Sigma today announced the fp-L, a 61mp version of the unique fp camera. I'm not entirely sure why.
Oh, there are improvements from the original fp, including a new detachable EVF, the addition of phase detect to the autofocus system, USB Power Delivery (but not with the EVF attached), and a few other small bits and pieces. But it's the 61mp image sensor that makes me wonder about this camera.
The fp you may recall, can take stills but is really a small, powerhouse video camera. In that sense, the 61mp sensor—almost certainly the one that powers the Sony A7R Mark IV—is confusing. With its slow 1/10 second rolling shutter, motion gets easily jellied and frequency-driven lighting will often be an issue. Meanwhile, as a 61mp stills landscape camera, there's not much on offer to make the fp-L all that attractive for that, either, other than the sheer pixel count.
As has been the case with pretty much every Sigma camera, the fp-L is idiosyncratic.
I can see how the original fp makes for an interesting and potentially useful addition to a videographers' bag. It's small size and excellent video capabilities make a lot of sense for certain types of work where you need to be discrete and portable (though as you "rig up" a video camera, the body size becomes less important). But the fp-L doesn't really tick any new critical boxes for me, so I'm not sure what Sigma's intention is.
