Anyone who uses a Sigma DP Quattro camera knows that it can provoke a love-hate relationship with its user base. On one hand, you have the excellent Foveon APS-C sensor and four cameras with different fixed focal lengths that have great optical quality. On the other, there are issues that are hard to ignore, such as the large unusual body, poor noise and AF performance, slow post-processing software, poor battery life and lack of an EVF.
The truth is that those who use the Sigma DP series do so for the resulting image quality, which is a statement Eugene Fratkin of Exposed Moment echoes more than once in his excellent review of the most recent model, the DP0 Quattro, with its ultra-wide 21mm equivalent lens.
Eugene has been a Sigma user since the first DP1 was released, and despite his initial disappointment, he has continued to use their cameras because, in his words:
Despite many, many limitations there was really some image quality hidden beneath all of the deficiencies.
Speaking specifically about the DP0, he believes that it is the better option for landscapes and cityscapes, two genres at which Sigma excels, because of its 21mm lens. However, he also states that while many aspects of the DP0 have been improved compared to previous models, including the autofocus, high ISO performance and dynamic range, it is still well below the industry standard.
One of his concluding statements reveals very clearly how most users feel about Sigma cameras:
DP0’s image quality, when winds blow in Sigma’s direction, can be quite impressive, and this perhaps is the main and only justification for going with Quattro. If one is not afraid of a bit extra work and really loves the detail and rendering by Sigma it may very well prove its place in one’s camera bag.
You can read Eugene’s full review of the Sigma DP0 here. He also includes some nice sample images in his article taken during his walk in the Pinnacles.
