Now that I've had this lens a few weeks, I thought I'd start a lens specific thread for those interested in this lens. There is not much in the way of technical reviews on this lens yet, but I'm certain it will be well recieved. The build quality is good for it's price point, very similar to the new 24-85. The zoom and focus rings are snug and smooth. It's very compact and light for an Ultra-wide, won't mind walking around much with this lens. My main concern with this lens was extreme corner and edge sharpness, starting out at 18mm it is important that those edges are "useable". I'm pleased to report it is very good in the corners and extreme edges. There is some softness at the extremes as expected, but nothing that needs to be cropped off. Center and mid frame sharpness is excellent. Distortion is very well controlled for the focal range and easily corrected. Color rendition and contrast is excellent also.
The shots below are uncropped (except to level the horizon where needed) and no distortion correction was applied. Please note that the ground was very uneven, so some of what you are seeing is not distortion. These are all 3 shot HDR's at 18mm. I put a couple "finished" crops in my "occasional Posting" thread.
The shots below are uncropped (except to level the horizon where needed) and no distortion correction was applied. Please note that the ground was very uneven, so some of what you are seeing is not distortion. These are all 3 shot HDR's at 18mm. I put a couple "finished" crops in my "occasional Posting" thread.