Nikon 300mm F4 prime vs sigma 50-500mm

[D50birdshooter]

I am looking into purchasing 1 of the following lenses i will be looking for focus speed and image quality while still getting a great close up of a bird. i have a 70-300mm now and its ok under certian ive been able to come up with some pretty good shots but i need longer focal length but with that i need focus speed. i would be using a 1.4 converter with the 300mm so please help me decide.

[Outboard]

It all depends on what you want out of your photographs.

The Sigma 50-500 is not a bad lens at all, I'm sure that in a post or two someone not mentioning any names will chip in and tell you how absolutely fantastic his Tamron 200-500 is which has nothing to do with your question. So that being said I have owned the Sigma 50-500 and I still own the 300f4 and tc14e. If you are looking for quality pictures them go for the Nikon 300f4. If you are looking to get more images that the zoom and slightly extra reach will give you at expense of slightly reduced image quality then go for the Sigma. The Nikon 300f4 is also an excellent butterfly lens if that is of interest.

[Guidenet]

Well, of the three solutions to get to around 500mm, IMO, it's the 300 f4 with a 1.7 converter that would be the sharpest. A 1.4 would be better, but not 500.

Next the Tamron 200-500. It's very sharp at 500mm wide open. Not as sharp as the Nikkor, but plenty sharp.

The Sigma 50-500 is nice to about 400, but drops significantly past that. It does, however, focus faster than the Tamron.

I use the 300 f4 with a Nikkor 1.4 converter and the Tamron. I thought I'd get rid of the Tamron when I got the Nikkor, but I find I use it more and more as time goes on. I'm finally starting to learn how to hand-hold the Tamron for in-flight birds. I'm not very good at it yet, but I'm learning. The Tamron is light enough, you can do it for a while. The Sigma, which my brother has, is way to heavy for hand holding a long time to a worn out old guy like me. Besided, like I mentioned, it's too soft near 500.

Here's an image I took last weekend with the Tamron at 500mm hand held. It's not the best, but I'm learning. It's a pretty sizable crop.

125284

Outboard doesn't like me bragging on the Tamron. LOL

[Helios]

I've used both the Tamron 200-500 which I've sold, and the Nikon 300f4 AFS which I presently own. I use the Nikon with the tc14eII converter. While the Tamron lens can produce good quality at 500 if stopped down to f8, the Nikon combination is in another league in my opinion. I'm comfortable shooting wide open at f5.6 as the quality doesn't suffer. So much so that I don't miss the Tamron's extra reach, ie 500 vs 420. However I've had no end of problems with the Nikon's autofocus. It's no faster than the Tamron and is cutting out intermittantly. Infact today it stopped working altogether, so I'm now left with manual focus. I did buy it second hand though so it looks like I've been sold a duff copy; the poor man pays twice as it were.

If you get hold of a good copy, then I would definitely recommend it. Other options are the Sigma 500 f4.5 which is around 3 times the price here in the UK, or a second hand Nikon 500P f4, or 600 f5.6 AIS. THe latter 2 are manual focus only, and all 3 are larger, heavier lenses, around 3 kg. But they've all been noted for their exceptional quality. The 600 f5.6 AIS will only meter with a D200 or D300 so this is probably not an option for you if you're using a D50.

[Outboard]

Outboard doesn't like me bragging on the Tamron. LOL


It wasn't you that i was referring to. I have nothing against the Tamron, it's just that when someone asks about a Sigma V Nikon why do Tamron owners have to chime in about their 200-500's. Inferiority complex maybe?8-P

[rezMole]

It wasn't you that i was referring to. I have nothing against the Tamron, it's just that when someone asks about a Sigma V Nikon why do Tamron owners have to chime in about their 200-500's. Inferiority complex maybe?8-P

No, not an inferiority conflex, but just a further suggestion to consider. Many birders seem to overlook the Tamron for some reason. Is it wrong to point out an alternative which might be more suitable?

[Outboard]

I didn't think it would be long.

[rezMole]

I didn't think it would be long.

Touchy.

[Outboard]

I'm not touchy but when someone asks an opinion on specific products thats what they want. If they had wanted an opinion on a Tamron 200-500 perhaps they just might have asked for it or is that concept too hard to understand?

[ikw101]

"i need longer focal length but with that i need focus speed"

Any lens or combination that gets to 400mm+ is surely worthy of consideration.
Another one to throw into the melting pot is the recently announced Sigma APO 150-500mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM. (http://www.sigmaphoto.com/lenses/lenses_all_details.asp?id=3348&navigator=3)

If focus speed is a big issue perhaps we should also be looking at D200 and D300 both of which will lock onto a target faster than a D50.

[Outboard]

"i need longer focal length but with that i need focus speed"

Any lens or combination that gets to 400mm+ is surely worthy of consideration.
Another one to throw into the melting pot is the recently announced Sigma APO 150-500mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM. (http://www.sigmaphoto.com/lenses/lenses_all_details.asp?id=3348&navigator=3)

If focus speed is a big issue perhaps we should also be looking at D200 and D300 both of which will lock onto a target faster than a D50.

Oh so we should also throw in the Nikon 500VR or even a Nikon 600VR into the equation as well? How about the 200-400VR, that works well with the TC14E. The question that was asked was quite specific, Sigma 50-500 or the Nikon 300f4. As I have owned a Sigma 50-500 and I currently own a Nikon 300f4 I feel qualified to comment on these lenses. Have you owned both of these lenses?

[Telecorder]

I am looking into purchasing 1 of the following lenses i will be looking for focus speed and image quality while still getting a great close up of a bird. i have a 70-300mm now and its ok under certian ive been able to come up with some pretty good shots but i need longer focal length but with that i need focus speed. i would be using a 1.4 converter with the 300mm so please help me decide.

You may wish to review the extensive list of lens reviews I've posted at--
http://www.dslrgeeks.com/forum/showthread.php?p=2726#post2726

If FOCUS speed is under consideration, in good light it'd probably be
Bigma HSM or 300 f/4 + TC
200-500 screw driver

IQ at 630-mm EQ
Probably--
300 +1.4X TC
Close together 200-500 - Bigma

Racked out IQ
300 + 1.4X TC at 630-mm Eq [and possibly w/1.7X TC at 765-mm EQ]
Tamron - 750-mm EQ slight edge over Bigma
http://www.photozone.de/active/survey/querylens.jsp
[18 users ratings of Bigma on APS-C dSLR at 500-mm (59/76) Wide v stopped down]; [12 Users' ratings of 200-500 on APS-C dSLR at 500-mm (67/81)]

Individual copies and bodies having some differentials at play...

For my part, my good light and Bigma has been a great system...YMMV

[Guidenet]

It wasn't you that i was referring to. I have nothing against the Tamron, it's just that when someone asks about a Sigma V Nikon why do Tamron owners have to chime in about their 200-500's. Inferiority complex maybe?8-P

Heheheh.. You're probably right. If I had the Bigma, I'd probably chime in about it. 8-P

Anyway, the OP did mention focusing speed, and quite honestly I didn't notice it before making my post. On the other hand, mine seems to focus plenty fast enough.. well usually. My errors are most often user error. For instance today, I had the most beautiful picture of a flying Rosetta Spoonbill. I shotgunned a series. When I got home, I realized that I had invertantly set things from shutter priority to manual. All the shots were 1/2000 at F16 and ISO 3200. They were ruined pretty much. :C LOL

[ikw101]

Oh so we should also throw in the Nikon 500VR or even a Nikon 600VR into the equation as well? How about the 200-400VR, that works well with the TC14E. The question that was asked was quite specific, Sigma 50-500 or the Nikon 300f4. As I have owned a Sigma 50-500 and I currently own a Nikon 300f4 I feel qualified to comment on these lenses. Have you owned both of these lenses?

No, couldn't see the point of buying a Sigma when I already had the Nikon 300f4 and tc. However I may be tempted when the new Sigma APO 150-500mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM is available (are we allowed to mention the Sigma 50-500mm is being replaced with an Optical Stabilized version that claims to give a 4 stop gain - I guess it's not relevant because it wasn't in the original post). Personally I'd prefer a VR version of the 300 f4 but there's no sign of this being released in the near future.

I notice your gallery is empty. If you could upload some examples of images taken with both the Nikon and the Sigma it'd allow us to make a direct comparison. If your gallery is elsewhere please point us in the right direction.

[Outboard]

I notice your gallery is empty. If you could upload some examples of images taken with both the Nikon and the Sigma it'd allow us to make a direct comparison. If your gallery is elsewhere please point us in the right direction.

And just what relevance to the original question of Sigma V Nikon is the fact that I choose not to put pictures in the gallery? The original question was extremely simple, a choice of 2 lenses, Sigma 50-500 or Nikon 300f4. I gave my opinion based upon my own experience having used both of these lenses.

[Guidenet]

To the original poster.

I have to agree with the idea of waiting for the new 150-500 Sigma OS. I think the combination of stabalization, Hypersonic Motor, and a short zoom ratio might make this a real winner as long as the IQ is good and the price is decent. I know that I will be considering it myself, though I do love my Tamron. |:D|

[rezMole]

To the original poster.

I have to agree with the idea of waiting for the new 150-500 Sigma OS. I think the combination of stabalization, Hypersonic Motor, and a short zoom ratio might make this a real winner as long as the IQ is good and the price is decent. I know that I will be considering it myself, though I do love my Tamron. |:D|

I think I'd be tempted too with the new Sigma. And, as the original creator of this thread hasn't been back since i'm gonna say - he should've got the Tamron 200-500 - it's absolutely fantastic!!

[Outboard]

The attached were taken right after the Sigma 50-500 was returned after being re-chipped to work with the Nikon D200. I compared it directly with the 300f4.
The 1st shot is the Nikon 300F4 AFS, the 2nd shot is the Sigma 50-500 and just a very quick shot of some of my Nikon gear to indicate that I might just know a little about the equipment.