© Yoshino Adachi SIGMA 35mm F1.2 DG DN | Art Impression It is persuasive that SIGMA finally releases a F1.2 lens because they have been making this many large-diameter fixed-focal lenses in these days. If they further pursue the joy and possibility of photography, it is no wonder they would move to the next level of F1.2. Advancement of digital cameras requires better optical performance of lenses. SIGMA must be very confident because they chose to release the F1.2 lens when we do not always have to be afraid of increasing sensitivity anymore. The test began with portraits. The underground location had a piano and a very weak indirect sunshine because of the thick clouds. In such a tough condition, the only thing I can trust is lens performance itself. As soon as I started shooting, I felt like I was shooting with a larger format.

© Yoshino Adachi

This composition is typical with the 50mm. Rendition is very sharp to the corners despite the very shallow focal depth for the 35mm. Just as F1.4 and F1.8 are different from each other, F1.2 has its own world. Looking into the viewfinder, I was listening to Scriabin (Russian composer) that she was playing. It was ephemeral and beautiful. A performer embodies the world s/he has and this is what I wanted to express. Vignetting is incredibly well-controlled for the maximum F-number, but not completely eliminated to the extent to be tasteless. It pleasantly emphasizes the subject.

© Yoshino Adachi

With the F1.2 shallowness, the subject does not always have to be close in order to pop out. The rich gradation also works to reproduce the atmosphere.

© Yoshino Adachi

The intense sunshine is reflecting and defusing. This is a mean condition for a lens test, but the color reproduction is still rich and the subject's edge line in focus looks sharp. The high image quality at wide open lets photographers express as freely as possible. Focal depth becomes paper-thin in close distance. Bokeh is not meltingly creamy, but never gets noisy and distracting.