Product Description

This ultra-telephoto zoom lens covers a telephoto range up to 500mm and allows photographers to bring the subject close with short perspective. Sigmas original OS (Optical Stabilizer) function offers the equivalent of using a shutter speed approximately 4 stops faster. It is ideal for sports, wildlife and landscape photography with handheld shooting. Three SLD (Special Low Dispersion) glass elements provide excellent correction for chromatic aberration. This lens is equipped with a rear focus system that minimises fluctuation of aberration caused by focusing. The super multi-layer lens coating reduces flare and ghosting. High image quality is assured throughout the entire zoom range.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #13931 in Consumer Electronics
• Brand: Sigma
• Model: 737-101
• Released on: 2008-04-13
• Dimensions: 3.20 pounds

Features

• Sigma&rsquos APO 150-500mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM ultra-telephoto zoom lens covers a focal range of up to 500 mm! The APO 150-500mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM has Sigma&rsquos exclusive optical image stabilisation system, which is particularly suited to taking photos of sporting events and landscapes. The APO 150-500mm&rsquos glass elements are coated with a super multi-layer that reduces flare and ghosting, guaranteeing perfect quality photos at all times, while the APO 150-500 mm&rsquos silent and quick, ult
• rasonic HSM motor makes it even easier to use. High image quality is guaranteed with the APO 150-500mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM!
• SIGMA 150-500 mm F5-6.3 DG APO OS HSM Tele-zoom Lens for All Canon SLR cameras Lens for Canon Camera Lenses
• Lens for Canon

Manufacturer's Description
This is an ultra-telephoto zoom lens that allows photographers to freely play with the ability of telephoto lenses to bring the subject closer and shorten perspective. It is equipped with Sigma’s own Camera Shake Compensation OS (Optical Stabiliser) System, so handheld photography is worry-free. SLD (Special Low Dispersion) glass is used for superior correction of chromatic aberrations, and the rear focusing system effectively corrects for fluctuation of aberration due to focusing. The lens is equipped with HSM for fast AF speeds and quiet shooting, and is capable of full-time manual focus override. It also accommodates optional APO Tele Converters

Customer Reviews

Super Sigma Telephoto?
Having now owned this lens for 3 weeks and taken 750 approx photos with it (with a D200), I have had the chance to get used to it and assess it properly:

Build: Out of the box, this is a lot of lens for the money.The finish is much better than I expected given that this is not an EX lens (although does have the same 2 year warranty). At 2kg it is heavy for a lot of people, but much lighter than similar professional lenses. It feels as if it will last the distance, if the image quality is good enough..

Image Quality: Asking a £700 lens to perform well at 500mm is a big, big ask. It is well known that cheap telephotos are flawed - Nikon's most similar lens, the 200-400mm F4 costs nearly £4k but apparently provides consistently good images. However, the cost is out of reach for a lot of us. For the last 2 years I have used a 70-200mm F2.8, sometimes with a TC17 x1.7 converter - I have never liked this combination as it trades in the sharpness of the original lens for extra reach (others seem to have had better experiences). This is why I bought the Sigma.

The Nikon 70-200mm gives excellent sharpness and focusing 95% of the time. The Sigma on average achieves 90% of that sharpness 65% of the time - a result which, given the high aspirations of the design and low cost is no mean achievement.

Focusing is reasonably quick, being a shade slower than say, a Nikon 18-200mm VR. If you are careful with focusing and keep shutter speeds above 1/100th sec you will be rewarded with some excellent photos that other lenses simply cannot match because they do not have the focal length.

The OS works well (but is a little noisy) and is a must if you ever intend using such a long lens. The effective focal lens is 750mm when used with a DX camera. I have found that most shots are sharp at 1/100 sec or above, so you may have to crank up the ISO in anything but the best light. But what is the alternative at this focal length - a £4k lens? At 500mm it is also advisable to stop down to F8, as it is a touch soft at F6.3.

In short, this lens is far from perfect, but will enable you to get shots that cannot be matched for the money.

Mine's a cracker...
Sigma's quality control is much maligned. I've never had a problem, although I was nervous about buying this lens. I needn't have been as it was superb straight out of the box.

It's sharpest stopped down to f8 and between 150-400mm although it's more than usable at all apertures/focal lengths. The OS is superb but takes some getting used to. You still need to use this lens with very steady hands at 500mm! This is made more difficult by the weight - nearly 3 kilos attached to a gripped 40D, so be prepared for aching arms (or get a monopod!). It's also BIG. I found the extra battery in the grip important when using this beast for any amount of time. The OS likes to sap juice it seems.

Finish is your usual nasty Sigma matt/flocked business that I would really rather be without. Comes with a decent case and hood. All in all a great (and cheaper) alternative to Canon's 100-400.

For the price a great lens
For around the £700 mark for a telephoto zoom you can do a lot lot worse than this. The build quality is excellent. Some people complain about Sigma and its build quality but I have 6 of their lenses and I have never had a problem. It is true this lens is not quite as sharp as one that costs £4k or so but you can take genuinelly excellent and sharp pictures with this lens, wildlife etc and their is little if any discernable colour abberation and the stability control is excellent although very battery intense. The lens is heavy be in no doubt but there are no lenses of this size which are not. Sigma say it cannot be used with any teleconverters other than their own. I attached a Kenko Pro 300 DGX 1.4 and it is still very sharp although you do lose a little detail. This combination on a digital DX sensor gives a zoom length of 1050mm! The resulting pictures are still sharp although you will not need this combination very often. The lens takes an 86mm filter, these are not cheap but a good investment to protect you lens.

Overall, for the money excellent is no exaggeration.