Concerns about AF with Sigma Lenses on SL2-S

[Melissen-Ghost]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

Hello together,

Im new here, but a dedicated Leica shooters for years now.

Coming from the M10 and CL i want to get an SL2-S in the near future.

Since I would not be able to affort any Leica L-Mount lenses for the SL-System I consider to get the Sigma 35mm f2 DG DN as my first lens.

Does anybody have any experience with this lens on the SL2 or Sl2-S in terms of auto focus performance? I know that its only contrast based, but I wonder how much less quicker than with Leica L-Mount lenses it will be.

As a comparison i expect the autofocus to be as quick and accurate as my Summicron TL 23mm f2  on my CL and hopefully not much slower than that...just a bit would still be acceptable.

One more thing: does the aperture ring of the Sigma contemporary lenses work with the SL2-S? (I know it from my olympus cameras that leica lenses with an aperture ring do not work for oylmpus bodies since they were originally made for the panasonic MFT system)

Thanks you for any help.

 

Edited March 25, 2021 by Melissen-Ghost

[Dennis]

Welcome to the forum.

I suggest using the search tool, there are many threads where we talk about the lens you mentioned. Try this:

https://www.l-camera-forum.com/search/?&q=Sigma 35mm dn&type=forums_topic&nodes=236,306&search_and_or=and&sortby=relevancy

☝️

[Daniel C.1975]

Hi,

I have the 24 3.5 C and the 105mm Macro Art lenses from Sigma partnering my 35 and 75 SC-SL. Both lenses work and focus perfectly fine. The aperture ring works also fine, plus you can set it to A and control the aperture over the rear wheel, what I prefer. 
 

The 105 is very, very good and the 24 is so surprisingly good for the money, and for sure more than good enough, that I am not so sure anymore to replace it with the Leica 24 (once it is available).
 

So there are no restrictions, as far as I am aware, and they are a good choice. especially when looking for budget-friendly alternatives or filling less used niches in your lens portfolio.

 

Cheers

Daniel

Edited March 26, 2021 by Daniel C.1975

[helged]

7 hours ago, Melissen-Ghost said:

Hello together,

Im new here, but a dedicated Leica shooters for years now.

Coming from the M10 and CL i want to get an SL2-S in the near future.

Since I would not be able to affort any Leica L-Mount lenses for the SL-System I consider to get the Sigma 35mm f2 DG DN as my first lens.

Does anybody have any experience with this lens on the SL2 or Sl2-S in terms of auto focus performance? I know that its only contrast based, but I wonder how much less quicker than with Leica L-Mount lenses it will be.

As a comparison i expect the autofocus to be as quick and accurate as my Summicron TL 23mm f2  on my CL and hopefully not much slower than that...just a bit would still be acceptable.

One more thing: does the aperture ring of the Sigma contemporary lenses work with the SL2-S? (I know it from my olympus cameras that leica lenses with an aperture ring do not work for oylmpus bodies since they were originally made for the panasonic MFT system)

Thanks you for any help.

 

There are many satisfied Sigma L-mount lens + SL/SL2/SL2-S users around; myself included. I have no complaints/regrets, and as fas as I have seen, people are happy. I can't speak specifically about the Sigma 35mm f2 though, as I don't have/have tested that lens. @michali owns/has tested several Sigma lenses; he may chime in with his experience. Enjoy the SL!

[MediaFotografie]

I use Sigma's Macro 105 DG DN - works perfectly with SL2 including AF and aperture ring

[frame-it]

8 hours ago, Melissen-Ghost said:

but I wonder how much less quicker than with Leica L-Mount lenses it will be.

why would it be less quicker than a Leica  L lens ?

https://l-mount.com/en/Q-and-A

[Melissen-Ghost]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

vor 9 Stunden schrieb Daniel C.1975:

Hi,

I have the 24 3.5 C and the 105mm Macro Art lenses from Sigma partnering my 35 and 75 SC-SL. Both lenses work and focus perfectly fine. The aperture ring works also fine, plus you can set it to A and control the aperture over the rear wheel, what I prefer. 
 

The 105 is very, very good and the 24 is so surprisingly good for the money, and for sure more than good enough, that I am not so sure anymore to replace it with the Leica 24 (once it is available).
 

So there are no restrictions, as far as I am aware, and they are a good choice. especially when looking for budget-friendly alternatives or filling less used niches in your lens portfolio.

 

Cheers

Daniel

Thanks so much for sharing your experience. I'm glad to hear that. I also considered the SL2-S since I want to focus on night photography. That was also one of my concerns regarding how quick the AF would be at night, but since Im shooting with the CL (which is my only AF leica at the moment) this is quick enough for me.

Grüße aus Regensburg

Edited March 26, 2021 by Melissen-Ghost

[Melissen-Ghost]

vor 7 Stunden schrieb frame-it:

why would it be less quicker than a Leica  L lens ?

https://l-mount.com/en/Q-and-A

I just heard statements like: "Well, we were using several Sigma and Panasonic lenses and AF was ok...with those native Leica lenses we expect the AF to be even quicker"...Im just paraphrasing here. I mean it is a common thing that some lenses which share the same mount system have quicker AF than others and I also expect Leica lenses to be the quickest when mounted on a dedicated Leica camera. I mean I would be glad if that is not the case 🙂

[LD_50]

1 minute ago, Melissen-Ghost said:

I just heard statements like: "Well, we were using several Sigma and Panasonic lenses and AF was ok...with those native Leica lenses we expect the AF to be even quicker"...Im just paraphrasing here. I mean it is a common thing that some lenses which share the same mount system have quicker AF than others and I also expect Leica lenses to be the quickest when mounted on a dedicated Leica camera. I mean I would be glad if that is not the case 🙂

The design of the lens has more to do with AF speed than brand. Leica 50 Summilux is much slower than 50 Summicron. Sigma 105 macro is slow to AF. I’m not sure about their others. 

[beewee]

8 hours ago, Melissen-Ghost said:

I also considered the SL2-S since I want to focus on night photography.

If by night photography, you’re referring to astrophotography, then manual focus is the way to go. By holding the shutter button down and turning the focusing ring in MF mode, the top display will tell you the front and rear focusing distance of the region in sharp focus. As long as the rear focusing distance is at infinity, all the stars will be sharp. You can maximize the depth of field by selecting the aperture of your choice and then setting the front focus distance to the lowest value such that the rear focusing distance is still at infinity.

Edited March 27, 2021 by beewee

[Melissen-Ghost]

vor einer Stunde schrieb beewee:

If by night photography, you’re referring to astrophotography, then manual focus is the way to go. By holding the shutter button down and turning the focusing ring in MF mode, the top display will tell you the front and rear focusing distance of the region in sharp focus. As long as the rear focusing distance is at infinity, all the stars will be sharp. You can maximize the depth of field by selecting the aperture of your choice and then setting the front focus distance to the lowest value such that the rear focusing distance is still at infinity.

Thank you for the advice. I will keep that in mind. I meant regular night photography. Urban, very dim lit scenes is what Im most of the time looking for.

[michali]

As Helge mentioned above I have several Sigma L mount lenses, which supplement my Leica L mounts. I've encountered no AF issues whatsoever with Sigma L mount lenses. 

To my point above, I've attached the image below not because of any photographic excellence, but rather as an example of the lens' AF capabilities even in a tricky lighting situation.  SL2 & Sigma 100-400m L - White Backed Vulture moving quickly overhead. Setting was:  SAF & Single Point, the focus locked on quickly & accurately.

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

 

 

[Melissen-Ghost]

Am 27.3.2021 um 08:28 schrieb michali:

As Helge mentioned above I have several Sigma L mount lenses, which supplement my Leica L mounts. I've encountered no AF issues whatsoever with Sigma L mount lenses. 

To my point above, I've attached the image below not because of any photographic excellence, but rather as an example of the lens' AF capabilities even in a tricky lighting situation.  SL2 & Sigma 100-400m L - White Backed Vulture moving quickly overhead. Setting was:  SAF & Single Point, the focus locked on quickly & accurately.

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

 

 

Thanks for the example. I think Im finnaly convinced and will take the step. Unfortunately, I was never able to test the SL2-s with Sigma lenses beforehand.

Another small question to all you SL2-s users: I heard how some people were complaining about the fact that you only can use the big front dial for exposure compensation and that one can not switch the function with the back dial (wich I also would much more prefer) on the SL2.
Was this problem fixend with the SL2-s? 

Edited March 28, 2021 by Melissen-Ghost

[farnz]

9 hours ago, Melissen-Ghost said:

Another small question to all you SL2-s users: I heard how some people were complaining about the fact that you only can use the big front dial for exposure compensation and that one can not switch the function with the back dial

There is no front dial on the SL2-S.  There's a dial on the top deck and a thumbwheel on the back.

There are two buttons on the front and the bottom button can be set up to activate Exposure Comp that you can then adjust to taste using the thumbwheel.

Pete.

[scott kirkpatrick]

The SL primes all use a pair of motors for faster focusing.  While the SL Summilux has a relatively heavy focusing element to move, the elements that need to move in the SL Summicrons are very light, hence fast.  A second benefit of the dual focus elements is that it (like a FLE lens) allows very close focus.  The Sigma 24 may also have dual focusing elements, as it doesn't appear to be any slower than the SL SCs, and focuses even closer.