We rate the Sony 50mm f/1.2 as one of the best Sony lenses ever made and, much like its f/1.4 sibling, it could the only lens you ever need, especially if portrait photography is your thing. The buzz surrounding Sigma’s recent March 26 event teaser comes as no surprise then, given that it’s expected the lens maker will announce a rival 50mm for pros that could be much more affordable.
According to Sony Alpha Rumors, the new 50mm lens will also have an extremely large f/1.2 aperture – perfect for bright portraits with an extremely shallow depth of field – and will come in both Sony E-Mount and L-Mount (for Sigma and Panasonic full-frame mirrorless cameras); there’s no mention of a Nikon Z-Mount version.
There’s also word that Sigma’s latest lens, which looks strikingly similar to its own 50mm f/1.4 in leaked images (which have since been taken down), will be smaller and lighter than the Sony rival, though not by much.
The real carrot dangled in front of aspiring and pro portrait photographers looking for a new Sony-mount lens is the potential money saved – Sigma’s lenses are almost always around half the price of Sony’s, and with the aforementioned Sony 50mm f/1.2 costing north of $2,000 / £2,000, we could be looking at something nearer $1,000 / £1,000.
Is Sigma’s latest portrait lens really needed?
If the image quality of Sigma’s soon-to-be-announced lens holds up – which is practically a given based on the third-party lens maker’s decorated history – then it will be a compelling alternative to Sony’s pricier 50mm f/1.2 lens. The only concern I have – which is based on the leaked images, which show the Sigma lens diameter as much narrower than the Sony version – is that cat’s eye bokeh could be more pronounced, although this is mere speculation until the lens is made official and we can test it.
Sigma already has a 50mm f/1.4 lens, so is this f/1.2 version what photographers really need? After all, on paper there are fine margins between f/1.2, f/1.4 and f/1.8 prime lenses. Well, these details matter to pros – the larger the maximum aperture, the easier to use in low light, plus the creamier and potentially rounder bokeh when shooting with the lens aperture wide open – especially given the Sigma lens is rumored to pack a generous 13 aperture blades.
A potential 50mm f/1.2 will be larger, heavier and pricier than Sigma’s existing 50mm f/1.4. However, most pros will fork out the extra to gain that larger aperture. For everyone else, the 50mm f/1.4 or even a f/1.8 will probably do just fine. In any case, it looks like Sigma will again deliver an impressive lens for pros that shoot with Sony especially, or Panasonic, and we’ll only have to wait until March 26 (7AM EST / 12:00 GMT / 21:00 JST) to find out more.
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