffers from heavy diffraction when stopped down on APS-C bodies, leading to severely compromised image quality and bad sharpness...

The Sigma 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6 DC HSM is an ultra-wideangle rectilinear zoom lens designed for DX-crop sensor cameras, providing an exceptionally wide field of view bordering on a fisheye perspective without the characteristic barrel distortion. A major pro of this lens is its dramatic architectural and landscape capabilities; it excels at capturing vast vistas, enhancing cloud and sky depth, and artificially maximizing room sizes for real estate photography. Mechanically, the lens boasts an excellent build, lightning-fast and silent autofocus, and an always-available manual autofocus override. Furthermore, it offers an affordable alternative to premium options, costing a third of the price of the optically superior Nikon 14-24mm. However, the lens presents several drawbacks, particularly its steep learning curve due to an exaggerated wideangle look. It causes pronounced edge and corner distortion—turning circular objects elliptical—and creates "falling lines" if the camera is even slightly off-angle. This makes it a poor choice for shooting people or precise architectural work, as human heads and bodies appear oddly warped. Optically, the reviewer notes that sharpness is unimpressive and the edges fail to get tack-sharp even when...