Amateur Photographer - UK (2021-01-16)

http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk 73

The lens forces you to raise the
sensitivity fairly high to create
fast shutter speeds, even in
favourable lighting conditions
Sony Alpha 7 III, Sigma 100-400mm F5-6.3 DG DN OS
Contemporary @ 400mm, 1/500sec at f/6.3, ISO 1000

Michael Topham puts Sigma’s   h DG DN lens for

full-frame mirrorless cameras through its paces

W

hen Sigma
revealed it was
going to develop a
series of lenses
for full-frame mirrorless cameras
that use the E mount and L
mount, many photographers were
eager to know what they’d be.
The  rst lenses to receive the
new DG DN identity were the
45mm F2.8 DG DN |
Contemporary, 14-24mm F2.8 DG
DN | Art and 35mm F1.2 DG DN |

Art, which were later followed by

the 24-70mm F2.8 DG DN | Art.

The  fth lens to arrive was the

100-400mm F5-6.3 DG DN OS |

Contemporary – a zoom that

looks set to have mass market

appeal with those seeking an

affordable telephoto for less

than £1,000.

Like other lenses that slot into

Sigma’s Contemporary lineup,

we’re looking at a zoom that’s

competitively priced, promises an

excellent optical performance and

remains highly portable. The

number of lenses in E mount and

L mount that manage to achieve

this across a 100-400mm focal

range are currently few and far

between. There’s the Sony FE

100-400mm F4.5-5.6 OSS G

Master in E mount, but it’ll set

you back £1,400 more, which is

a lot. Sigma could be onto a

winner with its latest zoom, but is

it all that we’ve hoped for?

Sigma 100-400mm

F5-6.3 DG DN OS |

Contemporary

Features

The lens shares a resemblance

with Sigma’s 100-400mm F5-6.3

DG OS HSM for DSLRs in terms

of appearance, but is different in

the way it’s been designed from

the ground up for full-frame

mirrorless cameras that feature a

short  ange back distance. The

optical design is different to the

DSLR version and features 22

elements in 16 groups. Four of

these are special low-dispersion

(SLD) glass elements and one is

the ‘F’ low-dispersion (FLD) type,

which promises a low refractive

index and characteristics

that provide good contrast

Testbench