Sigma has announced availability and pricing information for the Sigma Water Repellent Ceramic Protector filter.
The Sigma Water Repellent Ceramic Protector filter is offered in the most popular filter thread sizes, and is compatible with all lenses that accept front filter threads that are 67mm-105mm diameters.
With many applications in aerospace and other industries, glass ceramic is an extremely tough type of crystallised glass that serves as the foundation for Clear Glass Ceramic. This advanced new material combines greater hardness than chemically strengthened glass and greater flexibility than sapphire crystal glass. These qualities make Clear Glass Ceramic the ideal material for protective lens filters.
The product is available now, priced from $130-$441 depending on the corresponding lens size. The official pricing is listed below but the actual street prices at B&H are lower.
Sigma Corporation Announces Pricing and Availability for Water Repellent Ceramic Protector
Weather- scratch-, and oil-resistant protective filter now available for 67mm to 105mm diameter filter threads
RONKONKOMA, N.Y.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Sigma Corporation of America, a leading DSLR lens and camera manufacturer, today announced that the Sigma Water Repellent (WR) Ceramic Protector, a lens filter featuring new Clear Glass Ceramic material, is now available for between $130 and $440, depending on the corresponding lens size.
Clear Glass ceramic is an extremely tough type of crystallized glass and has applications in many industries. Featuring high transmittance, it combines greater hardness than chemically strengthened glass and is both shock and scratch resistant. The Water Repellent (WR) Ceramic Protector was designed specifically for Sigma and is made with a special heat treatment that evenly precipitates microcrystalline spinel throughout the materials. Enhanced protection helps to preserve the lens and ensure long-term, top-notch image quality while the WR coating repels water, dust and oil, and allows fingerprints to be easily removed.
“The Ceramic Protector is yet another first for Sigma, and it underscores our commitment to innovation and preserving the quality of our award-winning lenses, like the Global Vision lenses,” said Mark Amir-Hamzeh, president of Sigma Corporation of America.
This filter is offered in the most popular filter thread sizes, and is compatible with all Sigma lenses and other lenses that accept front filter threads that are 67mm to105mm diameters. The pricing ranges from $130 to $441, depending on the size of the lens.
Specific pricing details include:
$130 for size 67mm
$151 for size 72mm
$165 for size 77mm
$203 for size 82mm
$283 for size 86mm
$346 for size 95mm
$441 for size 105mm
Key features of the Sigma WR ceramic protector filter:
- Scratch-resistant – Sigma’s Clear Glass Ceramic offers a Vickers hardness number of 700HV. The strength of the Clear Glass Ceramic is much stronger than chemically strengthen glass and is 10 times stronger than conventional filters
- Thinner and lighter – This new protector is up to 50 percent thinner and is up to 30% lighter than previous Sigma filters
- High transmittance – Clear Glass Ceramic offers very high transmittance, making it ideal for use as optical glass
- Water- and oil-repellent coating – The water repellent coating reflects only 0.24 percent of visible light, thereby minimizing flare and ghosting. Its ability to repel both water and oil is also excellent, with water drops bouncing right off, and fingerprints are easily to remove
- As with all of Sigma’s lenses, the filter is checked with Sigma’s own Modulation Transfer Function (MTF) measuring system, “A1,” in the company’s factory in Japan.
For information about Sigma, go to http://www.sigmaphoto.com or follow the company on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
