Sigma 85mm f/1.2 DG Art Review: Sigma is the Alpha This Time

Name: Sigma 85mm f/1.2 DG ART
Brand: Sigma

Sep 07, 2026

Sigma has never made an 85mm f/1.2 lens — until now. Maybe this lens is late to the party, but the company might have saved the best for last. The new 85mm f1.2 will be available in Sony E-mount and Leica L-mount where previously the only lenses available were manual-focus. This gives Sigma a unique opportunity to make a big splash and, in that metaphor, this lens is a cannonball.

If you want a portrait lens that can deliver smooth bokeh and dreamy flare, this is a spectacular choice. It's also the only choice right now if you want something with autofocus.

Pros

Stunning bokeh
Flare is beautiful for backlit portraits
Quite lightweight for its aperture
Solid build quality and controls
Extremely sharp

Cons

Incredibly minor LoCA

Sigma 85mm f/1.2 DG ArtBuy new on B&H Sigma 85mm f/1.2 DG ArtBuy used on KEH.com

A black Sigma 85mm 1:1.2 DG Ø82 camera lens stands upright against a black and white marble-patterned background. — It’s big, and it’s bright. It is ready to make Art.

We have publicly admonished the need for an f/1.2 aperture when the f/1.4 versions already do so much — we even made a full episode about it. Why pay the extra cost and carry the extra weight of an f/1.2? In order for the Sigma to be worth the $1,600 expense, it will have to deliver something special at the widest aperture without being a burden to carry.

Sigma 85mm f/1.2 DG Art Review: How It Feels

With the Canon and Nikon versions pushing almost 42 ounces (1,200 grams), it’s downright shocking that Sigma manages to create a similar optic that weighs only 32 ounces (905 grams). That takes care of the excessive weight issue I mentioned above. It’s heavier than the f/1.4 alternative for sure, but I didn’t find it that burdensome to carry around. In fact, Sigma calls it the world’s lightest and smallest full-frame 85mm f/1.2 lens.

A close-up view of a black camera lens barrel featuring a focus ring, a click switch, and text indicating a minimum focus distance of 0.84M/2.76FEET and "MADE IN JAPAN. — The lens has a fairly wide physical diameter, but the lens tapers to help with the grip.

A black camera lens sits on a dark, marble-patterned surface, featuring a focus ring, a customizable button, and a switch labeled "CLICK OFF | ON. — You get nice controls throughout the lens.

A black camera lens is positioned on a dark, marble-patterned surface, showing its rear mount, gold electronic contacts, and "MADE IN JAPAN" text. — The lens is rugged and sealed as usual.

The front of the lens features an 82mm filter diameter and it manages to keep a relatively slim profile to the chassis. The lens uses a fast, high-speed linear actuator motor (or what Sigma calls HLA) and still finds the space to give you a customizable button and full aperture ring. You can also de-click the aperture, which is nice. As usual, the Art series lenses are designed to be robust and weather-sealed to a fair degree.

Somehow, Sigma managed to reduce weight on this lens without compromising on the feature set.

A black camera lens sits on a dark, white-veined marble surface against a matching black marble background. — The front of the lens is a big chunk of glass and fits 82mm filters.

A close-up of a black camera lens standing upright on a black marble surface, showing aperture markings from 1.2 to 16 and text reading 85mm 1:1.2 DG 82 SIGMA. — I like having an aperture ring on the Art series lenses.

A close-up of a camera lens barrel showing a focus mode switch set to AF, an "A" emblem, and an aperture ring with visible markings. — The Art badge is always representative of a premium lens.

Sigma 85mm f/1.2 DG Art Review: How It Shoots

The focusing speed is very quick on this lens, but there is also a floating element placed between the high-speed focusing motors. Sigma is using this floating assembly to help reduce lens breathing, which is a shift in the field of view when focusing the lens. There is some breathing still present, but the effect is minimal, so if you like to do video focus pulls with an intensely shallow depth of field, this is the lens for you. I also tested flare with that big front element and found the lens to have a little bit of soft flare scattered across the frame at f/1.2. Stopping the lens down makes that go away quickly, and the ghosting is visible but not awful. A little veiled flare can actually be quite desirable in a portrait lens like this, especially for backlit subjects.

Sunlight filters through the dense green leaves and branches of a tree, creating a bright lens flare. — Ghosting will show up, but it’s not terrible.

Backlit, fluffy seed heads of a plant glow in the bright sunlight against a soft, out-of-focus background. — You can achieve a warm glow with backlit subjects.

A middle-aged man with short brown hair and a goatee looks off to the side against a blurred, colorful background. — Of course, this is a classic portrait lens when you need it to be.

LoCA, or longitudinal chromatic aberration, can be an issue with ultra-fast lenses, but the Sigma was surprisingly well-controlled. It’s there, but it’s incredibly minor. The lens is also brilliantly sharp.

At f/1.2, there is lots of detail, but the contrast has a slightly dreamy quality. Again, this can be nice for a portrait lens. Stop down even a little bit, and the clarity is extremely high. Corners are also really good, with only a little vignetting and good sharpness wide open. You can stop the aperture down for better detail if you need it. I also noted that when the center of the image is in focus, the corners are as well. This lens really impressed me.

A close-up view of a rusty bolt and nut securing a metal pipe fitting, with the letters "GSP" embossed on the side. — LoCA is not an issue at all.

A side-by-side comparison of a lens test chart showing the same image at f/1.2 and f/2.8, featuring Canadian currency and geometric patterns. — Center sharpness is good wide open and amazing with a slightly tighter aperture.

A side-by-side comparison of a Canadian one-dollar bill at f/1.2 and f/2.8 apertures, showing differences in depth of field. — When the corners are in focus, the whole frame is too.

Bokeh is going to be extremely important with this lens. The main reason to buy and carry an f/1.2 lens like this is for shallow depth-of-field shots. Specular highlights are so clean on this lens, with no onion rings present. I like the swirly cat’s-eye effect at wider apertures, too. Backgrounds fall into large swathes of soft color, and the viewer’s eye can be drawn right to the subjects in focus. Sigma certainly got this part of the assignment done properly.

A close-up portrait of a middle-aged man with light brown hair, blue eyes, and a short, trimmed beard, wearing a black shirt against a blurred, colorful background. — You can achieve stunningly good and shallow depth of field.

Two pigeons forage for food on a gravel bed next to a set of railroad tracks. — Shallow depth of field can certainly draw the eye.

Backgrounds can be pushed into nothing but blur.

Sigma 85mm f/1.2 DG Art Review: Sublime

If it wasn’t clear, I loved this lens. It’s optically sublime, and Sigma have made it excel at the f/1.2 end. If you want a portrait lens that can deliver smooth bokeh and dreamy flare, this is a spectacular choice. It’s also the only choice right now if you want something with autofocus in Sony E or Leica L. Sigma is going to capitalize on the lack of competition right now, and it managed to do it with a lightweight design that is really nice to carry, and is still cheaper at $1,699 than a lot of the f/1.4 lenses available.

All of this said, let’s keep in mind that this is still a specialty lens. I’d only go for it if you regularly wanted to shoot at f/1.2. Otherwise, I still think that a more compact f/1.4 lens will be the better purchase. But considering that Sigma was able to make a lens this good without totally breaking the bank or your shoulder is an amazing achievement.