Amateur Photographer - UK (2019-11-30)

subscribe 0330 333 1113 I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk I 30 November 2019 41

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH MPB

Zeiss Batis 40mm F2 CF

● £1,149 ● http://www.zeiss.co.uk

Sigma 56mm F1.4

DC DN Contemporary
THERE’S no getting away from ● £359 ● http://www.sigma-imaging-uk.com
the fact that the Zeiss’s latest
autofocus prime in its Batis
line-up for Sony full-frame
mirrorless cameras is both bulky,
and extremely expensive for an
f/2 lens. Some photographers
may also be put off by the
unusual focal length, which is far
less common than either of its
35mm or 50mm neighbours.
But to dismiss the Zeiss Batis
40mm F2 CF on any of these
grounds would be a huge
mistake, because it’s a truly
wonderful standard lens that’s
a fantastic match for Sony Alpha
7-series cameras.
So what makes this lens so
special? First and foremost, the
image quality it delivers is about
as close to fl awless as you could
hope, with superb detail rendition
and minimal aberrations. Its
close-up shooting ability, with
a 24cm minimum-focus
distance that gives
one-third life-size
magnifi cation,
is really handy,
too. On top of
this, the build
quality is
superb, with a
sturdy weather-
sealed metal
barrel. Autofocus
is quick, silent and

accurate,whilethesmallOLED

panel that displays distance and

depth-of-fi eld information is a

bonus for manual-focus shooting.

But what about that unfamiliar

focal length? As it happens,

there’s a hard core of

photographers who’ll swear that

this represents the ideal standard

lens on full-frame, bringing an

extremely natural perspective to

your images. For those who love

shooting with 40mm lenses and

the look of the images they

produce, this is an absolutely

stunning example of the type.

THIS delightful little prime is a

top choice for mirrorless users

looking for a fast short-telephoto

lens. With the E-mount version

being equivalent to 84mm and

the Micro Four Thirds version

offering 112mm coverage, it’s

well matched to applications such

as portraiture, reportage and

travel photography.

It’s the smallest of Sigma’s

three DC DN lenses, weighing just

280g. The optical construction

consists of 10 elements in six

groups, with one special low

dispersion (SLD) glass element

and two aspherical elements used

to curtail optical aberrations.

In keeping with Sigma’s

Contemporary ethos, it delivers

a high performance at a sensible

price while feeling reassuringly

solid and well constructed in the

hand. The super-smooth focus

ring allows you to

make precise

manual-focus

adjustments, but

with no AF/MF

switch, you need

to select the

focus mode via

the camera.

The aesthetic

out-of-focus

specular highlights

at wideaperturesis particularly

pleasing, with nicely rendered

circular highlights in the centre

of the frame. Cat’s-eye bokeh is

observed towards the edge at

f/1.4, but this is less pronounced

when you stop down. Centre

sharpness is good at f/1.4, but

stopping down to f/2 and f/4

yields crisper results.

The nature of its size means

that it doesn’t dwarf small

mirrorless cameras, and those

who are after a fast prime that’s

neither too heavy or too

cumbersome will enjoy the

handling and overall experience

of using it. For the

price and size of

the lens, you can’t

argue with its

image quality.

What we like

● Supreme optics

● Handy close-focus feature

● Weather-sealed construction

What we like

● Small and light

● Solid-feeling build

● Very pleasing bokeh

GOLD Recommended

A super-shallow depth

is easily achieved wide

open at f/1.4

The 40mm view provides a very

natural-looking perspective