I’ll let you know once I’ve shot with them and done an edit.
I can’t shoot these things side by side ie, Lumix 35/85 vs Sigma 35/85 because it’s work not a set up test so will have to go on feel & results but shooting essentially the same kinds of scenes week in week out, I have continuity in that regard.
I’m not expecting any quantifiable night & day difference, but rather some subtle but worth it to me differences.
The Sigma’s are going to be slightly larger and heavier. I don’t mind that and were only talking +200-250g so well short of say using a chonky zoom that would require a battery grip. That should be all good and I actually prefer something with a bit of heft for stability.
I’m going to get actual aperture rings. Yay. My biggest criticism of the LUMIX f1.8 primes is their lack of aperture rings. Even the super expensive LEICA SL primes don’t have aperture rings. ALL lenses should have aperture rings on my planet!
I’m expecting a fraction slower AF. I can live with that for the way I work and I could happily shoot manual focus 95% of the time so…
The lower light capability (approx 2/3rd of a stop) is welcome, but I don’t really need it as f1.8/f2 is actually fine…and the Sigma f2 primes were another option, but the slower f2.8 90mm puts me off a bit for indoor work compared with the f1.4 85mm so I ruled them out on that basis. I actually had a set of them including the 90 a few years back and loved them, but I don’t think they are the right option for me right now.
Finally, I think I am going to enjoy the shooting/ownership of metal vs plastic and there is that undefinable ‘I want to shoot with these’ rather than ‘I have to shoot with these’ factor.
All in all, considering I am funding this 2 lens update by trading 5 lenses, it’s my ‘upgrade’ to something fractionally more ‘premium’ that makes up for not buying a Leica or a Hasselblad!