Sigma 14-24mm f/2.8 ART lens on display at WPPI 2018

Sigma 14-24mm F/2.8
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Sigma 14-24mm f/2.8 ART at a glance:

  • EF-Mount Lens/Full-Frame Format
  • Aperture Range: f/2.8 to f/22
  • 3 FLD, 3 SLD, and 3 Aspherical Elements
  • Super Multi-Layer Coating
  • Hyper Sonic AF Motor, Manual Override
  • Weather-Sealed Brass Bayonet Mount
  • Rounded 9-Blade Diaphragm
  • Minimum Focus Distance: 10.2″

Sigma is going to showcase their latest, exciting lens, the Sigma 14-24mm f/2.8 ART, at WPPI 2018. My guess is, this will be another best seller lens by Sigma. The Sigma 14-24mm f/2.8 ART is not available for pre-order yet, but you can get notified when it is at B&H Photo.

Sigma press release:

Sigma Debuts the 14-24mm F/2.8 Art Lens at WPPI 2018
Attendees are invited to the Sigma booth to test out the newly announced wide aperture zoom, join in on conversations with Sigma Pros and win prizes

Las Vegas, NV – February 14, 2018 – Sigma Corporation of America, a leading still photo and cinema lens, camera, flash and accessory manufacturer, will showcase the latest addition to its robust line of Sigma Global Vision and Cine lenses – the 14-24mm F/2.8 DG HSM Art lens – at the 2018 WPPI Expo held at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, NV from February 26-28. The 14-24mm DG HSM Art is the perfect lens to help wedding and event photographers capture grandiose scenes with crystal clear wide-angle shots. Not only will attendees have the opportunity to test-drive Sigma’s full line of SGV lenses at booth 810, but also interact with seasoned Sigma Pros. Furthermore, attendees can enter for a chance to win a 24-70mm F2.8 Art lens and a host of other photography accessories and special prizes!

Highlighted – Full Line of Gear on Display at the Sigma Booth at WPPI 2018:

Brand New Wide Aperture Zoom: Sigma 14-24mm F2.8 DG HSM Art
The newest arrival on the Sigma Global Vision scene, the 14-24mm F2.8 DG HSM Art lens is designed for 50-megapixel plus cameras and achieves the legendary Art lens optical quality with three FLD glass elements, three SLD glass elements, and three aspherical lens elements, including one 80mm ultra high precision molded glass aspherical element. With near zero distortion (less than 1%) and minimal transverse chromatic aberration, flare and ghosting, the new Sigma 14-24mm offers constant F2.8 brightness throughout the zoom range and delivers optimal image quality at every focal length and shooting distance. The high-speed, high-accuracy autofocus allows photographers to capture incredible, in-the-moment images. Additionally, the 14-24mm F2.8 DG HSM Art incorporates the Sports line level dust- and splash proof design, allowing for the lens to be used during varying weather conditions.

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Canon USA Named One of the “World’s Most Ethical Companies” of 2018

canonCanon press release:

Canon U.S.A., Inc. Named One of the 2018 “World’s Most Ethical Companies” by the Ethisphere Institute

MELVILLE, N.Y., February 13, 2018 – As a testament to the company’s strong standing as a good corporate citizen and its proactive approach to corporate social responsibility initiatives, Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, has been recognized as one of the 2018 World’s Most Ethical Companies by the Ethisphere Institute, a global leader in defining and advancing the standards of ethical business practices. This recognition is based on a variety of factors including: measuring and improving culture, leading with integrity and committing to transparency, diversity and inclusion. In 2018, 135 companies were recognized across 23 countries and 57 industries.

“I’d like to thank the Ethisphere Institute for this honor, which Canon takes great pride in,” said Kenneth Sharpe, Vice President, Corporate Audit, Ethics and Business Consultation, Canon U.S.A., Inc. “To be named as one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies is a true reflection of the values, culture and leadership that drive our organization. This distinction speaks to the integrity that is present throughout every level of our organization and represents the hard work and dedication of our cherished colleagues who work to meet this high standard every day.”

“While the discourse around the world changed profoundly in 2017, a stronger voice emerged. Global corporations operating with a common rule of law are now society’s strongest force to improve the human condition. This year we saw companies increasingly finding their voice. The World’s Most Ethical Companies, in particular, continued to show exemplary leadership,” said Timothy Erblich, Chief Executive Officer of Ethisphere. “I congratulate everyone at Canon U.S.A., Inc. for being recognized as one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies.”

The World’s Most Ethical Companies assessment is based upon the Ethisphere Institute’s Ethics Quotient® (EQ) framework, which offers a quantitative way to assess a company’s performance in an objective, consistent and standardized manner. The information collected provides a comprehensive sampling of definitive criteria of core competencies, rather than all aspects of corporate governance, risk, sustainability, compliance and ethics. Scores are generated in five key categories:

  • Ethics and compliance program (35%)
  • Corporate citizenship and responsibility (20%)
  • Culture of ethics (20%)
  • Governance (15%)
  • Leadership, innovation and reputation (10%)

Research by the Ethisphere Institute has found that, when indexed, companies listed among the “World’s Most Ethical” outperformed the U.S. Large Cap Index over five years by 10.72 percent and over three years by 4.88 percent. Ethisphere refers to this as the Ethics Premium.

The full list of the 2018 World’s Most Ethical Companies can be found at www.worldsmostethicalcompanies.com/honorees.

For more information on Canon U.S.A., Inc., please visit www.usa.canon.com.

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The Photography Industry in 2017 – What happened, what changed?

Our friends at LensVid posted their monitoring and analysis report about the state of the photography industry in 2017. They mined a lot of data to produce their figures.

LensVid’s conclusion:

Last year we predicted that it is likely that in 2017 we will see the global camera market go below 20 million units. We were wrong. Instead, the market jumped to 25 million units which means that we still have something to learn about the fundamental changes that the market is going through.

Beyond that, it is also unclear why the compact camera market saw an increase in 2017 or what cameras were mainly responsible for this surprising boost.

What we would be willing to risk speculating about is the DSLR vs. mirrorless part of the market. So far the DSLR segment of the market has been in a steady decline for at least six years. The mirrorless segment, on the other hand, was more or less stagnant but had a big increase of over 32% in 2017.  Even if we won’t see another huge increase in 2018 (and this actually might happen with the possible release of pro mirrorless models by both Canon and Nikon this year), the ratio of mirrorless to DSLR cameras out of the total interchangeable lens cameras, is going to increase and might be getting very close to a tie by the end of this decade. Read the report at LensVid.

The folks at LensVid found a slightly bizarre aspect in their data analysis. There are now more compact cameras manufactured compared to 2016. They didn’t found any apparent reason to explain this. This could either be attributed to Sony (maybe the RX100?) or to some huge success of one of Canon’s new compact cameras that we missed to get aware of. What do you think? Sound off in the comment section.

The 5min video below sums up everything.

If you want, you can check LensVid’s analysis of the photography industry in the previous 4 years.

[via LensVid]

Breathing Color Welcomed into Canon Alliance Partner Program

canon rumorsCanon press release:

Breathing Color Welcomed into Canon Alliance Partner Program

Five new media types certified for use with imagePROGRAF PRO Series Devices

MELVILLE, N.Y., February 12, 2018 – As part of its continued drive to expand collaboration with key players in the large-format industry, Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, is proud to welcome Breathing Color, a designer and supplier of award-winning digital inkjet canvas, papers, and canvas coatings, as a new member of the Canon Alliance Partner Program (CAPP) for imagePROGRAF Large-Format Solutions.

Through CAPP, third-party media and software companies are able to work with Canon to help develop and promote new printing solutions for imagePROGRAF devices. As a result of this association, five fine-art media types offered by Breathing Color have now been certified for use with the imagePROGRAF PRO-6000, PRO-4000, PRO-2000, and PRO-1000 devices.

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Off Brand News: Fujifilm reports impressive 76,1% increase in operating income from imaging segment

Fuji
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Fuji released the 2017 Q3 financial report. The results are stunning: +15.6% revenue increase and +76,1% operating income increase. Not bad at all.

Fuji’s statement:

In the photo imaging business, overall sales increased due to favorable sales, especially in instant photo systems which enable users to enjoy on-the-spot printing of photos, such as the instax series and instax films in the Year-End shopping season. instax SHARE SP-3, smartphone printer, launched in November 2017, adopted the square format, popular for use in SNS. It advocates a new way of photo printing to boost printing demand among smartphone users. In the high-value-added printing businesses, sales expanded thanks to continued business growth from various services, including Wall Decor services that enhance the fun of decorating and displaying photographs by adding panels to the photographs and framing, the new COYOMI service for creating desktop calendars with favorite photographs, and the Year Album service that uses AI-based proprietary technology to automatically arrange the layout of a photo album.
–
In the electronic imaging field of the optical device and electronic imaging business, overall sales increased due to strong sales of FUJIFILM X-E3, which is achieving the most compact and lightweight body*, offering outstanding operational comfort and launched in September 2017, X Series such as FUJIFILM X-T20, FUJIFILM X100F which were launched in February 2017, FUJIFILM GFX 50S, a medium format mirrorless digital camera, adopting a big sensor (43.8mm by 32.9mm), and interchangeable lenses. In the optical device field, overall sales increased, reflecting the strong sales of various industrial use lenses such as lenses for and vehicle camera and projector, and MK lenses series were also launched as a new series of cinema camera lenses designed for recording video such as online video, whose market is expanding. Fujifilm announced 24x zoom lense UA24 x7.8BE in September 2017, achieving both small, lightweight body and 4K high-definition. With this introduction, Fujifilm has 8 4K broadcast camera lense products and is seeking to lead the field. * As of January 2017 in the X Series of mirrorless cameras equipped with a viewfinder

While most of the profit come from the successful Instax lineup, I guess it is at least to some degree also due to the fact that Fuji always gives the impression they really love their customers, for instance delivering firmware updates that add plenty of features. This is something we never see from Canon.

I always wished/hoped Canon would deliver a mirrorless lens ecosystem like Fuji did. But nope (so far).

[via Mirrorless Rumors and Fuji Rumors]

Sigma announce new 14-24mm f/2.8 Art lens

Sigma 14-24mm F/2.8
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Now it’s official, Sigma announced the new Sigma 14-24mm F/2.8 Art. Pricing and availability for the Sigma 14-24mm F/2.8 Art lens will be announced later.

Sigma press release:

Sigma Announces Brand New 14-24mm F/2.8 Art Lens

February 9, 2018 – Sigma Corporation today announced the brand new 14-24mm F/2.8 DG HSM Art wide aperture zoom lens. In addition to the new Global Vision full-frame lens model, Sigma also announced a new front conversion service for the 14-24mm F/2.8.

Outstanding Art Lens Performance
Designed for 50-megapixel plus cameras, the 14-24mm F/2.8 DG HSM Art achieves the legendary Art lens sharpeness with three FLD glass elements, three SLD glass elements, and three aspherical lens elements, including one 80mm high precision molded glass aspherical element. With near zero distortion (less than 1%) and minimal transverse chromatic aberration, flare and ghosting, the new Sigma 14-24mm offers constant F2.8 brightness throughout the zoom range and delivers optimal image quality at every focal length and shooting distance. The high-speed, high-accuracy autofocus allows photographers to capture incredible, in-the-moment images.

Rugged Design
In addition to outstanding optical performance, the 14-24mm F/2.8 DG HSM Art features the Sports line level dust- and splash-proof design with special sealing at the mount connection, manual focus ring, zoom ring and cover connection, allowing for the lens to be used during varying weather conditions.

Versatile Camera System Mount Support
The new Sigma 14-24mm F2.8 DG HSM Art lens supports Canon, Nikon and Sigma mounts and works with Sigma’s MC-11 Sony E-mount converter. The Nikon mount features brand new electromagnetic diaphragm, whereas the Canon mount is compatible with the Canon Lens Aberration Correction function.