Sigma Corporation

Sigma Corporation (株式会社シグマ) is a Japanese company, manufacturing cameras, lenses, flashes and other photographic accessories. All Sigma products are produced in the company's own Aizu factory in Bandai, Fukushima, Japan. Although Sigma produces several camera models, the company is best known for producing high-quality lenses and other accessories that are compatible with the cameras produced by other companies.[3]

The company was founded in 1961 by Michihiro Yamaki, who was Sigma's CEO until his death at age 78 in 2012.[4]

Sigma products work with cameras from Canon, Nikon, Fujifilm, Pentax, Sony, Olympus and Panasonic, as well as their own cameras.

Sigma has also made lenses under the Quantaray name, which have been sold exclusively by Ritz Camera. Similarly, Sigma lenses were sold exclusively by the former Wolf Camera, but following the merger of Wolf and Ritz, both brands could be purchased.

Sigma's digital SLRs, the SD9, SD10, SD14 and SD15, plus the latest SD1 are unusual in their use of the Foveon X3 image sensor. The company's mirrorless cameras, the Sigma SD Quattro and SD Quattro H, use the Foveon Quattro sensor, an updated version of the Foveon X3. All use the SA lens mount. The Sigma DP series of high-end compact P&S cameras also use the Foveon Quattro sensor, which gives them a much larger sensor than other cameras of this type.

In September 2018 Sigma became one of the founding members of the L-Mount Alliance; it announced that it will cease to develop SA-mount cameras and instead use the Leica L-Mount. A new full-frame mirrorless camera, Sigma FP, was launched in 2019 along with a range of L-Mount lenses and adapters.[5]

Sigma is the world's largest independent lens manufacturer and is a family-owned business.[6]

Cameras

Up until the Sigma FP,[7] all Sigma SLR, DSLR, and mirrorless cameras used the Sigma SA mount, which is mechanically similar to the Pentax K mount and electrically an adaptation of the Canon EF lens mount lens control system.

Sigma has been one of the first companies to experiment with putting the Foveon X3 sensor in consumer digital cameras. During photokina 2010, Sigma announced a new flagship DSLR camera, the SD1, featuring a 46MP Foveon X3 sensor. In recent years their DSLR range has been discontinued in favor of mirrorless designs.[8]

Software

Sigma produces multiple software packages for use with their cameras and lenses.[13]

• SIGMA Photo Pro - Software for post-production of their camera's .X3F raw image format. It is available both for Mac OS and Microsoft Windows.
• SIGMA Optimization Pro - Software for updating lens firmware and performing calibration and customization.
• SIGMA Capture Pro - Software allowing remote control and image capture from select Sigma cameras.

Lenses

Sigma makes autofocus lenses for the Sigma SA, Canon EF and RF, Nikon F and Z, Fujifilm X, Minolta/Sony α and E, Pentax K, Leica L, Four Thirds, and Micro Four Thirds lens mounts. Each lens may not be available in all mounts, and may lack certain features (such as HSM) on certain mounts.

In August 2013, Sigma announced that starting the following month, it would offer a mount conversion service for its newest "Global Vision" lenses—those with either an "A" (Art), "C" (Contemporary), or "S" (Sport) as part of their model name. For a cost that varies with lens and market—from $80 to $250 in the U.S., not including shipping costs—owners can send their lenses to their local Sigma company, which in turn sends them to Japan for mount replacement, including calibration and optimization for the new camera system. Lenses designed for DSLRs can be converted to Canon EF, Nikon F, Pentax K, Sigma SA, or Sony A mounts; those designed for MILCs can be converted to Micro Four Thirds or Sony E-mount.[14]

Lawsuit

In 2011, Nikon filed a suit against Sigma, alleging it had violated patents relating to Nikon's "Vibration Reduction" image stabilisation technology.[24] In 2015, the suit ended through settlement, with no details disclosed.[25]

See also

• List of digital camera brands
• Hyper Sonic Motor (HSM)
• List of Sigma lenses with Nikon F-mount and integrated autofocus motor
• Third-party lenses for Sony E-mount system

External links