Sigma BF (Beautiful Foolishness).

[shawn]

I think for most (all?) of them they really just changed the name and dropped the DG DN label. Other than the new silver color option. MPB usually has a nice selection of used L mount glass.

 

[keepright]

I too thought I would wait a while for the redesigned… typeface… of the i-series, since I have both M-mount and K-mount lenses that I can adapt. And they do work very nicely, though the rangefinder lenses are much more sensible on an adapter than the SLR lenses. Being able to set up shading compensation so easily is a very nice touch – I only did it with the lenses at f/5.6, but I could have created a second profile for wide open aperture if I wanted to. It's so easy to switch profiles, so why not?

But… yeah. Manual focus works well, but AF fits the gestalt of the camera so perfectly. And solves some problems.

The screen is a weak spot, so seeing to manually focus under adverse conditions is a challenge. Autofocus definitely eases the workload there, where manual focus needs one hand on the lens, one hand on the shutter, and a third to touch the screen for magnification. (It took me a while to figure out how to make the magnification 'hold' instead of timing out after two seconds.) Having autofocus cuts the number of hands needed in half.

I bought a used 45/2.8DGDN instead of waiting for the just-plain-DG version. (Its focal length fills the critical gap in my 35-40-50mm M-mount primes.) The different font doesn't bother me much (I'm absolutely someone who can spot the difference between Helvetica and Arial) and the advantage is that the typeface for the older lens makes the aperture values more prominent. If that sounds like rationalization it's only because it is – but it worked for me.

 

[shawn]

The screen is a weak spot, so seeing to manually focus under adverse conditions is a challenge. Autofocus definitely eases the workload there, where manual focus needs one hand on the lens, one hand on the shutter, and a third to touch the screen for magnification. (It took me a while to figure out how to make the magnification 'hold' instead of timing out after two seconds.) Having autofocus cuts the number of hands needed in half.

I don't know if the BF has it but on the fp L you can turn on magnification and the center portion is always magnified except with a half press of the shutter button. That bugged me at first but the logic of that with an adapted lens actually makes a lot of sense.You can always see the edges of the framing with the middle being zoomed in. Focus, then half press, final compose and shoot. Once you let go of the shutter release the center is zoomed again. Saves a button press every time you want to focus and is quicker once you get used to that logic.

 

[Ken Ford]

Success, maybe. Focus Camera had the new 45/2.8 showing in stock so I pounced. Let’s see if it’s actually available.

I’ve been checking the linked retailers from the Sigma site a few times per day. I have a 24/3.5 on order locally (paid with a trade in Z mount lens) and am still looking for a 17/4.

 

[keepright]

I don't know if the BF has it but on the fp L you can turn on magnification and the center portion is always magnified except with a half press of the shutter button.

Interesting. I looked, but couldn't see any setting for that, and there aren't a lot of places for settings to hide on this camera. But that got me looking at other possibilities, and sure enough, clicking the centre of the wheel while the shutter button is half-pressed will magnify the screen. So that's easier, if the centre is what I want magnified, and it usually is.

Success, maybe.

Well done! I'm hoping that the status is correct and it will be on its way to you shortly.

 

[Ken Ford]

Interesting. I looked, but couldn't see any setting for that, and there aren't a lot of places for settings to hide on this camera. But that got me looking at other possibilities, and sure enough, clicking the centre of the wheel while the shutter button is half-pressed will magnify the screen. So that's easier, if the centre is what I want magnified, and it usually is.

Great find!

 

[keepright]

The centre button is handy. Normally it brings up the options, but with the shutter half-depressed it changes the AF selection zone from area to 1-point. So in AF-C it selects a new subject to track, and in AF-S it recalculates the focus and relocks the exposure.

Another control quirk I've noticed is that the playback button only shows blinking highlight warnings with a full press, not a touch. I don't mind – I use two levels of zebra warnings when recording photos – but it's good to know that they display information differently.

The ellipsis … button shows the battery percentage, clock time, and shots remaining when touched instead of pressed.

And one of my favourite things is being able to lightly tap the power button (not haptic) to sleep the camera, quickly woken with the shutter button, so that I can conserve power but still leave the sleep timer set to something generous.

It doesn't have a lot of controls, but it makes good use of them.

 

[JohnGellings]

Why do you need a revised one Ken?

 

[Ken Ford]

Why do you need a revised one Ken?

The 45? I wanted the newest version because the person at Sigma USA I spoke with implied that there might be minor product improvements over the original.

 

[shawn]

The 45? I wanted the newest version because the person at Sigma USA I spoke with implied that there might be minor product improvements over the original.

The only other change to the 45mm (beyond the font) was that it now works with the magnetic lens cap, which made it slightly heavier.

Optically Sigma didn't change anything. (Sigma confirmed this)

 

[seany65]

Shoots 6k video but no mic jack!

Is it possible to tell the difference between 4k and 6k?

 

[shawn]

Is it possible to tell the difference between 4k and 6k?

That is going to depend upon how you use it. If you have a display that can handle the higher resolution then yes. The extra resolution also can be used to let you crop video a bit and still end up with full 4k video.

 

[Ken Ford]

The only other change to the 45mm (beyond the font) was that it now works with the magnetic lens cap, which made it slightly heavier.

Optically Sigma didn't change anything. (Sigma confirmed this)

The magnetic cap has value to me, too. I just prefer to have the current version.

 

[shawn]

OK, I never used any of the magnetic clips as they seemed more likely to pop off when walking around with the camera on the strap and they don't work with the hood.

 

[Ken Ford]

I picked up a TTArtisans 75/2for the BF, but it’s going back - in testing I found the aperture never opens up beyond f/4 in program or shutter priority mode and there are no firmware updates shown on the manufacturer’s website. I’m not willing to take the risk, and it points up the issues with third party lenses. I’m pretty sure TTArtisan isn’t part of the L Mount Alliance so they must be reverse engineering.

 

[Out to Lunch]

there are no firmware updates shown on the manufacturer’s website

This lens just came out -BH lists it as "New Item - Coming Soon".

 

[Ken Ford]

This lens just came out -BH lists it as "New Item - Coming Soon".

I purchased mine from TTArtisan on Amazon.

 

[Ken Ford]

I’ve found my advancing arthritis makes having a grip beneficial, the pinching motion needed without one gets painful pretty quickly. (This isn’t just a BF issue.) I have a Helium grip on order but it won’t be here before I leave for vacation next month, but I just found this one that they said can be here quickly. It’s lower profile, too - I ordered the all aluminum one that has the shorter baseplate. Sigma BF Grip Wood

My Sigma 45 arrived, but I haven’t had a chance to get out with it due to weather and family commitments. I’ve found if I leave the BF on auto aperture I can override to aperture priority on demand using the lens aperture ring without menu diving. Camera set to auto shutter speed and auto ISO with the lens aperture ring parked in A = drunk mode, take control of aperture using the lens ring with no other changes = aperture priority. EC is always available on shutter half press, and I tend to leave the back wheel parked on format.

I also ordered a used Panny 20-60 to use as a family and vacation lens, it’s inexpensive, smallish and seems to be well regarded. Between the 20-60 and 45 I should be good for vacation.

 

[shawn]

My Sigma 45 arrived, but I haven’t had a chance to get out with it due to weather and family commitments. I’ve found if I leave the BF on auto aperture I can override to aperture priority on demand using the lens aperture ring without menu diving. Camera set to auto shutter speed and auto ISO with the lens aperture ring parked in A = drunk mode, take control of aperture using the lens ring with no other changes = aperture priority. EC is always available on shutter half press, and I tend to leave the back wheel parked on format.

I also ordered a used Panny 20-60 to use as a family and vacation lens, it’s inexpensive, smallish and seems to be well regarded. Between the 20-60 and 45 I should be good for vacation.

That is nice on the BF. That is how my Panasonic L mount cameras work but on the fp L setting the lens to A just changes the aperture control to a dial on the camera instead of putting it into Program mode.

The 20-60 is supposed to be a good lens but for a tiny walk around zoom I think I would go with the 18-40.

 

[Ken Ford]

That is nice on the BF. That is how my Panasonic L mount cameras work but on the fp L setting the lens to A just changes the aperture control to a dial on the camera instead of putting it into Program mode.

The 20-60 is supposed to be a good lens but for a tiny walk around zoom I think I would go with the 18-40.

I thought I saw comments about the 18-40 that dissuaded me. Should I reconsider?