Sigma Bf (Beautiful Foolishness) Unibody Full Frame Camera

[Andrew Reid]

On 3/2/2025 at 3:20 AM, Emanuel said:

I wonder what business strategy they have as target... Let alone the criticism read on S1R II now or is Panasonic becoming the Sigma of cameras instead?

The business case is pretty good. I think $2k for a boutique unique concept camera is pretty decent, considering it's obviously going to be made in smaller quantities than most cameras at $2k, with higher quality materials too.

If it were Leica they'd be charging $5k for it.

Also a lot of people, myself included are quite hungry for pocket sized full frame cameras.

Otherwise the Leica Q3 would not be doing as well as it is.

And they are FUN.

The Sigma BF is quite unique, it's not got a lot of competition. The Panasonic S9 is quite different, it doesn't have the artisan looks or handling, or the high quality workmanship, or the innovative control scheme and it doesn't have the uniqueness either. What it does have is IBIS and a very competitive price.

The Sony RX1 / RX1R originals are very nice, but both have a very old sensor and old autofocus. It's contrast detect and the video mode is as primitive as it gets. The RX1R II meanwhile is the same price as the BF used, and although it has a 4K capable sensor only heavily line-skipped 1080p is enabled.

The Leica Q series are all more expensive than the BF, Q2 and 3 by a considerable amount... i.e. up to 3x more!!

Yet the BF is more versatile due to the interchangeable lens mount.

The X100 VI is another competitor, which also goes for around $2k due to the hyped up demand and shit supply.

But it ain't full frame.

If the 6K video on the BF is at least as good as the Panasonic S9, then out of the RX1R II, Leica Q2 and X100 VI, it takes the cake for image quality.

Although I'd have to compare it to the Q3 more closely I dare say it has some advantages on that as well especially in low light.

Only downsides for me are:

The missing IBIS and EVF.
The seemingly missing Sigma Fp-L video features like Cinema DNG.

But the BF does have a real H.265 10bit LOG profile finally, rather than just Flat as with the Fp cameras which somewhat makes up for lack of raw.

[Emanuel]

BF stands for me as boyfriend, so they should have two models, GF too ; ) Jokes apart, I concur small size cameras are something and $2K is fine but my beef is about their video features offer going on there. They make it to wish to Santa Claus but they intend to minimize everything where should not and we cannot charge when we don't deliver : ) One thing is minimal vibe, the other one is what doesn't mean less or should not with.

Minimalism is not necessarily a luxury but a need. Optimisation is never a mere experiment. Some people take it as efficiency. That should guide everything, why not to apply the concept to niche products too? 

They cannot be a synonym of Leica and expensive. At least, since BMPCC OG we have found it.

I also wonder on overheating performance for such so tiny room to make it work, no matter how big our crush is :- )

[MrSMW]

9 hours ago, Andrew Reid said:

Also a lot of people, myself included are quite hungry for pocket sized full frame cameras.

I’m one of those and keep circling round the one body with ‘one & done’ fast(ish) zoom lens vs 2 smaller bodies with a pair of primes each, one set for indoors where my needs are wider and another for outdoors where my needs are longer.

So something like Sigma 28-105mm f2.8 vs Sigma 20/35/65 f2’s + 90mm f2.8

The primes in my above scenario are optically sharper and slightly faster for lower light stuff except for the 90mm.

The zoom is not as wide but is longer.

But in terms of handling, the twin body set up has more appeal to me.

I nearly did it with Sony and their A7CR but it’s not nearly as good a camera as the A7RV.

But a pair of these Sigmas could work and the only real issue to me is then not having anything longer than 90mm and by longer, I mean something in the 150-200mm range and if I did also have that, it would be ridiculous on one of the bodies!

The ‘answer’ is of course high megapixel and cropping.

Now if they made a 61mp sensor version such as the FP-L… ding ding ding, winner winner, chicken dinner!

[Andrew Reid]

12 hours ago, Emanuel said:

They cannot be a synonym of Leica and expensive. At least, since BMPCC OG we have found it.

My Dear E it is sometimes hard to understand what you mean. Do you mean Blackmagic are a synonym of Leica/expensive?

Surely not.

Blackmagic Pocket series is made of hardened polyester, and has the fun factor of a wheelie bin.

Whereas the Sigma Bf is as if Apple themselves have entered the full frame market.

[MrSMW]

1 minute ago, Andrew Reid said:

My Dear E it is sometimes hard to understand what you mean

Part of the fun of this place is deciphering Emanuel's posts 😉

[Andrew Reid]

Not even AI can do that 🙂

[Snowfun]

14 minutes ago, Andrew Reid said:

Not even AI can do that 🙂

I bet @BTM_Pix has a gadget which can...

[BTM_Pix]

1 hour ago, Snowfun said:

I bet @BTM_Pix has a gadget which can...

All of my reverse engineering efforts are currently focused on decrypting my wife's acceptance algorithm so that I can devise a way to get one of these cameras without being ejected from the house.

My current working theory is to use the "Yes, I might be a completely reckless buyer of cameras but at least I'm not as bad as@Andrew Reid" gambit.

I will combine that with the old stalwart of "Hey, you know how much you love going to Japan ? What if I told you there was a way where we could do something that would almost make the trip free ?".

This latter one relies on me floating the idea of buying a GFX100, the savings on which would cover a substantial portion of the trip, but then not actually buying one when we get there.

Which earns brownie points for saving money of course *

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

*NB She knows, of course, but humours me

[MrSMW]

18 minutes ago, BTM_Pix said:

*NB She knows, of course, but humours me

Will these wives of ours be so understanding when they read over our shoulders about how in love with our new BF's we are?

[BTM_Pix]

3 minutes ago, MrSMW said:

Will these wives of ours be so understanding when they read over our shoulders about how in love with our new BF's we are?

I was accused of "secret YouTubing" yesterday amid demands to know what it was I was watching.

"Just videos of the new BF".

"Fair enough, tell him he can wait outside MapCamera for you from now on then".

[MrSMW]

2 hours ago, BTM_Pix said:

"Fair enough, tell him he can wait outside MapCamera for you from now on then".

They just don't get it. The jealous cows. There they are coveting their bags and shoes and then they get all huffy over your new BF, even if just window shopping. It's not exactly as if you've gone all the way. At least not yet. But still...

[Emanuel]

8 hours ago, Andrew Reid said:

My Dear E it is sometimes hard to understand what you mean. Do you mean Blackmagic are a synonym of Leica/expensive?

Surely not.

Blackmagic Pocket series is made of hardened polyester, and has the fun factor of a wheelie bin.

Whereas the Sigma Bf is as if Apple themselves have entered the full frame market.

LOL : ) Surely not, but niche product and small size form factor at least in that pocket OG model in particular... ; )

The point was that I hope Sigma is not willing to follow Leica's route. There's no need for that just to launch such niche product, anyway. Or for that market segment as target.

What actually bothers me on this approach is the fact the conceptual idea of such minimalist release is that minimalism may end as synonym of minimizing everything. Or as much as possible. It's not because we have that in our hands, we have no focus on recording modes, should we? Let alone motion picture. It's like those hard still photographers (not our case here) often trying to diminish video mode on hybrid cameras. My vote and yours, I know, is always for filling the cup up to the top, not to cap it.

OK, there are limits, being overheating one of them because of obvious limitations of space inside, of course. But 30p?! No 24p/25p!? Or also the restriction of a single HFR such as 120fps (on 1080p, go figure...) is. Minimizing the offer of recording modes? C'mon... Why? Because we have a minimalist camera, we have to focus on design rather than functionality, is the premise or their proposal motto? 

 

Design is service. 

 

I don't know where these product designers are coming from, Japan very likely : D but if I had been their instructor from schools where I have served as lecturer too, they would have heard that. 

IMHO it's a failure that departure point (NOT the release of such lovely camera or the concept itself!) and I hope they may invert it in the future with a firmware update.

Blackmagic has something I praise. They try to give to the customer everything they can on budget. At least, this is the main reason why they've got me as their customer with a few releases and why I salute their attitude and presence in this industry.

 

- EAG :- )

[Emanuel]

LOL (Part 2)

(ah I hadn't read the rest of the page yet other than that quote, only now ; )

 

In a single line still for my BMPCC OG remark and tell your wife about?

Niche product, expensive and Leica. What single one to pick? ;- )

 

7 hours ago, Andrew Reid said:

Not even AI can do that 🙂

Some other day just for fun, I gave ChatGPT a 2nd chance to let it guess who I am from the presence of my work out there and see how they have improved the tool. Impressive report. This time, other than addressing me to some social media presence of someone else : D the remaining part and most important TBH was not bad at all : ) To my surprise and hat. Impressed how things are going and coming fast very lately.

[Andrew Reid]

16 hours ago, Emanuel said:

In a single line still for my BMPCC OG remark and tell your wife about?

Niche product, expensive and Leica. What single one to pick? ;- )

BMPCC original was niche, but cheap. £1200 I seem to remember back in 2012?

Sigma BF... best friend... is like the original BMPCC.

Affordable niche artistic tool.

[BTM_Pix]

18 minutes ago, Andrew Reid said:

Affordable niche artistic tool.

Apparently, due to the aluminium milling process taking seven hours, the production capability is limited to nine units a day.

They really are mad bastards.

[Emanuel]

58 minutes ago, Andrew Reid said:

BMPCC original was niche, but cheap. £1200 I seem to remember back in 2012?

Sigma BF... best friend... is like the original BMPCC.

Affordable niche artistic tool.

Yes, that came to my mind : ) I've just been a bit disappointed with those recording modes when I love these small form factor devices but I hope they will upgrade it in a next firmware update...

Best Friend is a great name for this camera! :- )

[Andrew Reid]

To be honest 6K H2.65 ain't to be sniffed at...

It's very nice.

I am sure it does have 24/25p.

[Emanuel]

1 minute ago, Andrew Reid said:

To be honest 6K H2.65 ain't to be sniffed at...

It's very nice.

It surely is! : )

4 minutes ago, Andrew Reid said:

I am sure it does have 24/25p.

I hope so! That 30p on bhphotovideo specs page has been more hard to understand than my off topic dissertations...

[Andrew Reid]

10 minutes ago, Emanuel said:

It surely is! : )

I hope so! That 30p on bhphotovideo specs page has been more hard to understand than my off topic dissertations...

[octoplex]

Sigma have delivered a masterpiece here. Two main reasons:

1. This is a camera manufactured by adults in Aizu, Fukushima, Japan. In today's camera market it is very hard to find products manufactured by adults in free countries. Personally, I only buy adult-manufactured cameras.

2. There's no on-board surveillance system. The Sigma BF does not have WiFi or Bluetooth soldered to its mainboard. Again, something that is increasingly hard to find.

It's almost as if points 1 and 2 might be connected in some way. Something to meditate on...

Aside from that. This camera looks gorgeous.
純粋に天才だ。

Could it be that ethics, and integrity of corporate-action, results in integrity, and beauty, of form? Something else to meditate on...

Sigma BF for professional filmmakers?

Fascinated to know what the rolling-shutter is like on the Sigma BF for video. Will it be possible to enable a global-shutter feature for lower-resolutions? Even if global-shutter on the Sigma BF is only possible for 1080p, I'd consider shooting a feature-film with it.

Potentially, the BF is a perfect camera for Ethics-First Film-makers.

I could see this new Sigma BF being the improved-reincarnation of the legendary (and sadly discontinued) 16mm Fairchild BMPCC OG, and the Bolex D16.

A tool for real-artists.

If Sigma is listening: Is there any chance of finessing your masterpiece by adding global-shutter for video? Even if only for a lower-resolution readout.

Regardless, あなたの勇気と勇敢さに感謝する。