Sigma 28-70mm f/2.8 EX issues *NOW WITH EXAMPLES*

Stradawhovious

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I recently purchased a Sigma 28-70mm 2.8 EX from fleabay, and have to say I'm quite disappointed. It seems that at 70mm, anything shot wider than f/8 is a sloppy mess.

Now I expected some degree of softness per my research, but this, to me, is unacceptable. Also, the seller admits to having the lens serviced at a shop in GA, so I wonder if that's not contributing to the issue. the zoom ring is incredibly tight as well, so I'm wondering if it's just a case of poor workmanship on the repair??

Anyone else have issue with this lens, or is it a function of Sigma in general (my first Sigma lens)?

I'm in talks with the seller about a return, but the initial conversations make me think he is reluctant.

Thoughts?
 
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I recently purchased a Sigma 28-70mm 2.8 EX from fleabay, and have to say I'm quite disappointed. It seems that at 70mm, anything shot wider than f/8 is a sloppy mess.

Now I expected some degree of softness per my research, but this, to me, is unacceptable. Also, the seller admits to having the lens services at a shop in GA, so I wonder if that's not contributing to the issue. the zoom ring is incredibly tight as well, so I'm wondering if it's just a case of poor workmanship on the repair??

Anyone else have issue with this lens, or is it a function of Sigma in general (my first Sigma lens)?

I'm in talks with the seller about a return, but the initial conversations make me think he is reluctant.

Thoughts?

Well I guess my thought is if you can't get anywhere near an acceptable image at less than F/8 at 70mm then odds are good there is an issue with the lens. I can't imagine that if the lens were operating properly that somewhere, someone wouldn't have written about how images at 70 mm look like a total disaster at less than F8. So yup, I'd be looking at return.
 
Well I guess my thought is if you can't get anywhere near an acceptable image at less than F/8 at 70mm then odds are good there is an issue with the lens. I can't imagine that if the lens were operating properly that somewhere, someone wouldn't have written about how images at 70 mm look like a total disaster at less than F8. So yup, I'd be looking at return.


Well, I talked with the seller and in light of the fact that it was never advertised as "repaired" he agreed to a return/refund situation. If I go that route I will be out $20 in shipping, but I guess that's better than having to live with a lens I can't use.
 
Well I guess my thought is if you can't get anywhere near an acceptable image at less than F/8 at 70mm then odds are good there is an issue with the lens. I can't imagine that if the lens were operating properly that somewhere, someone wouldn't have written about how images at 70 mm look like a total disaster at less than F8. So yup, I'd be looking at return.


Well, I talked with the seller and in light of the fact that it was never advertised as "repaired" he agreed to a return/refund situation. If I go that route I will be out $20 in shipping, but I guess that's better than having to live with a lens I can't use.

Yup, that's the one drawback to fleabay, sometimes it costs you a few bucks in shipping to resolve an issue like this one. All in all I've been pretty lucky purchasing used lenses myself but it will happen on occasion.
 
Here are some examples of what I'm experiencing. Shots are of a $2 bill from about 16" away, 100% crop of dead center of the frame.

Should I expect more from a used $200+ lens, or am I just being a spoiled baby?

In order, f/8, f/5.6, f/4 and f/2.8. I ran the test by both manual focusing and auto focusing, with the same result between the two. I did the test in 1/3 stop increments from 2.8 to 8, but figured the full stop differences would be enough to show the loss in clarity.

sigma8.jpg

sigma56.jpg

sigma4.jpg

sigma28.jpg
 

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