Breaking boundaries with the ultimate F1.2 standard prime lens

I have been familiar with the SIGMA Art line lenses for quite a while now, as I was already using them before shooting with the SIGMA fp L. Each one of them is carefully made, with specific purpose and features. Though I wouldn’t consider myself a technical photographer, I have learned to appreciate the subtleties of fine glass. Prime lenses offer an edge you wouldn’t otherwise get with zoom lenses. And I have learned that when one was gifted to me early on in my career.

Every photographer learns to understand their own style and approach as they shoot. It isn’t something you can predict, as much as one would like to. It took me a few years, but I found myself in photography: not rushed, not overly prepared, but also not entirely left without control; a fine line between improvised and scripted. As for the subject of my photographs, I find myself having a passionate eye for architecture, art objects, abstract textures, and most of all, people. Often combining my favorite subjects becomes a fulfilling challenge.

When I had a chance to shoot with the new SIGMA 50mm F1.2 DG DN | Art, I took it upon myself to meet halfway between a common denominator, and a new approach to my style. The lens falls right in the center of my favorite focal range in between 35 and 65mm. Additionally, it offers a F1.2 wide aperture, which is ideal for a dimmed natural light studio environment, and it happens to be a favorite of mine.

I shot with two subjects (Iona Catherine & Kaya Noteboom) as a way to capture individual talents, but also combine them in the frame to play with foreground, background, and the visually pleasing result of these features when shooting at a wide aperture. A mix of natural light and constantly controlled lighting allowed me to explore both situations within the same environmental parameters. Iona Catherine explored a styling concept & art direction, matched with backdrops and production design responding sometimes directly to the garment and its tones and patterns as a way to create a matching environment, which also contrasts with subjects when shot wide open.

The lightweight and compact combination of the SIGMA fp L and lens allows me to move freely and find new angles quickly. I sometimes switch between manual focus and autofocus to capture moments in movement. Both offer advantages, but I found myself more often working in autofocus, as it was fast enough for me to still find desired moments in a combination of two subjects in constant motion. Since there was a great deal of comfort and familiarity for me, in the combination of subject and environment, I was expecting to focus more-so on the way the lens (which was new to me as of a few hours) would serve me. I was not disappointed; in that I didn’t even think about it. It came all naturally, and I worked with the lens as if I had owned it for years. It was fast, precise, and offered beautiful results when I had the chance to play them back on a large screen. The beautiful bokeh left me wanting to find more opportunities to show it when playing with foreground and background. Getting to shoot with such high optical performance is a luxury I find with few lenses, but the SIGMA Art line consistently delivers.

A photographer never has enough experience to avoid experimenting with new lenses. Though I tend to gravitate toward a preferred focal range, I find myself constantly interested in new glass, in or out of my comfort zone. One piece of advice I would give photographers time and time again: never stop experimenting, never assume you’ve tried it all. Brands keep producing new glass and pushing the boundaries; use that to your advantage and expand your technical kit as you grow as a photographer.

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