Sigma 50mm 1.4 art
Sony E-mount on α7rIII
Ph. Francesco Riccardo Iacomino
Two weeks with SIGMA 50mm 1.4 Art - Sony E-mount on α7rIII, tested for SIGMA Foto Italia (thanks to M-trading)
1/10 sec a f 4, ISO 100
Following my recent switch from Canon camera body to Sony Alpha, I currently use SIGMA lenses adapted with the excellent MC-11 ring.
The Sigma 50mm 1.4 Art is therefore the first lens that I could test on Sony α7rIII with direct E-mount.
Here are my impressions.
From this lens I expected, first of all, quality. I found a lot of it. Starting from the construction: in hand, the lens transmits a clear feeling of solidity. If associated with a mirrorless body, at first glance it may appear a big, heavy lens, yet just mounted it seems to perfectly balance with the Sony body, as if they were really made for each other.
At first, to test the feeling with the lens, I chose to stay close to home: Bologna & Modena.
1/400 sec - f 5,6 ISO 100
1/400 sec - f 5,6 ISO 100
1/80 sec - f 2,5 ISO 100
1/50 sec - f 1,4 ISO 1000
1/50 sec - f 1,4 ISO 400
1/500 sec - f 6,3 ISO 100
From the beginning I felt a great affinity, as if it was an old lens of mine.
Managing the light with Sigma 50mm Art is simple.
Under ordinary conditions of use, the result is extraordinary: whether you shoot against the light from the top of the Tower of the Asinelli of Bologna, or in the darkness of the Crypt of the Modena Cathedral, the result is excellent and exceeds my expectations.
So I decided to take it with me for a day in Venice, during the 2019 Carnival Celebrations.
I state that I am not a portrait photographer (I prefer photographs of landscape and, more generally, of "travel"), so I decided to let myself be guided by the lens, precisely in order to verify how much this lens had to offer me.
1/320 sec - f 5 ISO 100
I was really amazed at how much the Sigma 50mm Art proved to be ... versatile.
Although it is a prime lens, moreover a "normal" focal length, I had the feeling that I did not need other lenses. Which, for those like me who are used to traveling with Wide Angle, Medium-telephoto and Telephoto lens always on his shoulder, is quite surprising.
The awareness of having in my hands a high-quality body-lens combination allowed me to dwell on what I was viewing, without the need to overturn the shots with zoom or wide angle.
It was fun, and the great 24-105 Art that I had brought with me for "emergencies" remained in the backpack all the time.
1/50 sec - f 1.4 ISO 160
1/50 sec - f 1.4 ISO 160
1/50 sec - f 1.4 ISO 160
Playing with the depth of field of the Sigma 50mm Art is a real fun: even the 1.4 this lens impresses for sharpness and precision focusing
1/5000 sec - f 1,8 ISO 100
1/500 sec - f 6,3 ISO 100
Almost no distortion at all: this allows you to focus on the lines of the scene and make the most of them to create tempting shots
1/250 sec - f 4,5 ISO 100
Added to this is an excellent color rendering, even in conditions of strong light-shadow contrast: combined with the impressive dynamic range of Sony α7rIII, the SIGMA 50mm Art allows you to recover incredible details and colors.
1/5000 sec - f 1,8 ISO 100
1/6400 sec - f 1,8 ISO 100
1/5000 sec - f 1,8 ISO 100
1/5000 sec - f 1,4 ISO 100
Combining depth of field, sharpness and color rendering, the result in the portraits is surprising
1/6000 sec - f 1,6 ISO 100
Autofocus is flawless and very fast
1/50 sec - f 8 ISO 100
1/100 sec - f 1,4 ISO 100
Both in backlight and in low light conditions the focus is perfect (and it makes delicious bokeh)
1/60 sec - f 1,6 ISO 100
The excellent manual focusing system of Sony mirrorless, with 100% digital magnification in viewfinder at the simple touch of the precise ring of SIGMA, makes manual focus easy, fast and even preferable whenever you need to choose a specific point of focus
100% crop della foto precedente
The extraordinary image quality produced by the SIGMA 50mm f 1.4 lens is the ideal complement to the exceptional Sony α7rIII sensor, making incredibly detailed and perfect even 100% crop-like.
Therefore, in every single photo there are tens of other potential cuts that are as valid as the original.
Basically, the experience with SIGMA 50mm 1.4 Art was amazing. It is an impressive quality lens. In combination with an equally sensational body like Sony α7rIII, this lens gives the best, and is also capable of enhancing the excellent quality of the sensor more than any other lens I have tested.
I would not do without this lens anymore.
Francesco Riccardo Iacomino
Thank you!