Tokina 12-24mm f/4 Pro

The Tokina is a very solidly built, sharp and contrasty wide angle zoom that has gotten rave reviews. For crop frame cameras only (T2i, 7D), not compatible with full-frame cameras (5DMkII). It has a non-rotating front element so it works well with CP and split ND filters. We really like the Tokina ‘clutch’ for switching between manual and autofocus and the nice f/4 aperture. Its a bit heavier and more solidly built than the Canon 10-22.

Only Works With: Crop sensor cameras (T1i, 7D, etc…)

Roger’s Take: Comparing the ultra-wide, crop sensor camera lenses is an extremely difficult task, so I’ll put the summary first: they all deliver excellent image quality and you can’t go wrong with any of them. To my ‘just taking pictures’ assessment they are all excellent. There are some differences though, so I’ll try to point those out so you have a better chance at choosing the one that’s best for you.
The Canon 10-22 f/3.5-4.5 is arguably the most flare resistant, the smallest and lightest when that’s important, has low distortion. Its also the most expensive and vignettes a bit. I like it a lot, though, and often find myself preferring it because of its small size.
The Tokina 11-16 f/2.8 gives you the widest aperture if you’ll be working in low light (with ultra wides, depth of field is rarely an important point), but its a bit soft at f/2.8, so the aperture advantage isn’t huge (I usually shoot it at f/3.5 if I can to get it sharper). It has very little vignetting and distortion, probably the least of the group. Unfortunately it does show quite a bit of chromatic aberration at times. Overall it may be the best image quality of the group.
The Tokina 12-24 f/4 PRO is built like a sturdy tank (and therefore a bit heavier) and does tend to give low contrast images when shot into the sun but is quite sharp otherwise. This is the one I’d take if conditions were rough: I pity the rock this bad boy falls on. Poor rock.
The Sigma 10-20 f/3.5 has a bit more distortion than the others but delivers very nice images and is also built much better than the Canon 10-22. It does everything well.

But like I said above: they’re all excellent. We hardly ever get anything but happy comments about any of them.

Item Includes:
- Hood