Sigma's renowned portrait lens has been updated with a new optical formula specifically designed for mirrorless cameras. The Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN Art Lens for Sony-E Mount combines a clear and delicate rendering performance, which is requisite for portrait photography, with beautiful, rich bokeh effects only possible with lenses such as a large-diameter F1.4, at a level that will satisfy both professional and advanced amateur photographers.
This lens is characterized by its advanced and updated optical design, sleek profile, and bright design. The f/1.4 maximum aperture enables working in low-light conditions and also provides increased control over depth of field for achieving shallow depth of field effects. The optical layout incorporates a series of low dispersion, aspherical, and high refractive index elements and its large-diameter design achieves a notable degree of clarity and sharpness with well-controlled distortion and aberrations. Also, a Super Multi-Layer Coating enhances image quality by suppressing lens flare and ghosting for improved contrast and colour fidelity in strong lighting conditions.
In addition to the fast and consistent AF response, the mirrorless-exclusive design of the 85mm F1.4 DG DN | Art has realized a lightweight and compact lens body that defies convention. And its small body is packed with a range of functionalities, including a dust- and splash-proof structure, supported by excellent build-quality.
The exterior design features a physical aperture ring, which can be de-clicked or locked, along with a dedicated focus mode switch and AFL button for intuitive and tactile control. For autofocus, a stepping motor is used that maintains a lightweight and compact design while promoting fast and near-silent focusing performance for both stills and video applications. Additionally, the lens features an 11-blade rounded diaphragm for smooth bokeh quality.
Renowned ART Series Performance | New Optical Formula
With the Art line lenses, SIGMA pursues the highest optical performance possible and has devoted the latest optical design technologies, as well as the production technologies of the Aizu factory to facilitate the development of these lenses. The result is a detailed image critical for portrait photography at both professional and advanced amateur photography level.
- 5x Special Low Dispersion (SLD) Elements
- 1x Aspherical Element
- 4x High Refraction elements
In addition to five SLD (Special Low Dispersion) elements and one aspherical lens, the 85mm F1.4 DG DN | Art has incorporated the latest high refractive index glass, which works to thoroughly correct aberrations that cannot be handled by the correction functionality on the camera side. With a particular emphasis given to the correction of axial chromatic aberration, users will enjoy sharp images with no colour bleeding, all the way up to the maximum aperture of F1.4.
Numerous rounds of ray-trace simulation, as well as repeated real-world testing, have given the 85mm F1.4 DG DN | Art its ability to minimize ghosting, ensuring clear, sharp images even when shooting in backlit conditions.
With the ability to shoot from the maximum aperture of F1.4 without worrying about image quality, users can focus on the camera operations to realize their artistic expressions, such as the adjustment of exposure and depth of field. This new lens indeed delivers a level of optical performance worthy of it's "ART" namesakes.
Compatible with Lens Aberration Correction
Matching the optical characteristics of the lens, this function performs in-camera corrections of peripheral illumination, chromatic aberrations, distortion, and more, to further enhance image quality.
*Function available on supported cameras only. Available corrections may vary depending on the camera model.
Designed to minimize flare and ghosting
From an early stage in the lens design process, flare and ghosting have been measured to establish an optical design resistant to strong incident light sources such as backlighting. SIGMA’s Super Multi-Layer Coating reduces flare and ghosting to help photographers produce sharp and high contrast images even in backlight conditions.
Rounded diaphragm (11-blade)
The 11-blade rounded diaphragm creates an attractive blur in the out-of-focus areas of the image.
Lightweight, Compact & Functional
The 85mm F1.4 DG DN | Art weighs only 630g and is designed exclusively for mirrorless cameras, it has a “large lens diameter and superb optical performance” and “a lightweight and compact body,” a combination which has long been difficult to achieve.
Its AF motor system employs a stepping motor which is optimized for both phase-detection AF and contrast AF providing a smooth mirrorless camera shooting experience for features such as face/eye detection AF. Stepping motor technology also allowed Sigma to make the lens body smaller due to the smaller motors. Furthermore, by making the most of the in-camera aberration correction functionalities, SIGMA was able to concentrate on the correction of aberration that could be handled by the optical system alone, which further contributed to making the lens smaller in size.
This compact lens is packed with a range of functionalities that will satisfy both professional and advanced amateur photographers. The 85mm F1.4 DG DN | Art has newly introduced an “Iris ring lock switch.” This prevents unintended movement of the iris ring during shooting, allowing users to devote their attention to the creation of their image. The Iris ring is mounted with a de-click function for removing clicks by the Iris Ring Click Switch, enabling seamless operations that are especially useful such as during video shooting. Furthermore, the “Focus Mode Switch” on the lens body and the “AFL button” that allows various functions to be assigned from a compatible camera body will also assist users’ shooting.
Durable Construction
In addition to the dust- and splash-proof structure, the lens uses materials such as aluminium and TSC (Thermally Stable Composite) where they are best suited, achieving a level of build quality that is worthy of the Art line. In addition to the durability of the body, the lens pursues quality in terms of how users “feel” as well, such as the smooth motion in which each ring or switch works, and the precise hand feeling. The 85mm F1.4 DG DN | Art helps ensure users a smooth shooting experience in every condition.
High-precision, rugged brass bayonet mount
The brass mount combines high precision with rugged construction. Its treated surfaces and enhanced strength contribute to the exceptional durability of the lens.
Hood with lock
Features a hood with a lock to prevent dropping the hood.
