I love to do wildlife photography. Going out into a wildlife refuge or a national park, learning where to find the wildlife, and getting to see God's wonderful creation gives me a natural high. Being a photographer, I want to take photos not only for my own personal memories, but also to share with others. When I first moved up from a digital point and shoot to a digital SLR, I bought the Canon 100-400 IS lens. For many situations, it worked beautifully. But . . . . for others, the wildlife was too far away to get quality photos. On my first trip to Bosque del Apache, I saw so many truly large lenses - talk about lens envy!!!!!
So I began to dream of a day when I too would have a large lens. It seemed far away.
I had an opportunity in South Texas to take some shots with a Canon 600mm lens with a couple of teleconverters and another opportunity to play with the Sigma lens. Even with the teleconverters, the duck in the distance that I shot with the 600mm lens was still very small - not the quality shot I was yearning for. In talking with the owner of the Sigma lens, he said that he had compared shots with the Canon lens and with a Sigma before he purchased. He felt that the Sigma lens produced a higher quality image.
From all those opportunities when the bird or coyote was too far away, I knew that bigger was likely to be better. Teleconverters not only reduce the amount of light coming into the camera, but they also put more layers of glass between your subject and your camera's sensor. Plus the autofocus does not work as well with the teleconverters. (And I have not had great luck doing manual focus with my digital SLR's. I have yet to add the focusing screen to my 5D-that could change my mind on manual focus.) So when the money became available, I went with the Sigma lens. I also bought a sturdy tripod for it and a Wimberly head.
The photo at the top of this blog was made on my porch with my Sigma lens. Other photos to reference for image quality for this lens:
My seals' webpage
The Bosque '05 photos
An Intimate Landscape at La Jolla
7 comments:
Thank you so much for sharing your observations!
I had similar experiences in the Amazon when we saw the Cock of the Rock birds in the rain forest... now I need to go back with a much bigger lens!
Regarding the "doubler's" as I call them, I agree, the 1.4x and 2.0x "doubler's" add a layer of glass that seems to have an impact in sharpness. I too am forced to go manual when I use my 2x extender and as you know, wildlife does't wait for you to take the shot!
Very recently, a Tamron sales rep. tried to steer me away from the Sigma 800mm lens (for obvious) reasons but I didn't take the bait, I'm using a Sigma Macro now that I like and a Sigma Flash so I'm open to thier 800mm lens as an option.
Even before reading your post, my wife and I agreed, what we are going to do is perform side by side comparison tests with both the Canon 600 mm and the Sigma 800 mm and see which ones yield the best resutls and make the decision based on that.
I'm excited... now time to sell some stock!
-Kurt
www.global-trekker.com
Hello Mary Ann,
Good work, simply excellent images. I like the Bosque shots. I like birds. I was there last year November but only have a 100-400mm zoom. Me too dreaming of a longer lens one day. Do you have any problem at the airport with the long lens at all? The airport check in counter gave me such a hard time even with my current equipment(over weight). I can't decide for Canon 600mm or the Sigma 300-800mm.
Rickie
I've never flown with the Sigma 300-800. I left it at home when we went to Africa, but because we were so close to the wildlife there, I did not miss it.
Personally I would recommend the Sigma 300-800 over the Canon 600mm because there will ALWAYS be a time when you want to get closer in. With the Canon you can add a teleconverter to get to 1200, but I just don't think it is as versatile a lens as the 300-800. I use the zoom regularly because sometimes 300 is the better size and then as the animal moves toward you or away from you, you can make the adjustments to get the photo you want.
Excellent observations on a lens that I'm hoping to get. They seem to have doubled in price and I'm debating if I should wait a little before I commit or try to find a used one.
Oscar
Oscar, if you can find a used lens, I'd say go for it. In theory they've upgraded the glass on the newer lenses, but I have the older one and I love it! My latest bird images have all been taken with it. In terms of waiting . . . I don't know your money situation, but your bird and animal photography will rise to a new level when you have a longer lens (and yes, you'll still take some less than great shots, but you will get up close and personal in ways that the shorter lenses just can't match.)
I was wondering if anyone has used this lens with the 1.4 and the 2x Teleconvrters and if they still auto focus? Or is there something I need to do to get them to auto focus on my 7d?
Thanks Ray
I have used a 1.4 and 2.0 and both together. When I stacked them to try to get pictures of a peregrine falcon nest, the results were dismal - good memory shots - that's all. My best pictures are taken without using the teleconverters. I think you would have your best luck if you bought Sigma brand teleconverters designed to work on the Sigma lens.
Post a Comment