Sigma issues firmware updates for three of its E-mount Art lenses that *partially* unlocks the full AF speed of the a9 III
(Image credit: James Artaius)
Sigma has announced a firmware update that enables several of its E-mount lenses to be compatible with the maximum 120fps burst shooting rate of the Sony a9 III. Three lenses have been given the update:
The a9 III being used with a Sony lens, thereby maintaining unrestricted compatibility with the camera's 120fps burst mode (Image credit: James Artaius)
We were stunned by the a9 III and its incredible global shutter that enables 120fps full-resolution RAW continuous shooting, with no strings attached. Except that last bit was only true providing you were using the camera with a supported Sony lens - third-party lenses from the likes of Sigma were not compatible with the maximum 120fps burst shooting rate. Whether or not that was because of legitimate technical reasons, or just because Sony was intentionally restricting this stand-out feature for use with its own lenses, is up for debate. But now it is available with select Sigma optics, albeit still with a rather large caveat!
The Sigma 105mm f/2.8 DG DN MACRO Art: one of Sigma's lenses that's now compatible with the a9 III's 120fps burst shooting (Image credit: Matthew Richards)
While these Sigma lenses are now compatible with the a9 III's 120fps mode, this is only when used in AF-S, DMF or MF focussing modes. You can't use AF-C; the very focussing mode you're most likely to want when shooting a continuous burst of stills. Granted, you'll still be able to track subjects moving across the image frame at a consistent distance from the camera, but you won't be able to maintain focus of a subject like a cyclist or racing car that's approaching you.
Of course it is plausible that only Sony lenses have the necessary processing ability to facilitate AF-C autofocus at 120fps. But on the other hand, Sigma is more than capable of producing world-beating optics with top quality AF, so we can't help but wonder if this is just Sony artificially reserving uncompromised 120fps a9 III burst shooting for use with its own lenses.
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Ben is the Imaging Labs manager, responsible for all the testing on Digital Camera World and across the entire photography portfolio at Future. Whether he's in the lab testing the sharpness of new lenses, the resolution of the latest image sensors, the zoom range of monster bridge cameras or even the latest camera phones, Ben is our go-to guy for technical insight. He's also the team's man-at-arms when it comes to camera bags, filters, memory cards, and all manner of camera accessories – his lab is a bit like the Batcave of photography! With years of experience trialling and testing kit, he's a human encyclopedia of benchmarks when it comes to recommending the best buys.
