Over the past three years Sigma has easily been the most prolific lens developer on Sony FE and Leica L.  We went from no full frame options from Sigma on Sony’s mirrorless platform three years ago to 30+ lenses today.  And, while I tend to look at these lenses from a Sony slant (I don’t cover Leica L-mount), I do recognize that often these iSeries lenses (a lineup of compact prime lenses that debuted in late 2019) are designed even more with Leica cameras in mind.  Compact lenses are even more desirable on compact cameras, and while Sony does have the compact a7C full frame camera, there are a variety of L-mount supporting compact cameras, including some from Sigma itself.  The newest lens to join the growing ranks of the compact iSeries lenses is the Sigma 50mm F2 DG DN, which we will refer to as the i50 for brevity in this review, with a 17mm F4 lens also being announced at the same time.  If you’re interested in other focal lengths, here is the growing list of iSeries compact prime lenses all hyperlinked to my review of them.

1. Sigma 17mm F4
2. Sigma 20mm F2
3. Sigma 24mm F3.5
4. Sigma 24mm F2
5. Sigma 35mm F2
6. Sigma 45mm F2.8
7. Sigma 50mm F2
8. Sigma 65mm F2
9. Sigma 90mm F2.8

I’ve noted that Sigma’s marketing language for the iSeries is typical marketing word salad (impressive words without much grounding in reality), but the premise for the series is sound.  Sigma has recognized that there are multiple segments within the mirrorless market, and those segments have different priorities.  One group wants maximum performance in aperture and optics, and these are served by Sigma’s larger ART series (like the recent 50mm F1.4 DN ART), but there is a secondary market who bought into the mirrorless vision of smaller and lighter while retaining the performance.  This second group is the target audience for the iSeries.  The iSeries lenses are beautiful crafted, very tactile, but are also much smaller and lighter than other premium lenses.  I’m a fan of the premise, myself, and have liked most of the iSeries lenses quite a bit. 

I recently released my review of Sony’s newest 50mm lens, the 50mm F1.4 G Master, and one of the comments I heard often from my audience was that many of them were less interested in an F1.4 lens (when Sony already has an amazing 50mm F1.2 lens), and what they really wanted was a better quality 50mm F1.8 lens (perhaps in the G series).  Sony already has a very compact 50mm F2.5 G lens (which I reviewed here), but people wanted something a little faster than that.  Sigma is happy to jump into that void, as the i50 has the superior build quality, quality optics, and compact size that people said they are looking for.

The main threat to the i50 on the Sony side is that Sony 50mm F2.5 G lens, as the Sony is a really solid little lens with a great build, excellent autofocus, good up close performance, and very strong optics.  It’s also 25mm shorter and about half the weight of the new Sigma lens…and the price point is pretty much identical.  The main Sigma advantage is that it sports a 2/3rds stop brighter aperture (F2 vs F2.5), and it could be argued that the build is even nicer.  There are fewer alternatives in L mount, however, where this lens will be even more welcome.

So should the new Sigma jump onto your wish list for a new 50mm lens?  I’ll explore the strengths and weaknesses of the lens in this review.  So now you have a choice:  watch the video review below or read the text review to get the full picture.

Sigma 50mm F2 DN (iSeries) Quick Review | The Premium Compact

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Thanks to Gentec (Sigma’s Canadian Distributor) for sending me a pre-release review loaner of this lens. As always, this is a completely independent review. *The tests and most of the photos that I share as a part of my review cycle have been done with the Sony a7IV along with the Sony Alpha 1 which will serve as my benchmark camera for the foreseeable future (my review here).

Photos of the Sigma 50mm F2 DN

Photos taken with the Sigma 50mm F2 DN

Purchase the Sigma 50mm F2 DN @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany 

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