Photographers jumping ship from traditional Nikon and Canon DSLR systems have long been hoping that Sigma would bring its popular Art series of lenses to the Sony full-frame E-mount (FE) system. That dream appears to be closer to reality, thanks to some recent remarks from Sigma’s CEO Kazuto Yamaki.
PhotgraphyIn an interview with Digital Photography Review, Yamaki responded to a question regarding the possible development of Sigma lenses for the Sony FE mount. “Yes, that’s our plan. Our plan is to develop full-frame lenses for Sony E-mount and in the future we will have more E-mount lenses. But it takes time. … Normally it takes about two years to develop one lens, sometimes three. So even if I start the process now, the lens might come out in two years time.”
So there are some interesting things to take from this response. First, now would be an appropriate time to fist-pump in the air if you have been a Sony convert wanting to use Sigma glass on your Sony camera. This is an outright confirmation that this will soon be a reality with native FE glass.
The other interesting takeaway here is that sounds like the lenses being worked on are being developed from the ground up for the Sony FE mount. This means we probably won’t be seeing Sony FE versions of Sigma’s current Art series lenses but rather brand new lenses designed specifically for the Sony mount.
This will no doubt disappoint some that were hoping to use some of their current favorite Sigma lenses on their Sony cameras without needing an adapter. But the advantage here is that the lenses designed specifically for the FE system will no doubt have image quality and AF performance optimized for that system, rather than for the DSLR systems the current Art series lenses are optimized for.
There was no word on when to expect these upcoming Sony FE mount Sigma lenses other than Yamaki’s general statement about a two- to three-year development time on a single lens.
