sigma 50-500

S

stupar

Guest
Does anybody have this lens, if so what are your thoughts on it?

At present my longest reach is 200mm on my 70-200 f4 L.
More often than not I find myself looking for extra reach which I don't have.
The longer reach Canon lenses are out with my budget so this seems like an ideal alternative and I've heard it isn't to bad.

Just trying to weigh up whether its worth selling the 70-200 to part fund this lens.

Cheers in advance for your input.
 
It has a pretty good reputation, I have the 150-500 and that is a cracking lens, and slightly cheaper than the 50-500.
Img_1759.jpg
 
Cheers Ken!
I've had a look at the 150-500 too. If I went for that I would have a huge gap in my focal length (nothing between 50 and 150mm).

That said, when I do landscapes and portrair stuff It's invariably the Siggy 10-20 or the Tamron 17-50 or 50mm prime, so I may not miss the gap in the range.

Certainly though when trying to photograph birds or aircraft etc the 70-200 just isn't cutting it.
 
The older non-IS 300mm f/4L might be worth considering as well?
Image quality is reputed to be very high and they can be picked up quite cheap for a less of that focal length now. Pair it with a used 1.4x and you've got a very decent 420 f/5.6 (which should be roughly the same cost as the 50-500 I think)

Obviously it's an awful lot less flexible than the 50-500 though, and a bit harder to come by.
 
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why not get a 1.4 converter?
It will keep the flexibility of the 70-200 then with the 1.4 take you 280 and on the 50d this add the 1.6 crop for the sensor and you now have 448mm lens, just short of the 500 you are looking for? plus the tele-convertors still not cheap but cheaper than the lens.
if It helps a lot of motor sport togs would this combo and they get fantastic results.

Paul
 
A Teleconverter still only gives proper 280mm zoom, the effective length is always going to be a red herring and make you feel like you are getting extra reach.

Besides if effective focal length was a contributor then the sigma has an effective focal length of 800mm on a crop body but we all know that's not the focal length you are really achieving.
 
I used to have one(the old Non OS version) and found it not bad

p470799176-4.jpg


I found it very heavy,certainly too heavy to hand hold and it needed a lot of light.
Sold it and bought a 100/400 L.
I don,t know if its possible to rent one but that might be worth it to see what you think

Chris
 
It's certainly tempting.
What's the going rate these days for any of the bigma's 2nd hand?
 
They are pretty impressive shots! And the price certainly sounds good too.
Selling the 70-200 would go a long way towards it.
 
I don't own the lens, but recently hired one for a few days. I got some good shots, but overall I wasn't that impressed. O/S certainly came in useful when shooting under less than great light conditions.
It maybe due to my lack of experience with the lens, but, put it this way, it didn't convince me to buy one.
HTH
Rich
 
stupar said:
It's certainly tempting.
What's the going rate these days for any of the bigma's 2nd hand?
Click to expand...

I have the 150-500 OS & I wouldn't be without ths OS system.

Given that the UK weather typically leaves us short of available light, you'll often be very short of shutter speed, dramatically shortening your shooting time/ opportunities.

With OS, & some practice, you'll be able to get keepers at well below 1/100 sec, providing a breifly static subject, of course.
 
I have had one for about three years now and use it for everything from landscapes to Wildlife.I find the AF fast,quiet and accurate and the option to drop the focal length to compose wildlife shots is really handy.Some folk say that its soft at the 500mm end but mine is pin sharp.To get the best out of it you need to stop down to about f8 or f10,especially at the long end.The weight is manageable and I regularly handhold mine especially for birds in flight.I paid a little over £400 for mine and its the best money I have spent for a long time.
Lots of examples on my website.
 
Mike Warburton said:
I have had one for about three years now and use it for everything from landscapes to Wildlife.I find the AF fast,quiet and accurate and the option to drop the focal length to compose wildlife shots is really handy.Some folk say that its soft at the 500mm end but mine is pin sharp.To get the best out of it you need to stop down to about f8 or f10,especially at the long end.The weight is manageable and I regularly handhold mine especially for birds in flight.I paid a little over £400 for mine and its the best money I have spent for a long time.
Lots of examples on my website.
Click to expand...
some real crackesr in your bird section mike i like them alot(y).
 
Cheers for the info mike. I lake it you have the older non is 50-500 then?
 
To summarise the above would I be correct in saying that the 150 and 50-500 are both good lenses with the 50-500 being slightly sharper. In addition if you can get OS then take it but going by some of the above pictures, not strictly necessary to get quality shots providing light is good. If regularly shooting hand held in poor light then the OS would be a distinct advantage.

As I've been toying with getting a longer focal length lens I'm wondering if the 50 comes in both OS and non OS versions and AF. Sorry if I've missed this above but just trying to clarify. Ideally a 50-500 with OS and AF second hand would be my choice if I could get one at reasonable cost. Anyone seen any on sale lately:)
 
A second hand 50-500 will set you back around £1000. It's not long out and there aren't a lot of them available second hand.

The 50-500 non os and 150-500 OS are a lot cheaper so it really depends on budget.
 
Budget comes into play a lot so non OS would be the way I would go.
 
draiman said:
A second hand 50-500 will set you back around £1000. It's not long out and there aren't a lot of them available second hand.

The 50-500 non os and 150-500 OS are a lot cheaper so it really depends on budget.
Click to expand...

I'm not too put off by that price but the 150 OS is a consideration as I don't require the extra 100mm on the short end and it is quite a cost saving after all said and done.:thinking:
 
Oh well dougie, at least we wouldn't be competing for the same lens on here should one or the other crop up. :D
 
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Well guys finally managed to track down a good copy of the 50-500mm non OS. Should arrive on Thursday.

Dying now to test it out.
 
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