Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8-4.5 SLD Aspherical DC OS HSM Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT, XTi, XS, XSi, T3i, T3, T2i, T2, T1i, 5D, 7D, 10D, 20D, 30D, 40D, 50D & 60D Digital SLR Cameras

by Sigma

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• ASIN: B002DGXUQK
• Item model number: SIG-1850-DCOS-CAN
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: June 15, 2009

Product Description

The Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8-4.5 DC OS HSM is a lens dedicated to digital SLR cameras with APS-C size image sensors, offering a large aperture and Sigma's Optical Stabilization and providing a high level of optical performance. The combination of the large f/2.8 maximum aperture and anti-shake function makes capturing exceptional photos of still subjects in very low light quite achievable, and the wide 18mm focal length is well suited for indoor photography with digital SLR cameras. This lens offers superior peripheral brightness as well as a relatively compact, light construction. Two SLD (Special Low Dispersion) glass elements and three aspherical lens elements provide excellent correction for all types of aberrations. The Sigma Super Multi-Layer Coating reduces flare and ghosting. Designed with inner focusing and inner zooming systems, high image quality is assured throughout the entire zoom range along with an easy time handling the lens. This lens' minimum focusing distance of 11.8" (30cm) throughout the entire zoom range and maximum magnification ratio of 1:4.1 are quite impressive against their class competition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Cost Effective; But Not Quite Perfect., June 27, 2010

By 

DrivenMind (Atlanta, Georgia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8-4.5 SLD Aspherical DC OS HSM Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT, XTi, XS, XSi, T3i, T3, T2i, T2, T1i, 5D, 7D, 10D, 20D, 30D, 40D, 50D & 60D Digital SLR Cameras (Electronics)

I've been shooting with this lens for well over 3 years now on a Digital Rebel XT. My original Canon kit lens died on me after about 200k exposures, and the Canon replacement now costs twice as much. (it was even more three years ago) So I ended up getting the Sigma as a replacement. Its a solid lens for the money, but its not without its drawbacks. As other reviewers have mentioned the auto focus isn't great, and on more than one occasion I've had to switch to manual focusing during shooting to get an in focus image. Especially when shooting a subject that is moving fast or in low light. Also the focus ring is too loose for my liking, which can make it hard to get an in focus image manually of fast moving subjects when the auto focus fails. I also don't believe the optics are quite as good as they could be, especially when compared to their Canon counterparts. However I assumed this would be the case when I bought the lens. On the other hand, this lens has long out lived its Canon predecessor and has endured years of hard use, and allowed me to have a semi-wide angle lens without going broke trying to buy a name brand replacement.

It is important to take into consideration that on a Digital Rebel, 30D, or 20D the 1.6x crop factor resulting from the smaller sensor size will effectively make this a 29-80mm lens. So if you're expecting really wide angle images, you might want to be prepared to lower your expectations a little.

If you're looking for premium optics and flawless auto focusing this probably isn't the lens for you; but if you're tight on money and need a replacement lens or simply want to experiment with a lens of this type, then the Sigma 18-55mm f/3.5 represents a great value for the money.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Very average image quality, problems with AF, September 8, 2009

By 

V. Komarov (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8-4.5 SLD Aspherical DC OS HSM Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT, XTi, XS, XSi, T3i, T3, T2i, T2, T1i, 5D, 7D, 10D, 20D, 30D, 40D, 50D & 60D Digital SLR Cameras (Electronics)

The image quality of the pictures is average (tested with Canon D450), but the bad part was Autofocus performance. It failed 50% of the time and worked mostly on the pictures were objects were at the same distance from the camera. If not, the AF sets for the lower part of the image most of the time (tested for several days with the same effect in all image conditions).

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good replacement for Canon 18-55, February 22, 2010

By 

Glenn Campbell "Kilroy" (Western Hemisphere) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8-4.5 SLD Aspherical DC OS HSM Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT, XTi, XS, XSi, T3i, T3, T2i, T2, T1i, 5D, 7D, 10D, 20D, 30D, 40D, 50D & 60D Digital SLR Cameras (Electronics)

Bought this lens after I broke the original 18-55 lens of my EOS Rebel xTi. The official Canon replacement was ridiculously overpriced, so I got this one. Works just fine! I can't evaluate the new lens in technical terms, I don't notice any differences between the new and old lens, except this one looks a lot more solidly built. Same filter size.