My new f2.8 sigma lens first outing

What lens is it ?
 
What do you think ?

Been looking for something faster than my Nikon 70-200 vr
 
Love it,couldnt get pictures indoors of this clarity with my 55-200 vr,these are unedited to,not put through photoshop
 
First one is soft, probably due to no processing and high iso but still.
Second the focus is missed, the tack stitching seems sharper and more in focus then the eyes which is nice if you placed it there :)
Third and fourth very soft and I'm not certain where the focus was.

I would stop it down a little personally.
 
dejongj thanks,i am still working on where to focus wasn't sure where to focus on number 2?how do you mean "soft" on the others
 
Take number 4, I'd expect to be able to count the hairs on the mane, or read the band on the ankles, or see the detail on the tack. It could be that the focus wasn't in the right place, also dof is shallow at f2.8, so without knowing exactly where you focused it is hard to be more specific.
 
i am now wondering about a shorter lens still f2.8 think this is a little close i found i had to stand back to get the jumps in,in the indoor arena,its a very close arena

i think i focused in the centre of his head near the white mark
 
1 - possibly a bit of head movement on the horse causing it to be a little soft as the rider is sharper. or it could be a bit of shallow depth of focus. needs cropping and straightening (i know you said no processing had been done) and could do with a more "attractive" point in the stride.

2 - not too bad, maybe a little camera shake at that speed or poor high ISO handling. ears are forward which is a good start, but head down.

3 - one for the bin, nothing is in focus. i wouldnt necessarily suggest 2.8 for a bright day, possibly the bright sky caused the AF to not achieve lock. even more so if youre doing a head on shot at 2.8 you risk the rider being in focus and the horse not (and visa versa).

4 - again, watch your settings. 2.8, 1/4000th and ISO400 on a bright day. not overly sharp, shutter speed should be more than fast enough.. what focus mode are you using? watch your backgrounds too, signs and cars dont make good ones.
 
When u say focus mode do you mean metering??sorry if thats a dumb question not up to speed with the technical terms
 
smiff3100 said:
When u say focus mode do you mean metering??sorry if thats a dumb question not up to speed with the technical terms
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Are you in af auto or af-s or af-c :) key point as I made earlier as well, the type of photos that you have taken don't necessarily lend themselves for a shallow dof unless the focal point is well defined and IMO a much tighter crop of the intended subject. Otherwise stop down the lens a little to increase your depth of field such that the whole horse and rider is in focus.
 
If i am honest i am not sure what i shot them in,sorry for being a bit dumb :-(
 
smiff3100 said:
If i am honest i am not sure what i shot them in,sorry for being a bit dumb :-(
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Not dumb :) it is just experience, it will come. Unless the is a bit of detail that you want to show I would use afs-c and f4 or even f5.6 for shots like that.
 
smiff3100 said:
Sorry to be rude but where do i set af-s or af-c??
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On the d3100 I would have to look it up in the manual as I haven't got one, so I'll leave that to you to do yourself :p

On the d7000 hold the AF button with your left thumb, turn the rear control wheel with your right thumb. Easy peasy :)
 
yes it is

i done some googling last night and i have found out how to change af-s or af-c and it was in af-c
 
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1 and 2 seems pretty good although I'd crop in #1
3 looks too bright and 4 too dark
I have a sigma 70-200 f2.8 OS and I really like it
however, I find it a little soft at 2.8 and find it better at 3.2
for studio stuff at f8 is just as crisp I could ever hope for.
 
Matt the pic's are unedited but i see what you mean,i will run them through lightroom later and see what difference i can make,i am just getting used to it i have the 70-200 but i think for indoor showjumping where i go its a bit close,i find i have to stand back a bit if i am up against the barrier so i can get the nearest jumps in,which happen to be the best ones to photograph
 
give them a spruce up then, most photos need a bit of tweaking normally, even if it's just some sharpening.
never shot horses but I imagine that it's quite tricky.
I've used a couple of sigma lenses at f2.8 and apart from a front focusing issue on one I think they're great value for money
 
smiff3100 said:
Matt the pic's are unedited but i see what you mean,i will run them through lightroom later and see what difference i can make,i am just getting used to it i have the 70-200 but i think for indoor showjumping where i go its a bit close,i find i have to stand back a bit if i am up against the barrier so i can get the nearest jumps in,which happen to be the best ones to photograph
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Either go;
a) Full frame
b) Have a second body with the 24-70 on it :)
c) Do both :D
 
dejongj do you think i should get a 24-70mm lens as well?as for full frame way out of my price league
 
It is a big investment to get one. I've got the Nikon and it is a brilliant lens. Very very good. If you had a Nikon camera with built in motor like the d90 upwards in the range then you could get the Tamron 28-75 f2.8 for less than £200 second hand, but the Nikon you won't find for less than £900 s/h.

Difficult choice.
 
What about the tamron 17 - 50 2.8

When I got my d5100, I was advised to get this.

Maybe that would suit for the closer stuff. ?
 
i am thinking of another body and selling my d3100 could use one with faster fps.
 
smiff3100 said:
i am thinking of another body and selling my d3100 could use one with faster fps.
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D700 :D That will bring in your 70-200 to a true 70-200 but at the cost of the reach, but also will improve the low light capability further...
 
Way out of my price range just getting over buying the sigma lens lol any other idea's?
 
D7000 :) but get a fast memory card and then you can save on the 24/70 from Nikon until funds are better And use a Tamron 28/75 in the mean time.
 
How much would a d7000 cost? Also can u recommend a good memory card been reading alot about fast memory cards think they will help on my d3100 much?
Cheers
 
All things considered and good advice taken onboard, you should bear in mind that as you say it is your "new f2.8 sigma" so give it a bit of time and practice with it before starting down the slippery slope of more expensive bodies. Just saying get familiar with it and your camera together before stumping up cash.
 
Thanks for the advice I wont be getting new body until much later in the year but I will look for a better memory card as I only have a basic sdhc card
 
smiff3100 said:
Love it,couldnt get pictures indoors of this clarity with my 55-200 vr,these are unedited to,not put through photoshop
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No PS just Lightroom...? some on what you trying to say here?
Exif data

Camera Nikon D3100
Exposure 0.002 sec (1/500)
Aperture f/2.8
Focal Length 105 mm
ISO Speed 3200
Exposure Bias +1 EV
Flash No Flash
X-Resolution 240 dpi
Y-Resolution 240 dpi
Software Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4.2 (Windows)
Date and Time (Modified) 2013:01:16 20:44:36
 
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