Naturally, there’s not a whole of point in having a fast f/1.4 lens if image quality doesn’t hold up when shooting wide-open. As it turns out, sharpness and contrast are maintained very well at the widest aperture. Another bonus is that the wide aperture and short 25cm minimum focus distance enable a fairly tight depth of field and good bokeh, enabling interesting perspective effects. In the right side of the frame of the same image, significant green fringing can be seen on high-contrast edges in the out-of-focus area. Illumination is also quite even from center to edge, a big plus for a bright lens. At f/1.4 and f/2 the corners lag behind the center by -1.1EV, which gives photos a very slight, natural vignette. At narrower f-stops the difference is about -0.8EV, which is barely noticeable in images. The lens looks very nice and has a sleek, smooth design and finish. It pairs quite well with a Sony camera and doesn't look dissimilar from some of Sony's own lenses. The large focus ring has a rubberized finish and feels very nice to use, plus it's wide at just under a couple inches (around 50 millimeters). The lens looks good and balances well with the A6500. The new SIGMA 16mm F1.4 DC DN | Contemporary is the world’s first interchangeable lens for mirrorless Sony E-mount cameras in the APS-C format to offer a 24mm focal length (35mm equivalent) and F1.4 brightness. The lens for Micro Four Thirds offers a 32mm focal length (35mm equivalent) with the same f-number of 1.4. This is the large-diameter wide-angle lens for which mirrorless camera users have been waiting.

Finally, it is worth considering just how important it is for you to have a focal length as close as possible to the classic 35mm field of view, which is more or less what the 17mm offers with its 34mm equivalent field of view. With Sony’s brand new 15mm F1.4, does this older Sigma still have a place in the market? (spoiler: yes)The brass mount combines high precision with rugged construction. Its treated surfaces and enhanced strength contribute to the exceptional durability of the lens. Before we round it all off, I’d like to offer two main alternatives for your consideration. Sony E 15mm F1.4 G

The new lens seems to be very good value against these, particularly taking into account the ultra-bright maximum aperture. For more options have a look at the Top 21 Best Sigma lenses, or the Top 28 Wide-angle Landscape Lenses. The first in this SIGMA series of prime lenses for mirrorless cameras was the standard prime 30mm F1.4 DC DN | Contemporary, now followed by the wide-angle prime 16mm F1.4 DC DN | Contemporary. Going forward, SIGMA will add a telephoto lens to the series, making it a new and complete system for mirrorless camera users.

Ease of Use

In the case of both lenses, the best performance is found at f/4 but f/2, f/2.8 and f/5.6 all reach similar levels of sharpness. Looking first at sharpness, a fast, bright f/1.4 optic might be expected to start off slightly soft at open aperture, but in fact the new Sigma has very good central sharpness from f/1.4 through to f/2, rising to excellent from f/2.8 through to f/8. Diffraction starts to take hold, as would be expected with the small MFT format, but performance remains very good even at f/11 and f/16. If the 17mm has one clear advantage of the 16mm, it is compactness. Not only does it suit any Micro Four Thirds body in the range, from the flagship E-M1 II to the tiny Pen E-PL8, but it doesn’t add any weight to your camera bag. In fact, you could easily decide to throw it in at the last minute without even having to reorganise your gear. The same cannot be said for the 16mm, whose width and length prohibit you from comfortably using it on any body smaller than the Lumix GX80. To begin, let’s take a look at how the two lenses compare at a long focus distance close to infinity. Reference image

When “Firmware update is complete. It will restart automatically” is displayed, the update is complete. The Sigma 16mm F1.4 DC DN C ships with a good quality plastic circular-shaped lens hood. It accepts 67mm filters. Lens flare is very well-controlled when dealing with the sun. Even shooting straight into the sun, the Sigma lens handles it well. Artificial light when shooting at night is less well-controlled, however. A brand new addition to the mirrorless range of primes is the Sigma 16mm f/1.4 DC DN Contemporary, a wide-angle lens with a bright f/1.4 aperture available for both Sony E and Micro Four Thirds mounts.For Sony APS-C users, it is the first 24mm lens (35mm equivalent) with a bright f/1.4 aperture for the system. In the case of Micro Four Thirds however, it joins an already ample number of bright aperture primes with similar focal lengths such as the Panasonic Leica 15mm f/1.7, Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.2 Pro and Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8.

Sigma 16mm F1.4 DC DN C Features

Holding the camera and hanging out over the edge of the pier, there was a starburst effect from the sun that was just disappearing behind a cloud. What I Liked and What Could Be Improved With This Lens Now, before we finish up the review, there are some a couple of random things I have to cover. Stabilization?

The only downside, in my opinion, is that to achieve the clean look, anAF/MF switch had to be omitted.The Sigma 16mm, whose focal length equates to 32mm in 35mm format, offers a marginally wider field of view in comparison to the M.Zuiko 17mm, whose field of view matches that of a 34mm lens in 35mm format.