Sigma has announced a new compact 24.6-megapixel full-frame camera called the BF whose body is milled from a single block of aluminum.
It features a 3.2-inch touchscreen display and next to it are three touch controls which offer haptic feedback so that you feel like you’re touching actual buttons.
Above them is a dial for navigating menus with an additional haptic button in the center, and a smaller status monitor screen that shows settings options so the camera’s main display remains clutter-free. A shutter button is located on top of the camera, near a few small microphone holes.
There is no memory card slot on the Sigma BF, but a USB-C port supports charging and file transfers. The BF features 230 GB of internal memory, capable of storing more than 14,000 JPEG files, or 4,300 uncompressed RAW images. The camera can also capture 6K video at up to 29.97 frames per second, and can store up to 2.5 hours of video at its highest quality setting.
Sigma has included 13 different colour modes with the BF, such as forest green, sunset red, warm gold, cinema, and monochrome, allowing photographers to obtain a specific look in-camera without the need for getting the same effect at the image post-processing stage.
At full resolution, the Sigma BF can capture images at up to eight frames per second and it relies on a hybrid autofocus system combining image phase detection and contrast detection. Its AF system also uses what the company claims are “state of the art algorithms” to detect and quickly focus on specific subjects including people, dogs, and cats.
The company says that the new camera also has a completely new information structure in the user interface compared to conventional digital cameras. The main shooting-related settings are stored on the live view screen, secondary settings in the optional menu, and management functions and detailed settings are buried further in the system menu.
Users can easily operate the shutter speed, aperture, ISO sensitivity, EV compensation and color mode, along with other important shooting-related elements at the touch of a finger.
Sigma will be updating its I Series collection of prime lenses with a new silver colour option to match the BF.
The Sigma BF will be available in black or silver finished for $1,999 (approximately A$1890) and is expected to ship sometime in April 2025. Exact pricing and availability for Australia are yet to be confirmed.
