CP+ 2026: Sigma CEO Kazuto Yamaki on Unprecedented Lens Demand, APS-C, AI, and Market Trends

2 months ago

Sigma 15mm f1.4 DC DN Contemporary: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama

Sigma CEO Mr. Kazuto Yamaki was interviewed by Phototrend at CP+ 2026. You can find a translated summary of the entire interview below or check out the French interview here.

1. Company Overview, Operations & Production Strategy

High Output Pace: In 2025, Sigma launched eight lenses and one camera body. Despite this rapid pace—usually associated with industry giants like Canon, Nikon, or Sony—Sigma did not significantly increase its number of engineers.
Exceptional Retention & Collaboration: The company recruits just a few people annually but has an incredibly low turnover rate of less than 1%, which includes engineers, factory workers, and sales personnel. Sigma maintains its strong development capabilities through this high retention of personnel alongside continuous discussion and improvement among the team.
Survival Through Innovation: As demand for SLR cameras plummeted between 2022 and 2023, the company realized it needed innovative and attractive products to survive. Since then, it has thoroughly discussed its strategy and responded through the exceptional efforts of its engineers.

2. Sigma fp Camera: Reception & Feedback

Surpassing Expectations: A year ago, Kazuto Yamaki was “quite worried” prior to the Sigma fp announcement, expecting up to 40% negative feedback. Instead, the overall response in terms of usage and sales has been very positive.
User Experience: While some users are initially perplexed by the fp’s unconventional user interface, they grow to appreciate and enjoy it once they get used to it. Some customers even noted that the camera changed their personal shooting style.
Constructive Criticisms: The main critiques are centered around missing features, namely the lack of an electronic viewfinder (EVF) and the absence of in-body image stabilization (IBIS).
Supply & Demand: Sales remain stable. Although Sigma has been operating at full capacity and shipping continuously since the beginning, backorders still exceed their production capabilities.

3. Unprecedented Market Demand & Sales Trends

300-600mm f/4 DG OS Sports: Highly acclaimed by motorsport photographers, this lens has received excellent feedback for its field power and optical performance. Yamaki initially anticipated very low demand and adjusted production accordingly. However, massive market demand forced Sigma to increase production capacity twice within a single week.
200mm f/2 DG OS Sports: Despite being a highly specialized lens with expected low demand, orders heavily surpassed Sigma’s forecasts.
17-40mm f/1.8 DC Art (APS-C): Demand for this lens wildly exceeded expectations to the point where Sigma is still unable to fulfill all backorders.
Changing Market Dynamics: Yamaki notes that forecasting demand has become extremely difficult as the market has changed dramatically. The gap between explosively popular products and unpopular products is widening. While the exact reason is unclear, he suspects social media may be a significant factor.

4. The L-Mount Alliance & Canon RF Mount

Expanding the Ecosystem: Regarding third-party manufacturers like Viltrox joining the L-Mount Alliance, Yamaki believes that offering users more choices inherently makes the system stronger and better.
Caution with New Entries: Sigma stresses the need for extreme caution when welcoming new companies into the alliance to guarantee perfect compatibility between different brands’ cameras and lenses.
Canon RF Mount: When pressed if Sigma is any closer to releasing full-frame lenses for the Canon RF mount than they were in February 2025, Yamaki stated, “I am still not able to comment on this issue. I apologize.”

5. Competition: Third-Party Brands & First-Party Offerings

First-Party Affordability: It remains unclear why first-party manufacturers intend to work on low-priced lenses, but Yamaki views Canon and Nikon’s recent push to release more affordable f/1.2 and f/1.4 lenses as an attractive and positive trend for young people. He highlighted the Canon 45mm f/1.2 as a particularly attractive product at a reasonable price.
Rise of Viltrox: Yamaki is highly impressed by Viltrox’s progress, noting their improved quality and rapid product launch speeds. He admits Sigma has things to learn from their swift decision-making and execution.
The Analog Advantage: Despite digital tech making it easier to copy designs, Yamaki emphasizes a significant difference in performance and quality remains between Sigma and budget competitors. Because lenses are essentially analog devices, accumulated experience and minor refinements make the difference.
Long-Term Quality: Sigma focuses on quality and performance aspects that may not show up in a simple lab test, but become highly evident to users over long periods of real-world use across diverse situations.
Visual Context for the 85mm f/1.2: (Editorial Note) Phototrend posted images within the article of the 85mm f/1.2 specifically to give readers an idea of the physical size of the newly announced lens.

6. Lens Design, Innovation, and Artificial Intelligence

The f/1.2 Challenge: Achieving both high optical performance and compactness/light weight in an f/1.2 autofocus full-frame mirrorless lens is extremely complex. Thanks to proprietary technology, Sigma was able to successfully create multiple f/1.2 lenses (35mm, 50mm, and 85mm).
35mm f/1.4 DG II Art: 13 years after the original 35mm f/1.4 Art lens (2012) changed Sigma’s global perception, the Version II was created. It was made possible by new technologies unavailable in 2012, specifically the HLA linear motor and special aspherical glass lenses, making it possible to improve performance.
“Version II” Roadmap Strategy: Sigma will only develop a second-generation lens if they expect a clear and significant improvement in performance. If the difference is small, no update is performed. For instance, the 2018 85mm f/1.4 DG DN Art is already highly refined, meaning it does not currently warrant an update.
AI in Lens Development: Yamaki believes AI can be used to a certain extent, but unique knowledge and experience are essential for the highest quality. There is potential for AI to be combined with Sigma’s proprietary knowledge, and this is something they are currently discussing internally. However, at present, the emphasis remains on traditional face-to-face development.

7. The Role of APS-C Format

The Value of APS-C: While full-frame is the mainstream, Yamaki champions the APS-C format for its optimal balance of quality, performance, size, and price, giving it a very promising future.
Compact Advantages: APS-C allows for remarkably compact lens designs that are impossible in full-frame, such as their recent 16-300mm lens (24-450mm equivalent).
L-Mount APS-C Lenses: Sigma halted production of L-mount versions of their APS-C lenses (like the newly presented 15mm f/1.4 DC Contemporary) due to extremely low demand—largely because an L-mount APS-C camera doesn’t exist. If Sigma, Panasonic, or Leica produces one, Sigma will gladly manufacture the lenses again. Yamaki agreed that a smaller, APS-C version of the Sigma fp could be a good idea.

8. Environmental Responsibility & Sigma Aizu Farm Corporation

A New Venture: Sigma has surprisingly ventured into rice farming by creating the “Sigma Aizu Farm Corporation.” The project is deeply personal to Yamaki, inspired by his father’s love for the Aizu region’s beautiful rice fields.
Preserving the “Satoyama”: Japan’s rapidly aging population means many farmers are retiring without younger generations to take over, leaving fields abandoned. Sigma’s goal is to protect the “satoyama” (the traditional landscape bridging cities and mountains) and combat the issue of abandoned farmland.
Environmental & Ecological Impact: The conservation of these rice paddies is vital for preventing floods and landslides, maintaining local ecosystems (protecting habitats for small fish and frogs), and controlling pests by preventing insects and wild animals from coming down from the mountains.
Employing Retiring Workers & Lending Machinery: For the time being, Sigma will cooperate with elderly farmers. In the future, retiring factory workers will take over the work. Since some factory workers already know how to farm, when they reach the age of 60 or 65, Sigma can suggest they work in the rice fields instead. The necessary resources are already there, and Sigma will lend them machinery such as tractors and combine harvesters.
Community Pride: This initiative helps secure employment, maintains local pride, and contributes to mental stability. Seeing only abandoned rice fields could cause residents to lose confidence and pride in their hometown.
Maintaining Focus: Yamaki is not concerned about a loss of focus due to business dispersion. The farming is managed by employees, allowing him to remain almost 100% focused on Sigma’s core camera and lens operations.

Sigma Lenses can be purchased from B&H Photo and Amazon.

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