try getting one of the new "entitled" generation to understand the mechanics of these piece would be daunting at best!!

I use the same tripod(Brian) for mainly macro shooting in the field. The small footprint when the legs are spread is very helpful. I use mostly a Canon 5DSR and Sigma 180mm macro-a pretty heavy combo, and have been happy with the tripod and ballhead performance. I would suggest using longer A-S plates to balance the weight of your camera/lens combo more centered over the ballhead to eliminate sag, or creep.

F32 Photo in Knoxville, TN offers a service to do this. www.f32photo.com

YES-they are a decent outfit, with a brick and mortar store in the Miami area-a VERY NICE store at that. I've never had any issues with them and have been doing mail order with Digital Goja for around 8 yrs.

I'm waiting on an FB tube. I was a little surprised to see the country of origin, but not too concerned. I've had Ebay items that shipped from the Ukraine area and never had a problem.

I traded my Canon 70-200L, non-IS in on the Sigma 70-200 F/2.8, Sport, and love the lens. Well worth considering. AF is very fast. It is a slightly heavy piece, compared to the old Canon lens, and the filter is 82mm.

I bet your camera does not autofocus at f/8. You said you were using AF. If the lens is at full extension, and you add a CPL, you are probably over f/8. Which camera body are you using. The lens is f/5-6.3.

Camera Repair Japan(CRJ) in Duluth, GA. is an excellent repair shop and also Sigma authorized. I have used them for several repairs and have always been very happy with the cost, repair turn-around, and lens performance.

do you have continuous autofocus set, This could be a problem. I shoot the same combo with great results and performance.

I use the Canon brand tubes with my Canon and Sigma lenses, and they work great. You do lose infinity focusing, but then that's not the point of the tubes. The metering and AF work fine with the data pass-thru tubes.

Canon WILL service the camera-no problem. The camera will NOT have US warranty that they will honor. The warranty is only for a year anyway. I bought a 5DSR last year, the same way-saved enough money to buy a second body if I needed! Don't let the service concerns stop you.

one other thing-if you do buy the 5DS, when you power it up for the first time, have your 7D2 handy. The camera will arrive with the menu set to an Asian language, The 7D2 has the same menu structure, so use it to guide yourself to the menu page to set the language to US.

That's YOUR point of view. Personally, as a business owner, the economy has never been better-UNTIL, this CCP virus bullshit. At least in the SE, we're moving forward from it.

he was referring to Nikon

Ahh-that's just a "toe nipper"!!!

I have a 5DSR, and crop mode definitely does not help low light situations-basically all that does is mimic the 7D2 sensor.