Sigma 100-300 f4 with 1.4 converter

I've rented out this lens as I'm going to the British grand prix next week. I just wanted to ask people what this lens was like all round, I've read good things about it, but would like to know if anyone has shot any motor sport with it. If so, I'd like to see some examples! Thanks for any replies

Firstly, you bastard

Secondly, are you allowed to bring a 300mm lens in? It would be worth checking the limits.

Lol only the friday but still brilliant none the less! Have you had any experience with this lens? As fa as im aware, 300 is the limit, but ive seen loads of people with the 100-400 canon so should be fine!

100-400 with 1.4 has been reported as a waste of time.
Search for the thread here somehwere..

Dont understand why you would not be allowed to take a 300= into a GP....its not like they actually let you too near the track, theres fences everywhere

All the best.

Al

Hi Al, Thanks for the info.

I actually wanted the canon 100-400 but it was already hired out, so i opted for the sigma 100-300 f4 instead. I don't have any experience with this lens so its a bit of a gamble but i think it should be suitable. I got the 1.4 converter as well which should give about 420mm to play with. Im just unsure of how its going to perform, but Im hoping ill be able to get some good shots nonetheless!

With regards to the limits on lenses, some tracks do do this. A lot of the american circuits do but less so in the UK i think. I saw plenty of people with canon 100-400 at brands hatch and silverstone over the past few years so should be ok!

That's a good sign.

No I haven't used the 100-300 at all before sorry. If you can get close enough to the track and use a shorter focal length then you'll probably find it easier to use the slower shutter speed you'll likely want for some nice panning motion blur. Panning shots, if the shutter speed is slow enough, can also make fences almost invisible.

I'd mix it up a bit and review your images as you go. Prior to going make sure the 420mm set up is sharp on some static shots, and check the AF performance too - panning some birds is probably a good test.

the 100-400 struggles because of the max apature being f5.6...

A guy I know shoots awsome Airshows witha 300f4 = 1.4 converter...

What body you using

@phreeky, thanks for the advice, i'll make sure i do that!

@ando27 well thats a good sign i guess, id of thought you'd need quick autofocus for doing an air show? Im using a 550d body at the moment, although I'm hoping to upgrade to a 7d in the near future

I have one and it works fine with a 1.4 converter . The lens is rather heavy , so if you're not use to the weight , you might think about a monopod . You also might need a monopod if your useing a slow shutter speed @ 420mm . It just depends on how good you are at hand holding the lens . But there is no reason you shouldn't be able to get great shots with this lens .

With the hood and tc, it's also rather long . So if there is any limit on the lenght of the lens , I'd leave the hood and tc off when you go in .

But , I don't shoot motor sports .I shoot mainly youth baseball , and I hardly ever use a tc for that . When I use it with a tc , it's mainly for wildlife/ birds .

phreeky wrote in post #14655792
panning some birds is probably a good test.

I'd skip that . I've never seen a car that can move like a bird . Of course it would depend on the size of the bird , but more then likely it would be user error and not the lens fault .

I'm sure you can find some moving cars to practice on . After all , that's what your going to be shooting anyway .

What tc are you going to be using ?

Going to be using the 1.4 sigma tc

antrobus wrote in post #14656235
Going to be using the 1.4 sigma tc

That's what I use ...

Any good?

CountryBoy wrote in post #14656066
I'd skip that . I've never seen a car that can move like a bird . Of course it would depend on the size of the bird , but more then likely it would be user error and not the lens fault .

I'm sure you can find some moving cars to practice on . After all , that's what your going to be shooting anyway.

Yes well, it's a compromise test - way more erratic than a car, but F1 cars are a touch quicker than anything you'll be able to pan in your local suburb

Of course the failsafe is to pre-focus on the track (i.e. the apex) and then just follow the car into the corner and hit the shutter as required. I used to do that with the 50 F/1.8 with good results (just some local motorsport).

Here's a shot with the 100-300 and a 1.4 converter at full length and at 5.6. The auto focus was still pretty good even with the TC and kept up well, I was shooting in bright sunlight the whole time though. Its relatively sharp, good enough for web but you can see some softness when printed at 8x12. Without the tc though was pretty razor sharp at f4.

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