I am not sure you have a great copy of the lens. The images to date from yours are fair to good. This image is the best to date. Don't know how much post processing, if any on the image. Also without seeing full resolutions samples it is hard to judge a lens. Some owners have posted stellar images, which is why, in comparison, I am wondering about your copy.
Here are some lens questions:
How it it use - too long, too heavy? Can hand hold easily? Definitely need a tripod to use it at 500mm? Soft beyond, say, 400mm compared to other focal lengths? How is the OS? How is the finish on the lens barrel?
Jim,
1--I was not looking to get a great lens buying this lens. If I was looking for one I would have bought a 500mm lens in the price if $7000.00 or $6000.00(that I did have for almost 5 years) and not this lens that I paid $970.00 for.
2--Now why I will keep this lens (while waiting for a great 500/6 from Nikon, it will be for sure man times the cost of this Sigma)? I had so much fun "hunting" the deer with this lens in my backyard, and the birds .... I am willing to trade the great quality of Canon, Nikon 500/4 for this lens, that delivers just acceptable IQ, but I can do things that would be impossible with the great but huge and heavy lenses.
2 years ago I went to the bears country AK. There was lots of hiking, at times for miles and hours. My great len stayed home. A fellow photographer bought a great lens (a Nikon )< that he had to leave behind in his tent every day> He bought that great lens just for this trip>
this is probably the best shot until now you have shown with that lens. Your technique might be improving. I know out of experience that it is not that easy to use a long stabilized lens. It would be interesting to see some crops. I would be curious to see your results after more tries. I have had some difficulties in the beginning with the 80-400OS, and after some time I got very sharp pictures. Did you try to find the sweet spot of that lens... the 80-400OS needs f8-f11 on the long end to get sharp pictures for instance. Once you know that, IQ improves dramatically (I shoot @ISO800 under sunlight with that lens to get the proper shutter speed and the proper "sweet spot" aperture)
No,
I haven't tried to find its sweet spot yet. until now I only try to squeeze out all the reach and to shoot as fast as I can (wide open). With this butterfly I am starting to look for quality instead of just reach. You are right, one has to give oneself time to learn a new thing specially a new long lens.
gugs wrote:
this is probably the best shot until now you have shown with that lens. Your technique might be improving. I know out of experience that it is not that easy to use a long stabilized lens. It would be interesting to see some crops. I would be curious to see your results after more tries. I have had some difficulties in the beginning with the 80-400OS, and after some time I got very sharp pictures. Did you try to find the sweet spot of that lens... the 80-400OS needs f8-f11 on the long end to get sharp pictures for instance. Once you know that, IQ improves dramatically (I shoot @ISO800 under sunlight with that lens to get the proper shutter speed and the proper "sweet spot" aperture)
Bob-
As you have perceived, there is a lot to obtaining great images/IQ with any lens and especially so with a long lens. And even more so if one has little experience in using long lenses. In the majority of cases, it takes quite a lot of time to acquire the proper technique to obtain consistently good IQ when shooting at >300-mm.
It may be heartening to hear that, now the 150-500 is getting into the hands of experienced long lens users, the reports are showing some promise...
I know that my non-DG Bigma has more capabilities than I can put to use. I will caution you, though, the OS on the 150-500 isn't a cure all. You'd be advised to use Auto ISO and shutter-priority at 1/500-sec or faster when hand holding for images. Imaging at long focal lengths is a different animal... I feel I'm doing good to get 10% keepers when shooting BIF with my Bigma. The OS would be welcome/an aid for stationary objects/landscapes.
Whether the 150-500 falls into the camp of being like the older 170-500 (hard to get a good copy); comparable to the Bigma or somewhere in between remains to be seen. Thus far, from what I've read & seen, it is possibly closer to the Bigma in its capabilities.
Keep using/posting and let us know how it & your usage progresses.
nugeny wrote:
No,
I haven't tried to find its sweet spot yet. until now I only try to squeeze out all the reach and to shoot as fast as I can (wide open). With this butterfly I am starting to look for quality instead of just reach. You are right, one has to give oneself time to learn a new thing specially a new long lens.
Considering that technique, that is a pretty good shot. Getting really crisp images at 500mm is quite difficult with any lens, even with image stabilization. You're really challenging the lens. You just have to eliminate as much motion as you can before pressing that shutter. Solid stance, extra support when you can find it (like leaning against a tree or wall), breathing technique, learning to squeeze the shutter button carefully, and then letting image stabilization do the final mop-up of residual movement will all help sharpen the image. It's the same approach marksmen take to setting up a rifle shot because the challenge is the same - eliminate as much movement as possible.
This is the best review/images I've seen with respect to that lens so far:
