Sigma 56mm f/1.4 DC DN Contemporary lens for M4/3

      Photo Review 9.0

      In summary

      Performance-wise, this is a great little lens. Its compact size and relatively light weight made it a good match for both the Panasonic G95 and the Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II camera bodies we used it on.

      The Sigma 56mm M4/3 lens fits within the 85-115mm focal length range considered ‘classic’ for portrait photography. It’s also useful for genres such as reportage, street and events shooting and can even suit some types of landscape and cityscape photography when a closer perspective is preferred.

      Weatherproof sealing makes this lens ideal for location shooting, while autofocusing is driven by a stepping motor that is fast and very quiet. Focusing is internal, which means no hassles when fitting angle-critical filters and few concerns with focus breathing.

      The 56mm focal length is currently unique to Sigma for both Sony’s E mount and Micro Four Thirds, so this lens has no existing rivals.

       

      Full review

      Announced at Photokina 2018, Sigma’s 56mm f/1.4 DC DN Contemporary lens is the third in a series of f/1.4 lenses offered in Sony E and Micro Four Thirds mounts. The M4/3 lens, which we received to review, covers the same angle of view as a 112mm lens on a 35mm camera, while the Sony mount is equivalent to 85mm in 35mm format. In both cases, this lens can be classified as ‘medium telephoto’, covering focal lengths often preferred for portraiture.

      Side view of the 56mm f/1.4 DC DN Contemporary lens without end caps or hood. (Source: Sigma Photo.)

      Like the 16mm and 30mm lenses that preceded it, the 56mm lens has a fast f/1.4 maximum aperture and a dust- and splashproof design with a rubber seal around the mount. The optical design of this lens, shown below, contains 10 elements in six groups and includes two aspherical elements, one of them made from SLD (Special Low Dispersion) glass, which provides superior sharpness and elevated contrast  while helping to suppress chromatic aberrations.

      The optical diagram for the 56mm f/1.4 DC DN Contemporary lens, showing the positions of the exotic glass elements. (Source: Sigma Photo.)

      Sigma’s Super Multi-Layer coatings are also applied to the front element to suppress ghosting and flare. Nine rounded iris blades, which are visible when you look into the lens barrel, close to a circular aperture for attractive bokeh. The lens will focus to within 50 cm of a subject.

      Stabilisation is not built in, so it is best matched with Olympus cameras and Panasonic cameras with sensor-shift stabilisation, such as the G95, which was used for some of the shots for this review, along with the Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II. The E-mount lens can take advantage of Sony’s built-in SteadyShot stabilisation.

      The lens is supplied with a cylindrical lens hood that attaches via a bayonet mount.

      Who’s it For?
      Covering the same angle of view as a 112mm lens on a 35mm camera, the Sigma 56mm M4/3 lens fits within the 85-115mm focal length range considered ‘classic’ for portrait photography. It’s also useful for genres such as reportage, street and events shooting and can even suit some types of landscape and cityscape photography when a closer perspective is preferred.

      Weatherproof sealing makes this lens ideal for location shooting, while autofocusing is driven by a stepping motor that is fast and very quiet. Focusing is internal, which means no hassles when fitting angle-critical filters and few concerns with focus breathing.

      This lens is small and relatively light. The 56mm focal length is currently unique to Sigma for both Sony’s E mount and Micro Four Thirds so this lens has no existing rivals.

      A close focusing limit of 50 cm restricts the use of this lens for close-up work, although it is fine with larger flowers and similar objects. Its price is also very competitive with its nearest rivals from Olympus, Panasonic and Sony.

      Build and Ergonomics
      The  Sigma 56mm f/1.4 DC DN lens is made from a combination of metal and solid black polycarbonate plastic, with a chromed brass mount that has a surrounding rubber seal. It’s nicely finished and build quality is up to the standard you would expect from Sigma’s Contemporary lenses.

      Angled rear view of the Sigma 56mm f/1.4 DC DN lens showing the electronic contacts. (Source: Sigma Photo.)

      The lens is controlled electronically from the camera via 11 gold-plated contact points, shown in the illustration above. Because aperture settings are adjusted from the camera, there is no aperture ring.

      The focusing ring is 30 mm wide and positioned immediately aft of the bayonet fitting for the lens hood, where it’s a snug fit. Because focusing is controlled from the camera, it turns through a full 360 degrees when no power is supplied.

      Autofocusing is driven by a stepping motor system, which operates quickly and quietly. Manual focusing is selected from the camera.

      No other external controls are present and the lens barrel extends for a further 20 mm before stepping inwards for the mount. The minimum focusing distance in metres and feet plus a ‘Made in Japan’ label are stamped on the front half of this section of the barrel, while the M4/3 logo and the name of the lens are on the rear section.

      With the lens hood attached, the overall  length of the lens is about 90 mm and its weight is 292 grams. The lens hood can be reversed over the barrel for transport and storage.

      Performance
      The primary camera used when testing this lens was the recently-released Panasonic G95 camera, which has an effective resolution of 20.2 megapixels. We also took some test shots with our Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II camera, which has similar resolution. (This camera’s firmware was updated shortly before our tests.)

      Subjective assessments of test shots showed them to be very sharp, even at the maximum f/1.4 aperture. Imatest testing confirmed this but indicated the highest resolution occurred at about two stops down from the maximum aperture.

      Edges were sharpest at around the same point and the lens is remarkable for how closely near-centre and edge resolution track throughout the aperture range. The results of our Imatest tests are shown in the graph below.

      Lateral chromatic aberration remained well within the ‘negligible’ band for all aperture settings, as shown in the graph of our test results below. The red line marks the boundary between ‘negligible’ and ‘low’ CA.

      Because in-camera corrections are applied for both vignetting and rectilinear distortion, we had to analyse RW2.RAW files to see whether either issue was present. We found vignetting was barely visible at the widest aperture settings and distortion was limited to very slight pincushioning.

      The stepping motor system in the lens worked nicely with Panasonic’s DFD (Depth From Defocus) technology and we were able to take quick ‘grab shots’ of passing cyclists with a high success rate. Autofocusing was generally fast, accurate and completely silent, making this lens ideal for shooting video. Very little hunting occurred in low light levels. Manual focusing was very smooth and it was easy to focus with high precision, aided by the visual assistance from the camera (magnified view and/or focus peaking display).

      The minimum focusing distance of 50 cm makes this lens usable for taking close-ups of objects that measure more than about 10 cm in length. The 9-bladed iris diaphragm produced smooth and  attractive bokeh at wider apertures, although bokeh remained nice as the lens was stopped down, as shown in the samples section below.

      Conclusion

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      SPECS

      Picture angle: 21.9 degrees
      Minimum aperture: f/16
      Lens construction: 10 elements in 6 groups (including two aspherical elements)
      Lens mounts: M4/3 and Sony E
      Diaphragm Blades: 9 (circular aperture)
      Focus drive: Stepping motor
      Stabilisation: Relies on IBIS in the camera.
      Minimum focus: 50 cm
      Maximum magnification: 0.135x
      Filter size: 55 mm
      Dimensions (Diameter x L): 66.5 x 59.5 mm
      Weight: 280 grams
      Standard Accessories: Lens front and end caps, cylindrical lens hood (LH582-01)

      Distributor: C.R. Kennedy & Company, (03) 9823 1555, www.crkennedy.com.au/photo

       

      TESTS

      Based on JPEG files taken with the Panasonic G95 camera.

       

      SAMPLES


      Vignetting at f/1.4.


      Vignetting at f/1.6.


      Vignetting at f/1.8.


      Rectilinear distortion.


      Close-up at f/1.4; 1/1250 second at ISO 200.


      Close-up at f/4; 1/160 second at ISO 200.


      Misty scene; ISO 200, 1/160 second at f/5.6.


      Slight veiling flare caused by backlighting. ISO 200, 1/400 second at f/8.


      Flare resulting from a bright light within the image frame. ISO 200, 1/4000 second at f/8.


      Crop from the above image magnified to 100% showing absence of coloured fringing.


      ISO 200, 1/800 second at f/6.3.


      ISO 200, 1/640 second at f/8.


      ISO 200, 1/250 second at f/6.3.


      ISO 200, 1/25 second at f/6.3.


      ISO 200, 1/500 second at f/2.2


      ISO 200, 1/50 second at f/11.


      ISO 200, 1/400 second at f/5.6.


      ISO 200, 1/400 second at f/8.


      ISO 200, 1/500 second at f/9.


      ISO 200, 1/100 second at f/8.


      ISO 200, 1/250 second at f/7.1.


      ISO 200, 1/100 second at f/8.

       

      Rating

      RRP: AU$699; US$479

      • Build: 9.0
      • Handling: 9.0
      • Image quality: 9.2
      • Versatility: 8.7

       

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