SIGMA will address the RF mount in 2022 [CR3]

While it is ADMIRABLE that SIGMA and other are embracing the RF mount, Canon has made it quite difficult to parse the mount instruction set itself on the Camera side! De-engineering that is work for a true nutcase only (i.e. ME!) a Yippy Yi Yay slog it has been I tell ya!

After that fiasco, I pressured our parent Aerospace company to do something COMPLETELY DIFFERENT with modern lens technology and to THROW AWAY ALL CURRENT TECHNOLOGIES usied in today's prime and zoom lens systems.

After much blood, sweat and tears work for the past few years, I have finished my optics technology Research and Development and the parent company has now given me PERMISSION to announce that our completely new TYPE of lens arrangement system that breaks the boundaries of modern optics will be released FREE AND OPEN SOURCE under GPL-3 licence terms to any and all persons and companies who want to make their own versions.

Three key issue for modern optics needed to be solved:

1) How to gather more light and present that light to the image sensor itself!

- Solution: Change over ALL lens elements to cost-effective high-refractive index
optical-grade Acrylic with thin-film vapour deposited Sapphire on both sides of
each lens element for maximum scratch resistance. Acrylic, when combined with
Active Optics and Computational Photography algorithms, will make a lens that
20 percent more light gathering ability (i.e. is 20% brighter) than even the best
fluorite silica-glass lenses. Acrylic has 92% of the light transmissibility of air so
with appropriate coatings, it can be increased to past 96% which is fantastic.
Because of the lower distortion of the refractive index (1.49) of Acrylic versus
1.56 of glass it is EASIER to model in ray-tracing software and in the real world
so that the optimal light path can be better calculated and compensated for
by applying the principles of Snell's law to model each incoming light path
going towards a specific photosite on an image sensor.

We have also changed the formula of the Acrylic polymer itself to MINIMIZE
"Glass Creep and Deformation" and any thermal expansion/contraction issues.
The minimal amount that DOES occur is modelled within a now public-domain ray-tracing
algorithm to allow for algorithmic light-ray path compensation plus chromatic aberration
and luminance-value compensation using computational photography principles.

2) Prevent Heat Shimmer and Scintillation effects on Short and Long Focal Length Prime and Zoom Lenses!

- Solution: Model light pathways from source to imager under multiple common professional-level
photography scenarios and use A.I.-assisted light ray tracing to create a fast Rule-based Expert
System that can COMPENSATE and ESTIMATE what a pixel should be in terms of colour and
luminance value AND model/compensate for pixel movement when a light ray is refracted
or diffracted though a gas and liquid environment for distances ranging from below one metre
up to 100 kilometres. This is technology we have used within our various space platforms
which allows us to have a MAXIMUM OPTICAL RESOLUTION of 4 cm per pixel for high orbit
(i.e. Geo-Sync) imagery and 15mm per pixel for active refraction and diffraction compensation.
Not even the latest NRO Misty/Zirconic and EIS spy satellites have THAT resolution (i.e. they are
only 4 inches or 10 cm per pixel enhanced)!

3) Stabilize the lens element itself from vibration and movement on 2D-XY and 3D-XYZ axes!

Solution: Active Floatation of Individual Lens Elements within linear induction motor-based
electromagnetic fields for FAST RESPONSE sub-millisecond lens positioning for enhanced
real-time optical stabilization. We embed into the lens elements themselves, in a circular
pattern around the outer edge of each lens element, a set of ferromagnetic rectangular
slabs that are precisely machined and placed so that electromagnetic coils can push/pull
an individual lens element to a PRECISE PLACEMENT within a 3D volume of space so that
one and more lens elements will combined their optical properties to properly refract a light
ray along a pre-defined optical pathway that was modelled within a ray-tracer to ensure proper
entry of a stream of photons onto the correct 2D-XY photosite coordinate within a given image sensor.

This sub-millisecond floating of lens-elements allows an analog method of optical stabilization to be
combined with computational photography principles to ensure sharp still photos and smooth motion
video that has NO long range heat shimmer effects, no luminance-specific scintillation effects, almost
no chromatic aberration and no unwanted edge aliasing. They are completely removed from the final
imagery giving you the SHARPEST and BRIGHTEST still photos and moving video footage possible!
This real-time electromagnetic-based lens flotation system ALSO ALLOWS for real-time user-defined
Bokeh allowing short and long focal length prime and zoom lens to have VARIABLE DEPTH OF FIELD
from thin-slivers for depth of field sharpness to infinitely sharp along the entire focal length.

This NEW set of OPEN SOURCE lens constructions gives you f/0.95 brightness
at sub-$2000 price points. Even a 9600 mm Super-Telephoto Prime Lens will be
f/2.8 at under $2000 because of the combination of all-Acrylic lens element construction,
actively computer-controlled EM field-based lens element flotation and computational
photography and ray-tracing algorithms being modelled and pre-defined for each lens.

Further details will be released ON THIS WEBSITE FIRST when we are ready for full public disclosure!
A PDF file with full details will be released here also!

Please note that ALL ABOVE DESCRIPTIONS are now Fully Free and Open Source
under GPL-3 Licence Terms for BOTH Hardware and Software. ANYONE and EVERYONE
is fully free and able to modify, create, manufacture, sell/resell lenses for any type of
imaging system using our designs with NO ROYALTY PAYMENTS REQUIRED so long
you follow ALL the tenets of the GPL-3 Open Source Licence Terms!

Thank You,

AND YES! You Heard It Here First !!!!

V

----

P.S.

With quite a bit of background in high-end space imaging systems, I can tell you that the KEY METRIC is Inches OR CM per pixel and using our newest systems that use high-refractive-index, all-Acrylic lenses mated to ADAPTIVE shape-changing optics, and atmospheric shimmer reduction using computational photography techniques, I can get our corporate space systems imagery down to 1.5 CENTIMETRES (15 millimetres) per pixel!

That means with some extra edge detection and edge enhancement techniques, I can now read the INDIVIDUAL LINES of 8 to 12 point fonts on this web page from a medium orbit! (i.e. from at least 1000 km ceiling or 600 km ABOVE the ISS space station)

THAT is how far imaging has come! Currently, the satellite imaging-industry heavyweights in USA, Russia and France STILL only do about 10 cm per pixel (4 inches) so we are quite a bit ahead of the U.S. NRO (National Reconnaissance Office) spy satellite systems and all the rest from other countries!

We are RIGHT THIS MOMENT doing a GLOBAL OPTICAL, INFRARED and RADAR SATELLITE SURVEY that will have 15 millimetres resolution for EVERY SQUARE METRE of LAND on the ENTIRE EARTH by July of 2022 and we will make ALL of that imagery COMPLETELY FREE AND OPEN SOURCE UNDER GPL-3 WITH NO BLURRING OR COVERUP OF ANY FACILITIES or Land areas! We will have 4096 by 4096 pixel, 8192 by 8192 pixel and 16384 by 16384 pixel tiles at 16-bits per colour channel (48-bit colour) RGB pixels + D channel (i.e. where D = Depth plus or minus metres above or below mean sea level)

Our imagery is being scanned with 3D-XYZ volumetric applications in mind for height and depth of land and shoreline topography purposes so people can have a HIGHLY ACCURATE and much more visually realistic 3D view that goes waaaaaay beyond Google Earth Pro and Google Maps in terms of walk-through and fly-over capability.

Since we are FULLY ITAR-free being completely NON-USA-based with NO U.S. personnel and NO U.S. Goods, Designs and Technology used AT ALL in our entire hardware and software systems and all sub-systems, we can present that imagery to the ENTIRE WORLD fully free and open source without ANY restriction! ALL Imagery from EVERY PART OF THE GLOBE will be completely uncovered and not censored in any way, shape or form at a full 15 millimetres per pixel super-high image resolution!

YAAAAY !!!!!!

V

NOTHING will left uncovered! All the major EM wavelengths will be covered at their maximum resolutions. We have our custom-built imaging data servers OUTSIDE of the purvey and oversight of any major countries including the EU and USA, so there will be NO COVERUPS AT ALL --- ALL imaged AREAS will open to public review online by July 2022 !!!!
 
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Jul 19, 2011
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Consider the Sigma DSLR Art lenses designed for both the Nikon F and Canon EF mounts. The F mount is much smaller than the EF mount but Sigma seems to have compensated. For FF DN lenses, the smallest lens mount will be the Sony FE, which is about the same diameter as the Canon M mount and the Nikon F mount.
As much as they now build lenses for Sony FE only, they might as
well build lenses in the future that make use of the bigger diameter
that is offered by RF, Z and L. And not offer those for Sony because
of the limitations of FE.

Sony is now in the unpleasant situation to have the weakest mount
construction of the top 4 mounts.
 
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Mar 17, 2020
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I see no reason for Canon to reduce their RF prices (much as I would like them to). For the most part, Canon have features in their RF that aren't in their EF counterparts (if they exist) so their range is really RF + adapted Canon EF lenses which have a lower price point (bar 600/800mm big whites). People's allergy to the R mount adaptor is hard to understand except maybe for the big whites. Given the supply shortages, to have expectations of a price reduction is not logical.

Adapted EF Tamron/Sigma lenses should work fine as far as I know
If their RF versions have a control ring then that would be a good sign that they have a license from Canon.
Well, in all other market areas monopolies tend to drive prices up and increased competition tends to drive them down. But I understand you think the lens market is uniquely different in some way. I - for one - also hate the adapter even if you may like it.
 
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Canon needs to open the RF mount protocol to 3rd party.
You block the 3rd party from making RF lens, at the same time, also block yourself from been used your RF lens on 3rd party camera body.

DJi latest camera is a good example.
Red makes RF mount Cinema cameras but thats a very different league ti consumer grade stills cameras.
 
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AlanF

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Aug 16, 2012
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1) How to gather more light and present that light to the image sensor itself!

- Solution: Change over ALL lens elements to cost-effective high-refractive index
optical-grade Acrylic with thin-film vapour deposited Sapphire on both sides of
each lens element for maximum scratch resistance. Acrylic has about 20 percent
more light transmission capability than even the best fluorite silica-glass lenses.
The transmission of a sheet of glass is 92%, and this is less than 100% due to 4% of light being reflected back from its front surface and another 4% from its rear. Multi-coat it and the transmission gets close to 100%. It is absolutely impossible for acrylic to have 20% more transmission than 92 or 99+%! And, it's basic optics that the transmission coefficient decreases as refractive index increases because reflection increases (Fresnel equation).
 
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gruhl28

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unfocused

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If their RF versions have a control ring then that would be a good sign that they have a license from Canon.
Not really. If third parties can reverse engineer the lens mount they can reverse engineer the control ring.
 
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rbr

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Canon seems to be trying to turn their mount into some sort of creepy cult isolated from the rest of the photographic world. That's the way it feels sometimes. If you buy into the Canon system you become forced to use their and only their optical designs and get cut off from the outside world and all the innovations that are taking place elsewhere from lens makers such as Zeiss, Sigma, and Tamron.
 
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Sounds like bull to me. What else would you expect a Sigma salesman to say?
The manager of my local camera shop was told something very similar by a Sigma UK rep. He also mentioned that that Sigma had an agreement with Canon to NOT produce RF lenses for the 1st 3 years of the RF mount.

Also I recently watched a YT video by Grays of Westminster who are a Nikon store exclusively. They mentioned being told by a Sigma UK rep that Sigma won’t reverse engineer any lenses for mirrorless. If they don’t get the AF protocols for a mount they won’t support it.

Whether any of that is true I have no idea but different people are saying very similar things about Sigma here in the UK in regards to support for RF/Z. I would imagine the same applies to the rest of Sigma Global.

I shoot Sony but it would be great if Canon/Nikon shooters could have access to the wonderful glass that has been released recently. In particular these

85mm f1.4 Art DG DN
14-24mm f2.8 Art DG DN
24-70mm f2.8 Art DG DN
65mm f2 I-series
 
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Back when DSLR's were fairly new, I had several Sigma Film lenses, a fair sized investment. all 5 refused to work on my first Canon DSLR. Sigma could only provide a fix for one of the lenses and that cost me $150. The rest of them went to ebay with a note telling buyers that they were only usable for film. Sigma then revised their chip again when the lenses did not work on the latest DSLR's.

Since then, I've only bought one Sigma lens for my APS-C camera and it did not live up to the hype.

I can't imagine buying a new Sigma lens that had been reverse engineered for RF. It took Sigma 3 tries to get the EF versions to work.
 
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Bob Howland

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Whether any of that is true I have no idea but different people are saying very similar things about Sigma here in the UK in regards to support for RF/Z. I would imagine the same applies to the rest of Sigma Global.
Or it could have something to do with the culture of Sigma UK. I'd love to hear if Sigma reps in other countries are saying the same thing. This is a good question for the Sigma CEO but I think he's already been asked it. He did flatly state that Sigma would NEVER make a lens for the Fuji X mount.
 
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bbasiaga

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I would imagine that Sigma won't stay out of the RF market forever, license or not on the protocols. They sell a lot of EF mount glass, and that market is going away along with the mount. Let's assume its 1/4 of their business (shared evenly with Sony, Nikon and Lmount - in reality it may be a larger portion of their business historically). They aren't just going to walk away from that. If nothing else, they'd use EF protocols for AF and change the mount/optical formula.

It will be interesting to see what the first offerings look like from that perspective.

Brian
 
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I would imagine that Sigma won't stay out of the RF market forever, license or not on the protocols. They sell a lot of EF mount glass, and that market is going away along with the mount. Let's assume its 1/4 of their business (shared evenly with Sony, Nikon and Lmount - in reality it may be a larger portion of their business historically). They aren't just going to walk away from that. If nothing else, they'd use EF protocols for AF and change the mount/optical formula.

It will be interesting to see what the first offerings look like from that perspective.

Brian
Its been rumoured that Sigma refuse to reverse engineer for mirrorless and that they’ll only produce glass on mounts for which they have protocols provided to them by the OEM. I would guess that Sigma don’t want a situation where their emount glass has licensed support and the AF has near/matching native level performance but RF is reverse engineered and the AF is noticeably inferior compared to native RF glass.

Remember Tamron, Zeiss, Tokina and Voigtländer haven’t supported the RF mount yet either.
 
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Rumours not rumors

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If SIGMA released a RF mount version of their 70-200 f2.8 DG OS HSM | Sports lens, they'd sell truck loads because that lens in EF form is optically better IMHO than the EF 70-200 f2.8 Mk III lens that costs over a grand more but on the upside for Canon they would see a jump in body sales from people like me who refuse to go to mirrorless while the RF lenses are so outrageously priced. What would be a killer product for many SIGMA owners would be a version of the TC-1401 teleconverter that had the female EF mount to accept SIGMA lenses fitted with an EF mount and a RF male mount to natively fit onto the R series bodies, effectively combining a TC-1401 teleconverter and a EF-RF mount adapter into one unit - they'd sell like wildfire. My EOS 90D's read the correction data for peripheral illumination, chromatic aberrations, distortion, and more from my EF mount SIGMA 70-200 f2.8 DG OS HSM | Sports lens so I can't envisage there'd be any compatability issues with RF versions. The best part is unlike most lens vendors, SIGMA makes their lenses entirely in Japan buffering them from all the COVID related dramas affecting products made in China. The superior build quality is evident when you pick them up. If Tamron followed with RF versions of their G2 range, wow, sales of Canon EOS R bodies would soar.
 
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