The gold standard in fast-aperture standard zooms for DSLRs.
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from
£1149
from
£1149The standard zoom of choice for many professional photographers, the SIGMA 24-70mm is a highly versatile optic for DSLRs that can be used for almost any type of photography, including landscapes, portraits, commercial, weddings, travel and street. Its constant F2.8 aperture produces both a shallow depth-of-field and fast shutter speeds in low light conditions, yielding plenty of creative opportunity. The lens has Sigma’s advanced Optical Stabilizer build in to help reduce the risk of camera shake, ideal for lower light situations such as weddings.
Optically the 24-70mm is exceptional, producing images that are pin-sharp across the frame and free from unwanted aberrations at all aperture settings. The lens is often found in the same kitbag as the 14-24mm and 70-200mm, both of which are also F2.8. The ‘big three’ as they’re often known, offer an unbroken focal range from 14-200mm at a constant F2.8 aperture.
The exceptional build quality of the 24-70mm F2.8 DG OS HSM is exactly as you’d expect from an Art-line lens, both in the materials used, the overall ergonomics and the quality of craftsmanship.Â
The exterior barrel is made of a polycarbonate called Thermally Stable Composite (TSC). Not only is this very strong and light, but it has a similar thermal expansion rate to aluminium. This ensures that the interior aluminium parts and the exterior TSC parts behave in a consistent way as temperatures change.
The focus and zoom rings has sharply-ribbed rubberised covers for easier operation, and the action on both is very smooth for more precise control.
To reduce flare and ghosting in bright sun, and to help protect the front element from damage if dropped, the lens has a robust, removable petal-type lens hood.
The durable brass mount is surrounded by a rubber seal to help keep out dust and moisture.
Precision brass mount with seal
Protects against dust and moisture.
TSC construction
Made from a strong and light polycarbonate that behaves in a similar way to aluminium.
Focus ring
Rubberised for precise manual focusing.
Zoom ring
A large, rubberised ring with a smooth action.
Petal-type lens hood
Cuts down on flare while limiting vignetting.
Focus Mode switch
For changing between AF and MF. Also has a Manual Focus Override button.
Optical Stabilizer
Helps reduce camera shake in lower light conditions.
A range of controls on the lens include an AF/MF switch with a Manual Focus Override option that allows tweaking of focus manually even when using AF.Â
The lens has an Optical Stabilizer switch that helps to reduce camera shake when shooting in low light conditions. This provides a four-stop advantage, allowing photographers to achieve blur-free hand-held images at approximately 1/8 sec.
A powerful HSM motor ensures fast, accurate and quiet AF and excellent AF tracking capability.
The SIGMA 24-70mm produces images with outstanding optical quality, with excellent rendering of detail across the whole frame even wide open at F2.8.
The lens has an advanced optical design made up of 19 elements in 14 groups, including 4 aspherical elements and 3 SLD elements. This ensures razor-sharp results and helps to eliminate chromatic aberration, flare, distortion and vignetting.
Advanced optical coatings reduce flare and ghosting when working in bright direct sunlight, creating high-contrast images with excellent colour saturation and strong blacks.
Owing to its constant F2.8 aperture across the whole zoom range, the 24-70mm is a superb lens for low-light conditions. It is a very popular option with wedding photographers, who need to be able to shoot hand-hand indoors, and often without much available light.Â
The wide aperture also means a shallow depth-of-field that helps to separate the subject from the foreground or background. At the telephoto end, the 24-70mm is perfect for portraits for this reason.
With a maximum magnification ratio of 1:4.8, the 24-70mm is capable of shooting detailed close-ups of flowers, insects and food. The lens’ bokeh is smooth and attractive, ensuring it doesn’t distract from the in-focus subject.
There are two standard zooms for DSLRs in the Sigma range: the 24-70mm F2.8 and the 24-105mm F4. Both have Optical Stabilization and are almost identical in length. The 24-70mm has a shorter zoom range, but one extra stop of aperture, so is more capable in low light and produces a shallower depth-of-field.
1,020g
in weight
107.6mm
in length
885g
in weight
109.4mm
in length
All Sigma cameras and lenses are designed, manufactured and assembled at our sole factory at Aizu in Japan. This domestic production model is unusual in today’s industry, with most imaging companies opting to outsource to other countries to reduce costs. But SIGMA believes that keeping virtually all manufacturing, processing and assembly in Aizu is essential for creating innovative, carefully thought-out and impeccably constructed products that meet the high standards demanded by professional photographers and film-makers around the world.
Sigma chose Aizu as its main production base in the early 1970s. Situated at the base of Mount Bandai in the Fukushima Prefecture, about four hours’ drive north of Tokyo, Aizu has an abundance of very clean water from mountain streams, which is essential for grinding and polishing lenses. Sigma’s founder, Michihiro Yamaki, was also drawn to this area for its workforce, who have a reputation for their craftsmanship, work ethic and attention to detail. Mr Yamaki’s son, Kazuto Yamaki, now the owner and CEO of SIGMA Corporation, has the same unwavering commitment to keeping production in Japan.
Today Sigma’s factory is more than 50,000 square feet in size, and packed full of some of the most advanced optical manufacturing technology in existence. So when you buy a Sigma camera or lens you can be sure that virtually every single component part has been manufactured and assembled by SIGMA, in Japan, with the greatest level of care and attention. We hope you enjoy using our products.
If you want to see how a particular SIGMA lens or camera performs, why not test drive it with our SIGMA Select hire service. Available for selected SIGMA lenses, short-term loans are free of charge (including shipping), with a small fee if you want to test it for longer. Refundable deposit required. Subject to availability.
Lens construction
19 elements in 14 groups
Angle of view
84.1°-34.3°
Number of diaphragm blades
9 (rounded diaphragm)
Minimum aperture
F22
Minimum focusing distance
37cm
Maximum magnification ratio
1:4.8
Filter thread
82mm
Dimensions (diameter x length)
ø88mm × 107.6mm
Weight
1020g
Corresponding AF mounts
Canon EF | Nikon F | Sigma SA
Canon EF barcode
00-85126-576547
Nikon F barcode
00-85126-576554
Sigma SA barcode
00-85126-576561
Specifications are for SIGMA SA mount
A special coating applied to the front element to help repel water and oil.
This suppresses flare and ghosting by minimising reflections within the lens, ensuring punchy, high-contrast results. All lenses in the current Sigma range feature this technology.
Sigma’s Optical Stabilizer function uses sensors inside the lens to detect motion, then moves specific lens elements in order to effectively minimise blur. This helps ensure shake-free images at slower shutter speeds.
This describes the degree to which a lens can magnify an in-focus subject. The ratio shows the relationship between the size of the projection of a subject on the camera’s sensor (the left number) and its actual size in reality (the right number).
Sigma’s Hypersonic Motor (HSM) uses ultrasonic waves to drive the autofocus mechanism. It is extremely quiet, fast and accurate, so is well suited to a wide range of photo and video applications.
The lens has an image circle large enough to be used on a full-frame camera. It can also be used on cameras with a smaller ‘crop’ sensor, provided the mount is compatible.
The lens has a filter thread around the front element onto which filters and filter holders can be attached.
The mount is the part of the lens that attaches to the camera body. A coated brass mount is used for strength, and is surrounded by a rubber seal to keep out dust and moisture.
This switch toggles between autofocus and manual focus.
The diaphragm is constructed of nine rounded blades for a circular aperture opening and round out-of-focus highlights.
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