Took the plunge and purchased the Sigma 70-200mm 2.8 OS

[Ballistics]

Am I allowed to post sample pictures?

 

[o hey tyler]

Am I allowed to post sample pictures?

Sample photos? In your own thread? Are you crazy? Of course you aren't allowed to do that.

 

[Kerbouchard]

From what I have seen, it depends on the lenses. Is the quality control great on Sigma's 70-300 that they sell for a few hundred bucks? No, it's not...and it's also a pretty crappy lens. Nikon has also made some pretty crappy 70-300's and so has Canon.

I think where Sigma gets its bad rep from is the market that goes third party to save money, and then buys their cheapest option and is disapointed that they aren't getting Nikon top of the line performance. It's naive to assume that a $200 Sigma 70-300 is going to compete with a $2000+ Nikon 70-200 VRII.

In any case, I have found that the Sigma EX lenses are indeed excellent and easily rival anything Nikon puts out. I'll put my Sigma 150 2.8 against any Macro out there. I would say the same thing for my Sigma 120-300 2.8. Both phenomenal lenses, and in my case, Nikon doesn't make an equivalent.

Just my .02

I think the argument against third party lenses is that their tolerances arent as tight as Nikon. ie they'll let a slightly subpar lens slide out the door a little more often. So, if you get lucky (or exhaustively audition prior to buying), you save a boatload of cash. However, if you get unlucky and get one that's just a tad bit off, you end up with subpar results. I rolled the dice on my sigma 10-20mm and couldn't be happier with it. But I have seen people with bad sigmas, and its a pain in the rear to convince whoever you bought it from to take it back a lot of times.

also, I think some of the 'nikon only' people are more referring to Nikon's absolute top tier lenses, which, from what I've seen, do tend to blow the doors off third party competitors. The consumer grade Nikon lenses do seem to just be overpriced (though again, their quality control is probably better).

 

[Ballistics]

Am I allowed to post sample pictures?

Sample photos? In your own thread? Are you crazy? Of course you aren't allowed to do that.

I feel like with all the rule changes, there's some rule that I'm breaking lol.

 

[o hey tyler]

I feel like with all the rule changes, there's some rule that I'm breaking lol.

Haha. Tpf has gone a bit draconian, but it would be a real travesty if you couldn't post sample photos In your own thread regarding a new lens purchase.

 

[Kerbouchard]

I feel like with all the rule changes, there's some rule that I'm breaking lol.

Haha. Tpf has gone a bit draconian, but it would be a real travesty if you couldn't post sample photos In your own thread regarding a new lens purchase.

Hey, we are all friends here...we can he honest. Tpf as a whole hasn't gone draconian...there just happens to be a moderator who happens to feel like he needs to moderate everything he doesn't agree with.

But, AFAIK, even that one doesn't have a problem with a poster posting his own images in his own thread, although he may feel the need to move it to an equipment review sub-section.

 

[Sportster77]

I have an older Sigma 70-210 f2.8 APO that has proven to be a very good performer for my level of photography. I also have a Sigma 170-500 APO that I just bought @ Christmas time and is still under testing (lol).

 

[Ballistics]

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[Ballistics]

Now, these pics aren't works of art, nor do they really describe how sharp this lens is @ 2.8... but it's all I got for now. Last 2 are 200mm @ 2.8 and the first one is 105 @ 2.8.
The OS on this lens isn't quite 4 stops, but it is damn near close. I was able to get a sharp shot @ 1/80 @ 200mm

 

[Netskimmer]

That lens looks like it will get the job done and then some. Congrates on the purchase. I find 70-200mm to be a very usefull focal range, mine rarely leaves the camera. I know a Pentax shooter that swears by Sigma lenses and owns many of them. I have really been eying the Sigma 50-500 OS as my next pruchase. I have been a little worried because Sigma QC seems to be hit and miss but it's supposed to be sharper than the original 'bigma' and the 150-500. Are you going to put the Nikon 55-200 up for sale or hold on to it as a backup?

 

[rgregory1965]

That lens looks like it will get the job done and then some. Congrates on the purchase. I find 70-200mm to be a very usefull focal range, mine rarely leaves the camera. I know a Pentax shooter that swears by Sigma lenses and owns many of them. I have really been eying the Sigma 50-500 OS as my next pruchase. I have been a little worried because Sigma QC seems to be hit and miss but it's supposed to be sharper than the original 'bigma' and the 150-500. Are you going to put the Nikon 55-200 up for sale or hold on to it as a backup?

Ballistics....sweet lens



Netskimmer....here are some sample shots with my 4 day old Sigma 150-500 OS if your interested.... http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/...igma-150-500-os-sample-shots-my-new-lens.html

 

[Netskimmer]

I was actually fallowing that thread, that lens seems really sharp even at 500mm. Was meaning to ask how your camera handled the weight of that 150-500. I saw a review on youtube and the guy claimed that if you didn't support the lens with your hand while shooting freehand that your camera would snap in half. I'm assuming he was just being overly dramatic.

 

[Ballistics]

That lens looks like it will get the job done and then some. Congrates on the purchase. I find 70-200mm to be a very usefull focal range, mine rarely leaves the camera. I know a Pentax shooter that swears by Sigma lenses and owns many of them. I have really been eying the Sigma 50-500 OS as my next pruchase. I have been a little worried because Sigma QC seems to be hit and miss but it's supposed to be sharper than the original 'bigma' and the 150-500. Are you going to put the Nikon 55-200 up for sale or hold on to it as a backup?

Thanks. I'm thoroughly impressed with this lens thus far. The real challenge will be indoor sports wednesday evening. This thing has certainly exceeded my expectations. I've never used the Nikkor VRII so I can't compare this to that lens, but as of right now I'm consistently being wowed by the quality and the sharpness.

As for the 55-200mm; I'm going to put it up for sale.

 

[Netskimmer]

Any superiority on the VRII's part is probably pretty minor given the price difference. Can't wait to see the results. What sport will you be shooting?

 

[Ballistics]

Any superiority on the VRII's part is probably pretty minor given the price difference. Can't wait to see the results. What sport will you be shooting?

Wrestling.