If you’ve been paying attention to the photography world at all, it’s hard to miss the resurgence of interest in film and film cameras. Due to their electronic shutters, digital viewfinders, LED displays, and other electronic aids, digital cameras just lack some of that tactile sensation provided by analog film cameras. To recreate some of that magic, Sigma has decided give the lenses in their Contemporary line a more analog feel. This week, I got to test out two of those lenses: a 24mm f2.0 and a 90mm f2.8.
Sigma 24mm lens
Before we get into all the vintage-like features the lenses share, let’s talk about each lens’ specs. The 24mm f2 lens weighs just 12.9 ounces. It’s comprised of 11 groups and 13 elements. It has one FLD and two SLD lens elements, as well as two aspherical lenses. This all results in a small but sturdy lens that creates a super sharp image from edge to edge. Aspects to be concerned about is how a 24mm lens handles things like distortion and vignetting. Fortunately, this lens performed super well in both categories — even when wide open. Due to a lack of optical compression and the fact that wide angle lenses are generally designed with less-than-fast apertures, it is often difficult to get shallow depth of field with a wider lens. However, due to this 24mm’s large f2 aperture, you can still get great separation from the background without being super close to your subject.
Sigma 90mm lens
If separating your subject from the background is what you’re after, it’s time to break out the 90mm lens. As you’d expect, when wide open, the 90 f2.8 lens produces some really beautiful bokeh. Most of the time, fast primes are big and heavy so I couldn’t believe how small this lens is. It also manages to pack 11 elements in ten groups with five SLD and one aspherical lens elements. At just 10.4 ounces, it’s so much easier to carry around than the 70-200 f2.8 lens that I usually use for portraits. You can walk around all day with this lens and barely notice it’s there. I really like this focal length for portraits because, not only does it create great separation from the background, but longer focal lengths like this are generally more flattering for portrait photography. When compared to a wide lens, a longer lens actually has a lot more optical compression and composes the elements of a face in a flatter, more attractive way.
Manual Aperture Ring
As I mentioned earlier, Sigma went to great lengths to really make their lenses feel like they came from the film era. The most important aspect of this is a manual aperture ring, which Sigma has included. I personally love a manual aperture ring because it makes the act of taking pictures that much more fun. As I am as big an automotive nerd as I am a photography nerd— a great lens with a manual aperture ring is a lot like a great car with a manual transmission. Sure, it’s not the fastest or most technologically advanced option. But it makes the experience of actually driving the car (or camera) that much more tactile and engaging.
It is also clear that Sigma spent a lot of time getting the feel right on their manual focus rings as well. The focus rings on these Sigma lenses have long throws and great feel. I rarely found myself hunting for focus.
All Metal
To round out that vintage feel, the entire lens bodies, hoods, and lens mounts are made entirely of metal. Compared to some of the more plastic-like lenses, all the lenses in Sigmas’s Contemporary line have truly top-of-the-line build quality. They feel like pieces of gear that you’ll be able to count on for years to come.
As these lenses are part of Sigma’s Contemporary line, they aren’t necessarily aimed at the consumer looking for the pinnacle in optical performance. Factors like their small size, robust build, and manual features make them great choices for any shooter who cares more about the craft of taking a photo than outright lens specs.
Shop the new Sigma lenses at Adorama now.
Feature photo by Cooper Naitove
