Sigma has a long history of releasing cameras that could be described as eccentric. Last year, they put out the BF, continuing in that tradition. Because it is very different, lacking features like a mechanical shutter, viewfinder, and storage-card slot, among others, I wanted to spend some extra time with it before passing judgment. After using it for months, I've decided that the Sigma BF is the perfect camera for people who love using cameras more than they enjoy taking photographs.

I don't mean that as a slight necessarily—I think it's fine to love the tool without paying mind to the fruits of its labor. I have an entire collection of antique hand planes I very rarely use, but they look really nice on display. I get it. This design approach does have consequences though, and one big one is that the Sigma BF can be frustrating when you're trying to actually take pictures.

The camera takes its name from the phrase “beautiful foolishness,” which Sigma pulled from a poem in The Book of Tea. I mention this because its name neatly sets the stage for what the Sigma BF aims to accomplish. The camera is not trying to compete with high-end, full-frame cameras from Sony, Canon, Nikon, or any other legacy maker. In fact, Sigma seems to have known that it couldn't face off against those heavy hitters, so it built its own playing field.

The success or failure of the BF ultimately depends entirely on you and whether you fit on Sigma's beautiful field of (potentially) foolishness. Whether this approach will catch on is anyone’s guess, but for now, the BF remains a fascinating experiment in camera design that challenges what we think a camera should be.

Beautiful Foolishness: Is this camera’s unconventional design the future, or just a quirky side-project? Time will tell us whether it’s a stroke of genius or madness. Only one thing is certain – Sigma has certainly made its mark on the world of photography with the BF.