Review of the Sigma 70mm f/2.8 macro lens for Sony E-mount

Sigma 70mm f/2.8 macro lens for Sony E

Disclaimer : I’ve only used this lens on my Sony A7III (full frame mirrorless) thus my review is solely based on my specific usage.

There are a few things that I personally think are important in a macro photography lens, and, based on those I’ve rated this lens.

Sharpness: 5/5

Bokeh: 4/5

Focusing: Manual 4/5 and Autofocus 2/5

Sharpness

I rave this lens for its sharpness. Compared to my Sony 16-35 f/2.8 GM lens that cost four times more, the Sigma is unbeatable in its sharpness. However, I’ve heard real good things about the Sony 90mm macro lens, but obviously it comes at a price. The Sigma 70mm is nearly half the price of the Sony 90mm and what you’ll be missing out on the Sigma is the OSS and decent autofocusing capabilities.

Bokeh

The lens features a 9-blade round diaphragm that renders darn nice bokeh. It’s not the best as when cropped in it displays onion rings and cat eyed bokeh balls but not always. Overall the picture looks good.

Focusing

I’m a manual mode camera person, and for macro photography I wouldn’t suggest using autofocus. This lens has a physical switch allowing you to change between Autofocus and Manual focus modes without scrolling through the camera menus which is useful I would say.

Once in manual mode, you could use the lens’ focus limiting switch to select between the three focusing ranges (0.258m to 0.5m, 0.5m to infinity, Full) depending on the distance you are from your subject. And I think this is a pretty cool feature as you’d like to keep a certain distance away from insects that baffle easily by anyone’s presence.

There is one ring on the lens, for focusing of course and according to Sigma the large angle of rotation on the ring allows one to be more precise. In my opinion, the large angle is certainly useful when you are shooting a static subject and have all the time to be precise about your focus. However, for moving subjects it’s near to impossible to keep adjusting the ring especially because the lens has an inner barrel that extends depending on how close you wish to focus. I pre-set the focus ring at a certain angle and then move the camera closer or away from my subject to get it in the focusing plane. For a 1:1 magnification the inner barrel has to be extended to its maximum length. Because of this focus-by-wire system, the autofocusing on this lens is pretty average as you can imagine the lens extending and retracting constantly while finding something to focus on. At most times the autofocus is a hit and miss unless your subject is still. But it would hunt for a while before it fixed on a subject.

Other niggles

Being an above average lens overall, there are few things about this lens that I personally find annoying. The lens is not weather sealed, though Sigma claims it to be suited to a variety of conditions. I often find dust on my sensor after using this lens which creeps in on my images as dark spots due to the narrower apertures (f/8 to f/14) I use for macro. I can correct the dust spots in post, but having to get my sensor cleaned professionally is an expensive affair.

Technical Specifications

Lens construction : 13 elements in 10 groups

Angle of view : 34.3°

Number of diaphragm blades : 9 (Rounded diaphragm)

Maximum aperture : f2.8

Minimum aperture: f/22

Minimum focusing distance : 25.8cm / 10.2in

Filter size : 49 mm

Weight : 515g / 18.2oz.

Accessories

These are the accessories I use for macro along with this lens that are not supplied with it.

- Raynox DCR 250, for extra magnification