Sigma can’t scale up production of the highly requested 300-600mm lens and Sigma BF camera

Phototrend had a talk with Foucauld Prové, Managing Director at Sigma France. Here are the highlights:

Sigma 300-600mm f/4 DG OS Sports and Sigma BF production and availability issues:

He says for the past six months, they have been facing a global shortage. The factory’s production capacity is not scalable at will, with approximately one hundred units produced each month and to be shared worldwide. Also the Sigma BF is under high demand. He says they received a huge number of orders right from the launch, especially from resellers, and they are still booking new orders every day. Their production capacity can’t handle it all.

Sigma 300-600mm preorders at BHphoto. Amazon. Adorama. FotoErhardt. Fotokoch. WexUK.

How they managed to make the new 35mm f/1.2 DG II Art more compact and lighter:

The correction algorithms internal to the boxes have improved considerably compared to the 2018-2019 period, when the first model was released .
So, with this second version , they can rely more on these advances to optimize optical performance and reduce the number of lenses, particularly those that correct distortion or vignetting. This is a real advantage of hybrid cameras, which allows them to design more compact and lightweight lenses.

Sigma 35mm f/1.2 II at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, Fotokoch, Fotoerhardt, Calumet, WexUK, Clifton.

About the new competition from chinese manufacturers:

he thinks they have a little time before they see them in their rearview mirror, even if they’re moving quickly. Sigma doesn’t want to be overconfident, but they’re not afraid either.