Sigma 50-150: Still problems out there?

I'll chime in. The Tokina 50-135 is fantastically sharp at all ranges. It's fast 2.8 and is built very well. It's autofocus is slow to go from infinity to the MFD or vise-versa. If I had a crop body, I'd have kept my 50-135 forever. It's a fantastic lens.

yogestee wrote in post #9424737
Allow me the weigh into the argument..

Hey, I wasn't trying to start an argument, really I wasn't

It just seems to me that the "it's probably user error" comments can be a bit of an unintended insult to some forum members...

yogestee wrote in post #9424737
I own the Version I and I've said this many times before, the Sigma 50-150mm f/2.8 is one of the nicest lenses I've owned/used in over 30 years of photography including some topshelf Nikkors and Canons..

I posted my own mini-review here when the lens was first released, and my first impressions were the same. From my initial testing I thought it was at least as good as my Canon 70-200 f/4L everywhere they overlapped and, of course, went to f/2.8 as well. Then I found the focusing issues?

yogestee wrote in post #9424737
It's not an easy lens to use,,it has its foibles..
<snip>
I did a test after being pissed off one day and shot my 50-150mm at f/2.8 mounted on a tripod with shutter remote.. Sharp images everytime.. handheld even at 250th sec the images were off,,not out of focus, just off.. My problem is user error, not the lens.. This does not happen on my 20D.. BTW,,AI Servo AF helps when handholding the 50-150mm..

On my 50D my 50-150mm front focused before AF Micro adjustment,,all is good now.. On my 20D it doesn't, so it's the combination of camera/lens not the lens alone..

Now that I've mastered this lens the results are nothing short of spectacular.. It's a lens not to be taken lightly and needs a lot of input from the photographer to get it right.. Shots need to be set up quite carefully to get the best out of this lens..

It sounds very much like you have one of the good ones but, as I said, I'm absolutely convinced there are a lot of bad copies out there. I've seen too many well conducted tests (including my own) to think they were user error. If you've seen my posts in the past, you'll see that I'm one of the first to point out people's errors in their focus testing methods - politely, of course I wonder if there are bad batches, since quite a few people have tried several copies with the same result. I tried 2 copies on a 350D, 400D, 20D and another camera (I forget which), so it was nothing to do with high pixel density. From my conversations with the Sigma techs, I got the distinct impression they were aware of problems. I don't believe the issues you've had are related to this issue, though. AF microadjust would not help the "problem lenses" since they focus perfectly beyond 2-3m.

Oh, and Karl (or anyone else who may know) - I see you've used the lens with a 1.4x teleconverter. Have you been able to tell how that affects the AF speed? If I were to try another one of these lenses, I'd occasionally be using it with the teleconverter for motorsports. Cheers

gcogger wrote in post #9425930
Hey, I wasn't trying to start an argument, really I wasn't

It just seems to me that the "it's probably user error" comments can be a bit of an unintended insult to some forum members... but some of them need it


I posted my own mini-review here when the lens was first released, and my first impressions were the same. From my initial testing I thought it was at least as good as my Canon 70-200 f/4L everywhere they overlapped and, of course, went to f/2.8 as well. Then I found the focusing issues?
I think it's better and also think it's better then my 100-300mm f/4 , and i have a very good 100-300mm f/4. It's a little sharper and the colors and contrast seems to "pop" more. But it is not as forgiving as my 100-300mm f/4.


Oh, and Karl (or anyone else who may know) - I see you've used the lens with a 1.4x teleconverter. Have you been able to tell how that affects the AF speed? If I were to try another one of these lenses, I'd occasionally be using it with the teleconverter for motorsports. Cheers

It handles a tc very good, i've used it for youth baseball and soccer, rodeos, and BIF.

CountryBoy wrote in post #9428814
It handles a tc very good, i've used it for youth baseball and soccer, rodeos, and BIF.

Works well with my Tamron SP 1.4X TC (the white model)..

gcogger wrote in post #9425930
Oh, and Karl (or anyone else who may know) - I see you've used the lens with a 1.4x teleconverter. Have you been able to tell how that affects the AF speed? If I were to try another one of these lenses, I'd occasionally be using it with the teleconverter for motorsports. Cheers

I honestly perceive no difference with the TC on. Just put it on and forget its their.

You know what, I'll video the lens going rack to rack with the lens cap on, time it with the video editor, then do the same thing with it attached to the TC. I'll try setup a better test where it has to focus on something too.

Now where is the charger for my video cam gone too

Thanks to all for the info

KarlosDaJackal wrote in post #9431283
I honestly perceive no difference with the TC on. Just put it on and forget its their.

You know what, I'll video the lens going rack to rack with the lens cap on, time it with the video editor, then do the same thing with it attached to the TC. I'll try setup a better test where it has to focus on something too.

Now where is the charger for my video cam gone too

Don't go to any trouble I was just after user impressions of the AF performance with the 1.4x fitted. I know my Canon 300mm f/4 slows down noticeably when I fit a TC, and it means I have to start tracking cars in AI-servo for longer before taking a shot (although it's still very usable).

Question:
Is the same learning curve applied when using Canon's 70-200 2.8 (non IS for argument sake)?

Erez

yogestee wrote in post #9424737
Allow me the weigh into the argument.. I own the Version I and I've said this many times before, the Sigma 50-150mm f/2.8 is one of the nicest lenses I've owned/used in over 30 years of photography including some topshelf Nikkors and Canons..

It's not an easy lens to use,,it has its foibles.. On my 20D I can go out and get shot after shot that are tack sharp even at f/2.8 at 150mm.. With my 50D it can be hard work and it's imperative to keep shutter speeds up.. I can get sharp images at 150th sec on my 20D but have trouble getting sharp images at times at 250th sec on my 50D at full aperture at 150mm.. To me it appears a high density sensor like the 50D's can struggle with the 50-150mm mounted.. Somehow camera movement is amplified in high density sensors.. I would go out and return with less keepers with my 50D than my 20D when shot at f/2.8..

I did a test after being pissed off one day and shot my 50-150mm at f/2.8 mounted on a tripod with shutter remote.. Sharp images everytime.. handheld even at 250th sec the images were off,,not out of focus, just off.. My problem is user error, not the lens.. This does not happen on my 20D.. BTW,,AI Servo AF helps when handholding the 50-150mm..

On my 50D my 50-150mm front focused before AF Micro adjustment,,all is good now.. On my 20D it doesn't, so it's the combination of camera/lens not the lens alone..

Now that I've mastered this lens the results are nothing short of spectacular.. It's a lens not to be taken lightly and needs a lot of input from the photographer to get it right.. Shots need to be set up quite carefully to get the best out of this lens..

Model = Canon EOS 50D
Exposure Time = 1/30"
F Number = F2.8
ISO Speed Ratings = 400
Focal Length = 150mm

Katzer1 wrote in post #9439072
Question:
Is the same learning curve applied when using Canon's 70-200 2.8 (non IS for argument sake)?

Erez

Probably.. Each lens has its own characteristics and limitations..

BLURLT2 wrote in post #9423408
I just received my Sigma 50-150 and am going to send it back for another copy.. The one I got had severe front focusing issues...so much that the micro-adjustment on my 50D could not correct the problem... I will give it one more try....

well, I received the second copy and experienced the same front focusing issues... slightly less, but enough to exceed the limitations of the 50D micro-adjustments.. I also noticed the front focusing was even worse at 150mm.... Oh well, time to go back to Canon....

BLURLT2 wrote in post #9472013
well, I received the second copy and experienced the same front focusing issues... slightly less, but enough to exceed the limitations of the 50D micro-adjustments.. I also noticed the front focusing was even worse at 150mm.... Oh well, time to go back to Canon....

Any pics to post?