Want to see exactly what the new Sigma lenses - and USB dock - look like in the flesh? We have compiled a hands-on gallery for your perusal.

22 hands-on photos of the new Sigma 35mm f/1.4 HSM, 17-70mm f/2.8-4 OS HSM and 120-300mm f/2.8 OS HSM lenses and the brand new USB dock.

Sigma have taken the unusual step of classifying their lenses, with three new categories - Contemporary / Art / Sports – and only one category assigned per lens, trying to make the various designations after the lens name less confusing for their customers. The EX lens range – with EX only being assigned to fixed aperture and highest quality optics – is now being dropped, and also the gold ring too. This move will affect new lenses going forward – not backwards – and across all available mounts.

The Art lenses place the emphasis on creativity and image quality, the Contemporary moniker will apply travel zooms and zooms like the new 24-70mm, while Sports more obviously describes the company’s many telezooms.

Sigma have unveiled 3 new lenses at Photkina 2012 - the 35mm f/1.4 Art lens, 17-70mm f/2.8-4 Contemporary lens, which is 30% smaller than existing 17-70mm lens (now discontinued), and the 120-300mm f/2.8 Sports lens, which replaces quite a new 120-300mm lens, featuring the same optics with cosmetically new styling and different electronics. Available in early 2013, all 3 have prices to be confirmed nearer to launch.

Sigma is the first lens manufacturer to launch a USB dock. About 5 years ago Sigma started to embed rewritable circuits in all its lenses, mainly to accommodate camera body changes. This required the lens to be sent in to a Sigma service centre. The new USB Dock allows users to update the lens firmware themselves, but that’s not all that it can do - you can also change the following:

- Autofocus speed – 3 options= Fast, Normal, Slow
- Focus Limiter – like Sony A99, distance scale via two sliders
- Micro-AF adjust – can select a focal length to adjust and a distance – offers much more control than body-only systems
- On/Off button to toggle between customised options and default settings (TBC)

Sigma have also started using a new MTF testing machine, which replaces and improves upon the previous Carl Zeiss machine. It used to take 45mins to test each lens,but Sigma have drastically reduced this to 3-5mins per lens, allowing them to test every lens produced. This should remove or at least greatly reduce the lens variability issues that have affected some of their lenses in the past.

Image Gallery

Click on a thumbnail to see the full version.

Share this article