p.16 #1 · Pre-order: Sigma 100-400/5-6.3 DG DN OS FE ($949!)
A couple autumn-ish shots from a recent walk, the colors are a bit dull though as the light was rather limited and I wanted to check how the "slow" Sigma will cope (1/60s turned out ok for nearly all of the shots, maybe I could have gone with 1/30s):
p.16 #3 · Pre-order: Sigma 100-400/5-6.3 DG DN OS FE ($949!)
thousandths wrote:
First day in Yellowstone and first day out with the 100-400.
Great shots and some very pleasing colors! Did you think the size and reach of the Sigma was a good fit for a day like that? I'm honestly wondering how people feel about the lack of extension options, other or having the crop mode on the A7RIV is enough!
Thanks!
p.16 #7 · Pre-order: Sigma 100-400/5-6.3 DG DN OS FE ($949!)
zz wrote:
Great shots and some very pleasing colors! Did you think the size and reach of the Sigma was a good fit for a day like that? I'm honestly wondering how people feel about the lack of extension options, other or having the crop mode on the A7RIV is enough!
Thanks!
I'm not an experienced wildlife shooter, at all, but I think it's entirely fine for a cost-effective superzoom lens. I guess in my very amateur opinion, having an extra 200mm of reach wouldn't really have dramatically changed how I use it when considering the crop affordance of 61MP.
For pros who go birding and must get the shot, I'm sure TCs matter a ton, but for $950 I'm satisfied.
p.16 #10 · Pre-order: Sigma 100-400/5-6.3 DG DN OS FE ($949!)
I've now had the lens for about two months. Here's a quick recap.
The OIS is sort of audible sometimes but I don't find it worse than most other lenses I've had. I have not had any disconnects or errors, battery drain or the AF stop working, but I usually start hikes with camera and lenses stowed in backpack and then only hike with lens for 30-60 mins when at the photo location.
AF seems good to very good. On occasion it will not lock on a nearby target instead persistently focusing on the background, but I don't remember which AF settings I used to use then and the more I've used the lens and gotten used to it, the less it is happening. So maybe that's just me getting used to the A7RIV and Sigma 100-400.
I didn't think the minimum focusing distance would bother me, but there were surprisingly moments when photographing hummingbirds that I got too close and had to step back.
I really can't fault the image quality. The lower F-stop compared to the GM didn't bother me, I'd need a more substantial improvement to make a real difference.
I'm a bit torn about 1.4x teleconverter, it would have been nice for a compact travel setup. But cropping 1.4x on the A7RIV should be workable when traveling.
I can recommend this lens despite having a couple short-comings versus the 100-400 GM (minimum focus distance is probably biggest, then teleconverter, then AF - for me at least). The advantages are clearly price and weight, which amounts to one of Sigma 45, Samyang 75/45/35 1.8 or Sony 35 1.8.
Partially cross-posting a few hummingbird pictures from the FE Images thread to cap off the impressions. This was my first attempt at hummingbirds ever, so I'm not a Ronny/birdied/arbitrage but the lens was easy enough to use and it's really more down to me than the lens/camera combo.
p.16 #11 · Pre-order: Sigma 100-400/5-6.3 DG DN OS FE ($949!)
lora_to wrote:
I can recommend this lens despite having a couple short-comings versus the 100-400 GM (minimum focus distance is probably biggest, then teleconverter, then AF - for me at least). The advantages are clearly price and weight, which amounts to one of Sigma 45, Samyang 75/45/35 1.8 or Sony 35 1.8.
I feel like that's a great point! I really enjoyed your pictures, especially the first one. It seems like you've gotten a lot of enjoyment out of it.
p.16 #14 · Pre-order: Sigma 100-400/5-6.3 DG DN OS FE ($949!)
Some great images here.
For me, if only there was a reasonable likelihood of a TC. I like to travel light for work and packing a 200-600 is just out of the question. A TC would maximize flexibility if, as happened last year, I stumbled on an unexpected opportunity.
Since Sigma is probably unlikely to license TC ability with Sony (or maybe Sony recognizes that TCs are a key product differentiator), I reluctantly find myself eyeing Sony’s heavier but excellent 100-400 instead. If only ...
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p.16 #7 · Pre-order: Sigma 100-400/5-6.3 DG DN OS FE ($949!)↑
thousandths
Offline · 117 posts
Oct 09, 2020
06:43 AM
zz wrote:
Great shots and some very pleasing colors! Did you think the size and reach of the Sigma was a good fit for a day like...Show more →
I'm not an experienced wildlife shooter, at all, but I think it's entirely fine for a cost-effective superzoom lens. I guess in my very amateur opinion, having an extra 200mm of reach wouldn't really have dramatically changed how I use it when considering the crop affordance of 61MP.
For pros who go birding and must get the shot, I'm sure TCs matter a ton, but for $950 I'm satisfied.
p.16 #15 · Pre-order: Sigma 100-400/5-6.3 DG DN OS FE ($949!)
Some great images here.
For me, if only there was a reasonable likelihood of a TC. I like to travel light for work and packing a 200-600 is just out of the question. A TC would maximize flexibility if, as happened last year, I stumbled on an unexpected opportunity.
Since Sigma is probably unlikely to license TC ability with Sony (or maybe Sony recognizes that TCs are a key product differentiator), I reluctantly find myself eyeing Sony’s heavier but excellent 100-400 instead. If only ...
——-
p.16 #7 · Pre-order: Sigma 100-400/5-6.3 DG DN OS FE ($949!)↑
thousandths
Offline · 117 posts
Oct 09, 2020
06:43 AM
zz wrote:
Great shots and some very pleasing colors! Did you think the size and reach of the Sigma was a good fit for a day like...Show more →
I'm not an experienced wildlife shooter, at all, but I think it's entirely fine for a cost-effective superzoom lens. I guess in my very amateur opinion, having an extra 200mm of reach wouldn't really have dramatically changed how I use it when considering the crop affordance of 61MP.
For pros who go birding and must get the shot, I'm sure TCs matter a ton, but for $950 I'm satisfied.
p.16 #19 · Pre-order: Sigma 100-400/5-6.3 DG DN OS FE ($949!)
Stefano Ianiro posted a first impressions video of the lens, shooting birds in the backyard. Sounds like he plans to do more videos, it will be interesting to see how the lens does in more challenging situations with a seasoned wildlife photographer.
p.16 #20 · Pre-order: Sigma 100-400/5-6.3 DG DN OS FE ($949!)
Well, I picked one of these up last week as I thought I might like the extra reach and that it might outperform my 70-200G, but alas, I think not. I don't do much birds or wildlife, so what I really needed was good sharpness to the edge of the frame and while it's a good match for the Sony at 135mm and actually bests it at 200mm where my Sony is the weakest, it's pretty weak at 100mm (which makes sense, the lens is likely more used at the long end) and I've never shot such a long lens before and noticed that at infinity from 300mm+, the atmospheric conditions are really noticeable (weird smearing due to temperature differential in the air) and I wouldn't really use it at those focal lengths for landscape use, which is what I would primarily use it for, so for me it's more of a 135-300 lens, and I think I can get something better for that use in a smaller, lighter package. Certainly not a bad lens for the price, but it's not a fantastic landscape lens IMO. I think I'll probably look into adapting a 70-200 f4L II for what I need.
zz wrote:
