These Manufacturers Are Putting Canon, Nikon, and Sony to Shame

These Manufacturers Are Putting Canon, Nikon, and Sony to Shame

Designing something beautiful is one thing. Designing something that is also beautifully functional is a rarity. Why has it been left to the minnows to show the big boys how it’s done?

Sigma has just unveiled the remarkable BF, a gorgeous, clean-lined full frame camera that has taken minimalism beyond what anyone thought possible. It features a large LCD on the back (notably, one that doesn’t articulate or fold out) and a control dial. Nothing strange so far. The physical buttons, however, are something a bit different. One of the three is for power, leaving just two buttons for everything else. It’s a bold move given that, unlike the Hasselblad X2D, it doesn’t hold back on the video features. Clearly, it’s not for everyone, but there’s nothing else like it on the market.

The back of the new Sigma BF in silver.

You can make a similar argument for Hasselblad. The Swedes have a sense of style like no other, as their furniture design (and prices) will testify, so it was no surprise to see the company create an interface that made the shortcomings of almost every other camera on the market painfully clear. Only Leica comes close, but again, they don’t have to worry too much about video functionality.

Hasselblad users have beards and drink coffee.

You can get an idea of the menu on the BF in this short video from Gordon Laing. Sigma has given the industry a lesson in minimalist design, not just with the clean lines of the aluminum body but also by creating a menu system that doesn't make you want to gouge your eyes out with a fork.

Where Is the Japanese Design Ethos?

Photographers have grumbled about menu systems for years, and manufacturers were content to let these complaints go largely unanswered, feeling no real pressure to make people’s lives easier. For years, we’ve been punished by ugly, confusing layouts, with Sony apparently determined to produce the most labyrinthine and offensive menu system its developers could muster. Photographers' sensibilities simply didn’t deserve consideration—pick a horrific font, stick white text on a black background, choose a hierarchy by throwing broken darts at a list of weirdly abbreviated terms, and then forget about it for ten years. The logic was that cameras could be thoughtfully designed, but the menu systems could remain a shambles. Given how this contradicts the Japanese design ethos, I’ve long been dumbfounded as to why so few seemed to care about this.

Five years ago, I asked whether it was time for manufacturers to ditch buttons and dials and just use a massive LCD touchscreen instead. The comments were a resounding “no freaking way,” which makes sense for most cameras for two reasons: first, it’s not practical, however good a touchscreen might be; second, people like buttons, as further suggested by Sigma’s use of haptic buttons on the back of the BF. Getting rid of buttons makes no sense for the overwhelming majority of use cases, and yet minimalism has its place.

Photographers Deserve Better

Every time I moan about camera menus and poor design, there are people in the comments saying that it doesn’t matter and that once you’ve set up your camera, you rarely have to dive into it. For some, the experience of using a tool doesn’t matter, but for others, like me, the feeling of using something beautiful enhances the image-making experience and shapes the way I create photos. Some camera manufacturers get this; others don’t. Sigma’s line of lenses started to give a hint of this a few years ago, understanding that a non-mechanical aperture ring doesn’t have to feel non-mechanical.

Of course, a tool is a tool; if something is functional, that’s often enough. And, to a degree, those who don’t see any value in pleasing design are right. However, just because cameras can be ugly doesn’t mean all cameras have to be ugly. Simply because menus can be a horrific pit of abbreviations, gaudy colors, and badly designed icons doesn’t mean we don’t deserve better. Thank you, Sigma, for showing us what’s possible.

As usual, let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

Andy Day's picture

Andy Day is a British photographer and writer living in France. He began photographing parkour in 2003 and has been doing weird things in the city and elsewhere ever since. He's addicted to climbing and owns a fairly useless dog. He has an MA in Sociology & Photography which often makes him ponder what all of this really means.

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13 Comments

Asthetics are OK, but form must follow function. The Sigma looks nice, but, well, nope. No EVF? Really?

Sigma won't be putting any other manufacturers to shame unless they sell a boatload of the BFs. The BF seems more like a vanity product than something photographers are clamoring for.

I think it’s fair to add Leica as a sample of perfect design, especially if we are talking about the whole experience.

I watched the video and simple is simple! Remember when Sony came out with Mod 1's followed by the Mod 2's with IBIS and both with on camera apps that most edited in camera! How long did it take others makers to go mirrorless? If anyone has noticed there is a move for point and shoots cameras as well as film camera AND the most important people not so much photographers have time for editing so jpeg capture and in auto mode.
I have a nephew who is a massive traveler and can and has many of the most expensive cameras but small is his desire, He captures in Auto and carries just a few lenses if only one at a time. He is a geek of a computer person and has the best of the best computer but still edits nothing.
And I will be honest I still use and have two "FUJIFILM WP Z" always in one of my vehicles with a charger and in each case a handful of SD card (hard to find today. For times without one of my several Sony cameras, with it's tripod screw on point it is the perfect dash cam for video of a sunset or snapping a shot with no time to stop, ever drive winding roads in forest during fall colors or out west at sunset time or a rising moon you did not would be there. Oh! waterproof also so going into the surf or out fishing or hunting wait in the dark and hear something and the flash you can see and with no room for the big camera. Hey it works after all these years and images are even great.
My point is any camera will do they are all great because todays SW will edit and enlarge to any size. As long as one leans to operate it, it will last again forever as my old film Ftb with a case of every lens made back in the day as well as the unknown prism filters and hey Kodak is back to a 7 day 24 hour 3 shifts making film again, like I say forever!
We are like scientist and the lab is anywhere and everywhere nature puts on it big SHOW!!
1. after a hurricane had video with the FUJIFILM WP Z in wind and rain.
2. film of me on way home from desert storm, took photos of all my men on det no cruse books on small boys.
3. At USS Arizona 2006 captured faces in oil years before someone made a big deal of theirs.
4. Yes I still play with film no do not process send to Kodak like the old days I can wait.

For me; the A7Cr is perfect. Leica-like manual rangefinder experience when I want it for street or the best auto-focus available when you need it for portraits. 61 MP gives you plenty of room to crop and re-frame after. I have no beard, so I cannot get a Hasselblad 😂

Debating between the a7Cr or embracing my inner Hasselblad owner and growing a beard. Tough call.

Exercises in how to produce an artsy-fartsy device are a waste of time and resources, IMESHO. For me, any camera must have the ergonomics down right for my hands. When I go to buy a camera, the first thing I do is review the specs. If that camera has the qualities and functions that I require, I'll go to my dealer and "try it on". If it fits my hands right, there will likely be a sale. If not, it gets crossed off my list and we move on to the next candidate. The BF is most definitely NOT a serious candidate in my world.

I adore the design of the sigma, couldn't do without a viewfinder though. The Hasselblad is a piece of art and would love to own and use one, but out of my budget ( do have a beard and drink coffee). I don't think the Canon cameras are ugly, I like the smooth and ergonomic design. Really don't like the design of OM or the fuji X series, with all those dials sticking out. And yes they are just tools, and beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

When I look at the pictures of the Sigma BF, I don't think it is beautiful. I have never seen any camera that I thought was beautiful. Never seen a pair of pliers or an oil filter or a deadbold door lock or a lug wrench that I thought was beautiful, either. These things are all tools and equipment, and so are cameras. If someone thinks of a camera as somehow not belonging in the same category as other tools, then they are misguided.

Maybe the hipsters will appreciate these cameras though for anyone who shoots sports or wildlife, we need cameras which function.

Agree. When the main buzz about a camera is what it looks like, and not about how it functions, then that seems like a problem to me. A camera is a tool. It is not "more than a tool". No, it isn't.

A camera is a tool in exactly the same way that a pipewrench or a voltage meter or a pair of scissors is a tool. The people who use those tools never talk about or care about what those things look like, so why do some photographers care about what their cameras look like? It's just weird and misguided thinking.

Looking nice, new aesthetics...
Ok, I need to hold it with my hands, possibly wearing gloves.. so Sigma is a bi no go for me.
Direct access button is a must, sorry.

I completely agree that bringing mobile photographers back to dedicated cameras will require more than just packing in features. For many, form matters just as much as function—maybe even more. Cameras like the Sigma BF and Fujifilm X100VI show that great design can be just as compelling as technical specs.

I love the minimalist aesthetic of the Sigma BF, but the lack of IBIS and its commitment to the L-mount make it a tough sell for me. I need to be able to leverage my E-mount investment. As much as I appreciate what Sigma has done here, I can’t justify a system switch just for the design.

That said, this article makes a great point about how long camera manufacturers have ignored the user experience. Sigma’s clean menu system is a breath of fresh air. Sony’s menus have long been notoriously bad, and it’s wild to think how little effort was put into making them intuitive for so long. More manufacturers should be thinking holistically about design, not just performance. A beautiful tool enhances the creative experience, and photography should always feel good in the hands.

Paul Tocatlian
Kisau Photography
www.kisau.com