Sigma SD14 review

I read a lot of reviews for the SD14, so I initially had mixed feelings about this camera. This was mostly due to some of the negative reviews regarding its quirks, supposed lack of speed, etc.

Since most of what I do is architectural and product photography, where image quality is more important than speed, I felt this camera was at least worth serious consideration.

When the price got down to $549 from Cameta Camera and Amazon, I felt it would be worth a try, considering the uniqueness of the Foveon sensor and what that might mean for the quality of the images it could produce.

I bought the SD14 body and a Sigma 17-70mm 1:2.8-4.5 for a total of about $950. Additionally I have purchased a UV filter, two extra batteries, a car charger, a 4gb CF card, and an RS-31 remote.

I shot about 1000 images within my first seven days with SD14, all using the Sigma 17-70mm 1:2.8-4.5. I shot a mix of everything, familly gatherings, museum and park visits, architectural, product, street, studio, long-exposure, etc.

I quickly discovered for myself what was mentioned in almost all reviews. This is a must shoot in RAW camera, because the in camera jpeg option, although available, gives poor results when compared to RAW.

The RAW workflow took some time to nail down to where, I felt I was ending up with the best images in the least amount of time and effort.

I shoot high quality RAW, convert the original .XF3 to a 16-bit tiff, using the Sigma Photo Pro 3.0 included with the camera, using the auto correct mode, I then import the tiffs into Adobe Lightroom 1.4 where I make my final corrections image by image, and finally I export all the images as high quality jpegs. Admittedly the workflow is a little slow, but the results are exceptional if you are willing to put in the work.

I have printed some images at 11x17 with outstanding results, comparable to that of a Canon 5D in terms of resolution.

There are some qualities of the images from the SD14 however, that are in fact very unique, and hard to match using anything else. The color and 3D effect from the Foveon sensor unique to these cameras is exceptional.

The camera is comfortable to hold, resonably well designed with good fit and finish. All the features work well even if the function location etc are less than ideal, everything can be found and adjusted reasonably. The built in flash works well and is a welcomed plus. On board focusing and metering is good, ISO 50 to 400 images are exceptional, noise starts to be a real problem beyond that, but some images are quite usable even at 800.

Battery life is good, the display does take a bit of getting used to, due to it's less than optimal color and resulution. Images look considerably better once on a computer when compared to what you see on the camera's display. So initially, you must trust the camera, in this regard and not get too frustrated with the discrepancy in the cameras display.

Overall I gave the SD14 a try, knowing full well it's promises and limitations up front, and I am very glad I did.

Even at twice as much as it's current price, the SD14 is an exceptional photographic instrument well worth the cost.

Problems:

None of significance