Home Donate New Search Gallery How-To Books Links Workshops About Contact Sigma 150-500mm f/5-6.3 Intro Specifications Performance Recommendations Sigma 150-500mm f/5-6.3 (86mm filters, 63.2 oz./1,792g as shown, 7.2'/2.2m close focus, about $1,000). enlarge. The biggest source of support for this free website is when you use these links, especially this link directly to this lens at eBay and at Amazon when you get anything, regardless of the county in which you live. It comes in mounts for Nikon, Canon, Pentax, Minolta Maxxum, Sony and Sigma cameras. Thank you! Ken.
October 2010 Nikon Reviews Nikon Lenses Canon LEICA Pentax Tokina 150-500mm f/5.6 (1986-2000, manual focus)
Ideal for: Perfect for use on FX digital, DX digital and film. Not for: If 200mm or 300mm isn't long enough for wildlife for you, nothing is. Getting closer will get you better results than a longer lens.
Introduction top Intro Specifications Performance Recommendations Versions and Formats Compatibility
This Sigma 150-500mm's optics are superb, and its excellent stabilization system lets one shoot at 1/30 - 1/60 hand-held at 500mm! Autofocus is leisurely, so it's not ideal for action, but for nature, landscapes and portraits where you really need 500mm, go for it! Neither Nikon nor Canon offers any zoom beyond 300 or 400mm, and this lens' price, at $1,000, is very reasonable. It is at least as sharp as Nikon's lenses, and has almost no visible distortion. I'm impressed: it's sharp edge-to-edge, full-frame, at every aperture and focal length. Bravo! The 150-500mm has instant manual-focus override: just grab the ring at any time for manual focus; no switches needed. The biggest drawback is that manual focus is backwards on Nikon. I hope to test the larger and more expensive Sigma 50-500mm lens later.
Versions and Formats intro top The Sigma 150-500 comes in mounts for Nikon, Canon, Pentax, Minolta Maxxum, Sony and Sigma cameras. I am only addressing the Nikon version here. You may make the usual extrapolations for other brands of camera body. This is a full-frame lens optimized for 35mm film and FX cameras, and I will be testing it on a Nikon D3. You again may make the usual extrapolations for use on DX and other format Canon cameras.
This is not a Nikon lens. Nikon does not warrant anything about anything. I found this Sigma lens worked fine on every camera with which I tried it, but as a discount-brand lens completely unassociated with Nikon, it is always possible that some camera you own today, or buy in a few years, won't work with this lens. This aside, this is Sigma's best attempt at an AF-S and G lens. Therefore, everything should work perfectly on every digital Nikon, both FX and DX, and even on Nikon's cheapest digitals like the D40, D40x, D60, D3000, D3100 and D5000. It also should be perfect on decent or recent AF film cameras like the F6, F100, F5, N80 and N75. The incompatibilities for older or cheaper film cameras are that: 1.) It won't autofocus with the cheapest new AF 35mm cameras like the N55, but if you focus manually, everything else works great. Even if you lose autofocus, these cameras have in-finder focus confirmation dots to help you. 2.) Late 1980s ~ early 1990s AF cameras like the N90s, N70 and F4 will focus just fine, but you'll lose VR. You'll have Program and Shutter-priority modes, but lose Manual and Aperture-priority since you have no way to set the aperture on the camera or on the lens. 3.) You're really pushing it with the oldest AF cameras like the N2020, N6006 and N8008. You'll have no AF, confused exposure modes, and no VR. Manual focus is fine, along with electronic focus indications. 4.) Since it has no aperture ring, it's just about useless with manual focus film cameras. See Nikon Lens Compatibility for details with your camera. Read down the "AF-S, AF-I," "G" and "VR" columns for this lens. You'll get the least of all the features displayed in all columns, since "G" (gelding) is a deliberate handicap which removes features.
Sigma 150-500mm f/5-6.3. enlarge.
Specifications top Intro Specifications Performance Recommendations
Name top Sigma calls this the Sigma 150-500mm F5-6.3 APO DG OS HSM. APO: Better optics. Doesn't really mean apochromatic. DG: Last-decade marketing fluff implying these work on digital cameras – duh. OS: Optical (Image) Stabilization. Same as Nikon's VR and Canon's IS. HSM: Hyper-Sonic Motor: quiet internal AF motor. Same as Nikon's SWM and Canon's USM.
Optics top 21 elements in 15 groups. Sigma claims 3 SLD elements, which are the same thing as Nikon's ED glass. It's multicoated, which Sigma calls Super Multi Layer Coating. Rear focusing.
Diaphragm top 9 straight blades. Stops down to f/22-29.
Coverage top Film, FX and DX.
Focal Length top 150-500mm. When used on a DX camera, it gives angles of view similar to what a 220-750mm lens gives when used on an FX or 35mm camera.
Angle of View top 16.4° - 5.0° on FX and 35mm.
Close Focus top 7.2 feet (2.2 m).
Maximum Reproduction Ratio top 1:5.2.
Hard Infinity Focus Stop? top No. You have to let the AF system focus at infinity.
Focus Scale top Yes.
Depth-of-Field Scale top No.
Infra-Red Focus Index top No.
Aperture Ring top No.
Tripod Collar top Part Number TS-31, included. Removable.
Filter Thread top 86mm, plastic. Does not rotate. Pumps in and our as you zoom.
Stabilization (OS, a.k.a. VR or IS) top Claims 4 stops improvement.
Size top Sigma specifies 9.9" x 3.7" (252 x 94.7 millimeters).
Weight top Lens alone: 58.350 oz. (1,654.2g), measured. With tripod collar: 63.225 oz. (1,792.4g), measured. Sigma specifies 67.4 oz. (1,910g).
Hood top Plastic bayonet hood, included.
Case top Case, Sigma 150-500mm f/5-6.3. A nice padded case is included.
Made in top Japan.
Teleconverters top
Packaging top Micro-corrugated cardboard box. Lens in case inside. Paperwork and two straps lie on top of case inside box. Box, Sigma 150-500mm f/5-6.3.
Performance top Intro Specifications Performance Recommendations Overall Focus Bokeh Color Coma Distortion Ergonomics Eyeblow Falloff Filters Focal Lengths, effective Ghosts Lateral Color Fringes Maximum Apertures Mechanics Sharpness Sunstars Survivability Tripod Collar VR, IS & OS Zooming
Overall performance top The Sigma 150-500mm f/5-6.3 is optically superb, but feels gritty mechanically as do most Sigma lenses. Sigma is a discount brand; it lacks the finesse of better products like those from Nikon and Canon.
Focus performance top AF at f/6.3 I had no problems on a Nikon D3.
AF Speed AF speed is leisurely. This lets it focus precisely at 500mm and not hang-up, but it's not what you want for sports. If you are shooting action, get the lens in the general vicinity of your subject with the manual focus ring first, and it ought to do pretty well tracking small variations in distance.
AF Accuracy AF always was right-on up through about 300mm. At 500mm, my sample focused a little behind the subject. This will vary with your on sample of lens and camera, and if it's a problem, most cameras now have manual fine-tuning adjustments.
Manual Focus Manual focus is swell. Just grab the ring at any time. It feels better than most Sigma lenses; it's pretty smooth.
Bokeh performance top Bokeh, the character of out of focus backgrounds, not simply how far out of focus they are, is usually pretty good. Look out at 500mm: thermal currents in the air will affect bokeh.
Color Rendition performance top I didn't notice any difference from my NIKKOR lenses.
Coma performance top None.
Distortion performance top The Sigma 150-500mm f/5-6.3 has no visible distortion, which is extremely good for any zoom. Its tiny amount of pincushion distortion can be corrected even further for more critical use by plugging these figures into Photoshop's lens distortion filter. These aren't facts or specifications, they are the results of my research that requires hours of photography and calculations on the resulting data.
© 2010 KenRockwell.com. All rights reserved. In my copy of Photoshop CS5, this is the first lens for which correction magically applied itself from some mysterious database.
Ergonomics (handling and ease-of-use) performance top Controls, Sigma 150-500mm f/5-6.3. enlarge. This is a big lens (1,792g, 86mm filters), but not much bigger than Nikon's 70-200mm VR II (1,540g, 77mm filters) or Canon's 70-200mm f/2.8 IS II (1,490g, 77mm filters). Half the lens moves in and out as you zoom, so the zoom ring is stiff. Manual focus is easy, but it turns backwards on Nikon. The tripod collar comes off. It looks like a grip with which to carry the lens and/or camera, but it isn't particularly comfortable.
Eyeblow performance top This is a big lens moving a lot of glass as it's zoomed, and surprisingly very little air blows out of the eyepiece.
Falloff (darkened corners) performance top Falloff on FX isn't bad. It's only slightly visible wide-open. It won't be an issue at all on DX (see crop factor). I've exaggerated this by shooting a gray field and placing these on a gray background.
Filters, use with performance top 86mm is a big filter. Don't buy cheap filters: at 500mm, any lack of flatness in your filters will rob sharpness. It's easy to test filters: look through them with a small telescope (or pair of binoculars) at a distant object, and if the image remains perfectly clear, you're fine. Even the smallest filter imperfections look horrible thought a small telescope. The plastic filter ring doesn't rotate while focused or zoomed. It doesn't move while focused, but it does pump in and out as zoomed.
Focal Lengths, effective performance top The effective maximum focal length shortens at closer distances. At infinity where you need it, you get 150-500mm. The 500mm end gives the same angle of view as a real 500mm lens. At 4 meters (12 feet), this 150-500mm lens needs to be set to 400mm to give the same angle-of-view as a real 300mm lens. It never really gets to 500mm at closer distances.
Ghosts and Flare performance top I almost went blind pointing this big lens into the sun, and there still aren't any ghosts. Here are shots at three different zoom settings. Bravo!
Lateral Color Fringes performance top There are no lateral color fringes on the D3, which would correct them automatically.
Maximum and Minimum Apertures Performance top
Mechanics and Construction performance top Rear, Sigma 150-500mm f/5-6.3. enlarge. The Sigma 150-500mm f/5-6.3 is a mix of metal and plastic. The biggest reason I've never bought a Sigma lens is because I've never felt confident that they would last. This lens feels OK.
Filter Threads Plastic.
Hood Plastic bayonet.
Hood Mount Plastic.
Forebarrel Plastic.
Focus Ring Plastic; rubber covered.
Zoom Ring Plastic; rubber covered.
Aftbarrel Mostly metal.
Internals Seem like mostly plastic.
Mount Metal. It grabs when mounted and unmounted from my Nikons. It doesn't attach and remove smoothly as do Nikon lenses on Nikons or Canon lenses on Canon cameras.
Markings Paint.
Identity Painted on barrel.
Serial Number Sticker bottom rear of barrel, near mount.
Ass-Gasket (dust seal at mount) No.
Noises When Shaken Mild clicking from the diaphragm blades and actuation system.
Made in Japan.
Weaknesses As a pumper zoom, don't bang the front of the lens or you'll possibly destroy the zoom system. As a motor-incorporated lens, you loose AF if the motor dies.
Sharpness performance top Warning 1: Image sharpness depends more on you than your lens. Warning 2: Lens sharpness doesn't mean much to good photographers. With those caveats, the Sigma 150-500mm f/5-6.3 is really sharp! It's easy to review, because I can't say anything bad about it. It's sharp at every setting all over the frame. For instance, it's sharper in the corners at 200mm than the old Nikon 70-200mm VR. If yours isn't sharp at 500mm wide-open, be sure your AF system is getting perfect focus. If you're not getting sharp results at 500mm, remember that on most days, atmospheric shimmer from air temperature differences will be a significant degradation to sharpness at longer distances.
Sunstars performance top With its straight 9-bladed diaphragm, it ought to make magnificent 18-pointed sunstars on bright points of light.
Survivability performance top The Sigma 150-500mm f/5-6.3 seems tougher than most Sigma lenses, even if it is mostly plastic. So long as you don't bang the front of the lens on anything and the AF motor doesn't die; it ought to serve you well.
Tripod Collar performance top The tripod collar removes if you rotate it appropriately and pull it off the back of the 150-500. It has no click stops or detents. The lens rotates somewhat grittily after you loosen the grab screw. It is not smooth as are most Nikon and Canon tripod collars. It has a long foot, but only one threaded hole. It is far enough away from the bottom of the lens (tall enough) that it clears the bottom of professional bodies like the Nikon D3s without any interference between the tripod head and the camera's battery pack.
VR, IS and OS performance top This Sigma 150-500mm's image stabilization works great! Sharp hand-held shots at 500mm are easy! Nikon says VR, Canon says IS and Sigma says OS. It's all the same thing. By "sharp shots" I mean perfect tripod-equivalent sharpness when viewed at 100%, as shot on a D3 by me. For most uses, one can use much slower speeds. See Why VR Matters for more. Here are the percentage of perfectly-sharp shots I got hand-held with OS in position 1:
Hint: VR improves your hit ratio. It doesn't guarantee that every shot will be sharp. I always shoot at least three-shot bursts at slow speeds so I can pick the sharp shot out of several when shooting handheld at really slow speeds.
Zooming performance top Zooming is stiff because you're moving most of this heavy lens in and out. The front pokes out as you get to 500mm: Sigma 150-500 F5-6.3 at 500mm. enlarge. The front of the 150-500 in this shot looks like a hood, but this is the lens without its hood.
Recommendations top Intro Specifications Performance Recommendations The Sigma 150-500mm f/5-6.3 is an optically great lens. If you think you want one, get it. My caution is that most people trying to shoot things at long distances underestimate the importance of getting closer. A 500mm lens sounds like a cure-all for any distant subject, but it you're trying to photograph birds and wildlife, too much is never enough. My professional bird photographer friends own 800mm lenses and wear wetsuits to slide around in the mud sneaking up close on critters, and still have to use teleconverters and crop the resulting images! If 200mm or 300mm isn't getting you what you want, 500mm probably won't either. Getting closer is much more important than how many millimeters you're packing.
Deployment I'd leave either an 86mm Hoya Super HMC UV on the lens at all times. I would leave the hood at home. If I was working in nasty, dirty areas, I'd forget the cap, and use an uncoated 86mm Tiffen UV filter instead. Uncoated filters are much easier to clean, but more prone to ghosting. For color slides like Velvia 50, I use a 86mm Hoya HMC 81A filter outdoors. For B&W film outdoors, I'd use a 86mm Hoya HMC Yellow K2 or 86mm Hoya HMC Orange. if you're buying a new set of 86mm filters, you may instead want to plan ahead in case you later get the Sigma 50-500mm, and use 95mm filters with an 86 -> 95mm step-up ring.
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16 April 2018, 27 October 2010