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Lens: Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG APO HSM IF MACRO
Price: avg. roughly £570 new
Took delivery of my new sigma 150mm macro a few days ago, and I've been putting it through it's paces in the field.
Focal length: 150mm. a good, long length for photographing skittish insects. Also quite a nice length for long portraits.
Max aperture: f/2.8. This is the only macro lens above 105mm to offer an aperture of f/2.8. Nice faster shutter speeds and blurred backgrounds, mean it's got good application as a general purpose long lens (though for this a zoom is more flexible).
Image quality: Excellent. Nicely sharp at f/2.8, getting VERY sharp past f/3.5. Softer past f/16 due to diffraction (but this is normal for any lens). Excellent image quality at all the apertures normally used for macro. I haven't noticed any vignetting or chromatic aberrations. Bokeh is very smooth.
Build quality: Excellent. Solid feeling metal barrel. Feels like a quality piece of equipment in your hands. The switches feel nice and sturdy. The 'crinkly' EX finish grips well, but also picks up dirt easily. The large manual focus ring feels smooth and easy to turn, yet nice and secure.
Auto focus: Reasonable for a macro. Not too slow, good accuracy. Hunts a bit in low light, but the limiter helps a lot. Silent thanks to HSM motor.
Accessories: Includes a lens hood, metal tripod collar and padded case. The lens hood is tight and secure. The tripod collar is solid and nicely designed. The case doesn't have a belt loop, but does have a shoulder strap. My one caveat here is the front cap that came with it is very poor, it's loose and doesn't stay on well. I've replaced it with another older sigma cap (I happened to have spare), which isn't centre pinch but holds in place much better. The rear cap isn't as tight fitting as the canon ones, but perfectly adequate.
Weather sealing: No. This is one thing I would like to see on this lens. But none of it's competition is weather sealed, so this isn't a negative piont.
Size and weight: Nice weight to it. Not too heavy, but you know you're holding something. Size is nicely compact.
Value for money: Very good. Image quality is pretty much on par with a canon 180mm L series, which costs twice as much.
Competition: Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX, Sigma 180mm f/3.5 EX, canon 100mm f/2.8 / f/2.8L IS (or Nikkor 105mm f/2.8 VR), canon 180mm L f/3.5 (or nikkor 200mm f/4).
The 150 compares well to all these lenses. It doesn't have VR/IS, but is suitably cheaper than the lenses that do. It's a lot cheaper than the canon 180mm or nikkor 200mm, but with the same great IQ and faster (though a bit shorter).
To me, it's main competition comes from it's bigger brother, the sigma 180mm f/3.5 EX. The bodies of these lenses are very similar, just the 180mm is larger. The extra 30mm might be useful in some instances, but it is also larger, heavier and slower. The 150mm is hand-holdable, not as easily as the ~100mm macros (especially the VR/IS models), but with good technique it is within my limit of hand holding. With the 180mm I tried, I struggled to handhold it, this lens seems more suited to a tripod (where it excels as a direct rival to the canon 180L). The 180mm is a bargain now it has been discontinued, I've seen them going for under £400 excellent condition used, which is crazy good value for a lens that can easily rival the canon 180L or nikkor 200mm micro.
It's worth considering all the above lenses, and pick the one best suited to your needs.
Summary:
I think the 150mm is an excellent lens for the price. Great IQ, great working distance for insects, and well made.
Highly recommended.
Sample pictures:
-UPDATE-
There is now an OS version of this lens available.
The price has risen significantly, but it now has OS (making it the longest optically stabilised macro AFAIK), sigma's new weather sealing (yet to be tested) and slightly enhanced optics (as well as sigma's newer much nicer finish).
While the 150 OS doesn't seem quite the amazing value as the older version, it still sounds pretty darn good bang for buck compared with the canon 180L and nikkor 200 micro, neither of which is stabilised or sealed (though I don't yet know the effectiveness of the sealing).
Price: avg. roughly £570 new
Took delivery of my new sigma 150mm macro a few days ago, and I've been putting it through it's paces in the field.
Focal length: 150mm. a good, long length for photographing skittish insects. Also quite a nice length for long portraits.
Max aperture: f/2.8. This is the only macro lens above 105mm to offer an aperture of f/2.8. Nice faster shutter speeds and blurred backgrounds, mean it's got good application as a general purpose long lens (though for this a zoom is more flexible).
Image quality: Excellent. Nicely sharp at f/2.8, getting VERY sharp past f/3.5. Softer past f/16 due to diffraction (but this is normal for any lens). Excellent image quality at all the apertures normally used for macro. I haven't noticed any vignetting or chromatic aberrations. Bokeh is very smooth.
Build quality: Excellent. Solid feeling metal barrel. Feels like a quality piece of equipment in your hands. The switches feel nice and sturdy. The 'crinkly' EX finish grips well, but also picks up dirt easily. The large manual focus ring feels smooth and easy to turn, yet nice and secure.
Auto focus: Reasonable for a macro. Not too slow, good accuracy. Hunts a bit in low light, but the limiter helps a lot. Silent thanks to HSM motor.
Accessories: Includes a lens hood, metal tripod collar and padded case. The lens hood is tight and secure. The tripod collar is solid and nicely designed. The case doesn't have a belt loop, but does have a shoulder strap. My one caveat here is the front cap that came with it is very poor, it's loose and doesn't stay on well. I've replaced it with another older sigma cap (I happened to have spare), which isn't centre pinch but holds in place much better. The rear cap isn't as tight fitting as the canon ones, but perfectly adequate.
Weather sealing: No. This is one thing I would like to see on this lens. But none of it's competition is weather sealed, so this isn't a negative piont.
Size and weight: Nice weight to it. Not too heavy, but you know you're holding something. Size is nicely compact.
Value for money: Very good. Image quality is pretty much on par with a canon 180mm L series, which costs twice as much.
Competition: Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX, Sigma 180mm f/3.5 EX, canon 100mm f/2.8 / f/2.8L IS (or Nikkor 105mm f/2.8 VR), canon 180mm L f/3.5 (or nikkor 200mm f/4).
The 150 compares well to all these lenses. It doesn't have VR/IS, but is suitably cheaper than the lenses that do. It's a lot cheaper than the canon 180mm or nikkor 200mm, but with the same great IQ and faster (though a bit shorter).
To me, it's main competition comes from it's bigger brother, the sigma 180mm f/3.5 EX. The bodies of these lenses are very similar, just the 180mm is larger. The extra 30mm might be useful in some instances, but it is also larger, heavier and slower. The 150mm is hand-holdable, not as easily as the ~100mm macros (especially the VR/IS models), but with good technique it is within my limit of hand holding. With the 180mm I tried, I struggled to handhold it, this lens seems more suited to a tripod (where it excels as a direct rival to the canon 180L). The 180mm is a bargain now it has been discontinued, I've seen them going for under £400 excellent condition used, which is crazy good value for a lens that can easily rival the canon 180L or nikkor 200mm micro.
It's worth considering all the above lenses, and pick the one best suited to your needs.
Summary:
I think the 150mm is an excellent lens for the price. Great IQ, great working distance for insects, and well made.
Highly recommended.
Sample pictures:
-UPDATE-
There is now an OS version of this lens available.
The price has risen significantly, but it now has OS (making it the longest optically stabilised macro AFAIK), sigma's new weather sealing (yet to be tested) and slightly enhanced optics (as well as sigma's newer much nicer finish).
While the 150 OS doesn't seem quite the amazing value as the older version, it still sounds pretty darn good bang for buck compared with the canon 180L and nikkor 200 micro, neither of which is stabilised or sealed (though I don't yet know the effectiveness of the sealing).
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