Lens Dilema

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thompo

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Neil Thompson
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I have a budget of about £500 for a new long zoom lens. Coming from a 75-300 mk3 usm, id expect anything to be an improvment lol.

Ive just reserved a Sigma 70-200 2.8 EX DG Macro from jessops @ £400ish

My dilema is i was originally after 70-200 F4 L but seeing as id usually shoot motorsport the extra stop of the 2.8 would be a big advantage.

Also giving the option of using a 2x and getting 140-400 keeping a decent speed and AF

The more ive read i see the this Macro version of the sigma is very hit and miss (replaced by the much more reliable and sharper macro II version) and usually very soft at 200mm and wide open. Which sort of defeats the purpose of buying a fast tele lens for me lol.

To add to my dilema Ive just read a review of the Sigma 100-300F4 which seems to be a stonker of a lens, very sharp wide open even @ 300, better range than a 70-200 and can be had within my budget.

Or do i save for another month and get a Hongkong 70-200 2.8 L for £650 and couple it to a 2x?

Gonna go have a play with the sigma tomorrow anyway and see what i think before i commit to buying one.
 
To add to the issues, don't forget you could potentially lose AF with a TC on some bodies. Have you considered the Canon 70-200 f/2.8 Non-IS ?
 
Yep thats my last consideration can be had from hongkong for about £650 or so.

I know its not ideal but ive tried my 75-300 with my 2x and i still get AF @f4-4.5 albiet very slow unless i have great light. Thats on a 40d
 
If you are ok with having an F4, then Sig 100-300 may be a good option. I don't own one, but it seems to be a very good lens from all the user reports I have seen.

I own an older pre macro, pre DG, version of the Sigma 70-200 F2.8. I seem to get along ok with it, though I have considered upgrading to an IS.
 
That would get my vote as well, stunning lens, well worth £635 from one stop, cheaper if you pay my bank transfer as well (y)





h4rri said:
Have you considered the Canon 70-200 f/2.8 Non-IS ?
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i can recommend the 100-300F4 no end

give me day or so to upload the pics i took with it last weekend. some of them are awesome (in my eyes of course)

its really fast and really sharp and i cant recommend it enough
 
I second the comments by Whitey.

Recently have gone from a 75-300 to a Sigma 100-300 F4 and in my opinion it is in all respects a fantastic lens. Last weekend I couple it to a Kenko 1.4 converter and the results are still excellent and focus speed is hardly affected.

Can't wait for Cosford in a couple of weeks to give it a proper try out :clap:

Russ
 
At £400 the Sigma is a steal, and there is very little image quality hit with the 1.4TC (Dunno about the 2x though). There are a good number of fans of this lens on here with some preffering it over the equivelent Canon L glass.

The beauty of Jessops is that if you are not happy, you can return it (providing you meet the T&C's - Same condition, complete, resellable etc)
 
AH cheers for that! didnt know the 2.8 L one was a bit soft

deffo heading towards the 100-300 now lol

edit* thats what i was originally thinking, £400 for 2.8 glass isnt really a lot! I think jessops require it not to be used at all so im sure i could flog it on again on ebay if i wasnt happy and not lose too much on it if anything.
 
Just been to Jessops to ick up my 70-200mm HSM Macro and after a few test shots, am well impressed.

AF is fast, crisp and sure, and the optics are the ********. Okay, it'll need some serious use before I can comment on all-round performance, but on first impressions, I'm so glad I saved myself £300 over the Nikon version and went with the Sigma.
 
i want one of these lenses but i use mine for motorsport but not sure if it will be good for motorsport, anyone any thoughts? sorry for nicking the topic
 
was you sigma 70-200 F2.8 second hand, the one on their website is £799 and isn't available to collect at store
 
wack61 said:
was you sigma 70-200 F2.8 second hand, the one on their website is £799 and isn't available to collect at store
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Mine was brand new. I got a discount by buying it through my works account and I had it brought to my local store rather than driving 15 miles, the very kind manager. The price was only marginally better (a fiver) than the 10% off deal Jessops is running at the moment when you order online and enter LENS10 as your voucher code – this deducts the 10% at the checkout.

Mine was a the Nikon fit but there is a Canon AF one available for the same price (£400) but I think it's not the HSM version. Still a good buy though for that money.

Used mine today for the first time on a magazine shoot and I do say it'll take soe getting used to: am used to slow aperture Canon 75-300mm IS lenses that are lightweight. The Sigma f/2.8 is a beast with all that glass inside so will take a few session to get used to me thinks. A monopod would be good.
 
Agger said:
Mines as sharp as a tack, could be a rogue the other user has?
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If a 70-200 zoom can be as sharp as a tack then what analogies have we got left for the high end primes that are considerably sharper than even the best zooms.

I'm not knocking your lens at all, I have one myself and it provides excellent IQ for its flexibilty.....but tack sharp...no way, sorry.

Bob
 
I know you say zoom in your original post, but is it important to you? If not, how about the canon 200mm 2.8? Kerson does it for around 400. I'm thinking it may be my next purchase.
 
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