Earlier this year, the prestigious European Photo & Imaging Awards of the Technical Image Press Association (TIPA) recognized the lens as Best Entry Level Lens for 2010. Now, the European Imaging & Sound Association (EISA) has honoured the lens with another coveted award. EISA is an organization which consists of 50 photo, video and audio magazines from 18 European countries. Each year, EISA chooses the best products released in Europe over the past year from a variety of categories. This year, they named Sigma’s 17-70mm F2.8-4 DC MACRO OS HSM the Best Product for 2010/2011 in their Lens category.
This large aperture standard zoom lens features Sigma’s optical stabilization (OS) function, making it a versatile lens for many applications, including portraits, sports, macro, and general photography. The maximum aperture of F2.8 improves autofocus speed and, with the rounded seven-blade diaphragm, creates an attractive background blur. Three aspherical lenses and one Extraordinary Low Dispersion (ELD) glass element, plus Sigma’s Super Multi-Layer Coating, produce high quality images throughout the entire zoom range. The Hyper Sonic Motor (HSM) ensures quiet, high-speed auto focus with full-time manual focusing capability. And an inner focusing system eliminates front lens rotation, making the lens suitable for use with circular polarizing filters and the supplied petal-type lens hood. The suggested retail price of the Sigma 17-70mm F2.8-4 DC MACRO OS HSM lens is $599.95.