Sony Never Made an 85mm f/1.2, So Sigma Did

Canon and Nikon shooters have had autofocus 85mm f/1.2 lenses for years, while anyone on Sony E-mount or L-mount has had to settle for f/1.4 or give up autofocus entirely. The new Sigma 85mm f/1.2 DG Art changes that, and it asks a fair question of anyone who already owns a good f/1.4 portrait lens.

Matt Johnson put the Sony E-mount version of the Sigma 85mm f/1.2 DG Art through the kind of work a wedding filmmaker does every weekend. He found that autofocus stays fast and accurate at f/1.2, which a lens moving this much glass around inside doesn't always manage. The build matches Sigma's other recent premium lenses, with custom buttons, an AF/MF switch, and an aperture ring you can declick with a switch on the barrel. At 905 g for both the Sony and L-mount versions, it comes in well under the 1,195 g Canon RF 85mm f/1.2L USM and the 1,160 g Nikon NIKKOR Z 85mm f/1.2 S. Your arms will still feel a handheld ceremony, just a bit less. Sigma has told Johnson the lens will sell for $1,600, while the Canon and Nikon versions both sit around $3,000 and don't mount on your camera anyway.

There are a couple of practical details to plan around. You'll see a little focus breathing, and since this is a third-party lens, Sony's in-camera breathing compensation won't work with it. Johnson doesn't see that as a big problem, because an 85mm is too tight for much heavy rack focusing in the first place. The front filter thread is 82mm. If you rely on a variable ND at weddings the way he does, you'll be buying a larger, pricier filter or a step-up ring. The bigger consideration is the focal length itself. An 85mm is wonderful for faces and solo portraits of a bride or groom, but it gets tight fast over a full wedding day, so a 35mm or a 24-70mm should already be in your bag before this one.

Sigma has been building toward this lens for a while. The 35mm f/1.2 DG DN Art arrived in 2019, the 50mm f/1.2 DG DN Art followed in 2024, and the 85mm now rounds out the classic trio at the same aperture. Mirrorless mounts made that run more practical. Short flange distances and wide mount openings give designers room for very fast glass that would have been far bulkier on DSLRs. Sigma also helped found the L-Mount Alliance with Leica and Panasonic, so a single lens design can serve Lumix, Leica, and Sigma bodies along with Sony. When you shoot at 85mm and f/1.2 from conversational distance, depth of field gets thin enough that a subject leaning forward a few centimeters can soften the shot. Your camera's eye-detection autofocus does most of the work at that point. Before you trust any lens this fast at a ceremony you can't repeat, test it on your own body with a subject who moves around, and watch how often focus stays on the near eye.

For Sony filmmakers, Johnson sees the real choice as this lens against the two f/1.4 options. The Sony FE 85mm f/1.4 GM II costs $1,800 and weighs 642 g. The Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN Art runs $1,200 at about 630 g. Both are roughly 270 g lighter than the f/1.2, which adds up on a gimbal over a long day. Johnson argues that the extra half stop shows up in subject separation more than the number suggests, with faces lifting off the background in a way f/1.4 doesn't quite match. He also walks through the short list of other autofocus 85mm f/1.2 lenses, including some announced but not yet shipping, and how he expects them to stack up.

Johnson's footage from the lens and more are in the video above.