Sigma 24-60mm f/2.8 EX DG IF Aspherical Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Nikon SLR Cameras

by Sigma

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 9 x 9 x 9 inches ; 1.2 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B0002ALDRC
• Item model number: B0002ALDRC
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: July 21, 2004

Product Description

CL) INT) 24-60MM F/2.8 EX DG NIK AF

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This lens is a steal for the price, October 10, 2007

By 

LA Gadget Guy (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sigma 24-60mm f/2.8 EX DG IF Aspherical Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Nikon SLR Cameras (Electronics)

I paid $209 for this lense through Cameta camera via the Amazon website. For that price this lens is an absolute steal. It even comes with a lens hood and a very sturdy nylon case (I hate getting nickeled and dimed for accessories). It has a constant F2.8 and a effective range of 36-90 mm on a Nikon digital body. Build quality is very nice (note quite as nice as a Canon L series lens but far better than a lens such as the Nikon 18-200VR) and far better than most if not all lenses in this price range. . The constant and wide aperture allows you to get some pretty decent indoor shots using built in camera flash or a compact flash such as the SB-400. Also, the lens is very compact at only 3.3 inches long. The only downside is that it is a bit soft wide open and bit slow in autofocusing, but that is to be expected at this price range. A lot of reviews unfarily bash Sigma lenses and it's not fair to compare them to Nikon lenses costing 5x the price. I own about a half dozen of both brands and it really boils down to a particular lens and not the brand.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing budget f/2.8 normal zoom, May 4, 2008

By 

Stephen Hopkins - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sigma 24-60mm f/2.8 EX DG IF Aspherical Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Nikon SLR Cameras (Electronics)

I purchased this lens to replace a Sigma 28-70mm f/2.8 EX that was stolen along with my D50 . This is now my main normal zoom and on my D200 about 75% of the time. It sits nicely between my Sigma 15-30mm f/3.5-4.5 EX DG and Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 EX D HSM.

This is probably the sharpest zoom lens I've ever owned. It's sharper than all of the other third-party lenses I've owned in the 24/28-70/75/80mm f/2.8 range. I've owned several others from Sigma, Tamron, and Tokina. This is by far the sharpest and is completely usable at f/2.8 throughout the entire zoom range. It is also much more compact and light weight than the other third party options. It's about the same length and weight as the 18-70mm kit lens, but with a 77mm thread size. This makes for a body+lens combo that is very compact and easy to handle while still having the benefit of an f/2.8 aperture.

The one minor negative I've found with this lens is a slightly less-than-smooth bokeh at f/2.8. It's a very minor complaint and would not have come to my attention had it not been for some forum posters who are much more critical of bokeh than I usually am.

All in all, this lens is a bargain. It is noticeably sharper than the other 3rd party options in the range an, at the same time, is more compact and lightweight while maintaining acceptable build quality. 24mm is noticably wider than the other 28-XXmm options and wide enough for everyday use if you have a wide or ultra-wide lens to round out your kit. For anyone looking for a budget f/2.8 normal zoom, this one is tough to beat.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A step up from a kit lens, December 13, 2007

By 

Stephen Schaffner - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sigma 24-60mm f/2.8 EX DG IF Aspherical Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Nikon SLR Cameras (Electronics)

I bought this lens as a replacement for my Nikkor 18-70 kit lens, and I compared it to my 18-70 and a Nikkor 50/1.8. (Note that the 18-70 is known for being quite sharp for a kit lens, and the 50/1.8 is an extremely sharp lens.) I tested the 24-60 at 30 mm and 50 mm. I found it somewhat soft and lacking in contrast wide open, especially compared to the 50/1.8 (at 2.8), but it was still clearly sharper than the 18-70 when it was wide open, as well as being more than a stop faster. Stopped down, the 24-60 was consistently sharper than the 18-70, although it never quite caught the 50/1.8 in sharpness, and showed much less distortion and light falloff than the 18-70. (For comparison, a Nikkor 17-55 that I previously tested was a little softer than the 50/1.8 at 2.8, and almost indistinguishable when stopped down. But that lens costs $1200.)

The biggest weakness of the Sigma 24-60 was its handling of out-of-focus elements in pictures. Overall I found the out-of-focus look to be busy and not very attractive, and under some circumstances (brightly lit objects near the edge of the picture, and nearer than the plane of focus) it could get downright ugly. Most of the time it wasn't really a problem, though, and how important this aspect is depends on your shooting style and what you care about.

In the end I decided not to keep the lens, since I would like to be upgrading to a somewhat higher level of performance, but that will come at a steep price. If you are on a budget, or just want something better than a kit lens, the Sigma 24-60 is a great deal at this price -- it's much cheaper than a new 18-70, and is clearly a better lens.