Sigma CEO Kazuto Yamaki Photo: Richard Butler

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We're at Sigma's pre-CP+ event at its headquarters in the suburbs of Tokyo. CEO Kazuto Yamaki is talking and we'll be reporting live on what he reveals.

About the company

He says they've been working hard to provide "the best of the best." But, since he took over the company on 2012, the image quality of smartphones has increased and "the importance of the dedicated camera is gradually being questioned."

This caused him concern, he says. But he found himself encouraged when he went back to the founding ethos of his father: "technological innovation is an art in itself."

He says the company will focus on "technology, craftsmanship and art." To reflect this, the company is introducing a new look and new logo, with the tag-line: "The art of engineering, engineering for art."

As part of this, Yamaki says the company is establishing the Sigma Foundation that will promote the art of photography. The foundation's first actions will be to publish photo books by two photographers: Sølve Sundsbø and Julia Hetta.

But, he says the company's focus will remain the same: "to develop, manufacture and deliver the very best products to our customers."

"Since 1973 we have been making all our products in Aizu, Japan," he says, "and we remain committed to the people and the community of Aizu."

Two new lenses:

The first lens 16-300mm F3.5-6.7 DC OS, an 18.8x zoom lens for APS-C, as part of its Contemporary range of lenses.

He describes the design as compact and lightweight, with a diameter of 73.8mm and a length of 121.4mm. It weighs 615g (L-mount). The lens is ideal for travel, landscape, street and family photos, where flexibility is important, he says.

The autofocus is driven by the company's HLA linear motor and the optical stabilization can deliver 6.0 stops of shake compensation at the wide end.

It can deliver a 1:2 magnification ratio at 70mm. It will be available for L-mount, Sony E-mount, Fujifilm X-mount and Canon RF-mount. It will cost $699 and be available in April.

The second lens is a Sigma 300-600mm F4 DG OS. The World's first zoom to reach 600mm with a maximum aperture of F4.

He says they aimed to make it compact and lightweight enough for handheld use. It weighs around 4Kg and is 467.9mm long. It has a diameter of 167mm.

The optical stabilization is able to deliver 5.5EV of correction.