Sigma has just taken the wraps off several exciting new prime lenses for most of the major mirrorless camera systems, except Canon.
The big news for anyone who’s looking for a bright, affordable prime lens for street or portraiture is Sigma’s new pair of Contemporary series lenses. The 17mm f/4 DG DN ($599 / £549) and 50mm f/2 DG DN ($639 / £619) are both full-frame lenses that are designed for Sony’s E-mount and the L-Mount favored by Panasonic and Leica cameras.
If you own a crop-sensor camera from Sony, Fujifilm or Panasonic, though, then the new 23mm f/1.4 DC DN ($549 / £449) could be for you. With a full-frame equivalent focal length of 35mm, it could be the ideal walkaround lens for street, family or portrait shooting, particularly if you often shoot in low light.
Nikon shooters haven’t been left out of the prime lens party, either. Sigma previously announced a trio of new APS-C Contemporary lenses for the Nikon Z system, and now it’s revealed the pricing and availability for the 16mm f/1.4 DC DN, 30mm f/1.4 DC DN and 56mm f/1.4 DC DN (below). All three of the lenses below will be available to buy from April 21.
| Sigma 16mm f/1.4 DC DN | Sigma 30mm f/1.4 DC DN | Sigma 56mm f/1.4 DC DN |
| $499 / £449 | $399 / £349 | $499 / £449 |
| Row 2 – Cell 0 | Row 2 – Cell 1 | Row 2 – Cell 2 |
The significance of those Sigma lenses above is that they’re the first ones the company has made for the Nikon Z system. They may only be designed for APS-C cameras like the Nikon Zfc, Nikon Z30 and Nikon Z50, rather than its best full-frame cameras, but that leaves Canon’s closed RF-mount system looking a little isolated.
The best Canon cameras aren’t exactly short of high-quality glass, but the arrival of more affordable primes like these ones from Sigma shows the benefit of having a mount that’s open to third-party manufacturers.
Canon may yet open up its mount the likes of Sigma and Tamron, but for today their fans can only look on as Sony, Nikon, Fujifilm and Panasonic camera owners get several keenly-priced new lenses to choose from.
Analysis: glass half empty, for Canon fans
Sigma is well known for producing high-quality lenses at reasonable prices, which is why these announcements are good news for most camera fans.
Owners of full-frame Sony cameras like the Sony A7 IV and Sony A7C will be pleased to see the arrival of the promising 17mm f/4 DG DN and 50mm f/2 DG DN. And it’s a good day for APS-C camera fans too, with that new versatile new 23mm f/1.4 DC DN lens and the imminent availability of that trio of Nikon Z lenses.
Canon’s unwillingness to open up its mirrorless RF-mount to third-party autofocus lenses, as it has done in the past for the EF-mount on DSLRs, continues to be a baffling decision that it must surely be reconsidering.
It particularly hurts prospective owners of the Canon EOS R7, Canon EOS R10 and Canon EOS R50 cameras, which are all APS-C cameras that are crying out for some affordable matching glass like these new Sigma arrivals.
Canon even warned one manufacturer, Viltrox, that it was infringing on its patent and design rights when it made autofocus lenses for the Canon RF mount last year. But hopefully the arrival of yet more lenses from Sigma for its rival systems will force Canon to change its mind soon.