Home » Photography » Sigma 14mm F1.4 DG DN | Art Lens Announced

Sigma 14mm F1.4 DG DN | Art Lens Announced

By on

The new SIGMA 14mm F1.4 DG DN | Art lens officially announce. It’s the world’s first full-frame 14mm lens with an impressive F1.4 aperture. Today, Sigma added a new Art lens to its lineup. The 14mm F1.4 DG DN | Art is a wide-angle prime designed exclusively for full frame mirrorless cameras.

Inside the lens are 19 elements in 15 groups, including three super low dispersion glass elements, one ‘F’ low dispersion element, and four aspheric elements. Sigma says that this lens is engineered for starscapes with coatings that address ghosting and flare. An 11-bladed, rounded aperture is also part of the design.

The Sigma 14mm F1.4 DG DN | Art will be available in L-mount as well as Sony E-mount. The US price for this lens is $1,599, now available for pre-order at B&H Photo Video/Adorama. The release date for this lens is in late June.

Key features

The world’s first full-frame 14mm lens with an F1.4 aperture

The SIGMA 14mm F1.4 DG DN | Art is the world’s first F1.4 mirrorless lens with an angle-of-view this wide. The F1.4 aperture is two thirds of a stop brighter than its predecessor the SIGMA 14mm F1.8 DG HSM | Art for DSLRs, which means it allows 58% more light on to the camera’s sensor. This makes it even better suited to photographing the night sky, as well as for using hand-held in dark environments.

Optically optimised for astrophotography

With its advanced optical design that includes 1 SLD, 3 FLD and 4 aspherical elements, the lens has been designed with astrophotography in mind. With a particular emphasis on optical quality at infinity focus, the lens has very well-controlled optical aberrations and sagittal coma flare, which ensures that bright points of light remain pin-sharp and round at all apertures and across the entire frame.

The lens uses in-camera optical aberration control profiles to help correct for any distortion or vignetting, whereas optical issues that are more difficult to improve digitally, such as corner softness and chromatic aberration, are eliminated by the lens’s sophisticated optical design. Using optical aberration control selectively in this way helps to keep the size and weight of the lens down.

A professional feature-set with superb build quality

The 14mm F1.4 DG DN | Art has a professional feature-set that makes it easier for photographers and film-makers to achieve the best possible results. Built in to the barrel is an aperture ring, which can be set to auto for aperture control on the camera. With a very precise action, the ring can also be de-clicked if preferred, or locked in place so that it’s not accidentally knocked.

At the front of the barrel is a Lens Heater Retainer, which was a feature introduced on the SIGMA 20mm F1.4 DG DN | Art. This helps hold a heat strip in place, which are often used by astrophotographers when shooting in cold conditions to prevent condensation build-up on the front element.

The lens features a rear filter holder that allows sheet-type filters to be attached. Soft type filters are preferred by astrophotographers as they make stars appear softer, larger and brighter. Other types of sheet-type filter can also be used.

A brand-new front lens cap has been specially designed with these types of filters in mind. Two filter slots are provided to store pre-cut sheet-type filters, allowing them to be carried with the SIGMA 14mm F1.4 DG DN Art lens at all times. Previous lenses such as the SIGMA 14mm F1.8 DG HSM | Art used a push fit type cap. The new front cap now features a secure lock mechanism to prevent the cap from falling off unintentionally.

An MFL (manual focus lock) switch can be found on the side of the lens barrel. This allows astrophotographers to find infinity then switch the MFL switch to Lock, which completely disables the focus ring. This means that even if the ring is knocked the focus will remain at infinity.

As this type of ultra-wide-aperture lens is by nature relatively heavy, attaching the camera to a tripod using the camera’s tripod thread can make the set-up front-heavy, putting the thread under stain and making the camera unstable. So included with this lens is the TS-141 Tripod Socket, which ensures a more balanced set-up closer to the centre of gravity when mounted on a tripod.

An AFL button is included on the lens barrel, which can be customised depending on the camera and system.

The 14mm F1.4 DG DN is fitted with Sigma’s new High-response Linear Actuator (HLA) motor, which delivers faster, smoother, quieter and more accurate focusing than a stepping motor. This is only the third Sigma lens to be designed with this technology, ensuring very responsive focusing in all shooting situations.

Feature summary

  • Lens construction: 19 elements, 15 groups (1 SLD, 3 FLD and 4 aspherical elements)
  • Inner focus system
  • Compatible with high-speed autofocus
  • HLA (High-response Linear Actuator) motor
  • Compatible with lens aberration correction*
  • Support DMF, AF+MF
  • Compatible with AF assist function (Sony E-mount only)
  • Super Multi-Layer Coating
  • Aperture Ring
  • Aperture Ring Click switch
  • Focus Mode switch
  • AFL button (customisable on some models
  • Petal-type Hood (fixed)
  • MFL (Manual Focus Lock) switch
  • Rear filter holder
  • Specially designed front cap (Filter slots, Lock mechanism)
  • Dust and Splash Resistant Structure
  • Water and Oil Repellent Coating (Front element)
  • Tripod Socket (TS-141)
  • Support for switching between linear focus / non-linear focus ring settings (L-Mount only)**
  • Compatible with the SIGMA USB DOCK UD-11 (Optional / L-Mount only)
  • Designed to minimise flare and ghosting
  • Every single lens undergoes SIGMA’s proprietary MTF measuring system
  • 11-blade rounded diaphragm
  • High-precision, durable brass bayonet mount
  • Made in Japan craftsmanship

* Function available on supported cameras only. Available corrections may vary depending on the camera model. On cameras where aberration correction is controlled with ‘ON’ or ‘OFF’ in the camera menu, please set all aberration correction functions to ‘ON’ (AUTO).

** Only on compatible cameras.

Key specifications

  • Lens construction: 19 elements, 15 groups (1 SLD, 3 FLD and 4 aspherical elements)
  • Angle-of-view: 114.2°
  • Number of diaphragm blades: 11 (rounded diaphragm)
  • Minimum aperture: F16
  • Minimum focusing distance: 30cm
  • Maximum magnification ratio: 1:11.9
  • Dimensions (max diameter x length): φ101.4 × 149.9mm
  • Weight: 1170g
  • Price: £1399
  • On Sale: 23rd June 2023