Sigma DP1 Hands-On Review - Something Like a Phenomenon
Reviewed on 23 April 2008

In a class all by its own, the Sigma DP1 is a revolutionary compact camera that delivers unprecedented image quality by adopting the use of an APS-C sized sensor. It marks as a monumental breakthrough in the history of compact cameras and is a head towards a direction that should be applauded, especially in an era where the importance of sensor size has been blanketed by the craze for more megapixels.

By using the same 14 megapixels FOVOEN X3 sensor as the Sigma SD14 DSLR, it's a revelation that's hard to fathom considering the physical size differences between the two. Coupled with a 16.6mm prime lens with a fixed focal length equivalent to 28mm in 35mm format, the Sigma DP1 is clearly out to hunt down the best image quality possible. Equipped with extensive manual settings and an ability to add performance-enhancing accessories, the Sigma DP1 is tailored to satisfy the most demanding of photo enthusiasts.

Design and Feel

Lifting the body out the box, the look of the Sigma DP1 doesn't make a stunning run for a potential award-winning design, it's more so an example of where form follows function. Coated in matte black and constructed in a sturdy metal casing, it comes in a simple box form and shows hardly any signs of an attempt to add style whatsoever. This seems to be consistent with the DP1's principles of where performance takes precedence and where photography matters rather than the need for loud styles and faddish features. But even so, we expected a little more, elements like a rubberized surface or maybe a raised handgrip would've been great for handling comfort. Nevertheless, the existing pebbled surface on the DP1 is sufficient for securing a tactile grip. The body is compact but feels a little hefty on the hands, but however, nothing to be put off about.

Start-up and Menu

Powering on the camera, the Sigma DP1 takes a considerable amount of time to fully ready itself. While the lens is a fixed focal, it's a protruding lens and will need time to fully extend itself, making the startup time on the DP1 noticeably slower than most compact cameras. A standard sized 2.5-inch LCD monitor is provided with a 230k pixel resolution, it's not the most pleasing of screens to look at but it's one we can live with. It does suffer from glare issues but you have the option to purchase and add an optical viewfinder to the hot shoe above. With the DP1 menu system simply divided into two tabbed sections, both a shooting menu and a set up menu, this proves to be inherently inconvenient. With 15 settings listed under the shooting menu and 17 in set up menu, herein lies the tedious task of scrolling through the long listed sections just to reach your desired setting.

Operation and Performance

Moving on to photo taking, pictures can be taken in both JPEG and RAW, with the availability of Wide 16:9 shooting in JPEG mode as well. With all the emphasis on image quality, we opted to shoot in RAW and witnessed the painstakingly slow writing speeds after every shot we took. Using a Panasonic 4GB Class 4 SDHC card, it took roughly up to 6 seconds for the camera to fully finish writing.

The auto focusing speeds were just as disappointing and worked irritably slow. Semi-depressing the shutter button, the contrast detection AF locks up the screen and waits a second or so until focusing is achieved. When factoring in the shutter lag of this camera, we can honestly say it's a camera that actually makes you wait before your image actually gets captured. With that said, you're not going to have much luck with spontaneous shooting or candid photography with the DP1.

Optical image stabilization and face detection technologies are non-existent on this camera and the DP1 stays content with its wealth of manual settings. Both aperture and shutter settings can be manually adjusted on the 4-way controller. Manual focusing is also available and adjustable by turning of the dedicated MF dial located behind the shutter button. It's a smooth turning dial so fast manual focusing can be achieved. No optical zoom is available but a 3x digital step zoom can be used without any serious worries about quality degradation with its 14 megapixels resolution. There's also a video and audio record function, but all in all, the DP1 is free from the unnecessary excess of functions found on your typical point and shoot.

Sigma DP1 Image Quality and ISO Test

The Sigma DP1 uses a 14 megapixels FOVEON X3 APS-C sensor and is a size approximately 7-10 times larger in area than the sensor in your average compact cameras. With a difference this big, it's superiority should be noticeable right off the image. Moreover, since it uses a FOVEON X3 sensor, colour is captured in three layers similar to how traditional films work and to put it briefly, it allows colours to be more accurately and richly recorded to the Foveon chip. With a larger sensor, the DP1 has the benefit of wider dynamic range and captures more image data for a more detailed reproduction of images.

In conducting an ISO test for the Sigma DP1, the test was conducted in a well-lit indoor environment with the camera mounted firmly to a tripod. Set to the largest aperture of F/4 and with white balance set to fluorescent, we took shots of each ISO sensitivity from 100 to 800. At ISO 100 and 200, the image quality was simply outstanding and there is hardly any noise to talk about. We managed to eye out a few coarser grains at ISO 400 and 800 but they were very minimal even at the full crop size. While colour, contrast and sharpness can all be easily tweaked in RAW processing, shadow detail is very good off the camera.

Conclusion

To conclude our concise review, the Sigma DP1 isn't your average point and shoot camera nor is it a camera for the average point and shoot consumer. It's not the most user-friendly of cameras and it's one that encourages the use of manual settings. Besides having an impressive 14 megapixels FOVEON X3 APS-C sized sensor and a nice prime lens to go with it, everything else seems to be lacking. Performance-wise, the DP1 worked sluggishly slow and won't allow you to do much besides shooting still objects or scenery.

All in all, the Sigma DP1 is what most would call 'a specialty camera', it's what a professional would want as a compact alternative to their DSLRs. While Sigma should be commended for being the first to explore this category of cameras, the DP1 still remains rather limited in its capabilities but with the ability to produce DSLR quality images from a pocket sized camera, it might just be worth it all.