Sigma 24-70 II officially announced

[Simone_DF]

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Press release:

https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000065.000031110.html
 

TL;DR: slightly smaller and lighter than the previous model, new optical formula, slighly better MFD, sharper, newer AF motors. Price is 1199$. 
I hope they fixed the sealing, the previous model was prone to dust. 

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The Leica Q3 is available for pre-order at B&H Photo Video and Adorama

[MediaFotografie]

https://www.sigma-foto.de/objektive/24-70mm-f28-dg-dn-ii-art/uebersicht/#ppc

[wizard]

Man fragt sich nun natürlich, ob die Leica Version dieses Objektivs ebenfalls von den Verbesserungen profitieren wird. Ich fürchte nein, denn Leica ändert üblicherweise seine Objektive nicht so schnell.

And in English: It remains to be seen whether Leica's own version of that lens will benefit from the various improvements of this Sigma lens. I fear this may not be the case, as Leica is not known for changing their lenses so quickly.

Edited May 16, 2024 by wizard
addition of text

[BernardC]

Ironically, Sigma's new MTF curves look more like Leica's. The sagittal and tangential lines are now closer together, and the sagittal stays above tangential all the way to the corners.

The construction is clearly different (number and location of aspherical elements), but maybe Sigma was inspired by Leica's modifications? We'll never know for sure, of course, but it's a possibility.

[Simone_DF]

1 hour ago, wizard said:

And in English: It remains to be seen whether Leica's own version of that lens will benefit from the various improvements of this Sigma lens. I fear this may not be the case, as Leica is not known for changing their lenses so quickly.

I doubt Leica will release an upgraded version. Which means that, at least on paper, probably this the best 24-70 for the L mount for the foreseeable future.

I'll wait a few months to see how real life daily user find it and, if Sigma has managed to solve the dust ingress issue, I'll get this version.   

[TeleElmar135mm]

vor 1 Stunde schrieb wizard:

Man fragt sich nun natürlich, ob die Leica Version dieses Objektivs ebenfalls von den Verbesserungen profitieren wird. Ich fürchte nein, denn Leica ändert üblicherweise seine Objektive nicht so schnell.

And in English: It remains to be seen whether Leica's own version of that lens will benefit from the various improvements of this Sigma lens. I fear this may not be the case, as Leica is not known for changing their lenses so quickly.

... there was the discussion which version from #1 is better, the Leica or the Sigma. Some guys assume, that Leica used some other glas inside. So did Sigma with the version #2. They changed 3 aspherical lenses and changed two other from "normal" to ashericaland made 5 from 3. The first tests show, that there is an improvement, other say only a light improvement. But the question is, why Leica didn't wait for the variant #2? So it was a good job (in financial terms) from Sigma to licence only the "old" one for Leica. This could become a negative renonee.

And the next question: what is with the 14-24.Will be there a type #2 soon? I ft is soon announced, the buyer from the Leica one could be dissapointed a second time. So I love my 24-90 more every day .

[BernardC]

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1 hour ago, Simone_DF said:

I doubt Leica will release an upgraded version. Which means that, at least on paper, probably this the best 24-70 for the L mount for the foreseeable future.

Leica's MTFs are still a little better at the extreme edges of the frame, especially at 24mm. That's probably not a significant difference "in real life," but it's measurable.

2 hours ago, TeleElmar135mm said:

But the question is, why Leica didn't wait for the variant #2?

Because it wasn't ready yet, and also it's not quite as good as the lens that Leica released. If anything, it looks like Sigma re-designed their 24-70 after they saw Leica's lens.

Really, any photographer would be happy with any of these three lenses. They are all very good, with slight differences that are mostly visible in a lab. I wouldn't be in any rush to upgrade if I had the old Sigma version, and there's absolutely no reason to do so if you have the Leica lens. Going forward, the reasoning is the same as before: the Sigma and Leica are comparatively priced if you are buying a Leica kit (body + lens), but the Sigma is cheaper on its own.

[DirkZ]

I'll wait for the Panasonic 28-70 Large Aperture Zoom. I hope it will not have the dimensions of the Canon 28-70mm F2.0 with a weight of 1430 gr.

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[BernardC]

I compared the lens diagrams for the old Sigma, the new Sigma, and the Leica. One noticeable difference is that the rear group has a larger diameter in the new Sigma and in the Leica, compared to the old Sigma.

I realize that these diagrams are very approximate, but that may explain the improved corner performance in the new Sigma, and of course in the Leica. Other than that, it's a game of "spot the differences." The three lenses are similar, but not the same.

[Simone_DF]

2 hours ago, BernardC said:

Leica's MTFs are still a little better at the extreme edges of the frame, especially at 24mm. That's probably not a significant difference "in real life," but it's measurable.

I don’t shoot landscape or architecture, so the little difference at the extreme corners haas zero importance to me. The newer model is lighter, more compact, has faster AF motors, and, according to first reviews, better weather sealing. These are all things that matter to me, so that’s where I’ll put my money. Of course other people may have different priorities and that’s fine too. 

[oculaii]

I just like the output of the 24-70mm S Pro so much (much more than the Sigma 24-70mm first version), I have no plan to change, even if the S Pro is a beast.

But for people searching for a very sharp 24-70mm, pretty lightweight and not expensive, the new Sigma is a great option.

[Stuart Richardson]

What I am really curious about is how it compares to the 24-90, as the MTF looks pretty close. I am not a zoom shooter in general, but an inexpensive, compact and high performing one could convince me to have on hand for particular situations that call for one.

 

[JohnSantaF4]

On 5/17/2024 at 12:09 AM, oculaii said:

I just like the output of the 24-70mm S Pro so much (much more than the Sigma 24-70mm first version), I have no plan to change, even if the S Pro is a beast.

But for people searching for a very sharp 24-70mm, pretty lightweight and not expensive, the new Sigma is a great option.

I ordered it today at 100usd discount and shipping May 31, so we’ll see.

[beewee]

Interesting that everyone is assuming that the Sigma’s v2 is better than the Leica version. It’s very possible the following happened:

1. Sigma came up with the OG (v1)
2. Leica wanted to adopt v1 but added its own tweaks to improve performance in some ways and there was some kind of exclusivity agreement in the contract where improvements that were made for the Leica version could not be used by Sigma or any other party for a certain period of time (3 years?)
3. The exclusivity agreement expired and Sigma adapted some or all of the improvements from the Leica version and maybe left out some of the more expensive changes that still exists in the Leica version to keep costs reasonable on the v2

I’m not suggesting I know anything as the above is pure imagination but its also something that is quite common practice when working with contract designers/manufacturers.

Bear in mind that the Leica version was released in April 2021 and the Sigma v2 came out just over 3 years from when the Leica version was announced.

Edited May 27, 2024 by beewee

[Virob]

From Leica: The optical system of the Vario-Elmarit-SL 24–70 f/2.8 ASPH. contains a total of 19 elements in 15 groups. These include three aspherical lens elements for the correction of monochromatic aberrations and nine elements made from glasses with anomalous partial dispersion for the correction of chromatic aberrations.

Sigma 24-70 dg dn:  six sheets of "F" low dispersion (FLD) glass and two sheets of special low dispersion (SLD) glass are lavishly employed while taking advantage of an optical design dedicated for mirrorless lenses. By employing three aspheric lenses, this zoom lens thoroughly subdues aberrations such as axial chromatic aberration or sagittal coma aberrations,

Sigma 24-70 dg dn ii: The optical design of the lens includes 6 FLD glass elements, 2 SLD glass elements, and 5 aspherical lens elements to thoroughly suppress various aberrations throughout the entire zoom range. 

There are other reported changes as well with the new Sigma ( thinner elements), but all three lenses are slightly different from each other. It looks more like Sigma and Leica each took the 24-70 dg dn, and slightly tweaked it in their own way. Who did a better job, awaits a direct comparison.

[beewee]

16 hours ago, Virob said:

It looks more like Sigma and Leica each took the 24-70 dg dn, and slightly tweaked it in their own way. Who did a better job, awaits a direct comparison.

Sure looks like it. It likely boils down to different design priorities.

According to Peter Karbe, anomalous partial dispersion class is often used to correct for chromatic aberrations. He actually touched on this in a pretty interesting presentation that was posted a few days ago: 

 

[la1402]

I tested the lens in the shop today. The combination of slightly lighter weight, smaller size and much better AF than my VE2470 is appealing. If you just hold the lenses in your hands, the difference in size and weight does not appear that big, but mounted on the SL3 the whole package is noticeably more comfortable to hold with the new Sigma. And AF is much better. 

[FlashGordonPhotography]

Should have mine next week. I don’t expect it to really compete with my 24-90 at the bleeding edge of performance but the weight savings, af performance and aperture ring appeal greatly as a travel lens. I never owned the first or the Leica variant so I won’t be able to compare except to my 24-90, which I consider one of the best standard zooms ever made.

Sigma are crushing it. Just crushing it. The L mount must be delighted they came on board early, now.

Gordon

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Hallo,

Look here: Interesting Leica gear

[IP54]

I tried it on my SL2 and keep it.

On the center it's just a bit better than the first version, but on the edges it's way better in term of sharpness, with no field curvature, and better ergonomic on the body.

Moreover, it's better than the two 24-90 i tested on SL2, on my usual "library" test.

Of course it's not at the apo-summicron's level, but it's the best 24-70 i tried to date, especially on the wide range.

 

On the other hand, i tried the FE version on my old A9 against my 24-70GM first version, it's better but on the Sony 24Mp files it's very touchy to see the difference even at 100%.

(i can't convince myself to sell the A9 until we have a body with a good AFc in L-mount...)

I tried previously the first Sigma 24-70DGDN on a loaned S5II and it produced a lot more detailed files than my GM1 on the A9, so i suppose the Sony sensor glass thickness is limiting the performance, compared to the Panasonic and Leica sensors.

 

So to my eyes, this 24-70DGDNII is a very good performer on L-mount bodies, especially at more than 24Mp.