At f/2.8, the Sigma continues to be sharper than the 55mm but only just. At this point, the 50mm starts to improve but it doesn’t quite match either of its rivals. f/2.8 The bokeh of this lens is the other area where it excels. With a full frame equivalent focal length of 84mm, this is what most consider to be the ideal portrait photography focal length. The 55mm features a dust and moisture resistant design. The 56mm is only protected around the mount thanks to the rubber sealing. The 50mm doesn’t feature any weather-resistance whatsoever. A study of our Image Engineering Tests reveals the lens is sharper in the centre than at the edge throughout the aperture range. Centre sharpness (shown by the solid red line) improves considerably by stopping it down from its maximum aperture to f/2 and peaks between f/2.8 and f/4. Corner sharpness (shown by the dotted red line) doesn’t reach the same level as centre sharpness, but does steadily improve from f/1.4 to f/5.6. For the best edge-to-edge sharpness it should be used around f/5.6-f/6.3. Diffraction has the affect of softening images at f/16. Shading

This product is developed, manufactured and sold based on the specifications of E-mount which was disclosed by Sony Corporation under the license agreement with Sony Corporation. At a close focus distance, we can see that the 56mm is a little sharper than either Sony lens at their respective fastest apertures. Fastest apertures Looking at the three E-Mount lenses side-by-side, we can see that although the 55mm is a little taller than the other two, and the Sigma is a little chunkier around the middle where the focus ring is, they are all more or less the same size. Sell the kit you’re not using to MPB. Trade in for the kit you need to create. Buy used, spend less and get more. Buy. Sell. Trade. Create. This lens is designed for the smaller sensor cameras like the APS-C equipped Sony A6400 camera body which is I what I used for this review. However, this lens is also made for the Micro Four Thirds camera system as well which has a slightly smaller sensor when compared to the APS-C format. The advantage to the lens being designed for the smaller sensors as opposed to the full frame sensors, is the more compact size and lighter weight. This lens can still be used on the full frame e-mount cameras like the A7 III for example, but the camera will need to be in crop factor mode for the best results.As many of you know but which bears repeating here, the E-mount version of the Sigma 56mm f/1.4 lens represents a 35mm field of view equivalence of 84mm. This is roughly considered to be "classic portrait range," although some prefer even longer focal lengths for portrait work. Interestingly, the Sigma 56mm f/1.4 DC is also available in a Micro Four Thirds mount version, and when mounted to an MFT body your 35mm equivalent focal length will be 112mm, which should prove to be quite an intriguing FL for portrait work once we're able to try one out. Sample Images Sigma 56mm f/1.4 a6300, 1/200s, f/4, ISO 100 a6300, 1/250s, f/5.6, ISO 100 a6300, 1/80s, f/2, ISO 100 a6300, 1/100s, f/1.4, ISO 5000 a6300, 1/100s, f/1.4, ISO 2000 a6300, 1/100s, f/1.4, ISO 1600 a6300, 1/160s, f/1.4, ISO 400 Sony 50mm f/1.8 a6300, 1/1600, f/1.8, ISO 100 a6500, 1/250, f/2.8, ISO 160 a6300, 1/2500, f/8, ISO 200 a6500, 1/400, f/1.8, ISO 100 a6500, 1/200, f/2.8, ISO 100 a6300, 1/320, f/8, ISO 200 a6500, 1/250, f/2.8, ISO 125 a6300, 1/1600, f/1.8, ISO 200 Sony FE 55mm f/1.8 A7s, 1/1250, f/1.8, ISO 100 – Sony 55mm A7, 1/50, f/5.6, ISO 100 – Sony 55mm A7r II, 1/125, f/4, ISO 200 – Sony 55mm A7s, 1/320, f/1.8, ISO 100 – FE 55mm f/1.8 A7s, 8s, f/1.8, ISO 25600 – Sony 55mm A7s, 1/1600, f/2.8, ISO 100 – FE 55mm f/1.8 A7s II, 1/1600, f/8, ISO 100 – Sony 55mm A7s, 1/100, f/2, ISO 12800 – FE 55mm f/1.8 A7s II, 1/50, f/2.8, ISO 12800 – Sony 55mm Above, left to right: Sigma 56mm f1.4, Sony e 50mm f1.8, Sony FE 50mm f1.8. All at maximum aperture. Crops from right side. This trend continues until around f/5.6 where the three lenses look much more similar. f/2.8 f/4 f/5.6

Looking at another set of examples taken wide open, we can see that the 50mm displays a little more fringing around the out-of-focus areas in comparison to the other two lenses. It also has the busiest bokeh of the three, followed by the 55mm and finally the 56mm. The 56mm’s is the most pleasant thanks to its smooth and buttery appearance. Fastest apertures There's also a version for Micro Four Thirds cameras. It uses the same optics, but because the Micro Four Thirds sensor is smaller, the lens nets a tighter angle of view. It's closer to what you get from a 112mm full-frame lens. A plastic lens hood is provided with all three lenses. (My second-hand copy of the 50mm didn’t come with one unfortunately, which is why it isn’t pictured below.) MPB puts photo and video kit into more hands, more sustainably. Every month, visual storytellers sell more than 20,000 cameras and lenses to MPB. Choose used and get affordable access to kit that doesn’t cost the earth.

Focus is available as close as 19.7 inches (50cm). It's good enough for 1:7.4 life-size magnification at its closest focus distance. It's certainly not a tool you'll use for macro images, and is similar to what you get from the Sony E 50mm F1.8 OSS and Olympus M.Zuiko 45mm f/1.8. Another Sigma Stunner First let’s take a look at how centre sharpness compares at a distance of approximately 7 meters. Reference image