Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art Review

Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art Performance

Sharpness is almost universally excellent. Central performance falls into the excellent category from f/1.4 through to f/11, only falling to very good at f/16. What is also impressive is that the edges are very, very close and are also excellent from f/1.4 through to f/8. At f/11 and f/16 the edges are, just, in the very good category. To be fair there is not a lot in it, and the edge figures are incredibly close to the central ones. All in all, a superbly balanced performance and a lens Sigma can be proud of.

MTF Chart
 

How to read our charts

The blue column represents readings from the centre of the picture frame at the various apertures and the green is from the edges.

The scale on the left side is an indication of actual image resolution as LW/PH and is described in detail above. The taller the column, the better the lens performance.

For this review, the lens was tested on a Canon EOS 5D Mark IV using Imatest.

CA (Chromatic Aberration) is very low indeed, with a very high level of correction. Fringing will not be a problem and no software correction will be necessary.

CA Chart
 

How to read our charts

Chromatic aberration is the lens' inability to focus on the sensor or film all colours of visible light at the same point. Severe chromatic aberration gives a noticeable fringing or a halo effect around sharp edges within the picture. It can be cured in software.

Apochromatic lenses have special lens elements (aspheric, extra-low dispersion etc) to minimize the problem, hence they usually cost more.

For this review, the lens was tested on a Canon EOS 5D Mark IV using Imatest.

Distortion is also very close to zero, with just -0.134% of barrelling in evidence. This is unlikely to be noticed even in the most critical shooting.

Flare resistance is generally excellent and backlit images not a problem. However, when the light hits at a fairly oblique angle across the front element, it is possible to find a spot where flare cascades over the whole image. If not looking for this it is unlikely that it would be a problem.

Bokeh is lovely with this 85mm, making it an ideal tool for portraiture. Beautifully smooth backgrounds can only enhance most portrait images.

Value For Money

The Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art lens is priced at £1199. The previous DG HSM version might still be found at around £599.

For those prepared to manually focus, the Samyang 85mm f/1.4 IF MC is priced at £289 and also available are the Zeiss Milvus 85mm f/1.4 (£1379) and the Zeiss Otus 85mm f/1.4 (£3299). Otherwise, we have a variety of fast f/1.4 AF lenses available.

There are the Nikon AF-S 85mm f/1.4 G (£1349), Sony Planar 85mm f/1.4 ZA £1109) and Sony FE 85mm f/1.4 G Master (£1649). Tamron make a slightly slower, but still excellent, SP 85mm f/1.8 VC at £749.

For more options have a look at the Top 10 Best Sigma lenses, or the Top 27 Best Portrait Lenses. 

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