Still shocked about the Sigma 150-500 and the D7100

[snerd]

Ya know, I've got a Sigma 150-500 and have hardly used it. Of course, I do have a Canon 70-200L II, but I think I'll take the BigMa out for some pics this weekend. Spread the joy around some. Yeah, that's the ticket!

 

[grafxman]

That's very impressive. The red twigs in the first video look like they're much closer than 9 feet. Now if it focuses OK in dim light and has a stability system as good as Sigma's then you might have a lens as good as your Sigma 150-500mm coastalconn.

 

[apaflo]

That's very impressive. The red twigs in the first video look like they're much closer than 9 feet. Now if it focuses OK in dim light and has a stability system as good as Sigma's then you might have a lens as good as your Sigma 150-500mm coastalconn.

The MTF charts indicate the Tamron is going to be sharper and have higher contrast than either the Sigma 50-500mm or the Sigma 150-500mm, except for two strange quirks of the Sigma lenses. Both Sigma lenses appear to have less astigmatism than the Tamron right at the edges of a cropped sensor camera but won't be as sharp closer to the center, at shorter focal lengths. At longer focal lengths that is still true of the 50-500mm, but not for the 150-500mm which is worse than the Tarmron at 600mm all across the sensor with the Sigma showing less contrast, more astigmatism, and less sharpness.

Again though, for those who print large this tilts towards the Tamron, and for those who mostly post to the web the ultimate sharpness is not as important. The extended short focal length range of the Sigma 50-500mm with a shorter minimum focusing distance might well be more signiicant to your work, while the extended long focal length range and higher IQ images might appeal more for what others need.

 

[grafxman]

That's very impressive. The red twigs in the first video look like they're much closer than 9 feet. Now if it focuses OK in dim light and has a stability system as good as Sigma's then you might have a lens as good as your Sigma 150-500mm coastalconn.

The MTF charts indicate the Tamron is going to be sharper and have higher contrast than either the Sigma 50-500mm or the Sigma 150-500mm, except for two strange quirks of the Sigma lenses. Both Sigma lenses appear to have less astigmatism than the Tamron right at the edges of a cropped sensor camera but won't be as sharp closer to the center, at shorter focal lengths. At longer focal lengths that is still true of the 50-500mm, but not for the 150-500mm which is worse than the Tarmron at 600mm all across the sensor with the Sigma showing less contrast, more astigmatism, and less sharpness.

Again though, for those who print large this tilts towards the Tamron, and for those who mostly post to the web the ultimate sharpness is not as important. The extended short focal length range of the Sigma 50-500mm with a shorter minimum focusing distance might well be more signiicant to your work, while the extended long focal length range and higher IQ images might appeal more for what others need.

Well said. However those charts don't seem to mention how good it's stability system is or how good it focuses in dim light. Those are two problems my Tamron suffers from. Those are areas my Sigmas do just fine in. The review I read that someone posted here also mentioned the new Tamron didn't like to focus in low light situations either. To my mind that makes it a great lens for shooting in controlled conditions where you have a tripod and plenty of light. However I never use a tripod for the Sigma 50-500mm. I don't even rest it on the door sill unless I have a doubler on it and I have yet to encounter a controlled condition in a wilderness area. Furthermore I can easily hand hold the Sigma 50-500mm lens at 500mm even it an awkward position. It's stability system is excellent.