imagemeister Loc: mid east Florida

imagemeister Loc: mid east Florida

I hope no thinks this is a SHARP image !

I do not own any of these big zooms. I have seen the objective Imatest results on them tho .....the differences are very, very SMALL and it takes much analysis to conclude that the Sigma S MIGHT be the best of the lot speaking strictly native optical resolution.

If you are shooting moving subjects, of most importance is the speed and accuracy of AF ! - How you stabilize and manage pointing the lens is also more important than the native optical image quality ! In ALL cases you MUST do a focus calibration and adjustment ! ( unless you are using an OEM lens on a mirrorless camera)

In a general but almost 100% true statement I will say that OEM lenses will have better/faster. more accurate AF for most conditions than the third parties' !
.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

I was responding to cambriaman. Not to you, please read quote reply before you post, and if you do post, please use the quote reply so everyone knows who you are responding to, thanks.

RickL Loc: Vail, Az

My wife and I are wildlife photographers with many international awards between us. We each have our own Tamron 150-600 g2 lens. Our photos are tack sharp at all focal lengths, especially at 600 mm

russelray Loc: La Mesa CA

I did.

chrisg-optical Loc: New York, NY

Just out of curiosity do you use VR/VC when the shutter is 1/2000 or faster. I found that the VR often induces blur at higher speeds 1/1600 or faster, but at lower speeds it is quite useful. Do you keep the firmware up to date and/ or tune the lens with the tap-in console? Do you do BIF, fast motion, or mostly posed shots?

DrSteve2 Loc: Londonderry, PA USA

I purchased the Tamron last year and really like it. I shoot birds and wildlife and this lens has been great! It is a big lens so a tripod is necessary for me. If you can grab a gimbal head you'll find this lens is very versatile. The local camera dealer allowed me to use Sigma for a couple of days and afterwards I decided on the Tamron. Good luck whichever way you decide to go.
Best.

RickL Loc: Vail, Az

Yes, I use vr/vc at all speeds and have not had any blur at as high as 1/5000 which I sometimes use for hummingbirds. Neither Marilyn or I have had to tune the lens to the cameras. She shoots with a Nikon D7200 and I currently shoot with a Nikon D850. Almost all of our shots are motion. We have not found the need to tune because all of the photos are very sharp. It wouldn’t hurt for you to tune your lens to camera if you are not getting sharpness at all speeds and focal lengths.

I just photographed two Cactus Wren about 200ft away at 600mm and the features were in perfect focus

SuperflyTNT Loc: Manassas VA

Taking photos of stuff farther away.

Mspgolf2000

I have used the Tamron with and with out a canon 2x tel and I was able to shot mountain goat across a canyon in little cottonwood Utah they came out very well. But a very heavy lens. I also shot eagles with a canon 100-400 II w 2x in Yellowstone The canon lens is better but out of my budget. I rented both lens. I suggest you do the same then decide.

JohnH3 Loc: Auburn, AL

I have never shot the Tameron, but I have owned the Sigma 150-600 Contemporary for a couple of years. I have shot sports (baseball outdoors in good light) and nature shots. I am pleased with the IQ. I suspect that both are good lenses and you would not make a mistake purchasing either. I will warn you the DoF at 600mm is shallow. As you can see from the attached photo, the background is out of focus as is the near foreground. The elk is pretty well focused within the applicable DoF. Get used to it before passing judgement on the lens.

Mspgolf2000

I did recommend to RENT before buying. Also I did not have the same issue

Traveller_Jeff

When I purchased the G2, the tap-in console came with it, no charge. I haven't done an exhaustive analysis, but I wondered if my infinity setting was optimal, and discovered after about a half hour of comparative testing, that it actually was. The only issue was with how much time it took me to understand their instructions, both on the sheet that came with the unit, and the on-line instructions. One of these days I'll look into the settings at lower focal lengths, but I was most interested in the near-infinity setting. Two years ago, I trained it on a baby hawk hopping around the low roof of our utility closet right outside our window, and the shots were completely in focus, so I see no issue at this point. Find out why you weren't sent the tap-in console when you first bought your lens.

russelray Loc: La Mesa CA

That can be one use. However, it's not my main use. Mine is to get through the wire of the animal and bird enclosures at the Zoo, Safari Park, SeaWorld, Discovery Center, Lions Tigers & Bears, Wolf Centre, and the many aviaries throughout Southern California.

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

Hi Reina,

I see you are shooting with Canon gear, although I don't know what camera (which model? full frame? APS-C? resolution?).

Since that's the case, if money is no object my answer would be neither the Tamron nor the Sigma.

Get the Canon EF 100-400mm IS USM "II" instead. Also get a Canon EF 1.4X III (or 1.4X II) to use with it. The Canon lens with or without the teleconverter is sharper than any of the third party 150-600s. With the 1.4X on it, the 100-400mm "becomes" a 140-560mm f/7.1-8 lens. That's a stop slower, but f/8 is only 2/3 stop less than f/6.3.

One concern and reason I asked about which Canon camera is because only certain models are able to autofocus the 100-400mm lens with 1.4X teleconverter on it.

Of the current models, the T7i, 77D, 90D, 7D Mark II and all the full frame DSLRs can AF the lens/TC combo with the effective f/8 aperture. (All Canon DSLRs can autofocus the lens without the teleconverter on it.)

Some models will be able to autofocus with only one AF point: the center one. Other models can autofocus the lens/TC combo with 27 AF points: 80D, T7i, 77D, 90D... and I think the 6D Mark II.

The Canon 100-400mm II is an L-series lens with added sealing for weather resistance and high build quality. The guys at Lensrentals.com took one apart to see what was inside and called it "the most over-engineered and best built zoom they'd ever seen". It's certainly better built than the cheaper Sigmas and Tamrons. Probably as good or better than the top of the line Sigma "Sport" version, too.

The Canon 100-400mm isn't small and light at about 3.5 lb. But the Tamron and the Sigma "Contemporary" each weigh around 4.5 lb. and the Sigma "Sport" is a hefty 6 lb. The Canon uses 77mm filters.... while the Tamron and Sigma use 95mm... except for the "Sport" lens which uses 105mm!

The Canon does cost more than all but the Sigma 150-600mm "Sport". By the time you add the cost of the teleconverter, the Canon combo will cost more than that lens tooBut it's got the best image quality of the bunch... even with the teleconverter. If the cost is too steep, you might try the 100-400 II without teleconverter for a while, to see if it's "long enough"... I seldom rack mine out all the way to 400mm and very rarely use the 1.4X on it. You can always add the teleconverter to your kit later. Wait for a deal on a used one or whatever. (The 1.4X won't work well with any of the 150-600s, BTW.)

You can compare the image quality of any two of the lenses against each other here: https://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/ISO-12233-Sample-Crops.aspx?Lens=1079&Camera=453&Sample=0&FLI=5&API=0&LensComp=972&CameraComp=453&SampleComp=0&FLIComp=5&APIComp=3

You can change the camera used for the test shots, as well as different lenses, various zoom focal lengths and lens apertures. There are also extensive reviews of most of the lenses and other things besides image quality that you can check out and compare.

This was shot with Canon EF 100-400mm IS USM "II", with EF 1.4X "II" teleconverter, wide open (f/8) on Canon 7D Mark II...

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