Sigma 50-500mm f/4-6.3 EX DG APO HSM Telephoto Zoom Lens with Hood for the Maxxum & Sony Alpha Mount.

2008-01-11T19:00:00

The title says it all, I have taken several hundred pictures with this lens on my Minolta 7D and never had one problem. All the pictures are clear and the color is perfect but it is somewhat slow to focus. If you want it to shoot daylight sports it works great but if the sun is going down you may as well just sit back and watch the game because this lens needs lots of light. I would also recommend a very heavy duty tripod and a head that can handle the weight. Would I buy this lens again; you bet. With the focal range of this lens it can cover a lot but if you want it for a walk around lens you can get rid of the gym membership because this thing is a workout own its own. If moving around a monopod is a must and if you have in camera stabilization it is a plus because of the long focal length. The zoom lock works great to stop the zoom from creeping, but it would be nice if it had a focus range limiter and a focus lock on the lens. The internal focusing is excellent but again it would be nice if it had an internal focus motor to speed the focus time as well. For the price there is no real reason to complain because it is a lot of bang for the buck. Filters for this lens are hard to find and they are expensive due to the size and 86mm course threads. If you need filters buy the basics like polarizer, UV and then spend the rest of the money on the Tiffen Dfx Software man does that work great. If you get the Tiffen Polarizer you cannot use the lens with the hood attached in any way. If the hood is turned around backwardsand you install the filter you cannot remove the hood and you cannot work the controls on the lens to zoom. If the hood is placed on the camera ready to take pictures you cannot install the filter. Not sure what Sigma was thinking here as well as Tiffen because the Tiffen Polarizer weighs quite a bit considering it is already a heavy lens. I also had 1 instance where the lens and camera slipped out of the monopod I was using so a monopod with a mount lock is a must, but luckily I had the camera strap around my neck as well.

Triggerhappy