Pro's using sigma lenses

JaGWiRE wrote in post #2425420
That too. A lot of people just send there lenses into Sigma for calibration or whatever and it's all good.
I'm curious, if the front element or something cracks (your fault or whatever) under warranty, what do they charge?

the charges have been pretty good and they do a lot of free upkeep, the fact is you get it back in 4-6 weeks unlike Canon where you go nuts looking for it after 3 months , only tohave it resent back to you still broken with a charge.

Broncobear wrote in post #2424241
Yes, all attributes to why you should choose one over the other in regards to your equipment but I think what I was trying to get at in this thread was whether or not a pro can be taken seriously with a set of sigma lenses as opposed to a series of L lenses.

Based on the responses, I now know better.

these kinds of threads allow me to learn the mindset which is just as much apart of the business as learning about the dof.

Thanks to everyone who responded.

in this month's professinal photographer UK, a professional photographer is proudly displaying his sigma lens in the article. he is doing a high fashion shoot.

i would much rather have a product that works for me, than using something just for the sake of it and how i will look using it. i think there are a few out there who feel they are better photographers simply because their lens is white.

Broncobear wrote in post #2425531
the charges have been pretty good and they do a lot of free upkeep, the fact is you get it back in 4-6 weeks unlike Canon where you go nuts looking for it after 3 months , only tohave it resent back to you still broken with a charge.

Well, to be fair, Sigma is mostly a lens company. I believe they make bodies (does anyone use them??) and stuff like flash, but I am certain the majority of their sales are from lenses. Canon on other hand makes P&S, DSLR bodies, film bodies, video cameras, printers, flash units, etc etc.

LOL actually Canon outsources a lot of their lens development/constructi​on from Sigma, soemthing I learned a few weeks ago.

Broncobear wrote in post #2425531
the charges have been pretty good and they do a lot of free upkeep, the fact is you get it back in 4-6 weeks unlike Canon where you go nuts looking for it after 3 months , only tohave it resent back to you still broken with a charge.

While I am Sigma supporter, love the lenses, for the value they are great, yada-yada-yada...... my experience with Canon support has been anything like this. When I send stuff in for repairs to the normal service center I have never waited longer then 2 weeks for a round trip. When using CPS, the speed is half that again. My experience with both companies service organizations has been surprisingly very nice.

liza wrote in post #2422784
I had the same experience when I tried the Sigma 70-200 at a ball game. Though the exposure was fine in this very well lit gym, the autofocus sucked for basketball. As you said, if my only need was for a portrait or wedding lens, the Sigma would be fine. But since I sell my sports images, I need Canon glass for the faster, more reliable autofocus.

Not even close to my experience, particularly on a 1d body. Reports like these make me wonder what is going on out there... if I am extremely lucky or just extremely easy.

There is a speed difference though when using Sigma lenses on 20/30D bodies. So I have to ask, is it the lens that is the issue, or is it an engineered thing that Canon is doing to create the difference. Because on 1D class bodies, there is no slow down with the same lens.

It is a well known fact that Canon does not share its programming with 2nd parties. Sigmas, Tamron, etc have to "back engineer" their lenses to perform with both Canon and Nikon. When the 20D first arrived there were some comments about this being an occasional problem. It got blown out of proportion of course but it did signal a potential problem area.

Croasdail wrote in post #2425812
While I am Sigma supporter, love the lenses, for the value they are great, yada-yada-yada...... my experience with Canon support has been anything like this. When I send stuff in for repairs to the normal service center I have never waited longer then 2 weeks for a round trip. When using CPS, the speed is half that again. My experience with both companies service organizations has been surprisingly very nice.

Remember Canon USA and Canon Canada are two differen't beasts..

CANON USA is wonderful, if I lived in the US, I would be tooting their horn.

Canon Canada service sucks

you can even look at their difference in the website.

check out canon.com and canon.ca

The service of Canon Canada has a reputation for being very very poor, worse than even what sigma was years ago.

Broncobear wrote in post #2426029
Remember Canon USA and Canon Canada are two differen't beasts..

CANON USA is wonderful, if I lived in the US, I would be tooting their horn.

Canon Canada service sucks

you can even look at their difference in the website.

check out canon.com and canon.ca

The service of Canon Canada has a reputation for being very very poor, worse than even what sigma was years ago.

Once again, us Canadians get the jilt. Even with prices .

There is a thread going on in "EF & FS lenses" that is parallel with this one. Basically it deals with 'error 99' but is traced back to the failure of some lenses and some camera models essentially the XT.

Pop on over, just another reason to stay with original brands.

thanks jon, I'll dig around to see if I can find it

I can pretty well say that I am a regular customer for Sigma service because I am quite rough on my equipment. As for Error 99, etc., they now have new firmware instead of chip replacement for easy upgrade. All my lens have been updated including the flash.

As for performance, there is differences between canon and sigma but not much. Speed wise USM vs HSM depends on the body. On 20D and Rebel bodies are pretty much same. On the Canon 1Ds MKII body, the canon USM seems to be very fast.
the Flash (Sigma ST500 Super vs Canon 550), is almost same except refresh rate and accuracy. Canon seems a bit better becasue of extra battery and also more accurate. From time to time, my sigma flash will misfire and not get it right. As for Canon 550 is fast. The 580 is much better and seems brighter.

Broncobear wrote in post #2425531
the charges have been pretty good and they do a lot of free upkeep, the fact is you get it back in 4-6 weeks unlike Canon where you go nuts looking for it after 3 months , only tohave it resent back to you still broken with a charge.

I totally agree becuase it took Canon forever after I had to phone them up and chase them to return my lens. While at Sigma, I had it back within a few days.

Jon, The Elder wrote in post #2420147
You obviously have not used either version of the 70/200L or you would not make such a comment. It is such a superior lens in every aspect, including build, that others are rated against it.

Well, I hope YOU have used the equivalent EX to make such a statement too!

JaGWiRE wrote in post #2425688
Well, to be fair, Sigma is mostly a lens company. I believe they make bodies (does anyone use them??) and stuff like flash, but I am certain the majority of their sales are from lenses. Canon on other hand makes P&S, DSLR bodies, film bodies, video cameras, printers, flash units, etc etc.

I lose track of the number of times I have posted this comment since joining POTN usually to tweak the tail of the odd L-blind member!

Croasdail wrote in post #2425823
Not even close to my experience, particularly on a 1d body. Reports like these make me wonder what is going on out there... if I am extremely lucky or just extremely easy.

There is a speed difference though when using Sigma lenses on 20/30D bodies. So I have to ask, is it the lens that is the issue, or is it an engineered thing that Canon is doing to create the difference. Because on 1D class bodies, there is no slow down with the same lens.

Both Bodies and lens DOES matter. Sigma lens does have trouble focusing in low light. I have access to both Canon and Sigma 70-200 2.8 lens so i can make fair comparison. Use the Flash IR function to help focus with Sigma. As for Body, the 1D does focus better too. Good example is try installing a 300mm f2.8 with 2x converter. The Digital Rebel takes forever to focus while the 1dsmk2 is almost instant.