Sigma 150-500mm review

Sigma 150-500mm hands on review with sample photos
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[@dreemwizard]

Just ordered this for my Nikon d810. I couldnt decide between the 500mm or the 600 but decided on the 500 for the price.

[@chitroraychowdhury8781]

Your photos with this lens are incredible. I use the same camera and lens combo like you and enjoy the results too! Very nice video. Which editing application were you using?

[@david-photography4903]

Thank you glad to hear you like the photos. For wildlife photography, up to this point, I have been using Adobe Lightroom. All the photos in the video have been edited using Lightroom. For most of my other work though, including portraiture, I much prefer using Photoshop.

[@johnalexander7831]

Thanks mate, great to see your review. I just picked this lens up on impulse and then thought...was this wise? Cheers and good luck with your channel.

[@david-photography4903]

Thanks mate, and trust me you wont't regret buying it

[@jt560]

Great video, I'm thinking of buying this for wildlife as it's much cheaper than the newer sigma 150-600.

[@david-photography4903]

Glad you liked the review, it's a good lens, I have been using it for wildlife myself and I have always been happy with the results.

[@jt560]

@@david-photography4903 Brilliant that's great to know. I almost had a great deal on one, a shop had one for £300 and it was advertised as Nikon fit but when it arrived it was sony fit so had to get my money back and return it. I'll keep an eye out for another good deal.

[@david-photography4903]

@@jt560 Such a pity that would have been a great deal. Have a look on MPB, they normally have a good stock of used lenses.

[@archiebromfield]

Great review! How fast did you find the autofocus? Looking to buy it for surfing photography and worried it may not track quick enough

[@david-photography4903]

Hey Archie, glad to hear you have enjoyed the review :) I normally use this lens for wildlife photography, including small birds, and the autofocus has always performed well and I never felt like it was too slow. Said that I have never used it for sport photography and I am not sure how quick the movements would be in your case, but I used this lens to track birds with continuous autofocus so I believe you should be fine. Just in case I would recommend checking the return policy before you buy the lens, in case you are not happy with it and want to return it. Hope this helps.

[@archiebromfield]

@@david-photography4903 Cheers David. Had a look around and ended up going for the 120-400. Thanks for your help though 🤘

[@david-photography4903]

@@archiebromfield You're welcome, enjoy your new lens :)

[@sdg1970]

I use it on a Nikon D4 - great combination, especially with the D4's high ISO capabilities.

[@david-photography4903]

Great to hear you enjoyed the lens :)

[@user-jo4kd2wn7o]

Good morning, thank you for the video. Please do you know if the SIGMA DG 150-500mm will work with the CANON EOS 700D Camera?

[@david-photography4903]

Hey, no worries. My lense is Nikon fit and I have used it with my Nikon D750, D800, and also with a crop sensor Nikon DSLR (do not remember the model). With those cameras it worked without any issues, but with my Nikon Z6 (which is mirrorless), and the FTZ adapter, the autofocus does not work. I do not shoot Canon but if you have a Canon DSLR, as long as you buy a Canon fit lense, it should work without any issues. Said that I would reccomend looking for a compatibility list online if you can find one, and you can also email the ratailer before you purchase the lense. I normally use WEX or MPB and you can email them to ask before you purchase the lense. Also double check what their retun policy is before buying, just in case it does not work and you have to return it. That would be my reccomendation. Hope this helps.

[@brent462]

Thanks for the review! How would this perform on a Canon t3i, especially for birds and maybe in low light?

[@david-photography4903]

Hey Brent, glad you enjoyed the review :) I have used this lens to take photos of birds in multiple occasions and it performs really well. However, you need to consider what size birds you will be photographing and how close you can get, as I did often feel like even at 500mm I was not quite close enough. The alternative would be going for a 600mm lens, but not sure how much of a difference that would make. When it comes to low light situations, this lens has a variable aperture, and when it is fully extended your widest aperture is going to be 6.3 which is not great in low light but that is the case with most long lenses. As an example Canon produces 600mm lenses with a constant aperture of f4 but that would cost you thousands of pounds/dollars. Said that I used my Sigma at f6.3 in low light conditions and I was more than happy with the way it performed. However, that will depend on how well your camera performs at high ISOs, and unfortunately I could not say how it would perform with your specific camera as I have never tried that camera lens combination. You could try with your current lens to manually set your camera to f6.3 with a shutter speed of at least 1/1000 in order to freeze the action, and a suitable ISO to give you the correct exposure, then take a few shots in low light to see how your camera performs. Hope this helps and do let me know should you have any questions.

[@Finnvanrijn]

Lovely Review! Thank you very much!

[@david-photography4903]

Thank you glad you found it useful

[@jamie-hb8gy]

What accent is that?I keep hearing south african and ozzy i just can't place it.

[@david-photography4903]

LOL do get that quite a lot. I am British but yes my accent is somewhat deceiving, guess I have moved around too much :)

[@ahmd121774]

Very good man 👍 good photography

[@david-photography4903]

Thank you

[@striderwhiston9897]

How fast is the autofocus? is it good enough for BIF?

[@david-photography4903]

I have never put the autofocus through any specific tests but I have been using this lens mainly for wildlife photography, including BIF, and I have never felt the autofocus was an issue. Said that it will also depend on your skill and what you are photographing. When it comes to BIF I have photographed mainly larger birds like geese, seagulls, and herons. I have also photographed smaller birds but not in flight so I could not say how the autofocus would perform with say a kingfisher in flight. Hope this helps.

[@yicao4039]

Which focus mode do you guys use? Aways on AF or mix of auto focus and manual focus?

[@david-photography4903]

It really depends on what type of photography I am doing. I use the Sigma 150-500mm mainly for wildlife photography, and I am normally on continuous AF, with back button focusing. That allows me to tack the animal, and if needed, I can quickly reframe before I take the shot, but reframing is not always possible.

[@justanotherguycommenting5754]

Is this lens weather sealed in any way? Does weather sealing help prevent dust from getting in the lens?

[@david-photography4903]

Thanks for your question. No, the lens is not weather sealed, but weather sealed lenses do not necessarily prevent dust from entering the lens. Especially with zoom lenses air will enter the lens and this can cause a small amount of dust to enter the lens as well. This is due to the fact that the lens is not a vacuum and when you zoom in and out the lens will change volume letting air in and out. Said that I have used my Sigma 150-500mm in drizzly and foggy weather doing wildlife photography and I have never had any issues. However, if the weather is particularly bad I would suggest protecting your camera and lens with a rain cover. A small amount of dust does not impair the performance of your lens in any way, and for instance when you buy used lenses they almost always say "there is light dust throughout the optics, but this will not affect the images in any way". Hope this helps and do let me know should you have any other questions.

[@justanotherguycommenting5754]

@@david-photography4903 thanks! That really helped

[@benbanana6124]

Thank you

[@david-photography4903]

Glad you found it useful

[@matthewhoward8889]

With a big lens like this could it damage the mount of my 4000D? It’s so heavy in a bit worried about it being too heavy.

[@david-photography4903]

Hello, I am currently using that lens with my Nikon D800 which is a pretty sturdy professional camera. However, I have also used it with a small cropped sensor DSLR from Nikon and I had no issues. Your camera however seems to have a plastic lens mount and I would therefore be extra careful. The Sigma 150-500mm has a tripod collar and I would highly recommend holding it from there. In that way only the weight of the camera body will be on you camera lens mount and not the weight of the lens. Also when shooting I would suggest having one hand on the lens tripod collar in order not to strain your camera lens mount. The main thing is, do not hold your camera solely from the camera body as that will put all the weight of the lens on you camera lens mount. With these types of lenses that would be the best way of using them anyway, independently of the camera body you have. Hope this helps and do let me know should you have any questions. David

[@matthewhoward8889]

@@david-photography4903 thank you so much! :)

[@diongalbreath9441]

Does the autofocus work on a z6ii with the ftz adapter?

[@david-photography4903]

Hello Dion, I have never used it with a mirrorless camera and the ftz adapter. I have just had a quick look online and there are a few articles according to which everything should work fine, but they are all third party websites, made exception for one article by Sigma. If you are buying it from a camera store I would ask them first, and check what their return policy is, just in case. The other concern I have is that even if Sigma did test them, they might have tested the ftz adaptor only with the latest version of this lens. If you do end up buying the lens, I would be curios to know whether everything works fine with your Z6II. Here are a few articles you might want to take a look at: www.sigmaphoto.com/article/nikon-z-compatibility-10-26-2018 pixelfriedhof.com/en/field-report-sigma-lenses-on-ftz-adapter-on-nikon-z6-ii-no-problems/ www.zsystemuser.com/z-mount-lenses/z-mount-adapters/ftz-compatible-sigma-lenses.html

[@Elozano35]

Just bought it for 400$ I think it really good for the price

[@david-photography4903]

oh yeah definitely, had it for a few years and it's never let me down, definitely good value, you will enjoy it.

[@nunodeazevedo]

Do you know how it performs on a z50 camera?

[@david-photography4903]

Hello, unfortunately I do not know anybody who has used this lens with a Z50. Also, keep in mind that you would need an adapter in order to use this lens with a mirrorless camera. Said that, as long as you have the adaptor and the lens fits your camera, your choice of camera should not affect how the lens itself performs. If you do not have it already the adaptor can be quite expensive. If you decide to go ahead and purchase the adaptor and the lens, I would also recommend checking with the shop you are purchasing it from whether it will work with your camera, but personally I do not see why it shouldn't. Hope this helps.

[@ridewithaniketns2977]

Give me a gift from this lence