For the sole purpose of wide angle photography, the Sigma 8-16mm lens is the benchmark. The images are surprisingly sharp. An engineering marvel!

Funhouse of a lens for dramatic effect. Allows shots likely impossible with most other lenses. Not a low-light lens - don't even think about it. Unmatched for carshow, airshow, nature shots where wide is what you want. long end fairly sharp.

Wiiiiide; Great for confined spaces; Amazing perspective in right circumstance; Reasonably priced, considering; Long end fairly sharp

Easy to shoot your feet accidentally; Forget using it in low light; Distortion at periphery at 8mm but what would you expect Not FX; Funky lens cap thingie

Announced at PMA 2010 in February, the new Sigma AF 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6 DC HSM lens is designed specifically for DSLR cameras with APS-C size image sensors and boasts the widest angle of view of its type.

Sigma has embraced the ultra-wide sector, offering 4.5mm, 8mm, 10mm and 15mm prime lenses as well as 10-20mm zooms in variable aperture (f/4-5.6) and fixed aperture (f/3.5) versions and a 12-24mm zoom. There is also this new 8-16mm zoom.

Excellent 8mm performance

Weaker 16mm performance

With two 10-20mm lenses already within the Sigma stable, how exactly does this superwide offering fit into the line-up?

Excellent 8mm performance

Weaker 16mm performance

The Sigma AF 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6 DC HSM may be the new star in this lens segment. It's very sharp across the whole range straight from the max. aperture. Lateral CAs are also very well controlled. That's quite an achievement for such an extreme ultra-wide angle zoom lens.

This lens is a joy to use. I have taken some great photos with it. I have it's big brother, the 12-24 V2 and it is easily as good as that, if not better, but on a Canon crop it is equivalent to 13-26, not 12-24.I still don't understand why people on this forum give poor ratings to what is obviously...

Compact and light; fast to focus; razor sharp; image quality; build quality

None

A unique wide angle lens for APS-C cameras providing a rectilinear field of view equivalent to that of a 12-24mm lens on a 35mm camera.

Outstanding sharpness in the centre; Excellent build; Unique wide angle field of view for APS-C cameras; Compact dimensions; Silent focusing; Low distortion

CA towards edges of the frame at 8mm; Falloff at 8mm; No way to attach filters

Wide-angle lenses are essential for landscape photography, which is one of, if not the most popular, photographic genre. So when a brand new ultra wide-angle lens hits the shelves it's always going to be of interest to many of us.

This is my favourite lens without a shadow of a doubt. It's superb for landscapes and producing amazingly artistic photos from all manner of subjects. It's sharp as a knife and tough too.