Q&A

Questions & Answers

Shopper : I have a Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT - is this lens compatible?FRANK M : Yes it is compatible with all "crop" frame Canon digital cameras. It will yield a field of view of approximately 13mm ( not 8mm) at its widest setting because it is not on a full frame camera. I have found the auto focus tends to "hunt" at times, so sometimes its better to switch to manual focus. The build quality is solid. There is no easy way to attach filters to this lens. Be careful how you compose because there will be off axis distortion at the wider settings (images will have a somewhat "fisheye" appearance). And the outer lens bulges so be careful not to bump or scratch it. The angle of view is wide enough that you have to be careful not to include your feet in the image, and watch for vignetting. Good luck.CATHY W : I have this lens and use it with my Canon 7d which like your Rebel is also a cropped sensor camera. The lens is incredibly sharp and is very useful in landscapes.NICOLAS Z : I'm not certain of the compatibility with your camera. All I can say is that I bought mine for my canon 7D. If it's the same diameter/fitting as the 7D, then it is compatible.KORNELIUS S : Perfect for your camera if you upgrade to 7d still perfect not good for full frame like 5 dDON K : YesSEBASTIAN P : Yes. Fully compatible.En-Kae C : Yes
brittany s : Just purchased our Canon EOS 60D and the Sigma 8-16 mm DC lens. We cannot figure out how to attach the lens to the camera? It is not holding in place when we twist the lens. Can someone please help!ARNAB S : First, please make sure your Sigma 8-16 came with a Canon mount. Sigma makes this lens for Canon/Nikon and other Mounts. Your lens will fit only if it has a Canon mount. If the 60D was bought with a bundled Canon lens (Like the 18-55 or 18-135 etc.) the Sigma should attach exactly the Same way, and should lock with Clockwise rotation. However, the White/Red dot that you align before fitting the Lens, is placed a little differently in the Sigma. It can be figured easily by looking closely at the Channel in the Lens. I cannot think of any other problem. I have been using the Sigma 8-16 for my Canon for more than 3 Years now without any problem and have got some awesome shots. Hope you'll enjoy your lens, too. :)TOM R : 1. Remove the rear lens cap. 2. Match up the white dot on the lens (Below the Focus switch) with the white dot on the camera front. 3. Rotate the lens clockwise until the lens locks into place.CATHY W : White dot on lens should match up to the white dot on the camera body, insert fully then twist to the right until it clicks. If none of this happens you may not have the correct lens for your camera body.PEGGY A. R : Just line up the white dot on the lens (inner left of AF button) to the white dot on your camera body and twist to the right. It's my favorite lens for sure!KORNELIUS S : Can you find the white dot to match the body s red dot ? Are you sure the lens has canon mount? It is possible that you got Nikon or sony mount they will not mount do you have any other lenses?? Please check if they mount correctly?i have two of those one for canon for my 7 D and one for my sony A77 you cannot switch them ,do not use force check the mount and exchange the lens alohaDENNIS L : I did not have this problem, nor have I ever had this problem with a 3rd party lens. My only thought is that you did not get the lens with a Canon mount. You need to verify this as you could damage both the lens and the camera. If this is not the problem I suggest that you go to a reputable local caners dealer and have them look at the lens/camera interface. Once you solve this problem I know that you will enjoy the results you get with this lens. Good Luck!FRANK M : The lens surface that attaches to the camera has a red dot. Line the red dot up with the red dot on the Canon camera. Rotate the lens clockwise (as the lens faces the camera) and you should hear a click as it engages and locks into place. To disengage, press the lens release button and rotate the lens in the opposite direction. The video link here shows the red dot on the lens. On the Sigma site you will see a video for this lens that shows the red dot on the lens surface, and the lens being attached.
Shopper : is this lens compatible with an eos 60D? rebel xti?ALFRED J : Yes it is for a crop sensor canonLAURA R : thanks! I was more concerned about it working with my 60D anyway. I've only used my rebel once since I got the 60D last year anyway.ERIC T : I used it very successfully with the 60D, but have no experience wit the Rebel XTI.CHRIS I : It works great on my 60D, I can't speak for the Rebel xti.

Reviews about this item

Review Summary

2020-09-11T08:22:13

Rated 5 out of 5

Sigma 8-16mm 4/4.5-5.6 AF lens

I have had this lens for about 3 weeks now. It is nice and sturdy, not plastic like some kit lenses. The zoom works smooth and focus is good. The 4.5-5.5 aperture is fine for most shots but may not be as good as a faster lens for night photography. It has a petal lens hood built in with no way to use a traditional shaped filter for protecting the lens so caution is advised when up close focusing to your subject or you may bump the lens and scratch the coating. Overall for the price and quaity of the lens i would recommend it for those doing landscape or architectural photographs.

ED D.

2020-07-15T17:43:55

Rated 5 out of 5

Perfect for wide angle photos

I love this lens for getting great wide angle photos

JAMES G.

2019-12-27T07:43:12

Rated 5 out of 5

Wife Angle Lens

Great wide angle lens. I use it sports photography to get that great stadium shot showing the capacity crowd.

JAMES G.

2018-04-16T12:02:22

Rated 5 out of 5

The only zoom lens available at time of purchase with 12mm..

AS stated above, 12mm WA ability for APS format has been extremely helpful. I did a series on older Barber Shops. These tend to be somewhat narrow and long, in layout. This was usually the only lens needed for entire shoots. Images for the required 8x10 format were sharp and color accurate. From a business stand point, very successful.

RICHARD E.

2018-01-05T18:05:47

Rated 5 out of 5

Great Lens!

I got this lens mainly because of how wide it is. I've been wanting to get a super-wide lens for a while now and I'm very happy that I got this one. There are a lot of other great options, mainly the Canon 10-22mm but, since I currently have a Canon 15-85mm and usually would go to that for landscape photography I didn't see the need to only gain 5mm but instead opted for a larger gain. This is a superb lens. It takes beautiful pictures. It's sharp and has very nice contrast levels. There is some mild lens flare that occurs even when the sun/moon/light is just out of shot but there isn't so much if it's pointed directly at it. The only downside to this lens is that there is no way to screw filters onto the front since it's just a built-in lens hood, however, if you don't plan on doing a lot of landscape photography than that shouldn't be an issue. In conclusion, this is a lovely lens and it a whole lot of fun to use especially for architecture and landscape, and some distorted portraits if you really want to do that.

Coleridge N.

2017-12-01T10:11:42

Rated 5 out of 5

Great ultra wide zoom!

Wide agle lenses are great fun, and this one has great sharpness and ease of use. I would buy it again.

Jeffrey H.

2017-12-01T10:08:53

Rated 5 out of 5

Great ultra wide lens

I love this lens. It is really fun to get close to something for scale and shoot down parallel rows of something. Railroad tracks, corn rows, long driveways, medium driveways that you want to look long. I am glad I bought it.

Jeffrey H.

2017-04-04T08:53:15

Rated 5 out of 5

Excellent lens, good value

Excellent lens, good value. I would not hesitate to recommend this lens

JAMES L.

2016-12-18T09:57:23

Rated 5 out of 5

Wow, what a lens

I've used this 8-16mm lens with both my Canon APC and a Canon full-sized 35mm sensor, and it's a brilliant lens regardless of the sensor. On the 35mm, I use only 16mm --- a wider view seems senseless. On the APC, however, the 8mm wide angle view is sensational, comparable to about 12mm with the larger sensor, good for both landscapes when you want lots of sky, and surprisingly for closeup shots when there is little room. Surprisingly the closeups show little apparent distortion. Overall the lens is a delight, but bulky and heavy.

EVAN D.

2016-06-23T12:20:01

Rated 3 out of 5

The Sigma 8-16mm for Real Estate Photography

Bought this lens for interior real estate photography mounted on my Canon 60D. I already have the Canon 10-20mm lens which is plenty wide enough most of the time but I occasionally need something a little wider, thus I bought the Sigma 8-16. Pros: 1. Relatively little barrel distortion for such a wide angle. 2. Images are sharp, clear, colors accurate. Image quality seems to be every bit as good as the Canon 10-20. Cons: Interior photos tend to be underexposed compared to the Canon 10-20, even at the same focal length and same external flash. With the Sigma I have to turn up flash exposure compensation and/or camera exposure compensation to +1 3/4 or even +2 or +3 to get proper exposure.

ALLAN P.

2016-03-25T09:23:45

Rated 5 out of 5

Loving it

Loving it...excellent for landscaping photography and group picture...I used it on our trip to Red Rock Canyon, NV.

JORGE B.

2014-08-14T21:00:00

Rated 5 out of 5

Great lens for APS-C DX Format

A question was sent to me about using this lens on a Nikon D-90...I have a Nikon D-80 & 7000, and love this lens for both. I've used it on landscapes & cathedrals and while the edges are curved, simply crop that part out. I do not find it has a fisheye effect. I have only used it outside in sunshine & cloudy skies so I can't review it for indoors. I would recommend it if you are looking for an ultra-wide lens for your bag.

Barbara

2014-02-12T19:00:00

Rated 4 out of 5

Great if you need it

Very nice lens. Focus ring is a bit tight but will hopefully loosen up.

NATHAN R.

2013-11-08T19:00:00

Rated 4 out of 5

Great Image Quality

Very sharp to the edges, even wide open. Replaced a Tokina 11-16 that need to be stopped down to f/5.6, so no lens speed lost. On the downside, it can't focus infrared, which was important to me. Still a keeper though.

WAYNE A.

2013-10-26T21:00:00

Rated 5 out of 5

love it

I was a little nervous buying this. I do photography strictly for fun. I am not a pro. I wanted a lens with more of a wide angle than my 28mm. I took this to Cape Cod shortly after I received it and got some great shots of the ocean.

ShineRM

2013-05-27T21:00:00

Rated 4 out of 5

Great REALLY wide angle zoom

If you're in the market for a very wide angle zoom, this one is certainly worth considering. While there is distortion, that's to be expected with this type lens. The images it produces are, in a word, sharp. Its maximum f-stop tends to make shooting dim interiors difficult without a support

CHARLES B.

2012-12-12T19:00:00

Rated 4 out of 5

Has potential

I studied the rave reviews and looked at plenty of examples on-line, so I was disappointed when my lens showed extreme curvature of field at the widest setting. In other words, I could have sharp focus in the center or at the edges but not over the entire image. This problem was actually more pronounced on the the right side than the left. None of the reviewers mentioned this issue, so I returned it. I am still convinced that this is a potentially great lens. if you are looking for the widest possible view for an APS chip camera, there is not other choice. The lens also has a nice finish and a good solid feel.

S A.

2012-08-26T21:00:00

Rated 4 out of 5

Great lens all round

I use it for almost everything. I love the depth of field. so far nothing I don't like about this lens

Fredski

2012-07-29T21:00:00

Rated 5 out of 5

Great Lens

I tried the tokina 11-16mm and the focus was soft on that copy so I returned to adorama. When I thought about it, the sweet spot on a lens forces you to stop down anyway so I decided to try the sigma 8-16mm. Very good lens and a better fit for what I am going to use it for mostly which is landscape/vacation photo's and when I need low light permormance indoor's I will just use a tripod.

PATRICK T.

2012-06-24T21:00:00

Rated 5 out of 5

Great wide angle lens

Just received this lens a few weeks ago. Used it at an outdoor wedding in upstate New York. Photos turned out great. Looking forward to taking this lens on an upcoming trip to San Francisco and Yosemite NP. Lens works well on my Canon 7D.

Scott S.

2012-06-03T21:00:00

Rated 5 out of 5

Must have lens!!!

with 8mm wide you can take pictures in a wide variety ways and it will give a new dimension to your photography.

Sunil

2012-04-15T21:00:00

Rated 5 out of 5

The Utimate Landscape Lens

The Sigma 8-16 is an astonishing lens for landscapes. I find that familiar subjects (such as Bandon Beach in Oregon) look quite new through the viewfinder with this lens, creating possibilities for some exciting photography that otherwise, with a longer focal length, would not be possible. I am also impressed by the build quality of this, my first Sigma lens.

Ed

2012-01-03T19:00:00

Rated 5 out of 5

Excellent Lens

I swap this lens between primary / secondary walkaround. I had viewed multiple pictures from it online and was impressed, but when I actually used it the absence of CA and very good (for an 8mm) sharpness of the edges, even wide open, impressed me. This lens is fantastic to use. I feel bad for the other guy who seems to have got a bad copy (although from the 300 page long rambling nonsense-filled review with no line breaks, I think he had a bad copy of his brain as well). I love this lens, and I completely hate Sigma as a company after being taken for $1600 on one of their shoddy cameras, so that's saying quite a bit.

Rip T.

2011-12-12T19:00:00

Rated 4 out of 5

Plenty wide!

Haven't used it much so far, but is great indoors with flask, and outdoors for fall colors.

David A.

2011-12-06T19:00:00

Rated 5 out of 5

Great lens!

same PQ as my nikon's lens but much wider!

Tom R.

2011-11-27T19:00:00

Rated 5 out of 5

I like this lens

really wiiiiide. Fun lens. May obsolete my 11x16.

oldtimingman

2011-09-26T21:00:00

Rated 5 out of 5

Untra Wide Af

The Sigma 8 - 16mm is a great lens, covering the widest field of view I could find at the time, w/o being in the zone of the fish-eye reagions. The lens is built weel, and operated without flaw, the only draw back is because its so wide, there is no filter attachemnt rings, so if you like or need to filter your photos, this might not be the lens for you. Depth of field was great, and edge to edge sharpness is very good, falling off only at the widest openings.

CHARLES G.

2011-09-12T21:00:00

Rated 5 out of 5

Great lens for a great price!

I use this lens for landscape and wildlife. I have also used it for nighttime lightening shots with great results. Optics are top quality. Have not found anything to dislike about this lens.

WILLIAM P.

2011-09-05T21:00:00

Rated 5 out of 5

Really wide

I have the Samyang 8mm semi-fisheye and fell in love with this inexpensive but very effective lens. It is 180 degrees wide and preserves relative proportions on the perimeter. Great lens for putting people in a wide view of a scene and for a "wild" look. I have found a lot of uses for it. But it does curve straight lines and this is not appropriate for some landscapes and architectural work. I purchased the Sigma 8-16 and have been very pleased with the results. It is rectilinear lens and preserves straight lines, even at the perimeter of the scene. It is excellent for architectural work and more formal landscapes (see pool photo below). I now like to use both the Samyang 8mm and the Sigma 8-16. They compliment each other and I will keep both. 8mm is very wide! When I use my Tokina 12-24mm, it almost feels like it is a slightly telephoto lens. It is amazing how much can be included in a scene. And, it is really necessary to compose photos in a totally different manner at 8mm. The Sigma 8-16 is teaching me to appreciate really-wide photography. You must, however, be aware of the extreme effect on perspective and how the view (particularly at 8mm) does not correspond to what the human eye sees. Objects in the foreground look huge when compared to distant objects. Distant objects almost disappear to become very tiny parts of the photo (see photo of shore below). Technically, the lens is great. It has very low distortion (haven't even noticed it in actual use). Colors are vibrant and contrast is excellent. Feels very sturdy and I don't worry about leaving it on the camera while manuvering. Auto focus is very fast. Zoom range is very useful, especially with architectural work where is not always possible to physically back up any more. Also, works well for HDR architectural shots. I like the lens and find myself including it in my bag most of the time.

John H.

2011-09-04T21:00:00

Rated 5 out of 5

Awesome wide-angle zoom

Sigma continues to break new ground in digital ultrawides, and this lens is no exception. Incredibly low distortion for this type of lens.

Chuck S.