Sigma 150-500mm APO DG OS HSM Lens

Sigma 150-500mm APO DG OS HSM Lens

By contributor Tom Lacey.

I have always enjoyed the beauty of nature, so taking photos of birds and sea life is one of my favourite pastimes. I needed something to compliment my existing set-up and the answer came in the form of a Sigma zoom lens. Sigma’s APO 150-500mm telephoto lens boasts huge zoom at an affordable price. For what the lens lacks on paper in the way of aperture it more than compensates for with affordability and portability and all round ease of use.

Features and Design

This lens was designed for use on both APS-C and full frame type digital cameras. Sigma’s 150-500mm lens incorporates many features which help create that perfect photo. One such feature is Sigma’s HSM drive which delivers smooth and quick movements, especially when auto focusing. This is a similar technology to Canon’s UltraSonic.

The Sigma 150-500mm is made up of 21 lens elements in 15 groups. Sigma has incorporated a top notch optical stabiliser into this lens which is designed to give an increase in speed of approximately 4 f-stops. This stabiliser came in handy and you see a clear difference between stabilised and non-stabilised photography.

The lens is with Pentax, Nikon, Canon and Sony camera mounts. I coupled this camera up with the Nikon D90 and D70s to get thorough results. Overall the lens was a great match for the D90 but I felt the D70s was out-shined by the Sigma 150-500mm and did not pair up as nicely.

The build quality is exactly to the standard we have come to expect from Sigma. Its metal mounting plate and smart black finish ensure the lens feels solid but not heavy and clunky which can happen with large zoom lenses. The rubberised zoom and focus rings guarantee a sure grip for the user.

Using the lens.

As I enjoy taking photos of nature and sea life I took the lens for a run around Newcastle and the Hunter Valley. The lens was easy to get used to and performed well during day lit shots, even when hand held and at full zoom. At night I would recommend a tripod to ensure crystal clear photographs when the lens is extended fully. There is a tripod mount that comes with the lens which really does come in handy. Weighing in at just under 2kg, I can tell you that your shoulder will get sore if you hand hold this an extended period of time – as is expected with any large zoom lens.

Because of the use of coated elements inside the lens, blemishes such as flares and ghosting are kept to a minimum. Aberration was also well controlled and the edges were very sharp at full crop. Very impressive for a lens at this price point. Vignetting did show itself in a few frames and tended to be more prominent in photos of the sky at lower focal lengths.

The HSM helped with smooth and quick auto focusing. A very small amount of photographs showed a tendency to miss the mark as far as the auto-focus was concerned resulting with the subject of the image coming out-of-focus. This happened mostly when taking a photo of a finch amongst the reeds of a pond in poor light – not exactly an easy focusing situation.  In the end I switched the camera to manual mode and got the photo I was after straight up.

Who would it suit

The sports enthusiast would love this lens. Getting right in close to the subject is what this lens was made for. Whether you want it for sports action, nature or even portrait photos the lens will be a welcome addition to your existing kit. I have used this lens in a church for holy communion photos and it performed beautifully. It would really suit a wedding photographer who is not quite ready to spend the big dollars on an F2.8 lens.

People who are into wildlife photography or bird watching will also love this lens. Set it on a monopod or tripod and you have the perfect kit to take clear, colourful images of everything nature has to offer. The Newcastle beaches were the perfect opportunity for me to test the lens out to try and get the fast moving gulls diving for my hot chips. The lens performed well with all the challenges I threw at it and the results were great. For $1399 you really cant go wrong with the Sigma 150-500mm lens.

Tom is the Store Manager of the Eastmon Glen Innes store and a photography enthusiast.

How to Photograph a Lightning Strike

By guest contributor Damian Riches

In the following explanation I will try to cover the basic photography technique you’ll need to take good lightning pictures. You will very quickly notice that shooting light is not at all that difficult technically speaking but it takes time, patience and also determination.

Equipment Protection

Taking lightning pictures is exciting but you need to remember that you paid money for your photography equipment so the last thing you want is to have it ruined. Read more

Outdoor Photography Opportunities

From guest contributor Peter Langston (Lango)

This is Peter’s second contribution and you can read more about him here and on facebook. Peter is a customer of the Eastmon Tamworth store.

Sometimes, fortune takes over from planning and a shot just appears before you. At times like these, you hope all of the workshops and courses and advice from others has sunk in and the choices you make are good ones.
Photography is about moments held in your viewfinder so that others can wish they were there and a bit like fishing, we can all talk of the one that got away. Read more

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A camera, no matter how automatic, is a lifeless piece of equipment until a person uses it. It then becomes a uniquely responsive tool, an expression of the photographers eye and creative mind.

Anyone can take amazingly beautiful photographs by simply taking a mental “walk” around a photo opportunity to view it from multiple perspectives. This will always result in important insights and fresh ideas.

Three of the most important factors as you begin to understand the ‘Art of Seeing’, are:

• Light
• Focus
• Composition

Understanding and using these to your advantage to take better photos helps to develop your ‘Art of Seeing’.

Focus

One ingredient of great images is focusing the camera carefully.

Auto-focus (AF) technology today has made focusing as painless and as child proof as pressing a button. Still, to increase your percentage of sharp pictures, keep a few things in mind before you press it. Read more