Sigma has unveiled a new ?standard prime? lens for digital SLR cameras in the shape of the 50mm f/1.4 EX DG HSM.

?This lens effectively becomes an 80mm medium telephoto lens on digital cameras with APS-C size image sensors,? says Sigma Corporation in a statement released today.

Features include a super multi-layer lens coating to help reduce flare and ghosting in photographs.

It will be available in Sigma, Canon, Nikon, Pentax and Sony fits, according to Sigma.

The claimed minimum focusing distance is 45cm and maximum magnification 1:7.4.

The announcement appears to have taken Sigma Imaging?s UK office by surprise, coming so soon after a barrage of lenses launched at the recent PMA Trade Show in the United States.

A UK spokesman told us that a price and availability date are yet to be confirmed.