105mm (and 100mm) f/2.8 macro lenses are pretty common. They’ve been the go-to macro lens for many Nikon and Canon shooters in the past and there are also equivalents available for Sony and L mount, along with a whole bunch of third-party options. One thing I’ve not seen before, though, is a macro of this focal length that’s also got tilt-shift capability. Well, it looks like Astr\hori’s about to release one!
The company has released images and basics specs for the lens, although there’s no word on an official announcement date or a price yet. It’s going to be available in Sony E, Canon RF, Leica L and Fuji GFX mounts, so it’s designed specifically for mirrorless. Naturally, for GFX, it won’t have as much range in the shift, due to the larger sensor. I’m a little surprised there’s no Nikon Z version coming, though.
There isn’t a massive amount of information available on the new lens just yet, but there’s enough to get us interested. What we don’t know, is how much travel there is in shift or how many degrees of tilt we’ll get. Here’s what there is, though.
- Focusing range: 0.115m~∞
- Aperture range: F/2.8~22
- Optical total length (TTL): 110mm-197mm
- Optics: 13 elements in10 groups
- Optical Back Focus (B.F.L.): 45mm-81mm
- Reproduction ratio: 2x Macro
- Movement: 360 Degree Rotation/Pan/Tilt
- Mount: Sony E, Canon RF, Fuji GFX, Sigma L mount.
It’s obviously a manual focus lens, as it’s coming for Canon RF and isn’t being shut down by Canon. Tilt-shift lenses are typically manual focus anyway, due to the complexity of trying to combine an autofocus system with physical lens movements. So, I’m surprised we’re not seeing Nikon Z on the list of mount options.
Putting tilt-shift capabilities on a macro lens is an intriguing idea. It means you’ve got a lot more options to get around the super shallow depth of field limitations inherent in such short focus distances – even with a small aperture. It won’t let you get a deeper depth of field, but it will let you shift the plane of focus around so that you can get more of what you want in focus in a single shot.
It probably won’t be the end of focus stacking, but it might prove to be a valid substitute for it in certain conditions. It’d definitely be a fun one to experiment with, though!
There’s no word on a price for the new lens yet and we don’t yet know when it’s going to actually become available, but it’s definitely an intriguing-looking lens. If Sigma ever gets their act together and gives us a full-frame Foveon camera, combined with this lens it could be a killer combo for highly detailed macro!
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