The Sigma 14-24mm F2.8 DG DN Art ($1,399) is the company's first ultra-wide zoom lens designed for mirrorless systems. The benefits are clear—it's smaller and lighter than the 14-24mm F2.8 DG HSM Art for SLR systems, and just as well built. It's yet another excellent lens from Sigma, at a very competitive price, and one that you shouldn't hesitate to add to your kit when shopping for an ultra-wide zoom. It's also an Editors' Choice.

The Widest F2.8

We've seen full-frame zooms that go wider than 14mm, but none that open to f/2.8. If you use a Sony system, you can opt for the FE 12-24mm F4 G for a larger view of the world, but at the cost of a full stop of light. If you use an L-mount camera, this is the widest zoom available with autofocus support at press time.

But even with its big angle of view and f/2.8 design, the Sigma 14-24mm F2.8 DG DN Art isn't overly large. It's designed for mirrorless system, which means its rear optics are closer to the image sensor, which vastly simplifies the design process. This 14-24mm F2.8 measures 5.2 by 3.4 inches (HW) and weighs 1.8 pounds. Compare this with the SLR version, which is about the same size, but notably heavier at 2.5 pounds.

Sigma sells this version of the 14-24mm for Leica L and Sony E mount cameras; the L mount is also supported by Panasonic and Sigma itself. The lens offers coverage for full-frame sensors, but works fine with APS-C models like the Sony a6600 and Leica CL as well, albeit with a reduced angle of view. Sigma provides a slip-on front cap, as well as a standard rear cap and a soft carrying case.

Construction is solid, with a mix of metal and polycarbonate for the housing. Sigma includes fluorine protection for the exposed front element, as well as dust and splash protection throughout. You can't use front filers due to the bulbous front element, but there is a rear holder for gel filters. The front element moves as you adjust the focal length, but never extends past the confines of the hood.

Focus and zoom rings are covered with rubberized ridges to improve your grip. The zoom ring sits toward the base, with the focus control just behind the integrated petal lens hood. There's a lone control switch, to change between manual and autofocus, as well as a customizable control button on the barrel. It locks focus by default, but you can reconfigure its function via your camera's menu.

You don't get optical stabilization with the lens—it's something we've seen in ultra-wide zooms for APS-C systems, but isn't expected when covering the bigger full-frame sensor. Most, but not all, E-mount and L-mount cameras offer in-body stabilization, which makes its omission less of an issue. In-body stabilization does a good job smoothing handheld video at wider angles, and I typically have no problem with 1/3-second or even 1/2-second handheld exposures at wider angles with the Sony a7R IV. At speeds that long subject motion is a larger concern.

Likewise, don't expect stunning macro results from such a wide lens. You can focus close, about 11 inches measured from the sensor plane, so you can get dramatic shots with your subject prominently in frame and a wide swath of background behind it. At the 24mm position, the lens nets 1:7.3 life-size reproduction at its closest focus distance, not close to the 1:2 or 1:3 we want to see from a zoom to consider it fit for macro work.

Strong Optics for High-Resolution Cameras

I tested the 14-24mm in E-mount with the 60MP Sony a7R IV. It's the most demanding full-frame sensor, in terms of resolution, available today, and truly needs excellent glass in front of it to shine. This zoom has little trouble keeping up.

At 14mm f/2.8, it nets a 4,050-line result, averaged across the frame using Imatest, a result that is in our very good range for the a7R IV sensor. Resolution is outstanding in the central area (5,040 lines), but does give way to results that are just good (3,000 lines) as you move toward the edges. Performance holds steady at f/4, but ticks up to excellent at f/5.6 (4,400 lines), f/8 (4,675 lines), and f/11 (4,528 lines), all with better edge clarity than at f/4 or wider—good information to take into account when photographing traditional landscape scenes. Diffraction reduces resolution to the good range at f/16 (3,800 lines) and f/22 (2,366 lines).

See How We Test Digital Cameras

At the midpoint of the zoom, 18mm f/2.8, we see very good resolution (4,278 lines), and it leaps into the excellent range at f/4 (4,750 lines) through f/5.6 (4,950 lines), f/8 (4,970 lines), and f/11 (4,615 lines). We see the expected dip in detail at f/16 (3,850 lines) and f/22 (2,525 lines).

Resolution isn't quite as strong at 24mm, falling back to the good range (3,560 lines) through f/4 (3,770 lines) and f/5.6 (3,825 lines). It enters excellent territory at f/8 (4,550 lines) and f/11 (4,675 lines). There's a slight drop at f/16 (4,045 lines) and a more pronounced one at f/22 (2,580 lines).

Distortion is a concern with ultra-wide lenses—it's easy to get a wide view of the world with a fish-eye look, but that won't do for architectural work. The 14-24mm shows some barrel distortion (3.4 percent) and a modest pincushion effect (1.3 percent) at 24mm.

Distortion is relatively easy to compensate for using software tools, and the effect isn't overwhelming to start. You can see the barrel effect adding a slight bulge to the fire extinguisher and column in the uncorrected 14mm shot above.

There's also a little bit of a vignette when shooting at f/2.8, but it's not extreme, and is also corrected easily using Lightroom or another photo editor.

Another Sigma Stunner

Sigma's Art lens series has earned accolade after accolade, with good reason. Its various entries have been at, at their worst, still quite good, and at their best, outstanding. The 14-24mm F2.8 DG DN Art is another solid entry, covering an ultra-wide angle of view and maintaining a bright f/2.8 aperture through the entirety of the range.

It's also well made, with dust and splash protection throughout, along with fluorine protection on the big front element. If you're shopping for this type of lens for your E-mount or L-mount camera, it's hard to find a better all-around option, especially given the price, so we're naming the lens our Editors' Choice.

There are alternatives, of course. Sony makes the FE 12-24mm F4, which offers a bit more wide-angle coverage, and if you don't mind a narrower angle, and want to spend less, the Tamron 17-28mm is a fantastic value. If you value that over the ability to work at f/2.8, it's a fine lens, assuming you use a Sony system. If you're shopping for an L-mount camera you have fewer choices, simply because the system isn't yet built out to the extent of E-mount. Panasonic and Leica each sell a 16-35mm zoom, but if you crave a wider view, the 14-24mm is a better pick.

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