Sigma SD14 14MP Digital SLR Camera (Body Only)

The SD10 had problems. The battery charge system was just weird. The camera was not up to the hype when light was poor. But the images with good light were stunning. So it was with some angst, sustained by a delayed product release, that I opened my camera SD14. Very early on I knew I had a problem in that the camera hung... motion? But I got off some really spectacular images before sending it to NY repairs. They got it back quickly. I suspect something loose.

Well the images are simply wonderful. Just so you know, I have cameras at 5 & 6 times the price considered high end professional. I can get lots more pixels, but the color quality is not better.

The real test was low light. All the digital cameras fail in low light. So just a matter of how bad. OK, something is new here. This camera is far better in dim light than the SD10. When it starts to fail to low light the images become blotchy like camoflage rather than sandy as the GRGB cameras tend.

The SD14 X3F RAW images do well in Adobe's new Lightroom, and interestingly with the many controls for image modification in that program, there are none that set this camera aside (for punishment for being different).

The SD10 used a 1 GByte card but did not take larger. I tested the SD14 on 1 Gig (mechanical IBM type) and on 2 Gig, and 4 Gig, and 8 Gig CFII cards. Though, beware, some cards do badly with certain cameras across the board. So, I cannot say that ALL CFII's are OK. But I was able to find cards that worked a large range of memory capacity.

The camera saves images as RAW or JPEG. You can select two "color spaces", sRGB or AdobeRGB. I found that odd. Why not a 16 bit option? I suspect that is simply understood for RAW.

The booklet that comes with the camera may be the clearest such booklet of any camera. There were a few minor areas where referring the user to other sources seemed lazy(C1----v C2----v C3----v for camera strobes might be obvious to those who have these but ought to be explained to those who don't and maybe might want to).

Also the SD14 can shoot "tethered" a huge fact that gets barely any mention other than an arrow pointing at the port. Those who do that, know, but maybe some need to learn how?

The camera body is nicely shaped, the controls are very logical, and shooting is easy.

There is something about the color. The SD10 drove me nuts because I had to charge batteries in shifts (they didn't all fit in the charger at once... grrrr). I almost dismissed this camera from that experience alone. The low light limits of the SD10 were also hard to take. But, that color. Seems even better in the SD14. It is not like other cameras. Just isn't. Very pleasing rich deep textural color.

So, down side? Well Sigma is not a magnet for lenses made by other manufacturers. So you will probably be a Sigma all the way person. But the Sigma lenses I used were quite good and cost way way less than other brands. There is a specific flash kind for the flash shoe. So, maybe your current flash might not work? The built-in flash, does what built in flashes do.

The SD14 battery system is quite nice. There is a built-in dust protector to assist lens swaps very nice.

Want to do very high end photography with a wide array of lenses without going broke? Look at this model.

I own this camera and it is true that it isn't the most elegant body on the planet, nor is it feature rich. It struggles at high ISO settings and its LCD display is sub-par. The fps speed is slow and it takes a long time to write to the CF card from the buffer. You are stuck with Sigma lenses and I can't say that the 14.1 MP rating is s true 14.1 MP. But at the end of the day, when used for what it is intended to take pictures it produces the most beautiful and stunningly real, film like, dynamic, true color results. If you want features and functionality but lower quality pictures, go ahead and buy another camera, one without a Foveon sensor. If your after the best digital pictures available, shoot with the different cameras and review the results in a blind test. Chances are you will be a Sigma owner like me. That is what I did and I chose the Sigma.

Buy Sigma SD14 14MP Digital SLR Camera (Body Only) Now

I've owned the SD9 and now the SD14. The only two lenses I own for the SD are the Sigma 150/EX Macro and the 10-20/EX zoom. I shoot predominately Canon (1Ds/2, 1D/2, 30D and assorted lenses) but have a soft spot for the Foveon X3 technology, which produces a "look" that is difficult to replicate using a non-X3 "CFA" sensor (the type used in all other dSLRs).

First, don't be caught up in the various hyperbolic statements by Foveon/Sigma marketing and X3 zealots. The SD14 is really a 4.5 (not 14) megapixel camera. Photographs are two-dimensional (flat) representations. An 8x10 photo is still 8x10 even when you stack three red, green, and blues ones on top of each other. The SD14 has "only" 4.5MP in an X/Y space, which is all that matters. It's *how* the SD14 captures each one of those pixels that gives it an advantage over cameras with similar resolution. When it comes to resolving detail, the SD14 is roughly equivalent to the current crop of 8-10MP digital SLRs, and due to the unique nature of how its sensor captures those details gives it an edge to some believers. I like to use the SD for macro and some landscape photography, but since my acquisition of the 16MP Canon 1Ds Mk2 the SD14 has gotten little use. The SD14 easily matches both of my 8MP 1D/2 and 30D for both genres of photography, and in some ways produces images more to my personal tastes, but the 1Ds is clearly superior (as it should be for an $8,000 camera body).

If you like the unique results the SD14 is capable of, and your style of photography does not require advanced features like fast shooting, a high-performance AF system, and some other features found in most competing brands then the SD may be just the thing for you. Since landscapes don't run around and most macro subjects don't either it is perfect for these tasks -especially at its current low price around $800. However, if your photography style is mixed and you may just as frequently find yourself capturing quick, fleeting subjects, or you need a deep buffer with a fast frame rate (ie: a responsive camera) then the SD14 is definitely NOT the body for you. The autofocus (AF) system is generations behind those in even the low end of modern dSLRs such as the Nikon D80 or Canon 40D, and leagues behind the current crop of high performance offerings like the Canon 1D or Nikon D3 or D300 series.

In short, most 10MP cameras can and do offer more compelling features, etc with likewise similar image quality, but for a narrow set of parameters the Foveon-equipped SD14 brings a "uniqueness" to the image capture that no other camera can offer. If that is your primary criteria then I can recommend the SD14. Unfortunately, much of this advantage evaporates once the image is put to print.

So, thumbs up if you're a landscape or macrophile. Otherwise the average customer would be better served by most of the more capable brands' offerings.

Read Best Reviews of Sigma SD14 14MP Digital SLR Camera (Body Only) Here

I own a Canon 5D and Nikon D3 and my Sigma SD14's image quality is on par with both of these cameras.

However,...

... it does have a few shortfalls. Such as:

1. In low light conditions,... shadows will have "blotchy" noise and speckles of magenta compared to the same shot taken with a 5D/D3 at the same ISO settings. This can even happen in daylight conditions where there is a very wide dynamic range. The SD14 will expose correctly for the image, but the deep shadows will at times fail to render details in the shadows and those blotchy/magenta characteristics will appear.

2. Poorer AWB in mixed lighting than the 5D/D3.

3. Small buffer. If you need to keep up with action (sports, etc..), then you will be disappointed that after a burst of 6-8 shots the camera will lock up and take 5-20 seconds to write all that data to the card. And faster CF cards won't help. It is the buffer. The fact is that the processing is complicated and does not process quickly for fast shooting environments. Yes it will shoot 3fps, but the buffer is so small that you only get a little over a handful of shots and then the camera needs time to process that burst.

The positives?

1. ISO 50-200 in daylight conditions is spectacular. I prefer the SD14 over my 5D/D3 up to 200 ISO.

2. Image sharpness is amazingly crisp and has a 3D type feel that you can only appreciate if you have shot with this camera and a Canon/Nikon in the same shooting conditions. I have done so from the same tripod to compare shots taken with similar lenses in the same lighting conditions and can attest to the differences.

3. You can use Canon speedlites to use within wireless ETTL setups. I have two Sigma EF 500 DG flash units and three Canon 580EX II speedlights. I set the Canon's to ETTL slaves and the two sigma's to wireless and then the camera to wireless. You can set all of the flash units to either channel 1, 2 or 3, then match that with the camera's channel output to fire off all the flashes. The camera meters properly using this mix of flash units. I found all this out by accident. I was testing out the 5D and wireless flash setup VS. the SD14 and wireless flash setup. I had left the 2 Canon speedlights on while I fired off the SD14's and expected only the sigma EF 500 DG units to fire. The canons did as well and the SD14 metered for all four properly.

I'd have to go further into details to review all the pros and cons. I'll just say that as a 5D and D3 owner, the SD14 can hang in image quality. And in good daylight environments I prefer it to the IQ of either the 5D or D3. The SD14 is at a minimum, on par with both respectively and often trumps those two when lighting is strong.

Also, the dynamic range of the SD14 seems to be wider than reported. I don't know why. In lightroom I'm amazed at the amount of details I can recover in the highlights VS. 5D/D3. Maybe it is the fact that because the SD14 captures R,G,B on each pixel, those hightlights are of better quality and it is able to pull those details out of the highlights for that reason. I don't know. It just "is what it is".

Well worth the purchase. The far lower price point makes up for it's low light performance. Using flash or strong daylight environments, the SD14 can hang with ANY $2000-$5000 DSLR.

Want Sigma SD14 14MP Digital SLR Camera (Body Only) Discount?

I will start the review with a disclaimer that I had the chance to beta-test this camera before release; That also means I have had a few months experience in shooting with the camera.

I will start out with a little history. A few years ago, Sigma released the SD-9 and SD-10 digital cameras. They were widely hailed to have excellent image quality, but the trouble for some buyers was that the cameras did not have some convinced features that other cameras offered, like in-camera JPEG or on-camera flash, and so they went on to other systems.

Fast forward to today and the SD-14. Sigma has addressed all the little aspects of usability and features that people have asked for, like in-camera JPEG, on camera flash, PC-Sync socket, and many other little features. But best of all, in addition to adding more resolution, they also improved the image quality from the sensor even further the camera has even more dynamic range, and much better high ISO support than before with everything up to 800 working really well and even 1600 being usable. This is a camera with a feature set that just about anyone can make use of, and leave the choice of the body to image quality rather than body features.

When considering a camera like the SD-14, it really is important to understand the difference the Foveon sensor makes as this camera really is different than any other camera on the market today. Look at sample images (look at full-size sample images, not shrunken down web versions!). Read about the Foveon sensor. The use that information to make up your mind if this is the right camera for you. For fine art work or landscapes, I'm really not sure there is anything better.

Sigma deserves a lot of credit for daring to continue updating the camera line with this unique sensor in a market full of otherwise very similar choices (except for Fuji, props there).

You can read more here about the Foveon and Bayer sensors compared in terms of detail captured and the information about resolution charts you should know:And you can find full-size sample images either on the Sigma-sd14.com web site or here in the user galleries: