Sigma has officially launched its first-ever lens for Canon RF-mount: the 18-50mm F2.8 DC DN Contemporary. We knew the lens was on its way after Canon finally gave the key to the door of its RF-mount to Sigma and Tamron in April, and now we know that the 18-50mm will hit the shelves on July 11.
It's about time. Canon's superb crop-sensor (APS-C) mirrorless cameras such as the Canon EOS R7, the EOS R50, and the EOS R10 (which we rank as the best camera for beginners) are hamstrung; up until this point, these cameras have been sorely lacking decent lenses, especially when compared to the best Sony cameras like the A6700 that enjoy a much healthier choice.
The tide is starting to turn, and the Sigma 18-50mm is an excellent opening third-party addition to the RF-mount. The APS-C lens offers an equivalent 24-75mm focal length with a constant f/2.8 maximum aperture – the middle lens of the classic trinity of f/2.8 zooms.
Not only is the classic versatile zoom lens a superb everyday lens for landscapes, portraits, and events, it's immediately the fastest RF-S lens available thanks to its f/2.8 aperture, with the current four Canon RF-S lenses having smaller and variable aperture zooms.
It's also an excellent value lens, launching at $499 / £479 / AU$699.
As things stand, we expect the Sigma 18-50mm to boast the best optical quality of any Canon RF-mount lens for APS-C, although technically you can use Canon's full-frame RF lenses with APS-C cameras, and there are plenty more full-frame Canon RF lenses available.
The proven APS-C lens by Sigma is already available in L-Mount, Sony E-mount, and Fujifilm X-Mount versions, and has been fine-tuned for Canon RF-mount to support Canon's Servo AF, in-camera aberration correction, and to ensure autofocus drive and communication is up to speed with Canon cameras.
It's splash and dust resistant, and only weighs 10.6oz / 300g, which is quite the feat for a f/2.8 zoom lens – and makes the 18-50mm a perfect size match with Canon's APS-C mirrorless cameras.
There are better lenses available for macro photographers: the maximum magnification ratio is just 1:2.8 at the wide focal length and 1:5 at the telephoto setting. However, that doesn't stop the Sigma 18-50mm from being the most versatile lens available for Canon APS-C mirrorless cameras.
There are five more lenses from Sigma in the pipeline, including a quartet of fast aperture f/1.4 prime lenses due later in 2024; the 16mm F1.4 DC DN (with an estimated price $449 / £389), the 23mm F1.4 DC DN (around $549 / £479), the 30mm F1.4 DC DN (for roughly $339 / £319) and 56mm F1.4 DC DN (about $479 / £419).
Canon's camera hardware is unquestionably good, and now the native lenses are arriving to back them up. Thanks to Sigma, it's a new dawn for Canon's APS-C mirrorless cameras.
