In terms of image quality canon 70-200 f4L or Sigma 105 Macro

[scottduffy]

Would the Canon 70-200 f4L be similar to the Sigma 105 Macro when shooting portraits or would the Sigma be much sharper with it being a prime as well as a macro? I am dying to take the plunge and buy a 70-200 f4L but i am worried that i would be expecting too much from this lens. I have taken some super sharp shots using my Sigma lens but i could be doing with the focal range of the zoom. Any advice appreciated.

 

[kennysarmy]

the 70-200F4L won't disappoint....

 

[sdb123]

Personally, I would go for the zoom over the Sigma macro for portrait shots. The macro would be sharper however there is a danger of a macro lens being too revealing when it comes to portraits.

 

[neil_g]

you could always go with the sigma 70-200 and get f2.8 thrown in

 

[Peter10d]

I have recently purchased the canon 70-200 f4L and a freind has the Sigma 105 macro. From what I have seen so far the Canon is a superior lens, but with regard to the best for portraits, I am unsure.

 

[scottduffy]

Hi Peter,

I might have a think about the 70-200. If there is not much difference in quality and you have the added convienence of the zoom plus the quicker auto focus it might be worth it. As i have said the quality of the sigma is top notch in my opinion but the zoom would be nice.

 

[LongLensPhotography]

Canon over Sigma any day... 105mm doesn't even have HSM which means slow and noisy

f/4 is a bit limiting, but should be OK between 135-200mm, 200mm being softer and more flattering on the skin.

 

[andyred]

Another vote for the 70-200 F4 lens, it's a cracker of a lens, and if you decide it's not for you, I don't think you'd have any problem selling on

 

[postcardcv]

I've got both and would always go for the 70-200 for portraits - faster AF, flexability of the zoom and good sharp images. I've not done a direct comparison of the two but the 70-200 is plenty sharp enough.

 

[pearce_jj]

It's only downside is the F4 thing. It's plenty sharp enough, check out the reflection in the eye on this photo.

 

[Peter10d]

Hi Scott,

It is worth noting that should you ever decide to add the 2x Canon extender to the Canon 70-200L, this comination still produces excellent results, with a pretty useful focal length. The only downside being that with the extender added it is manual focus only. I have yet to hear of a Canon 'L' lens that did not produce top results.