I tested the world's fastest 12mm lens should you buy the Sigma 12mm f/1.4
DC | C lens?

Date:
Mon, 26 Jan 2026 16:00:00 +0000

Description:
The Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC | Contemporary is the only mirrorless APS-C lens to simultaneously boast a wide 12mm focal length and bright f/1.4 maximum aperture all wrapped up in a light and portable package.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC | C: One-minute review

The Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC | C is the latest, and widest, lens to join Sigmas comprehensive list of primes with a fast f/1.4 maximum aperture,
complimenting the 16mm, 23mm, 30mm and 56mm f/1.4 primes in its Contemporary range.

All five f/1.4 primes are specifically designed for mirrorless APS-C cameras, and as such are small and portable. The Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC | C is available for Sony E and Fujifilm X, but also for Canon RF, with the brand now opening up to third-party lenses with autofocus on its APS-C cameras. With a weight
of just 225g and measuring 69.4mm long, the Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC | C lens is beautifully sleek, and works brilliantly with small APS-C mirrorless camera bodies (Image credit: Future / Dan Mold)

Speaking of mount options, on Sony E and Fujifilm X bodies with a 1.5x sensor crop the 12mm lens behaves more like an 18mm focal length (full-frame equivalent), whereas on Canon APS-C mirrorless cameras with a 1.6x crop
factor it will feel a little more zoomed in, and behave more like a 19mm
focal length.

So if you own one of these APS-C mirrorless camera bodies should you run out to buy the Sigma 12mm prime? Well, it's not the widest prime on the market that title goes to the Sony 11mm f/1.8. However, if you don't mind it being a little more zoomed in at 12mm, and prefer the brighter f/1.4 maximum
aperture, then it's an absolute no-brainer.

If your budget can't quite stretch to the Sigma 12mm, or you shoot on Sony mirrorless, then you'll want to see what other options are available for you below. Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC | C: Price and availability Priced at $579 / 519 / AU$1,000 Lens hood included Announced August 2025

Sigma announced the 12mm f/1.4 DC | C on August 19 2025, and it started shipping later in September.

It's available for Sony E, Fujifilm X, Canon RF mounts and costs $579 / 519 / AU$1,000. To put that into context, its rivals are the Sony E 11mm f/1.8, which costs $699 / 477 / AU$799, the Viltrox AF 13mm f/1.4 STM, which costs $429 / 440 / AU$624, and the Samyang AF 12mm f/2, which retails for $499 /
348 / AU$598.

While it cant match the Sonys wide focal length, it does offer a great
balance of a still very wide 12mm focal length and that super-wide f/1.4 aperture, all wrapped up in a very small and portable package.

It's a little more expensive than the Viltrox and Samyang offerings, so those on tighter budgets may prefer to save money and miss out on the better features found in the Sigma 12mm. Sony users will be faced with a tougher choice, as they'll have to also weigh up the Sony E 11mm f/1.8, which has a wider focal length at the cost of a slower maximum aperture.

For me, the Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC | C lens would have been even better value
for money if it had included an iris ring lock and MF/AF switch on the
barrel, though I think for most people these will be minor gripes in an otherwise stellar lens that combines brilliant portability with great image quality and a super-fast and wide aperture and focal length. Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC | C: specs Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC specs

Type:

Wide-angle prime

Mount:

Sony E, Fujifilm X, Canon RF

Sensor:

APS-C

Focal length:

12mm (18mm effective on Fujifilm & Sony, 19.2mm on Canon RF)

Max aperture:

f/1.4

Minimum focus:

0.17m

Filter size:

62mm

Dimensions:

68 x 69.4mm

Weight:

7.9oz / 225g Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC | C: Design Some level of weather-sealing that's usually reserved for more premium Art lenses Very lightweight at 7.9oz / 225g Sony and Fujifilm versions have an iris ring, while Canon version has
a Control Ring

The Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC | C is perfectly small and portable, with super-sleek dimensions of 68 x 68.4mm and a weight of just 225g, which makes it well matched with the smaller APS-C bodies its designed to be used with. You can also use it on a full-frame camera, but youll need to use the camera's APS-C crop mode to accommodate the smaller imaging circle this lens produces.

With not a lot of lens barrel to play with, the exterior design has been kept simple, with just an electronic fly-by-wire focus ring and also an iris ring to control the aperture the latter is a Control ring on Canon RF cameras, which can be assigned to a range of functions, including, but not limited to, aperture.

There are, however, no switches on the barrel itself, which means youll need to dive into the menus to switch between AF and MF. Theres also no switch to lock the iris ring in its A mode to prevent it from slipping, and the iris ring is also clicked, with no way to switch it over to a de-clicked mode two features which Ive become accustomed to after using Sigma Art lenses such as the 135mm and 17-40mm. While not a dealbreaker by any means, these would have been welcome inclusions here. The Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC | C features an iris control ring, though this is replaced by a Control Ring on the Canon edition (Image credit: Future / Dan Mold)

Inside, the lens is constructed from 14 elements in 12 groups, and includes three aspherical elements, plus two SLD (Special Low Dispersion) elements.

It has a rounded 9-bladed aperture design which can be opened as wide as
f/1.4 or closed to f/16. The minimum focus distance is also just 17.2cm, so close-up shots with blurry backgrounds are very possible (see my test shots
in the Performance section).

On the front of the lens is a filter thread which takes 62mm screw-in
filters. A LH652-01 petal lens hood is included, which is equally as petite
as the lens itself, and helps to block out stray light rays to reduce flare.
A weather seal around the lens mount indicates some level of protection from the elements, though it's not as comprehensive as found on Sigma's Art line
of lenses (Image credit: Future / Dan Mold)

The front element also has a water- and oil-repellent coating that
compliments the dust and splashproof design of the lens. Sigmas more budget-friendly line of Contemporary lenses dont usually get the weather-sealed treatment, but this 12mm is somewhat protected, as it has a rubber gasket around the rear lens mount.

The lens is as fast as or faster than its main competition, including the
Sony E 11mm f/1.8, Viltrox 13mm f/1.4 and Samyang 12mm f/2, though its not quite as wide-angle as the Sony model. Its also the most expensive of the
pack more than twice the price of the Samyang. Its similar in size and
weight to the Samyang and Sony, though the Viltrox model is notably larger
and heavier. However, if the speed of the faster aperture or shallow depth of field are your priority and money is no object then the Sigma is definitely one to consider. Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC | C: Performance Very small and portable Bright f/1.4 maximum aperture makes it a beast for low-light shots Sharp details and smooth bokeh No switches on lens barrel, making it a little difficult to switch settings

I was able to test the Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC on both an APS-C Sony A6700 and full-frame Sony A7R IV in crop mode, both of which delivered images around 26MP.

Autofocus was fast and reliable it took a brief moment to lock on but was overall impressively fast and quiet. Sigma claims the stepping motor delivers minimal focus breathing, and in my testing I would have to agree. The autofocus was also accurate when locking on to subjects with low contrast,
and it kept up well with the Sony A6700s subject-detection and tracking, too.

It would have been nice if the lens featured optical image stabilization; however this wasnt too much of an issue, considering most modern mirrorless cameras have sensor-based IBIS and you also have that super-wide f/1.4
maximum aperture, so you rarely capture shaky shots or footage. Many
low-light shots. such as traffic trails or astrophotography. also require a tripod, so the lack of optical image stabilization for these types of shots isn't an issue. Image 1 of 3 The bright f/1.4 maximum aperture makes it possible to throw the background into a beautiful blur, but its wide 12mm focal length means you need to get up close to your subject to do so (Image credit: Dan Mold) Image 2 of 3 (Image credit: Dan Mold) Image 3 of 3 (Image credit: Dan Mold)

Image quality was overall impressive, with decent center sharpness from the get-go, though that super-wide f/1.4 aperture did contribute to a little softness around the edges and corners, but these areas became sharp very quickly by f/2.8. The corners were also quite dark in the raw and JPEG files, though again this was remedied by f/2.8, and this vignetting is easily fixed in post-production.

The in-camera lens correction profiles did a good job at creating sharp and mostly distortion-free photos. There was also impressively virtually no chromatic aberration, and the lens handled flare when shooting towards the
sun very well. Image 1 of 6 (Image credit: Dan Mold) Image 2 of 6 (Image credit: Dan Mold) Image 3 of 6 (Image credit: Dan Mold) Image 4 of 6 (Image credit: Dan Mold) Image 5 of 6 (Image credit: Dan Mold) Image 6 of 6 (Image credit: Dan Mold)

As is to be expected from a lens with such an extreme wide-angle focal
length, Sigmas 12mm does show some signs of barrel distortion around the edges, but this is by no means fisheye, and is overall it's very well
handled. Straight lines of buildings do tend to bow a little when shot from
up close, so if buildings and architecture is the top of your mind youll almost certainly be better off with a tilt-shift lens. Aiming the lens up at buildings exaggerates the barrel distortion the most. Image 1 of 8 (Image credit: Dan Mold) Image 2 of 8 (Image credit: Dan Mold) Image 3 of 8 (Image credit: Dan Mold) Image 4 of 8 (Image credit: Dan Mold) Image 5 of 8 (Image credit: Dan Mold) Image 6 of 8 (Image credit: Dan Mold) Image 7 of 8 (Image credit: Dan Mold) Image 8 of 8 (Image credit: Dan Mold)

However, for an everyday walkabout lens for city shots its a great choice. While perhaps not the best option for exterior architecture, it would be a fantastic lens for interiors, where the wide focal length will help you squeeze more of small spaces into the frame, and its bright f/1.4 aperture will help you get good results even in dark interior spaces. Should you buy the Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC | C? Buy it if...

You own a Sony E, Fujifilm X or Canon RF APS-C body

The Sigma 12mm f/1.4 is small, and pairs perfectly with smaller APS-C bodies

You need a fast wide-angle prime

This Sigma lens is the fastest wide-angle prime for APS-C bodies on the market, with an f/1.4 maximum aperture

You want to blur backgrounds

With its f/1.4 maximum aperture you can get up close and personal to your subjects, and throw backgrounds into a blur with a shallow depth of field easily Don't buy it if...

You need the versatility of a zoom

If you don't want to be stuck at just one focal length you'll likely be
better off with a zoom lens that gives you more options, though this will likely have a slower max aperture

You're on a budget

The Sigma 12mm f/1.4 is the most expensive of its rivals, which include the Sony E 11mm f/1.8, Viltrox AF 13mm f/1.4 STM and Samyang AF 12mm f/2, and while it cant match the Sonys wide focal length it does offer a great balance of a still very wide 12mm focal length, and that super-wide f/1.4 aperture

You like to change settings quickly

With no physical switches for AF/MF on the lens barrel it can be a slow process to change settings in the camera menu. There's also no lock on the iris ring, which means it can frustratingly be knocked out of position
easily. View Deal How I tested the Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC | C I used the lens extensively for a month, shooting around busy cities in both during the day and at night I paired it with the Sony a6700 APS-C body as well as a Sony a7R IV full-frame body in crop mode I took wide-angle shots of cities, sunsets, low-light scenes, starscapes, and more

I got hold of the Sigma 12mm f/1.4 DC | C and Sony A7R IV and A6700 bodies
for a month to give the lens a thorough testing over an extended period.

Due to its small size and portability the lens quickly became my go-to option when I needed to bring a camera with me for days out around cities such as London, where I shot everything from landscapes to cityscapes, sunsets, astro and still life.

I took a range of pictures with in-camera lens corrections enabled, and also turned off to see the comparison. I shot in raw and JPEG formats, and shot at all of the various apertures to gauge how things like corner sharpness and vignetting changed throughout the aperture range. First reviewed January 2026



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/cameras/camera-lenses/sigma-12mm-f-1-4-dc-c-review


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