Every time I take a photo on the Sigma Quattro system it blows my mind. I download the image to my computer, open it in Lightroom, full screen that bad boy and just zoom in with the largest child-like grin on my face. If you are a photographer, you will know that feeling I’m talking about. You kind of feel like you just leveled up – or discovered a whole new realm of possibilities. Sometimes it even feels like you are cheating – like is it really this easy?
About ten years ago I upgraded from a point and shoot to a DSLR. I remember reviewing every photo at 100% on the computer just so I could bask in my newly discovered 12 megapixels of solid sharp imagery. Fast forward 10 years, I haven’t really done that in a while. Everything I shoot has been pretty similar in quality regardless of camera – until recently.
Each time CP+ comes around, you can be assured that Sigma is going to unveil something amazing for the crowd at the major camera show in Japan, and this year yielded a bumper crop of great new Sigma products, including cameras, lenses, and more!
Fans of Sony e-Mount and FE-Mount mirrorless cameras have been clamoring for more options in Sigma lenses, and with the introduction of the MC-11 Mount Converter, they’ve now got 19 great Sigma lenses available to them. With full electronic control of aperture and full AF. Offered in both a Sigma SA-mount and Canon EOS EF mount version, this advanced lens mount converter dramatically increased the number of optics available for the growing legion of fans of the hottest Sony mirrorless cameras.
In addition to the MC-11 converter, Sony fans can natively mount the 30mm F1.4 DC DN | Contemporary to their APS-C format Sony e-Mount cameras, as can Micro Four Thirds fans! This is Sigma’s first F1.4 lens for mirrorless systems, and offers a stepping ring motor for video work. Not only is this Sigma’s first native F1.4 lens for the mirrorless world, it is both super-sharp, compact, and economical, to boot!
The world’s first F1.8 telephoto zoom lens for APS-C cameras, designed to pair perfectly with the 18-35mm F1.8 DC HSM | Art both in terms of performance and hand-feel. It is gonig to be a toss-up to see who raves more about this new lens: videographers or still photographers. This one is going to be razor-sharp, with gorgeous blur for both still and video. And, like the 18-35mm, expect it to stay super-sharp even as the scene is zoomed.
Foveon Quattro sensors paired with Sigma SA-mount interchangeable lenses, especially the Art lenses? For the imaging purists, what’s not to love? Sleek designs, super-high resolution LCD EVFs, fast TRUE III processors and the first Foveon APS-H sized sensor for even larger image files oozing with fine detail and rich tones? I personally can not wait to pair the sd Quattro H with the first, and still my favorite Art prime lens, the 35mm F1.4 DG HSM | A and marvel at the fineness of details and nuances of color!
Sigma’s pro caliber shoe-mount strobe gets a major makeover with this release including a new side dial, and a dot-matrix LCD screen for much improved user interface! The Auto zoom feature communicates with the camera for extended range from 24-200mm, and the flip down wide angle diffuser and bounce card, along with swivel and pivot allow for creative light sculpting, bouncing, and accessorizing for hard and soft lighting. High-Speed Focal Plane sync allows for flash up to the maximum shutter speed of DSLRs, perfect for outdoor fill flash and catchlighting, along with close-up motion-freezing short burst lighting.
Which of these new Sigma products are you most excited about?
