Photo: Dan Bracaglia
Sigma`s 45mm F2.8 DG DN Contemporary lens is, in many ways, not a great lens for pixel-peepers. It exhibits some fringing, it isn`t particularly sharp, and it has a pretty pedestrian maximum aperture. But I really enjoy it anyway, and it`s served as a reminder that any given lens doesn`t have to be perfect to be fun.
I first got to shoot around with the 45mm F2.8 Contemporary on a trip to Japan for the release of Sigma`s fp, their staggering 35mm F1.2 Art, and the newly designed 14-24mm F2.8 Art. No surprise, the little 45 mil was easily overshadowed by its headline-grabbing brethren. But during my time on that trip, it was glued to the a7R III I was using while traveling from one locale to another. The biggest reason for that is that the lens itself is so small.
Sigma fp | ISO 160 | 1/100 sec | F4
Small gear is unobtrusive and far less intimidating for subjects, and this definitely has an impact on the way I take pictures: namely, I take more pictures of people when I`m working with less intimidating gear. I also just tend to take pictures more often, as I`ll always have a smaller camera and lens combo slung over my shoulder, whereas larger gear is more likely to be tucked away in a bag when I`m not actively using it.
We`ve touched a bit on the Sigma 45mm`s image quality at the outset out of this article, but I`d like to backpedal a bit. The biggest `issue` with it is uncorrected spherical aberration, essentially trading-off some sharpness for more attractive bokeh: a deliberate decision on Sigma`s part. And I have to admit that there`s something about its rendering that I find appealing. I also appreciate its very close minimum focus distance, which helps you get shallower depth-of-field than you might expect with an F2.8 aperture, though images get a bit hazy if you`re focusing very close with the aperture wide-open.
Sony a7R III | ISO 100 | 1/320 sec | F2.8Taken with a pre-production ...
|