Chossing a Canon telephoto

Fla5h

Fla5h

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Tony
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I'm stuck between choosing a new Sigma 120-400mm f/4.5-5.6 or 150-500mm f/5-6.3 both have DG, OS and HSM

I can purchase then at £555 and £612 respectively with 3 years warranty

On the other hand I may be able to stretch to a 2nd hand canon 70-200mm f4 with extender or the 100-400mm L but both these would not have and guarantee or warranty.

I'm edging towards the 120-400mm purly for the wider aperture and the comfort of the 3 year warranty.

Anyone have the experience of working with any of these lens and there thoughts would be appreciated
 
Canon wise I have experience of the 70-200 and 100-400 and of those two I would say the 100-400 as it has much greater reach and is pretty sharp.

However I wouldn't rule out getting the 150-500 second hand too - the OS is better than the 100-400 and given a good copy (which is easier to tell buying second hand than new as Sigma's QC is a bit hit and miss).

Of the three I would suggest the 150-500 as value for money its top nitch, I would also suggest buying second hand and sending it to Sigma for calibration (£38 + postage to them) if it needs it.

Note that if you get a Sigma grey then they will not calibrate for free (they will if its a UK purchase), if you are looking to buy grey then use Panamoz (wish I had known they existed when I got my 50-500 OS!!)

Oh, almost forgot I have sets in my flickr of all the lenses I've owned, so feel free to browse.
 
Thanks for the input John,

Either of the Sigma lens will be UK purchased and the good price is because it will be a trade with my current Sigma 400mm APO (old one which only works on a DSLR wide open @ f/5.6)

you don't see the widest aperture off f5.6 on the 150-500mm being an issue?
 
I've got the Sigma 150-500 OS and I recently bought the 120-400 OS for the wife. Both lenses are excellent, the AF speed of both are the same, and the 150-500 doesn't seem to suffer from failing light even though it goes to f6.3 at 500mm. The 120-400 is quite a bit smaller and lighter than the 150-500 though, so if weight and size are a factor then the 120-400 would be the one. Both are sharp wide open at the long end but do improve when stopped down a bit, f8 seems to be as good on both lenses and IQ is excellent on both.

I've had a 70-200 f4 L which was very sharp throughout the whole range, but when coupled with a 1.4x TC the image degrades a little bit and the AF slows down a bit as well and only has a max FL of 280mm. With a 2x TC the IQ is impacted too much and you lose AF, making the Sigma's a better option.

I also had a Canon 100-400 IS L, but sold it after doing extensive comparisons to the 150-500 OS. The Sigma's OS is far better than the IS of the Canon allowing me to handhold and get a good shot recently at 1/10sec. The IQ at the long end (works out to between 460-470 and not 500) is as good as the IQ of the 100-400 at the long end IMO. The worst thing about the Sigma 150-500 OS is the weight, but you soon get used to it and I use mine handheld all day now with no ill effects.

This is a Jpeg SOOC from a Canon 5D3 and a Sigma 150-500 OS @1/800, ISO 1000, wide open at f6.3 @ 500mm, only PP was a crop.
7132819465_b1cfa8db91_c.jpg
[/url][/IMG]

And this is a crop from the above to show the detail. The shot was taken from approx 35-40ft. Again no PP apart from the crop.
6986734786_63db744d29_c.jpg
[/url][/IMG]

This was taken yesterday, 03/04/12 with my 5D3 and the wifes Sigma 120-400 OS at 1/800sec, ISO 160, f6.3 at 400mm. This is a Jpeg SOOC with no PP other than a crop just for the comparison.
7141412493_98cbd0a02c_c.jpg
[/url][/IMG]

Hope these help.
 
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I never really did, but mostly I was doing birds in flight in nice weather so not an issue.

With the larger apatures you do struggle with shooting in shadow, but if its a static target thats where the OS steps in.

That said I have a 70-200 2.8 coming today so perhaps it got to me in the end :)

Again I wouldn't rule out second user though, if you still want new get one for £592 (a little over second hand price) you can get new on import and suck up the calibration cost if you need to - Sigma told me I still have one year with them, just not the nice little extras like free calibration.

Then sell the 400mm here (or eBay), no idea what it would go for though.
 
Hi Stuart, great feedback especially as you've had experiance of 3 of the lens and the photos look nice and sharp.

don't think I'm to worried about weight as I've been using the older 400mm APO but guess it the OS that piles the weight on
 
Hopefully that would give you a guide price for selling, of course the cheapest method would be to mug modchild he has a great copy ;)
 
What sort of thing are you looking at shooting? Motorsport/wildlife etc?

I had the Sigma 150-500 and found it a bit slow to focus on motorsport. When I used it for wildlife I found myself using it at 500mm pretty much all of the time with average results. I ended up replacing it with a Canon 300mm L series prime and a 1.4xTC which gave either 300mm/f4 or 420mm/f5.6. I found the results much better and much quicker at focusing and got better results by cropping a bit more to make up for the little reach I'd lost.
Another option is the Canon 400/5.6. This is a super sharp lens and quick to focus, although like with any primes, you have only one focal length to shoot at (without using TC's), although I always need more reach choose matter what lens I have. ;)

Gareth
 
That is very true, the 400mm is a strong lens - AF is very quick and it was the lens I used prior to the 50-500 OS.

For me the fixed length didn't work - but then thats me, but even second user its out of your budget (assuming you're fixed to around £600)
 
wippers said:
What sort of thing are you looking at shooting? Motorsport/wildlife etc?

I had the Sigma 150-500 and found it a bit slow to focus on motorsport. When I used it for wildlife I found myself using it at 500mm pretty much all of the time with average results. I ended up replacing it with a Canon 300mm L series prime and a 1.4xTC which gave either 300mm/f4 or 420mm/f5.6. I found the results much better and much quicker at focusing and got better results by cropping a bit more to make up for the little reach I'd lost.
Another option is the Canon 400/5.6. This is a super sharp lens and quick to focus, although like with any primes, you have only one focal length to shoot at (without using TC's), although I always need more reach choose matter what lens I have. ;)

Gareth
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Will be off camping this year so mainly for wildlife and I hope to get to an airshow this year as well
 
JohnN said:
Ah, I wasn't sure if it was that one - in that case eBay recent sales vary between £88 (auction) and £140 (BiN) - last sale on here (in 2010) was for £110 so eBay may be your best option if you sold it - mind me asking what the dealer offered?
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They quoted me by RRP

120-400mm RRP £899.99 but £555 with trade in for 400mm
150-500mm RRP £999.99 £612 trade in

So discount will be between £345 & £388 but still do not get a true value on the 400mm APO as the RRP are way over the top
 
Fla5h said:
They quoted me by RRP

120-400mm RRP £899.99 but £555 with trade in for 400mm
150-500mm RRP £999.99 £612 trade in

So discount will be between £345 & £388 but still do not get a true value on the 400mm APO as the RRP are way over the top
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Yep http://www.camerapricebuster.co.uk/cat12.html

120-400mm best at £639 although have a look at digital depot (£649), can recommend them, Stuart's a good guy, (members name "Digital Depot" on TP) got a canon 300mm f2.8 at a great price used and they are offering part exchange for that lens. PM him as a TP member, he might do you a deal

Amazon the best price for the 150-500mm at £695.80 or slightly less from one of their sellers. Digital depot price for that lens is £849 still offering part exchange but there are better deals out there.
 
Thanks for the input guys........kind of edging towards the 150-500mm

going by Ziggy's link £677 @ Amazon my 400mm is worth £65

I think the trade offer I've got is good considering if I listed on ebay and get £100 then theres ebay + paypal fees etc etc etc

going to sleep on it tonight but will kepp you all posted ;-)
 
i have just bought the 120-400mm from digital depot (£649) great service and delivery ,3 year warranty registered with sigma only used a couple of time but really pleased with it , i had a sigma 135-400 apo which i sold on ebay for £280 which paid nearly half to the new lens, you will get more for your lens selling it than trading in
 
freelanderuk said:
i have just bought the 120-400mm from digital depot (£649) great service and delivery ,3 year warranty registered with sigma only used a couple of time but really pleased with it , i had a sigma 135-400 apo which i sold on ebay for £280 which paid nearly half to the new lens, you will get more for your lens selling it than trading in
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The 400mm APO is old and not fully compatible with Canon DSLR's

£649 is a more of a relistic price compared to Sigma's RRP of £899
 
the 400mm has fetched between £70 and £140 on ebay but it all luck of the draw and who wants one on the day your selling ,good luck with your choice
 
Be aware that buying a Sigma from Amazon can be risky - Sigma UK will sometimes declare them as grey imports - when I spoke with them once before they do not recognise Amazon as a UK importer, so it literally is luck of the serial number draw.
 
JohnN said:
Be aware that buying a Sigma from Amazon can be risky - Sigma UK will sometimes declare them as grey imports - when I spoke with them once before they do not recognise Amazon as a UK importer, so it literally is luck of the serial number draw.
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I think there more of a chance of that happening if you buy from a Amazon marketplace seller

should be ok if you purchase direct from Amazon uk though

but thanks for the heads up
 
JohnN said:
Be aware that buying a Sigma from Amazon can be risky - Sigma UK will sometimes declare them as grey imports - when I spoke with them once before they do not recognise Amazon as a UK importer, so it literally is luck of the serial number draw.
Click to expand...

I agree with Fla5h, amazon uk ltd is fine, but say you bought the sigma from one of the market place sellers, example the one selling the 50-500mm for £677, rather than amazon at £695 then I think you would have some trouble with sigma UK in honouring the warranty.
 
modchild said:
I've got the Sigma 150-500 OS and I recently bought the 120-400 OS for the wife. Both lenses are excellent, the AF speed of both are the same, and the 150-500 doesn't seem to suffer from failing light even though it goes to f6.3 at 500mm. The 120-400 is quite a bit smaller and lighter than the 150-500 though, so if weight and size are a factor then the 120-400 would be the one. Both are sharp wide open at the long end but do improve when stopped down a bit, f8 seems to be as good on both lenses and IQ is excellent on both.

I've had a 70-200 f4 L which was very sharp throughout the whole range, but when coupled with a 1.4x TC the image degrades a little bit and the AF slows down a bit as well and only has a max FL of 280mm. With a 2x TC the IQ is impacted too much and you lose AF, making the Sigma's a better option.

I also had a Canon 100-400 IS L, but sold it after doing extensive comparisons to the 150-500 OS. The Sigma's OS is far better than the IS of the Canon allowing me to handhold and get a good shot recently at 1/10sec. The IQ at the long end (works out to between 460-470 and not 500) is as good as the IQ of the 100-400 at the long end IMO. The worst thing about the Sigma 150-500 OS is the weight, but you soon get used to it and I use mine handheld all day now with no ill effects.

So of the two, which do you prefer or give the best results? I've been dithering over getting one of them for weeks now and need to make my mind up before a trip to Scotland in July and could do with being a bit more familiar with them before I go. At this rate I might end up with one on hire to help me decide.

BB
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