Sigma 120-300 - Not Happy :(

Have a check on a previous discussion on this lens ……

https://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthre​ad.php?t=184341

I have a 300 mm f/4 IS and tested with my 350 D with Servo AI mode took me a while for tuned up and start to get good results until I did get a good setup. I suggest you firts to test in Single shot + center focus and see if still you are getting blurred images, just to be sure the if the lens is working fine or not. Last chance it´s try focus test ... At least, it is I shall try ...

Had a reply from sigma uk
who want more info..

I had a test this morning with servo, one shot and manual focus and non look better than the others..

As for the focus behind.. well yes but thats always the case of missing some no matter what lens

absoloutly excellent response from sigma uk .. I explained i havent got warranty and its a non DG .. there practically falling over themselves to be nice and helpfull.. have looked at my pics.. have spoken to me on the phone and explained all the processs.. they want me to take some sample shots in controlled settings they have given me so they know more.. could be forward/back focus .. they said they will phone me when they have the new sample shots in front of them and they explained what would haappen next and price if that is the problem only 33 quid .. all in all exlellent customer support so far 10/10 sigma service

Kipax
Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but I too am in the same boat as yourself, very soft shots 120-300mm f2.8= a lot of cash, I bought this lens due to the great reviews it was getting on here and else where. To date I have had very few decent shots from it. It has been with Sigma UK for 2 weeks to be tested with my camera, camera was then sent back to me with the wrong postcode on it and therefore did not get to me for the BTCC at knockhill which I was raging about They ordered a new circuit from Japan 3 weeks ago now and I received a call from Daniel at Sigma saying japan have issues with production of this chip and it will be 50 days to get it made and then fitted to my lens I now have the lens back and await Sigma telling me they have the lens circuit in the UK. I will then send it down at a cost of another £20 to have it fitted To be fair they have said that they will now repair it for free and I have been very impressed with Daniel on the phone. BUT this is not what you expect for a lens costing that amount of money
So yes it will maybe only cost you £35 for the repair but you can kiss good bye to the next 2months of the football season
Sorry to tell you the above Ricky

hmmm all kinda fits in.. he said they will have the lens for two days then send it back to me... but will take up to 3 weeks for the chip... i presume i gotta then send back again.

It's usable and especialy at night.. also I am doing the testing for them.. I agree impressed with daniel on phone.. helpfullness etc.. hmmm I love the versatlity of the lens and it does great at night as using noise ninga anyways so nothing gonna be sharp at iso 1600.. but daytime I am better with the 200 i am thinking... sigh..

I wonder....can we all keep each other in the loop on these?

Alhtough I do not have the 120-300 I know a couple of people that do. Everyone that I know with a 1 series camera has had to send it back to Sigma for re-chipping. The good news is that it is usually back very quickly and it comes back super sharp.

Michael

I shoot a 120-300 with a 1 series camera. The first shot is not bad. As mentioned earlier you must sharpen with a 1 Series Canon.
I found that good technique is critical.

Over time my results got better and better.

My key elements.

1.) It is long glass it mutiplies your moverments, you must be very still.

2.) Give the camera contrast to focus on. A mono colored jersey will yeild poor results.

3.) Proper exposure effects sharpness in my experience.

I would do a tripod test. It eliminates many potential causes.

http://www.smugmug.com​/gallery/1454360

Here is a comparison I did between a my 120-300 DG and my canon 70-200 2.8 IS The photo's title references the lens and the settings.
I used the canon as a sharpness benchmark, my goal was not to compare the lenses.

I got results similar to what you are showing until I got the hang of it.

Good luck.

mspringfield wrote in post #2006756
Alhtough I do not have the 120-300 I know a couple of people that do. Everyone that I know with a 1 series camera has had to send it back to Sigma for re-chipping. The good news is that it is usually back very quickly and it comes back super sharp.

Michael

Well, you can't say that anymore. I have a 1 Series camera and a Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8. No issues with focus accuracy whatsoever and I never have had.

Agree with the comments above. Shooting long fast glass takes some learning and knowing what to expect. A 1d and a big lens is not intended to be a P/S... there is some work and setup there to get the results you want. The images can come out very "raw" needing post processesing unless you do setup the camera to up contrast and sharpness. Consumer cameras are doing all that work in camera - it is happening - your just not seeing it. Even the 20/30D's sharpen their jpegs in camera. Unprocessed images from 1d's do come out soft looking. The reason it looks worse then your 70-200 is that the DOF is tighter at the same distance and magnification, much more so then the small lenses... hence more unforgiving. It's kind of funny that the more you spend on something, the more work it can create for you. But once you have your equipment dialed to your preferences, you should be set.

One of the worst things that goes on here on this forum is people publishing straight from camera shots peeping at pixels claiming they have done nothing to the images. That would be great if this were a point and shoot forum.... but the reality is any really good image needs post work done. It was that way with film, it is that way now with digital. Continue to work with Simga on this, glad they are working with ya... but also set expectations with youself that it's the final image on what ever medium you choose that is what is important. If you are planning to produce poster sized prints, this sharpness could be an issue - might not be. But anything inside of 11x17, these images will really be usable and produce some nice results. Good luck with it.

Kipax, I looked more closely at the first image and it was under exposed.
“fixing it” in photo shop does not help the sharpness.

I am no photo shop expert but I post processed it and it looks pretty good.
You have your edit repost permission set to no so I can not reprocess it.

There is NO WAY these are acceptable results.
I get better results with my bottom of the range sigma 100-300/4.5-6.7DL -honestly,i'm not kidding

You have either a serious missfocus problem or the lens is abit of a dud

Cadwell wrote in post #2007192
Well, you can't say that anymore. I have a 1 Series camera and a Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8. No issues with focus accuracy whatsoever and I never have had.

Glenn,

Its good to know that they seem to have the problem fixed. I had one when I was shooting Nikon and loved it. It was one of the most versitile lenses that I owned.

Michael

mspringfield wrote in post #2006756
Alhtough I do not have the 120-300 I know a couple of people that do. Everyone that I know with a 1 series camera has had to send it back to Sigma for re-chipping. The good news is that it is usually back very quickly and it comes back super sharp.

Michael

I have a 1 series camera but not a sigma 120-300 but I have used one of the older versions with no problems.

i've used one several times and finally bought one of my own (it should be here tomorrow). i've never had any focussing issues, but i've been shooting with long lenses for some time now.
fingers crossed i get a good one, hey?! i'll be using it this weekend so i'll post some samples.