# Sigma 135mm f/1.8 DG Art Series Lens Shipping on April 7?



## Canon Rumors Guy (Mar 16, 2017)

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<p><strong>*UPDATE #2*</strong>

<em>We’re told by an authorized retailer that ONLY the Sigma 135mm f/1.8 DG HSM Art will be available for preorder tonight.</em></p>
<p><strong>*UPDATE*</strong>

<em>Preorders will go live tonight, midnight EST.</em></p>
<p>According to <a href="http://www.nokishita-camera.com/2017/03/135mm-f18-dg-hsm-art47.html">Nokishita</a>, the Sigma 135mm f/1.8 DG Art series lens will begin shipping on April 7, 2017. There is no word on whether or not the Sigma 14mm f/1.8 Art, Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 DG OS Art and Sigma 100-400 f/5-6.3 OS C will also start shipping on that day.</p>
<p>MSRP pricing looks to be 175,000 yen for the Sigma 135mm f/1.8 DG Art, which converts directly to about $1500USD. We do not expect the USA price to be that high.</p>
<p>Preorders for the lenses are expected to start shortly and you can sign-up below to be notified as soon as they do.</p>

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<p><em>*Note: Entering your email address will not sign you up for our newsletter, you will only ever be emailed about preordering these 4 Sigma lenses.</em></p>
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## Chaitanya (Mar 16, 2017)

Personally interested to know price of that 100-400mm lens. Also before spending on that lens I would seriously like to see some samples and reviews. 
Edit: also doesnt Japan have sales tax or Vat which increases the price of electronics compared to US?


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## BeenThere (Mar 16, 2017)

B&H now has a note that the 14mm will be available for purchase on March 17. I'm guessing this means pre-order. No price yet.


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## Mistral75 (Mar 16, 2017)

At ¥175,000 the 135mm f/1.4 would be roughly 10% more expensive than the 85mm f/1.4 (RRP ¥160,000).


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## Jopa (Mar 16, 2017)

Mistral75 said:


> At ¥175,000 the 135mm f/1.4 would be roughly 10% more expensive than the 85mm f/1.4 (RRP ¥160,000).



It probably translates to $1299 in the US ($1199 x 1.1).


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## tron (Mar 16, 2017)

Come on Sigma give us the 14 1.8 8)


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## FramerMCB (Mar 16, 2017)

B&H is showing the 135mm f1.4 Art available for pre-order on March 17 at 12 am, but no pricing available yet... with a listed close focus distance of 2.7' I bet this will be a knockout lens for flowers, and other items of a like nature. Especially if coupled with extension tubes... And with a 82mm filter thread. I'll be curious if the lens will suffer from vignetting at all. Probably not as the Canon big zooms (70-200mm) are a (at least the IS version 1) 77mm thread.


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## Talley (Mar 16, 2017)

$1299 Is too much. Good luck with that. I'll stick to my 85A which I felt was decently priced and pick up a nice used 135L for $650 = half price


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## slclick (Mar 16, 2017)

Talley said:


> $1299 Is too much. Good luck with that. I'll stick to my 85A which I felt was decently priced and pick up a nice used 135L for $650 = half price



Good luck getting a 135L for that price, well a clean perfectly functioning one that is. $750-799 is more like it.


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## 1nsanity (Mar 16, 2017)

slclick said:


> Talley said:
> 
> 
> > $1299 Is too much. Good luck with that. I'll stick to my 85A which I felt was decently priced and pick up a nice used 135L for $650 = half price
> ...



I must have gotten lucky. Back in November I scored a brand new (not grey market) 135L for £645 (approx $780 at time.) If you aren't in a hurry, there are deals on the 135L.


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## infared (Mar 16, 2017)

Hmmmm...the 135mm f/1.8 looks tempting....need a review! 
I decided to purchase a Rokinon 14mm f/2.4 instead of the Sigma 14mm. I figured that wide I could make do with MF with electrical communication...plus...the reviews I have read assures me that it is sharper and has better coma than anything Sigma or Canon will be offering. I have never read reviews this positive about any lens other than an Otus. Got a great deal at $899 ($100 off for a newly released lens is great in my book), and it just arrived. The lens is REALLY beautiful and (I think) surprisingly very compact for what it is capable of delivering. Rokinon stepped their game up here. 
As soon as the light gets good I will do some testing this evening. 8)


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## PHOTOPROROCKIES (Mar 16, 2017)

Jopa said:


> Mistral75 said:
> 
> 
> > At ¥175,000 the 135mm f/1.4 would be roughly 10% more expensive than the 85mm f/1.4 (RRP ¥160,000).
> ...



Except it's an F1.8 lens not F1.4..


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## epsiloneri (Mar 16, 2017)

infared said:


> I decided to purchase a Rokinon 14mm f/2.4 instead of the Sigma 14mm.


It's really sharp with great coma and build quality. The only downside is the massive vignetting. Expected for an ultra-wide, of course, but this is a lot even for that. I haven't measured it yet, but it certainly appears like > 4 stops... It will be very interesting to see how the Sigma 14/1.8 stacks up. Given their coma record I am not too optimistic, but we'll see.


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## Jopa (Mar 16, 2017)

PHOTOPROROCKIES said:


> Jopa said:
> 
> 
> > Mistral75 said:
> ...



Except it's a 135mm lens, not 85  This is how the Mitakon 135 1.4 looks like: https://petapixel.com/2015/10/19/mitakon-speedmaster-135mm-f1-4-2999-gets-you-the-worlds-fastest-135mm/. Not much smaller than my 200/2.


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## infared (Mar 16, 2017)

epsiloneri said:


> infared said:
> 
> 
> > I decided to purchase a Rokinon 14mm f/2.4 instead of the Sigma 14mm.
> ...


My research found that at f/4 the vignetting is mostly mitigated...and as you say there is vignetting expected in a lens this wide.. I can pull the vignetting back somewhat with software when I shoot wide open. I also own the Sigma 20mm f/1.4 which I truly love (in spite of the coma)...The lens is one of a kind. This lens is a great companion to that.
I shot some tests tonight with the Rokinon 14mm....they are very encouraging and the lens handles just beautifully with the damped focusing, infinity stop, audible focus feedback, it's small size (for what it is) and balance on the camera body, (5DIII). So far...VERY good!


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## Talley (Mar 16, 2017)

slclick said:


> Talley said:
> 
> 
> > $1299 Is too much. Good luck with that. I'll stick to my 85A which I felt was decently priced and pick up a nice used 135L for $650 = half price
> ...


I've cycled through 3 copies already from 625 to 675 all mint. I had a UB copy I got for 625 had no marks of ever being used. Held onto that copy for a year then sold it.

Plenty of deals to be found.


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## [email protected] (Mar 17, 2017)

Just pre-ordered at 12:05 a.m. 

The price, it turns out, is $1399, a bit more than expected, but not by too much.


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## ahsanford (Mar 17, 2017)

[email protected] said:


> Just pre-ordered at 12:05 a.m.
> 
> The price, it turns out, is $1399, a bit more than expected, but not by too much.



Curious, I know it's not exactly the same FL / aperture combo as the 135L, but is this the first time an Art lens costs more than its L counterpart?

- A


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## Chaitanya (Mar 17, 2017)

Canon Rumors said:


> <p><strong>*UPDATE #2*</strong>
> 
> <em>We’re told by an authorized retailer that ONLY the Sigma 135mm f/1.8 DG HSM Art will be available for preorder tonight.</em></p>
> <p><strong>*UPDATE*</strong>
> ...


https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ntt=sigma+135&N=0&InitialSearch=yes&sts=ma&typedValue=&Top+Nav-Search=

Shipping date for Canon mount: 10th April and 25th April for Nikon/Sigma/ 
Also price is much lower than expected at 1399$.


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## AE-1Burnham (Mar 17, 2017)

Hi all. Why couldn't they just put OS in this and sell it for more?! Are they protecting the coming 70-200A/C? I shoot the 135L a lot and there are times when some stabilisation would be appreciated,-and just might have saved a shot from user error. Otherwise, nice lookin' piece of kit!


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## Chaitanya (Mar 17, 2017)

Here is hands on with the beast:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9D7EXSlojXA


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## [email protected] (Mar 17, 2017)

ahsanford said:


> [email protected] said:
> 
> 
> > Just pre-ordered at 12:05 a.m.
> ...




I do not think that this is the first time a Sigma lens cost less then the Canon lens.

The 50 mm 1.4 set of lenses is probably the best example. I don't know many people who would argue that the Cannon version of that focal length should cost more than the Sigma. While there are those who have experienced auto focus issues with some of the sigma lenses, at least they don't break apart. 

So I think expectations were merely met when we saw the 135 mm lens come out at a higher price. 

The fact that Sigma feels comfortable charging $1400 for a lens, which is a lot for them for a fast prime, indicates that they recognize that the market is now excepting them as the superior choice in some focal lengths.


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## Jopa (Mar 17, 2017)

Chaitanya said:


> Here is hands on with the beast:
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9D7EXSlojXA



Looks awesome! The size is similar to the Sony 1.8 ZA. IMHO the only thing it's missing is IS. The guy mentioned 1/250 shooting mk4 handheld, and that's a reasonable speed for it. On the 5dsr it would be 1/320. Not a problem in a good light though, especially wide open, but in low light it better be stabilized.


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## ahsanford (Mar 17, 2017)

[email protected] said:


> ahsanford said:
> 
> 
> > Curious, I know it's not exactly the same FL / aperture combo as the 135L, but is this the first time an Art lens costs more than its L counterpart?
> ...



Corrected you above -- I presume that was a typo.

I was referring to L lenses. Has Canon L ever been outcharged by Sigma for a like-for-like (FL + aperture + IS or no IS) spec'd lens? I _believe_ this is the first time.

- A


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## Random Orbits (Mar 17, 2017)

ahsanford said:


> I was referring to L lenses. Has Canon L ever been outcharged by Sigma for a like-for-like (FL + aperture + IS or no IS) spec'd lens? I _believe_ this is the first time.
> 
> - A



Hmm... white box price of the 24-105L vs. Sigma's 24-105A.

Just wait for the 135L replacement, then all will be restored in the pricing world unfortunately.


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## SecureGSM (Apr 19, 2017)

Sigma 135 F1.8 Art preorder at camerastore.com.au (SA, Australia)

Price: A$1,495.00 *(US$1,126.00)* with free shipping and taxes inclusive.

https://www.camerastore.com.au/sigma-135mm-f1-8-art-series-lens-canon-ef-mount.html


First shipment of the lens into country was sold out in a matter of hours and next one is expected to hit Australian shores in approx. 6 weeks from now. Retailer advised that number of lenses they have on order now doubled in recent days due to unusually high market demand for the lens.
My order was stock allocated, apparently, and will be shipped in next few days.


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## Jopa (Apr 19, 2017)

SecureGSM said:


> Sigma 135 F1.8 Art preorder at camerastore.com.au (SA, Australia)
> 
> Price: A$1,495.00 *(US$1,126.00)* with free shipping and taxes inclusive.
> 
> ...



Wow, it's much cheaper the US price. And wow again - had no idea 135mm is such a popular focal length  I'm personally looking forward to play with this baby too.


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## Sharlin (Apr 19, 2017)

AE-1Burnham said:


> Hi all. Why couldn't they just put OS in this and sell it for more?!



Because lens design isn't just "putting things in" as if it were some sort of a checklist where all that matters is "protecting" other products in the lineup? That sort of thinking is pretty insulting to the engineers involved.

OS means there has to be a stabilization group somewhere. That will complicate the design and potentially require compromising optical quality. With the huge elements in this beast of a lens, the electromagnets to drive the stabilizer would have to be beefy. The lens is already huge, what would it look like with OS? And how much more would it cost? Are you sure it would sell more at the increased price point, especially considering that the primary target audience of this lens has little need for stabilization and would have to pay extra for a useless feature?


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