Did't find official thread for this lens (maybe due to nationwide shortages), so I though we would benefit from one. Bought mine few days ago and still getting used to it. Please feel free to post your opinions or queries if you have any.
First thing I've noticed after taking it out of the box was weight. It is a HEAVY lens. Most likely due to amount of glass inside and build quality. In terms of build quality, it's one of the best lens I've ever had! Even hood is different and more like this from Canon L lenses. I got the USB dock with the lens and I think it's a great tool. You can customise the lens to suit your shooting style and update the firmware. I'm about to calibrate the focusing as I've noticed that it's front focussing on 300mm and 400mm. 600mm is spot on. I was trying to compare it to Tamron but didn't manage due to bad weather. You need a good light and low ISO or 1DX to see the best results. I've got few shots of birds taken on a cloudy day, so nothing special. I'm off next week, so I'll try to test it properly.
Quick shot of robin on my way to the car. Handheld, wide open ISO 800. One branch cloned out and shadows slightly lifted in PS.
I was but decided tamron 150 600 now and the 100 400 mkii in a couple of weeks, bit more spend but end up with 2 lenses to play with If I prefer the canon in use with 1.4x can then resell tamron at minimal loss.....
A very quick heads-up if anyone is looking to pre-order this in the Nikon fit. Amazon have reduced the price to £1242.02 - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sigma-150-6...3392240&sr=1-3&keywords=sigma+150+-+600+nikon That's over £250 LESS than anywhere else! I've pre-ordered one at that price despite not being sure if I want it yet. You can cancel a pre-order before it's shipped. They also don't take the money until it ships. Even when shops had stock the cheapest I saw was £1395.
I note the contemporary version, is now available for pre-order, on the B&H website. $1089, so I assume, the UK price will be £1000 plus.
Haven't had a chance to order the ruddy sport version yet (Canon mount) Will probably wait and see how much of a difference there is optically now.
got mine on monday ,totally blown away by the quality and feel ,its made like a instrument not like a toy .my main problem this week has been a sea mist thats been hanging overhead for 4 days now but this afternoon i said sod it and went looking for the local seagulls ,given that this was taken in extremely bad light that i normally wouldn't have bothered going out in i'm quite pleased .the lens though a fair weight is still hand holdable for odd shots ,but a monopod/tripod would probably be needed for walkabout work .i,ll add a bit more under the pic is it working o.k by blackfox wildlife and nature imaging, on Flickr sat on the fence or not by blackfox wildlife and nature imaging, on Flickr all i can say so far is and taking everything into account i.e the weather here ,the weight , etc is hang on and get one i feel the C model will be good but this model oozes quality ,i initially though the a/f was slow but once you kick in the focus limiter its lightning fast ,the USB dock is like science fiction did a update today with it and explored what else you can do i.e change a/f speed ,change stabilisation type and speed ,do a unbelievable range of micro adjusts i.e you can m/a each length of the zoom independently .the blurb they give out doesn't even start to go into what it can do ,plus other bits and bobs and more adjustments being added as they get feedback apparently . this in all honesty is the way forward and i think apart from slow production (you can see why when you hold one) that sigma have pulled a total blinder over canon/nikon/sony and tamron with this lens
With Amazon lowering the pre-order price of the Sport version, I wouldn't have thought the Contemporary would be over £1k. They'd be too close in terms of price otherwise. They seem to be gunning for the Tamron so my guess is it will be the exact same price (about £899 atm). Here's something to cheer up the people in the D810 "grey" thread. Current pre-order price on Amazon UK for Nikon mount - £1,274.53 Current pre-order price on B&H for Nikon mount - $1999 or £1312.00 So just under £40 less here in the UK. . And that includes our 20% VAT. The Amazon UK price has gone up £30 from when I made my post a couple days ago.
whats the betting they can't fulfill there orders at that price ,theres none for sale in europe as far as i,m aware,one thing was noted the other night though is there are a couple of sigma mount ones on amazon for sale at a low price ,sigma seemed surprised that no one had bought one and paid for a mount conversion to nikon or canon ????
Sorry to put your fire out Mike ,but it clearly states delivery in 1 to 3 months ,even sigma says amozon won't be able to supply till between March and July. This it what I was up against before I found mine lots of shops listing them as for sale but when you phone they don't have them in stock ,LCE wad the worst I was told to phone 5 different shops one after the other who allegedly had them in stock ,just a big joke really
Yes but up until today Amazon didn't even have them listed for Canon, I have been watching for weeks. Can you lock the lens at any length or only certain areas? ... I'm looking to buy one for air shows where it would be used at 600mm 90% of the time.
You can hard lock it at 150 but also soft lock it at the pre set zoom lengths as marked these will hold for walking around but can be overridden with a twist of the zoom ring ,you cannot equate this to any previous sigma it's a different class altogether
Thanks, have pre-ordered one from Amazon. £1278 was too good to miss considering prices elsewhere. No doubt by the time it's ready to ship there will be a comparison between the 2 lenses.
Is there an estimated release date for the Contemporary version anywhere? I've tried searching but no luck.
I've read March, for the Canon version, but May for the Nikon version. That said, it's only internet chat, so wouldn't take it as gospel.
Cheers. Was hoping the Nikon version would be out before May as I want to use it for an event in the middle of May. Might have to get the Tamron instead.
I,m away with no computer at the moment ,but got fox and deer shots today and on camera screen look superb. Will post pics on return home
Seems it is being discontinued, before it's even released, for the Sony A mount http://www.slrlounge.com/sigma-discontinues-150-600mm-contemporary-lens-mount-release/
just back from a 4 day trip ,used the lens hand held for the full time ,no problems at all its a super lens and very very sharp .got a lot still to process but heres a starter FACE OFF ! by blackfox wildlife and nature imaging, on Flickr hunting high by blackfox wildlife and nature imaging, on Flickr
Have you got any multiple shots taken with a fast fps ... I'm interested in how it tracks. I had the 50-500mm OS (still have one for my Pentax system) and to me it seemed the lens couldn't quite keep up.
Lovely shots, nice and sharp! What camera did you have the lens on? I'm getting a 5D3 soon and my longest lens is a 70-200 f/2.8. With that lens on my crop sensor I still feel I need more sometimes so I was looking into either this lens or the Tamron one. I must say I'm pretty impressed so far.
not got a lot of time for p/p at the moment but i took a 22 shot burst of a fox running away from me and 22 of them were in focus .still got hundreds to go through from this week and today and tommorow is high tides on the dee weekend.heres a fox one who blew that horn by blackfox wildlife and nature imaging, on Flickr and a close up canada goose greengrass by blackfox wildlife and nature imaging, on Flickr
Hi Jeff, Great shots, Thank you! I saw on Flickr that you have the canon 400mm f5.6. If the case how does this compare with the prime. Which one would you keep? Thank you!
the 400mm f5.6 is up for sale on here and elsewhere ,good buy for someone ,but that should answer the question
