Who’s The Best Aftermarket Lens Maker?
I'm not talking about lenses from the camera manufacturers: Canon, Nikon, Sony, Olympus, Pentax, etc. I'm talking about the other lens manufacturers like Sigma, Tamron, and Tokina… aftermarket lenses. Who's the best?
I've come to find that these off-brands offer up some great quality at a very nice price. I have three lenses, and two of them are Sigma. I love them, and I won't hesitate to buy another. Obviously I'm biased toward Sigma, but who do you think makes the best lenses from the big three?
Based on the results of this poll, it seems as though Sigma has a significant lead in the aftermarket lens business. It's no surprise, they make great products at a very high quality.
Be sure to check the results from last week's poll on “When's Your Favorite Time of Day to Shoot?” It turns out that evening is the favorite, followed by sunset. So if you're planning a photowalk in the near future, be sure to plan it for the end of the day.
Neil Creek
August 8, 2007I’m a big fan of Sigma lenses. I started with a Sigma DSLR (SD10), but when they were too slow updating their bodies, I got a 350D. My affection for Sigma gear persisted however, and I now use two Sigma lenses on my Canon.
They are at the extreme ends of my lens ranges: the 8mm f4 fisheye and the 80-400mm f5.6 telephoto. I love them both and the price/quality balance is just right. The fisheye is absolutely the most fun lens I’ve used!
I also have the Tamron 24-135mm f3.5 which I also like very very much. It’s my walkaround lens and is on the camera 90% of the time. It’s a good crisp lens and for the price, it’s fantastic value.
I voted for Sigma, but only because I have more experience with them. I love my Tamron as well and would recommend it.
Neil Creek
August 8, 2007Oh it’s an absolute blast!!
Here’s all the posts on my photo blog that have photos taken with the fisheye lens: https://neil.creek.name/blog/?s=fisheye
Brian Auer
August 8, 2007The fisheye sounds like a fun lens — I’ve got the 10-20mm Sigma, and it’s a real hoot at the wide end.
Andrew Ferguson
August 8, 2007I haven’t used Tamron or Tokina lenses but I’ve been impressed with the quality of Sigma.
I’ve used their 24-70 f2.8 and the infamous 10-20mm. The 24-70 was much sharper than I expected, I didn’t notice much difference between it and the Canon L equivalent.
The 10-20mm on the other hand had a bit more distortion than I was expecting and softness around the edges. It’s still a great lens, just not *quite* what I’d expected based on the rave reviews that are all over the net.
Kris Mitchell
March 26, 2010I’ve only been disappointed with Sigma once. Their 24-70 f2.8 Macro is a horrendous lens. Slow, noisy and not that quick to focus. All in all, I felt really let down by that lens.
It’s a shame really, because I’ve loved any of the other lenses of theirs I’ve had. the 12-24mm, 150-500mm OS, 28mm f1.8 have all been fantastic value for money. Now I can’t wait to try out the 70-200 f2.8 due out.