Sigma 18-50mm F2.8 DC DN C Sony E-Mount Fit

The SIGMA 18-50mm F2.8 DC DN | Contemporary covers 27mm to 75mm in the 35mm format, and has a wide aperture of F2.8 throughout the entire zoom range.

This makes it easy to achieve blurry backgrounds, which is ideal for shooting attractive portraits and close-ups. The bokeh is smooth and attractive so doesn’t distract from the in-focus subject.

The lens’s three high-precision glass-molded aspherical elements coupled with the minimisation of the total number of elements yields superb optical quality without excessive weight, and the use of in-camera aberration correction further eliminates optical imperfections such as distortion and vignetting.

This has all been made possible by the latest optical design technology at SIGMA’s only production base in Aizu, where all SIGMA lenses are built.

The SIGMA 18-50mm F2.8 DC DN | Contemporary is remarkably compact, matching the portability of APS-C mirrorless camera bodies. This makes it a perfect workhorse lens that is ideal for general day-to-day use. The lens is currently the smallest and lightest in its class (at time of writing), boasting a maximum diameter of 65.4mm, a length of 74.5mm and weight of 290g (L-Mount version), yet still maintains a constant aperture of F2.8.

To keep the lens as light as possible, SIGMA constructed the body from carefully selected materials. A polycarbonate called Thermally Stable Composite (TSC) was used for the construction of the barrel, which is sleek, robust, and importantly has a thermal conductivity close to that of aluminium. This ensures stable performance and good operability when used in changing temperatures. By using metal for some of the internal structure, the parts could be much thinner and have a higher rigidity, ensuring the lens can stand up to frequent, heavy use.

The 18-50mm F2.8 has the same aperture and a similar focal length to the popular but now discontinued SIGMA 17-50mm EX DC OS HSM. Despite these similarities, this new mirrorless standard zoom is considerably smaller and lighter, as can be in the to-scale image (right).

Sigma is now one of the very few imaging manufacturers whose products are solely made in Japan. This gives us full control over our production processes and helps us maintain the highest levels of quality control over the design, manufacture and construction of every product. Great care is taken to ensure the highest quality materials are chosen.

The new SIGMA 18-50mm F2.8 DC DN | Contemporary has fast and near-silent AF that makes it perfectly suited to a range of photographic applications, including shooting in quiet environments, recording video and capturing fast-moving subjects. This has been achieved by using a stepping motor as the AF actuator. Since it is small and lightweight, it can be used flexibly in situations such as handheld shooting, which requires high mobility, gimbal shooting, one-man operation video shooting and vlogging.

With an emphasis on making the lens as versatile as possible in a wide variety of shooting conditions, SIGMA designed the lens with a minimum focusing distance of 12.1 cm and maximum magnification of 1:2.8 at the wide end, making it ideal for close-ups.

Combined with the pocketable full-frame SIGMA fp, the total weight is only 712g, and it can also be useful as a sub-lens for full-frame cameras (used in crop mode) to keep weight down.

The 18-50mm F2.8 DC DN | Contemporary, which combines a compact and lightweight body, high optical performance and a large aperture supports a variety of shooting situations, from introductory single-lens mirrorless cameras to video shooting, and is ideal for a wide range of photographic genres.

An impressive minimum focusing distance of 12.1cm at the wide end of the zoom range (a working distance of 4.7cm) up to 30cm fully zoomed in allows you to capture subjects close-up in incredible detail.

This gives a maximum magnification ratio of 1:2.8 and makes the lens ideal for shooting macro-style images of flowers, insects, textures and products.

The below image of an insect taken on the 18-50mm F2.8 DC DN | Contemporary demonstrates the lens’s impressive ability to capture macro-style details without the need for close-up filters or macro rings.

The mid-range focal length of this lens, coupled with its exceptional image quality, makes it ideal for portrait photography. At the tele end, it offers the perfect field-of-view for head and shoulders portraits, allowing you to achieve a flattering perspective on the face. Zoomed out to 28mm, it’s ideal for full body shots such as environmental portraits.

The wide and constant F2.8 aperture allows for a shallow depth-of-field, which helps the subject to stand out. Attractive, smooth bokeh ensures backgrounds are not distracting.

Included in the box is a petal-style lens hood (LH582-02) that will help to reduce flare and ghosting when shooting into the sun or other bright source of light. Its tough but ultra-light polycarbonate design can also help protect the lens from damage if dropped.