SIGMA 56mm f/1.4 DC DN | C £349/$429

Perfect for portraiture and still life photography on smaller EOS M mirrorless bodies, this Sigma 56mm is a beauty

Sigma recently released three fast primes with native mount options for EOS M series bodies, featuring focal lengths of 16mm, 30mm and 56mm. All have a fast aperture rating of f/1.4, but the 56mm is the most natural choice for bokeh, as it has the longest focal length, equating to a portrait-friendly 90mm in full-frame terms. It’s actually very small for a 56mm lens with an f/1.4 aperture and weighs just 280g, making it a perfect match for EOS M mirrorless bodies.

Although small and light, the lens is beautifully turned out and has a solid feel to it. The only external moving part is a comfortably wide manual focus ring, which is electronically coupled to the stepping motor AF system and enables very precise adjustments. AF itself is speedy but virtually silent and, typical of the breed, enables smooth autofocus transitions during movie capture.

The lens packs ten optical elements into its diminutive build. These include an aspherical element and a hybrid ‘aspherical special low dispersion’ element. The latter aims to minimize axial chromatic aberration, which can often be problematic in fast prime lenses. As with Sigma’s 30mm DC lens for DSLRS, this one for mirrorless cameras has a nineblade diaphragm which remains well-rounded when stopping down.

Performance

Levels of sharpness are very good, and better than from Sigma’s 30mm Art lens. Bokeh is soft and dreamy – noticeable axial chromatic aberration when shooting wide-open, is almost entirely negligible with this lens.