Sigma Art Lens : Ultimate Buying Guide

Sigma art lenses are a popular choice among photographers for their exceptional image quality and unique artistic capabilities. Known for their sharpness, color accuracy, and beautiful bokeh, sigma art lens is designed to produce stunning photographs with minimal distortion and maximum detail.

Whether you’re a professional photographer or a hobbyist, a Sigma art lens can take your photography to the next level.

In this guide, we’ll take a closer look at what makes Sigma art lenses so special, the different types available, and how to choose the right one for your needs.

Features of a Sigma art lens

Sigma art lenses are known for their exceptional image quality and unique artistic capabilities. The main design features of a Sigma art lens include:

1. High-quality optics: Sigma art lenses use advanced optical technologies, such as multi-layer coatings, to reduce lens flare, ghosting, and other distortions.
2. Sharpness: Sigma art lenses are designed to produce sharp images with minimal distortion, even at wide aperture settings.
3. Color accuracy: Sigma art lenses are known for producing accurate and vibrant colors, providing a true-to-life representation of the scene.
4. Bokeh: Sigma art lenses are designed to produce smooth and pleasing bokeh, which is the aesthetic quality of the out-of-focus areas of a photograph.
5. Build Quality: The Sigma art lenses are built with high-quality materials and are designed to be durable, withstanding professional use.
6. Customizable: Some of the Sigma art lenses come with a special feature of allowing the user to fine-tune and adjust the lens to their individual needs.
7. Image stabilization: Some of the Sigma art lenses are equipped with image stabilization technology, which allows you to take sharp photos even when shooting at slow shutter speeds.
8. Fast aperture: Most of the Sigma art lenses has a fast aperture of f/1.4, which allows you to shoot in low-light conditions and creates a shallow depth of field
9. Advanced lens elements: Sigma art lenses use advanced lens elements like aspherical elements, FLD (“F” Low Dispersion) elements, and SLD (Special Low Dispersion) elements to reduce chromatic aberrations and produce sharp images.

By incorporating these advanced design features, Sigma art lenses offer photographers the ability to produce striking and creative images that stand out from the crowd.

Sigma art lens vs contemporary

Sigma art lenses differ from contemporary lenses in several key ways.

1. Image Quality: Sigma art lenses are designed to produce sharp images with minimal distortion, accurate and vibrant colors, and beautiful bokeh. Contemporary lenses, on the other hand, may not have the same level of image quality and may produce images that are less sharp and have more distortion.
2. Aperture: Sigma art lenses have fast apertures, typically f/1.4 or f/1.8, which allows for a shallow depth of field and low-light shooting. Contemporary lenses may have slower apertures, typically f/2.8 or f/4, which limits the ability to shoot in low-light conditions and achieve a shallow depth of field.
3. Construction and Durability: Sigma art lenses are built with high-quality materials and are designed to withstand professional use. Contemporary lenses may not be as durable and may not be able to withstand the same level of use.
4. Customizability: Some of the Sigma art lenses come with a special feature of allowing the user to fine-tune and adjust the lens to their individual needs. Contemporary lenses may not have this feature.
5. Price: Sigma art lenses are typically more expensive than contemporary lenses because of their advanced design features and high-quality optics.
6. Size : Sigma contemporary lenses are generally more compact in size and lightweight , making them more suitable for run and gun and travel photography.

In summary, Sigma art lenses offer photographers exceptional image quality, fast apertures, durable construction and customizable features that contemporary lenses may not have. However, they come at a higher price point.

It’s important to weigh the cost and benefits and decide which lens is right for your needs and budget.

Sigma art lens abbreviations

Sigma uses several abbreviations in the names of their art lenses to indicate the lens type, focal length, aperture and other features. Here are some of the most common abbreviations you may encounter:

1. “EX” : This abbreviation indicates that the lens is part of Sigma’s EX (Excellence) line of professional-grade lenses.
2. “DN” : This abbreviation indicates that the lens is designed for use with mirrorless cameras, and it’s optimized for the shorter flange distance of these cameras.
3. “DC” : This abbreviation indicates that the lens is designed for use with APS-C (Cropped sensor) cameras, and the angle of view is designed to match the smaller sensor size.
4. “DG” : This abbreviation indicates that the lens is designed for full-frame cameras and is optimized for use with digital sensors.
5. “OS” : This abbreviation stands for “Optical Stabilization” and indicates that the lens is equipped with image stabilization technology.
6. “HSM” : This abbreviation stands for “Hyper Sonic Motor” and indicates that the lens is equipped with a fast, quiet, and precise autofocus motor.
7. “A” : this letter indicates that the lens has a built-in aperture ring, which allows the user to manually adjust the aperture.
8. “ART” : This abbreviation indicates that the lens is part of Sigma’s Art line of lenses, which is known for their exceptional image quality and unique artistic capabilities.
9. “E” : this letter indicates that the lens is equipped with an electromagnetic diaphragm.
10. “F” : this letter indicates that the lens is equipped with a fixed focal length, also known as a prime lens.

By understanding these abbreviations, you will have a better understanding of the lens’ capabilities and can make an informed decision when choosing a lens for your photography needs.

Best Sigma Art Lenses

Sigma offers a wide range of art lenses, each designed to meet the needs of different types of photography. Here are some of the main types of Sigma art lenses available:

1. Prime Lenses : Prime lenses have a fixed focal length, and these are considered to be the sharpest lenses available. They are also the most lightweight and compact lenses in the Sigma art line. They are ideal for portraits, street photography, and low-light conditions.
2. Zoom Lenses : Zoom lenses have a variable focal length and allow the user to adjust the field of view without having to change the lens. They are ideal for landscape, travel, and sports photography, as they allow the user to quickly and easily adjust the composition.
3. Macro Lenses: Macro lenses are designed for close-up photography, and they allow the user to capture details that are not visible to the naked eye. They are ideal for nature, product and still-life photography.

Lets take a look at all the lenses sigma has to offer in the art lineup.

Best Sigma Art Series Prime Lenses

Below table gives details of all the best Sigma art lenses in the market and the exact mounts currently available to adapt these lenses on different camera systems.