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Customer Reviews:
Sigma 10-20mm Wide Angle Zoom
Excellent product. Edge to edge sharpness is very good even at 10mm. Totally happy with this purchase.

Best low budget wide angle
I bought this lens a few weeks ago and so far I’m very pleased with it’s performance. The picture quality is excellent, and the handling is great. And it balances well with my Nikon D300 (although it’s a bit too light to be perfect).

I have to admit that I’m no expert in judging lenses, so therefore I read a lot of tests and reviews before I chose this lens. So if you are too lazy to do the same, take my word for it. This is repeatedly a test winner.

If you look for a reasonably priced wide angle zoom as an addition to you standard zoom, this is a very good (the best?) choice.

This Should Come With Your Camera
I am shocked about this lens. After many visits to the camera store, hours of internet research, and dozens of questions to professionals I bought this lens from Amazon. No local dealers bothered to carry it so once again the sale went to the internet.

During my research it became obvious that one of the major limitations of many new DLSR’s is a smaller overall field of view when compared to a traditional film based SLR using the same basic lens. Without going into the “why” the bottom line is my Nikon D40X’s stock 18-55 cannot capture as wide a shot as I want.

Terminology becomes an issue when trying to explain this lens to an amateur, or the person who might be involved with your new 500 dollar purchase. The word “wide” has new meaning these days when applied to TV’s and monitors, so people are confused when you try to tell them about a lens that is “wide”. This is significant because so many new D40X buyers, for example, are jumping into SLR for the first time and have no clue about lenses. These are the people who probably have no idea what they are missing.

The overall focus on lenses gets further confusing for amateurs because of all the hype about “zoom”, and when kits like the D40X give you an extra zoom but no wide lens. Zoom is like one of those numbers consumers make sure to ask about before they make their purchase. While zoom photography is cool, I feel the magic of wide-angle photography is a well kept secret. Consumers would be well served to be asking about “wide” instead, and start walking the camera up closer to their subject. You’ll see why later.

Doing research became even harder when I began to read about the Nikkor 12-24 and new 14 wide angle lenses. At $1000 and $1700 I began to feel like my dream would never come true. Then I held the new 14mm at the camera store, attached to a D60. It is a monster in every way. After looking at some dinky conversion lenses I was ready to give up. The amazing reviews of the new Nikon wide-angle lenses left me feeling it might be years away.

That’s when I found the Sigma 10-20, roughly 5 lenses later. The solid 5 star reviews combined with under-$500 price tag got me looking, and then the test shots. $20 of overnight shipping later I must say this is a product that should come with the camera. All new consumers should be made aware of what this thing can do. It should be bundled or at least sold beside these cameras, not the total mystery it seems to be. This wide angle lens should go into the hands of amateurs and professionals alike. It could be the factor that keeps new people into the hobby when their zoom shots are all messed up. Simply put this lens allows your camera to better match what you see with your eyes. The creative possibilities of a wider field of view should not be underestimated. It could sell more cameras, so it seems the competition should be looking up to Sigma, especially at this price tag. Have fun!

good first impressions
While there are many good reviews on Amazon for this lens reviews on other sites aren’t so consistently rosy so it was with some trepidation that I awaited delivery of this lens. I should add here that I am an enthusiastic amateur and don’t claim to be the most discerning photographer around but I like to think I recognize quality when I see it.

Anyway, it arrived today and first impressions are good from the feel and handling to the couple of dozen photos I’ve taken so far in and around the house with my Nikon D50. The build quality feels as good as my Nikon 18-200 which has been my main lens since I bought it last year to replace the kit lenses that came with my D50.

Other reviews I had read mentioned the fact that the front and rear lens caps are rubbish (they are) and so I had already ordered a 77mm Nikon cap as a precaution and I’m glad I did. Also be aware that the Tiffin filters which Amazon sells are lower quality and generally not multi-coated and that can apparently lead to reflection problems with a lens as wide as this. I bought a Sigma MC UV filter accordingly.

Will post again if I come across an problems down the line but otherwise it’s 5 stars for now!

Fantastic lens!
Super Wide Angle! Take it to the city and get amazing shots of buildings indoors and outdoors! It’s also great in low light, because at 10mm focal length you can shoot handheld at 1/15th without blur. I am using it on a Nikon D80. The sharpness is outstanding, none of my Nikon lenses are better. This money was well spent!