Sigma 135mm F18 Dg Hsm Art Lens for Sony E When Will It Be Available

Summary

The Sigma 135mm f1.eight Art is a brilliant mid-length telephoto lens available in mounts for Canon, Nikon and Sigma DSLRs with total-frame sensors and can as well exist used with Sony E-Mountain bodies using Sigma'south MC-11 mount converter. I call up this lens is Sigma'south best all the same in their Art line: actress sharp, with only minor color aberrations and a cute bokeh. In add-on information technology's the but f1.8 135mm lens y'all can get for your Canon or Nikon DSLR. Information technology might be on the large and heavy side, has no image stabilization, and it definitively is not cheap only all-in-all the Sigma 135mm f1.8 Art earns a Highly Recommended.

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Sigma 135mm f1.8 Art review

• 3rd April 2017
• Written by

In depth

• In depth
• Quality
• Samples
• Verdict

The Sigma 135mm f1.8 Art is a bright mid-length telephoto lens available in mounts for Canon, Nikon and Sigma DSLRs with full-frame sensors and can also be used with Sony East-Mount bodies using Sigma's MC-11 mount converter. With an f1.8 focal ratio the new 135mm f1.viii Fine art becomes the brightest telephoto of its length available for Catechism and Nikon DSLRs as the Mitakon Speedmaster 135mm f1.4 is still at pre-order only and limited to 100 units. So in terms of wide availability, the Sigma 135mm f1.8 Fine art is pretty unique.

Announced in Feb 2017, information technology'southward has no predecessor in Sigma's lens catalog. To be included into Sigma'southward acclaimed Art series of tiptop-notch lenses it should have very good optical performance and build quality. And as yous would wait it is compatible with Sigma'due south USB-dock to fine tune diverse characteristics of AF, plus if y'all alter bodies, you tin can pay to have the mountain swapped for your new system. This all comes at a cost: 1400 USD / 1480 EUR is non exactly cheap but roughly in line east.k. with the Sigma 85/1.4 Art which is currently selling for 1200 EUR.

Facts from the catalog

Every bit usual I'll accept a look at the technical data of the Sigma first. I've rated the features with a [+] (or [++]), when it'south better than average or even state of the art, a [0] if information technology'due south standard or just average, and [-] if there's a disadvantage. For comparison I utilize the Nikon 105/1.4E ("Nikon" for curt) and the Samyang / Rokinon / Walimex 135/2.0 ED UMC ("Samyang").

Size (diameter ten length): 91 x 114 mm, the lens hood adds sixty mm (with a diameter of 102 mm) which gives a total length of 174 mm. The Nikon is 95 x 106 mm with the lens hood calculation some other 47 mm. The Samyang is slim in comparison at 82 mm diameter and 120 mm length plus 44 mm for the lens hood. [0]

Weight: 1121g plus 64g for the plastic lens hood. The Nikon is 979g, the lens hood adds another 55g. The Samyang comes in at 815 + 60g. The Canon 135/two.0 L is only 750g. [-]

Eyes: 13 elements in 10 groups vs. xiv elements in nine groups for the Nikon. This is quite a circuitous blueprint for a prime number lens and contains 4 special dispersion elements but no aspheric lens elements. The Nikon and the Samyang besides have no aspheric elements which should exist practiced for the Bokeh every bit this avoids onion rings. [+]

Closest focus distance is 0.88 thousand with a magnification of 1:five although I was able to get down to one:iv.6 at 0.84 chiliad with transmission focus. The Nikon does only 1:6.iii at 0.93m in manual focus. The Samyang goes to 0.8 m and offers a magnification of 1:four.7. [+]

Filter-thread: 82 mm, only like the Nikon. So you probably will need new filters. The Samyang is 77 mm, the professional standard. [0]

Image stabilization: No. That'south about par for the course on big aperture primes: Neither Nikon nor Samyang, Canon, or Zeiss offer stabilization, also. Unfortunately at a focal length of 135mm and with today's loftier resolution sensors it's pretty challenging to avoid mistiness/shake with paw-held shots. Use 1/250 sec to be on the safe(r) side or use a tripod. Tamron has proven that you can build f1.8 primes with image stabilization and not compromise paradigm quality for information technology. And Sony offers at least body-based image stabilization when you mountain the Sony/Zeiss Sonnar 135/one.8 ZA. [0]

Motorcar focus: HSM (Hyper Sonic Motor), so it besides works on camera bodies which don't have an AF-drive built in like Nikon'southward D3x00/v×00. Manual-focus override is by simply turning the focus ring. Aforementioned with the Nikon. But the new Sigma allows you to alter focus fine-tuning at 4 distances with the USB-dock. Plus it has a limiter switch with three position: full / one.5m – infinity / 0.875 – ane.5m which is also configurable with the USB-dock. The Samyang offers manual focus only. [+]

Covers full frame/FX or smaller = very good. Aforementioned with the competition. [+]

Price: around 1480 EUR new (incl. 19% VAT) / 1400 USD = pretty expensive. The Samyang is much cheaper at 500 EUR but the Nikon is around 2200 EUR. [0]

Comes with a dainty padded lens case and a strap. The lens hood is included, reversible for transport, and the lens-caps are standard. When using the camera's onboard wink the lens hood does not bandage a shadow  at the bottom of the image. [+]

Altitude information is relayed to the photographic camera, and then Nikon bodies and flashes can do all the avant-garde exposure-related stuff with this lens. Same for the Nikon. But the Samyang can't do that although it has electrical contacts and communicate some EXIF data (like focal length and aperture) with the body. [+]

Discontinuity band: no, as does the Nikon. The Samyang has an aperture ring. [0]

Sealing: yes, a safe grommet at the lens-mount but no farther special weather-sealing. Simply like the Nikon. The Samyang doesn't accept weather sealing at the lens-mount. [+]

The score in the "features-section" is 1[-]/5[0]/vii[+]. The major issue is its weight and size, but that seems to be the norm with modern big aperture lenses.

Iii large aperture medium telephoto lenses

from left to correct: Nikon 105/1.4E ED, Sigma 135/1.8 Art, Samyang 135/ii.0 ED UMC

Alternatives:

• Canon users can get the EF 135/2.0 L USM from 1996 which offers autofocus with congenital-in ultrasonic bulldoze and, despite its age, remains a very decent performer albeit with very visible longitudinal CAs. It'south one 3rd of a cease darker than the new Sigma but smaller and at just 750g much lighter for that and costs around 950 EUR.
• Zeiss offers the Milvus 135/2.0. It's optically identical to their 135/2.0 Apo Sonnar from 2013 (run into my Zeiss 135mm f2.0 Apo Sonnar review where it came with a Recommended). It is transmission focus but and costs 2200 EUR. It is built like a tank and has very good optical quality.
• From Nikon at that place's the venerable AF-S DC 135/ii.0D from 1995. Information technology offers autofocus (driven by the camera) and has a unique Defocus-paradigm Control (hence the "DC" moniker) which can be used to change the appearance of out-of-focus areas. Information technology costs around 1300 EUR and is non a bad lens. But it exhibits some very colorful aberrations as tin be seen in the comparative shots of my Zeiss 135mm f2.0 Apo Sonnar review.
• Nikon recently added the 105/1.4E to their line of prefessional big discontinuity primes. This lens has a 22% shorter focal length than the 135mm competition only with its f1.4 focal ratio it is 2/3 of a cease brighter than the new Sigma. And with very good image quality it is a viable alternative to exist considered. It costs around 2250 EUR. For more details run across my Nikon 105mm f1.4E ED review.
• Samyang has the 135/two.0 ED UMC from 2015. It is manual focus only and costs a mere 500 EUR (incl. 19% VAT). Its build is rather plasticky but it has excellent optical quality. See my Samyang 135mm f2.0 ED UMC review where it came with a Highly Recommended. Be enlightened though that merely the Nikon version of the Samyang has an automatic discontinuity!
• Sony offers the SAL 135/one.viii ZA Carl Zeiss Sonnar T* from 2006 for A-Mountain or via an adapter for Eastward-Mount. It has autofocus only relies on the trunk to provide the AF-drive. Information technology's around 1500 EUR. Tests indicate that it'due south a very skillful performer admitting with some serious longitudinal CAs. It's smaller and lighter than the Sigma and uses 77mm filters. It does not offer image stabilization of its ain (like any of the other lenses mentioned) but you accept the advantage of the stabilization that the Sony bodies offer. But that is true for the Sigma 135/1.8 Fine art also when you employ it on a Sony mirrorless body with the MC-xi E-mount converter.
• Equally noted in the introduction, there's likewise the Mitakon Speedmaster 135/1.four, the brightest 135mm to date, simply one that'due south been at pre-order since announcement in 2015 and with but 100 units to be produced. And then it essentially doesn't be for a comparison. It costs 3000 USD and weighs a whopping 3kg.

Which focal length do you demand?

Above from left to correct: 85mm, 105mm, 135mm shot from 2.6m distance on a FF/FX-trunk

Focus

Focus accuracy and repeatability is critical to consistently produce abrupt shots. Repeatability (the accuracy of focus on the same subject after repeated focus-acquisition) of this lens is pretty good (measured 96.7% in Reikan FoCal) with two slight outliers over a series of 40 shots. And in that location is a fleck of performance variation whether the lens focuses from infinity or from a closer distance.

The lens focuses fast in around 0.5 sec from infinity to 1.35m which is faster than the Nikon 105/1.4E with 0.eight sec or the Sigma 85/1.4 Art at 0.7 sec. The focus ring has no slack/play between its movement and the focus-action and a throw of 150 degrees, which is very good for authentic manual focus wide open. The focus ring offers a good grip with a 41mm broad safety surface and movement is smooth enough to exist operated with a single finger. It turns the same fashion as Canon photogs are used to but that is the incorrect way for Nikon users. AF-functioning is barely aural from the outside and if y'all tape video with the built-in microphone at that place's only a "zip" at the start and the finish of focus-movement and the AF-drive is very quiet. Equally you pull focus, you lot'll clearly find focus breathing: the image becomes more magnified at closer focusing distances. When I adjusted the focus from infinity to i.35m on the Sigma, I measured a 18% increase in magnification which is pretty high and might not please videographers. In comparing the Samyang only increases magnification by 12% but the Nikon 105/1.4E is even more extreme: it magnifies the epitome by 28%.

Adjacent check out my quality results or sample images.

Check prices at Amazon, B&H, Adorama, eBay or Wex. Alternatively get yourself a re-create of my In Camera volume, an official Cameralabs T-shirt or mug, or care for me to a coffee! Thanks!

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Source: https://www.cameralabs.com/sigma-135mm-f1-8-art-review/

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