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New Sigma 150/600 contemporary (2 Viewers)

Mike-P said:
Personally I think photography is all about getting out and enjoying yourself, for me there is no right or wrong way as long as the photographer is happy with the results. I must admit when thinking about buying a lens I look more at the up close and personal stuff as it gives me a better idea of sharpness but once the purchase has been made then I do prefer the scenic shots.

I returned my Sigma 150-600mm sport version a couple of months ago due to various issues but now have the C version on back order from Amazon and hopefully look forward to trying it at a couple of airshows next month.
Click to expand...

And that would be why close ups are posted here on a forum about the performance of a lens. To that matter, here are a few close ups from a recent trip. Some in poor light.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/120553232@N02/18242718098/in/dateposted-public/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/120553232@N02/18425983042/in/dateposted-public/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/120553232@N02/17803448133/in/dateposted-public/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/120553232@N02/18426571465/in/dateposted-public/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/120553232@N02/18430628145/in/dateposted-public/
 
stevo said:
Nothing wrong with constructive advice that Roy C gives,and no i'm not in his or anyones fan club.Always sniping through jealousy on these forums.

Steve.B :)
Click to expand...

Wish that was all it was. We all have much to learn.

Critics are funny to me. Some see a shot of a bird with some lanscape in it and think that is what a bird photo is supposed to look like. I very often see someone who didn't have good enough field craft to get close to the bird. They are typically the ones who post photos from a blind or a feeder. There is no one right way to do things despite what many preach about.
 
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I am guessing that a large number of folk visiting this thread do so with a view to possible purchasing this lens. A lot of people are interested in comparisons with the 150-600 sport or the Tamron 150-600. I guess others are just trying to work out if it is worthwhile upgrading from there current lenses.
I post images on sites like Flickr, Facebook and 500 px and the vast majority of my contact/friend's on these sites are way better photographers than me so I most certainly know my limitations. Having said that I have used a big variety of lenses over the years so feel qualified to give my comparisons. I also realise that I could well get a lot of 'stick' for even daring to post this but if it helps a few folk out there then it be will be worthwhile to me.

I have only had the Sigma 'C' for 5 or 6 weeks and most of my shots with it has been confined to shooting from the garden although I have been out in the field with it half a dozen times. I have to say first up that with the exception of a few Swallows in flight I have not gotten any images from it that I was particularly pleased with!.
Although the 'C' seems to have a reasonably good OS (IS) system I have been very reluctant to shoot at 600mm on a crop Camera hand held. To this end I tried an experiment yesterday, I took a couple of hundred hand held shots of garden birds, each time focusing on the eye - when I reviewed the shots at to where the AF point actually was the result showed that the vast majority of shots the AF point was not over the eye, lesson learned for me!
Anyway here are my thoughts thus far in regards to comparisons with other lenses I have used.

Sigma C v Tamron 150-600.
Just about every review site I have seen reckons that the Tamron is lightly sharper at the long end, IMO there is very little in it. I do think the Sigma's AF is better though as it feels snappier to me and surprisingly takes a 1.4x tc fairly well. I do not personally think it is worthwhile for any current Tamron owner to upgrade unless they feel the Tamron's AF is letting them down.

Sigma C v Canon 400/5.6
At 400mm I think the 400/5.6 produces nicer images and it is also faster to AF. When using the 400/5.6 with a 1.4x converter however my vote goes to the Sigma. Of course another consideration is the lack of IS on the prime.

Sigma C v Canon 500/4 MkI
No comparison IMO, the prime (even at 700mm) beats the 'C' at 600mm (as you would expect). Although some can hand hold the 500/4 I always used it with a tripod.

Sigma C v Canon 300/2.8 IS MkI
At 300mm and 420mm the prime easily beats the 'C' IMO. However at 600mm (using a Canon 2x tc MkII on the prime) I think the Sigma wins. I will say that things appear to be much closer if using a 2x tc mk III with the prime. Also the newer 300/2.8 IS mkII seems to easily beat the 'C' at 600mm (as you would expect by the price difference) although I have not actually used one myself.

Sigma C v Canon 300/4
At 300mm I much prefer the prime but at 420mm things get a lot closer. If using the 300/4 with a 2x tc then the Sigma beats it easily IMO. The 300/4 is also a very useful lens for larger insects with its nice MFD.

Sigma C v Sigma Sport
Not used the sport myself but from every review and thread I have seen the Sport is the better lens, not just in build quality but also slightly better IQ at the long end. Of course the big balancing act is the weight difference. I never shoot from hides or managed reserves but if I did then I would certainly consider the Sport as a relatively cheap option compared to much more expensive offerings from Canon or Nikon.
 
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Thanks for that Roy, very useful!

Still not sure what to do myself. I still have the Tammy. I feel I have three options:

Option 1: just stick with the Tammy
- stop agonising and take more photos!

Option 2: change to the Siggy-C
- don't think this will give me any better sharpness at 600mm (could even be marginally worse!), but has nicer contrast/colour, slightly better AF and customisation advantages of the USB dock.

Option 3: change to the Siggy-S
- the one I bought a week ago was no sharper than the Tammy and I sent it back. But maybe it was a soft copy. Perhaps worth buying another Siggy Sports and hoping for the suggested better IQ at 600mm!

Don't think I'll bother exploring the Canon 100-400 Mk2 (with TC) route. In any case I already have the Canon 400/5.6 prime.

So, what shall I do? Decisions, decisions.....!
 
Nick Leech said:
Thanks for that Roy, very useful!

Still not sure what to do myself. I still have the Tammy. I feel I have three options:

Option 1: just stick with the Tammy
- stop agonising and take more photos!

Option 2: change to the Siggy-C
- don't think this will give me any better sharpness at 600mm (could even be marginally worse!), but has nicer contrast/colour, slightly better AF and customisation advantages of the USB dock.

Option 3: change to the Siggy-S
- the one I bought a week ago was no sharper than the Tammy and I sent it back. But maybe it was a soft copy. Perhaps worth buying another Siggy Sports and hoping for the suggested better IQ at 600mm!

Don't think I'll bother exploring the Canon 100-400 Mk2 (with TC) route. In any case I already have the Canon 400/5.6 prime.

So, what shall I do? Decisions, decisions.....!
Click to expand...

I found the Sigma C to be sharper than the Tamron. Tried 2 copies of each.
 
Nick Leech said:
Thanks for that Roy, very useful!

Still not sure what to do myself. I still have the Tammy. I feel I have three options:

Option 1: just stick with the Tammy
- stop agonising and take more photos!

Option 2: change to the Siggy-C
- don't think this will give me any better sharpness at 600mm (could even be marginally worse!), but has nicer contrast/colour, slightly better AF and customisation advantages of the USB dock.

Option 3: change to the Siggy-S
- the one I bought a week ago was no sharper than the Tammy and I sent it back. But maybe it was a soft copy. Perhaps worth buying another Siggy Sports and hoping for the suggested better IQ at 600mm!

Don't think I'll bother exploring the Canon 100-400 Mk2 (with TC) route. In any case I already have the Canon 400/5.6 prime.

So, what shall I do? Decisions, decisions.....!
Click to expand...
If I were you Nick I would go for option one and enjoy yourself, just wish I could get out more these days :C
 
Micloi - I bought a Siggy-C a month ago and in a direct comparison with my Tammy found them about the same sharpness; with maybe the Tammy slightly sharper at 600mm in the centre. Maybe I got a soft copy of the Siggy-C?

You say you have tried two copies of each. Did you find both copies of the Siggy-C were sharper than both copies of the Tammy?

Sharper at all focal lengths or just sharper at 600mm?

Having tried a copy of the Siggy-C and the Siggy-S against my Tammy and found neither sharper than the Tammy, I am in a quandry. Is it worth trying another copy of either or both Siggys?
 
Nick Leech said:
Micloi - I bought a Siggy-C a month ago and in a direct comparison with my Tammy found them about the same sharpness; with maybe the Tammy slightly sharper at 600mm in the centre. Maybe I got a soft copy of the Siggy-C?

You say you have tried two copies of each. Did you find both copies of the Siggy-C were sharper than both copies of the Tammy?

Sharper at all focal lengths or just sharper at 600mm?

Having tried a copy of the Siggy-C and the Siggy-S against my Tammy and found neither sharper than the Tammy, I am in a quandry. Is it worth trying another copy of either or both Siggys?
Click to expand...

As I have said many times before, to me there is a clear difference in the Sigma being better than the Tamron. At least my copy is. And I was told that I had a very good copy of the Tamron. I think it is more than just the color and contrast. I also find it sharper at all focal lengths than the Tamron that I had. Most of you know here what a fan of the Tamron I was, but there performance of the Sigma is precisely the reason that I was so vocal about seeing better results from the S. To me it is just a better lens in every way. It is lighter, has more focal length locks, has many more custom options, has the docs to download firmware updates as opposed to having to send in to Tamron to get the latest firmware update. It comes with a case and also is sharper with better color and contrast. All for $20 more to me it is a no brainer. And I was thrilled that someone actually bought my Tamron off of ebay. Even a slight improvement in performance is worthe minor cost in my book. Taking a step up from there will cost you dearly.
 
Nick Leech said:
Micloi - I bought a Siggy-C a month ago and in a direct comparison with my Tammy found them about the same sharpness; with maybe the Tammy slightly sharper at 600mm in the centre. Maybe I got a soft copy of the Siggy-C?

You say you have tried two copies of each. Did you find both copies of the Siggy-C were sharper than both copies of the Tammy?

Sharper at all focal lengths or just sharper at 600mm?

Having tried a copy of the Siggy-C and the Siggy-S against my Tammy and found neither sharper than the Tammy, I am in a quandry. Is it worth trying another copy of either or both Siggys?
Click to expand...

Hi Nick. Both were sharper at 600mm, did not try them at less than that.
 
 
I was testing the Sigma 150-600mm contemporary today with different cameras.

Exposure with the D7200 and D750 is spot on.

With the D3200 though the lens is overexposing by 1.33 stops.



This was consistent with different metering modes on the D3200 and was the case with 2 different copies of the 150-600.

On the same camera the Tamron 150-600 and all of my other lenses meter correctly.



Before I contact Sigma on Monday I was wondering if anyone else has the same camera/lens and they experience the same issue.



Also if people can test the lens with other, older, cameras it would be great.

I will see if I can find another D3200 to repeat the test.



If it is a compatibility issue thank God for the ability to update the firmware using the USB dock :)
 
micloi said:
I was testing the Sigma 150-600mm contemporary today with different cameras.

Exposure with the D7200 and D750 is spot on.

With the D3200 though the lens is overexposing by 1.33 stops.

This was consistent with different metering modes on the D3200 and was the case with 2 different copies of the 150-600.

On the same camera the Tamron 150-600 and all of my other lenses meter correctly.

Before I contact Sigma on Monday I was wondering if anyone else has the same camera/lens and they experience the same issue.

Also if people can test the lens with other, older, cameras it would be great.

I will see if I can find another D3200 to repeat the test.

If it is a compatibility issue thank God for the ability to update the firmware using the USB dock :)
Click to expand...

I have both the D3200 & D3300. Just received my copy of the 150-600mm Contemporary today. Took a few snaps with the C and D3200 combo, will post a pic soon for everyone to see. ;)

Cheers, John
 
jshen808 said:
I have both the D3200 & D3300. Just received my copy of the 150-600mm Contemporary today. Took a few snaps with the C and D3200 combo, will post a pic soon for everyone to see. ;)

Cheers, John
Click to expand...

Can you please compare the exposures with your 2 cameras and then will another lens on the D3200? Thank you.
 
Here is a "test image" from my Sigma 150-600mm C lens using the Nikon D3200 camera..

http://www.pbase.com/image/160318177/original
(Please read the descriptions on the page for settings information. 600mm on Nikon's 1.5x crop factor is equivalent to 900mm)

To see the expanded view from the above image, please click below..
https://www.flickr.com/photos/johnshenphotography/16043492876/sizes/o/

I will try take more test pictures tomorrow morning :smoke:

Cheers, John

P.S. Below are the descriptions..

*** This is a test image ***

Image was taken straight from camera, cropped at 30 percent, resized to 1800x1200, no other post processing was done.

Nikon D3200 camera, Sigma 150-600mm Contemporary lens.

Camera:
Manual, 1/1600, F6.3, ISO 800, 600mm, -0.33EV.
Color Standard (default settings), Acitve-D On.

Lens:
Fast focus, Dynamic OS.
 
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the black fox said:
i am starting to think that nikons sensors seem to get a bit more from these super-zooms than canons do .hmmmmm
Click to expand...

I have often thought that's possible so just out of curiosity had a quick look on HDEW for the prices of Nikon bodies - go have a quick look at the D3200 and D3300. Cheap isn't the word! Food for thought for certain
 
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