Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 EX DG APO OS HSM Lens for Nikon

This lens is extremely nice! It is also very heavy! It is not for everyday walking around photos. I use it on my second camera for weddings so I can get up close without getting in the way of guests seeing the ceremony. The zoom is great! The 2.8 f stop is gorgeous! Especially if you just want to focus in on the bride and groom and nothing else matters. The autofocus is fast! I have nothing negative to say about this lens. I have several sigma brand lenses that I pair with my Nikon camera. I couldn’t expect more from them!

A Great Lens For Me

I decided to go with the Sigma 70mm-200mm over the Nikon lens based on two things: 1) a lot of research into the quality and sharpness of the Sigma which has surpassed my expectations.and 2) Cost! I have a Nikon D750 and was a week or two away from purchasing the Nikon 70mm-200mm but the new Nikon version of that lens was announced, and i could not find the previous version lens. I wasn't going to pay $700 more for the VRII and that drove me to Sigma. Just a side note i bought the Sigma 70mm-200mm and the Sigma 150mm-600mm Contemporary and i was still $1100 cheaper than Nikon VRII. The lens is well constructed and balanced when you hand hold for shooting. The pictures are crisp, clear and sharp. I mostly shoot indoor sports and the focus hits the target quickly 90% ... MoreI decided to go with the Sigma 70mm-200mm over the Nikon lens based on two things: 1) a lot of research into the quality and sharpness of the Sigma which has surpassed my expectations.and 2) Cost! I have a Nikon D750 and was a week or two away from purchasing the Nikon 70mm-200mm but the new Nikon version of that lens was announced, and i could not find the previous version lens. I wasn't going to pay $700 more for the VRII and that drove me to Sigma. Just a side note i bought the Sigma 70mm-200mm and the Sigma 150mm-600mm Contemporary and i was still $1100 cheaper than Nikon VRII. The lens is well constructed and balanced when you hand hold for shooting. The pictures are crisp, clear and sharp. I mostly shoot indoor sports and the focus hits the target quickly 90% of the time. (I truly believe the other 10% is my fault!) It's a little noisy but it doesn't bother me. The OS really helps kept those pictures looking superb!You will love the quality of your shots from the very first you one take. I will be buying only Sigma lenses, from Adorama, from now on and you should too!

Excellent Lens

I purchased this secondhand, and have no issues with purchasing another lens from Teds secondhand. The item is almost new. Description was a little understated if anything. I have been using the lend in a variety of conditions over the past month, and must say it exceeds my expectations. It is fast to focus, easy to use controls and has top quality image reproduction. Couldn't be happier.

Great Lens

I am a novice when it comes to camera equipment. My camera is a Canon XTi and the lens is a standard Canon 75-300mm F5.6. I can take decent pictures but don't know anything about f stops, shutter speeds and lighting calculations. I just move the little dial to "sports" when I'm taking pictures of something moving and move it to "flower" when I'm taking pictures of something up close....etc. Well, my girls have been in gymnastics for a couple of years and just started entering meets. Due to the fact that you can't use a flash, 90% of my pictures were blurry (even when they were standing still) So, I did some online investigations and found that I need a lens with a lower f-stop. I have no idea how to calculate what I need but there were suggestions that it would need ... MoreI am a novice when it comes to camera equipment. My camera is a Canon XTi and the lens is a standard Canon 75-300mm F5.6. I can take decent pictures but don't know anything about f stops, shutter speeds and lighting calculations. I just move the little dial to "sports" when I'm taking pictures of something moving and move it to "flower" when I'm taking pictures of something up close....etc. Well, my girls have been in gymnastics for a couple of years and just started entering meets. Due to the fact that you can't use a flash, 90% of my pictures were blurry (even when they were standing still) So, I did some online investigations and found that I need a lens with a lower f-stop. I have no idea how to calculate what I need but there were suggestions that it would need to be in the f2 to f3 range. I found this lens at a really great price (compared to all others in the 200mm+ range) and with great reviews. I haven't taken it to a meet yet but I took it to practice last week under similar circumstances. The lens allowed me to capture my daughter on the trampoline in mid-air like she was frozen with nearly zero blur and good lighting. I've included what my pictures looked like with my old 300mm lens vs what they look like with this 200mm Sigma. I was utterly shockedwhen I received it as I was expecting something smaller than my 300mm. This thing looks like it was engineered vs the standard Canon lens that looks like it was just put together. Its a beast. I couldn't be more happy.

It's good. I use it on a Sigma SD Quattro H and an ?7RIV.

I have one of these from eBay (like new). I got it for use on a Sigma SD Quattro H.(Because it's stabilized and fairly bright and because you have to use Sigma SA lenses on Sigma cameras, mostly.)I also use it on an ?7RIV with Sigma's MC-11 adaptor and it works fine. The MC-11 does not light up its green LED to indicate it is a compatable lens but it does work.It focuses fast in rotten light (on the ?7RIV) and seems to coordinate its stabilizers with the IBIS in the ?7RIV, and the resolution of the projected image is more than adiquate for the tight pixel pitch of the ?7RIV's sensor. The EXIF information is all there too.So, I like it, and, it's a brick. A monopod makes it a lot more pleasant for walkabouts.( A standard brick weighs 4.5 pounds.The Sigma SD ... MoreI have one of these from eBay (like new). I got it for use on a Sigma SD Quattro H.(Because it's stabilized and fairly bright and because you have to use Sigma SA lenses on Sigma cameras, mostly.)I also use it on an ?7RIV with Sigma's MC-11 adaptor and it works fine. The MC-11 does not light up its green LED to indicate it is a compatable lens but it does work.It focuses fast in rotten light (on the ?7RIV) and seems to coordinate its stabilizers with the IBIS in the ?7RIV, and the resolution of the projected image is more than adiquate for the tight pixel pitch of the ?7RIV's sensor. The EXIF information is all there too.So, I like it, and, it's a brick. A monopod makes it a lot more pleasant for walkabouts.( A standard brick weighs 4.5 pounds.The Sigma SD Quattro H weighs 1.4 pounds.This lens weighs 3.3 pounds !! They must use lead glass.3.2 + 1.4 = 4.6 So close enough.)

Much better than what I had expected

Much better than what I had expected, for this price point. Might not be exactly at par with the original Canon telephoto, but definitely not behind it too. I am bit vary of it's weight and size, but it does give you a feeling that's it is indeed a durable and strong product. The motor is fast, and focus is razor sharp. Working with it under very low light conditions definitely requires a tripod, since it is very difficult to hold it still mainly because of it's weight. But Optical Stabilisation works quite well and eliminates any jitters from normal shots.

Sturdy, high quality lens

This is a great piece of equipment. It works as it should. Very quick, quiet and sharp focus. It is extremely good in low light allowing the ability to maintain a decent shutter speed to avoid camera shake. It is heavy which makes it feel like the quality piece of kit it is. The padded Sigma bag it is packaged in is excellent quality. It could do with a physical manual to automatic focus switch. Other than a switch, I love it for my wildlife photography.

Yep! For me, this was a very good choice.

First off, it ain't the beloved Canon L class 70-200 2.8 USM IS lens.Only because it's not water resistant. So if you don't have it in it's own dry suite, don't drop it in the Idaho River. And keep it covered in a deluge, hurricane or dust bowl.With that out of the way, To me this lens seems to focus just as fast as the Canon. Maybe even a little faster. (In my opinion).It has a switchable horizontal and vertical optical stabilizer that detects vertical movement that keeps things in sharp focus. Even with the 2x tele-converter that comes with this special sale, it holds rock solid and snaps right into focus and follows great.The only time I heard it make any kind of noise was when I focused on an object about 250 feet away at full 200mm focal length.Zoomed all ... MoreFirst off, it ain't the beloved Canon L class 70-200 2.8 USM IS lens.Only because it's not water resistant. So if you don't have it in it's own dry suite, don't drop it in the Idaho River. And keep it covered in a deluge, hurricane or dust bowl.With that out of the way, To me this lens seems to focus just as fast as the Canon. Maybe even a little faster. (In my opinion).It has a switchable horizontal and vertical optical stabilizer that detects vertical movement that keeps things in sharp focus. Even with the 2x tele-converter that comes with this special sale, it holds rock solid and snaps right into focus and follows great.The only time I heard it make any kind of noise was when I focused on an object about 250 feet away at full 200mm focal length.Zoomed all the way in, I pulled all the way back out as quick as I could to 70mm and onto object only about 3 and a half feet away at the same time.By the time I locked an object in frame up, the lens was in focus.I could hear the lens elements (more like felt them) adjust and heard them settle slightly.There are 22 of them inside the nicely designed, rock solid body.All of them apochromatic glass. Flourine coated.This lens is very quiet. With no focus ring or zoom barrel noise. Very smooth movements from both... In AF and M.The Lens hood is also very cool!It's two pieces.There is an inner hood designed for use with APS-C sensor cameras that when combined with the outer hood, narrows the field of stray light which might produce lens flare or fogging.When you take them apart, the outer hood will fit on the inner hood backward with the inner hood still attached to the lens. And the lens cap will fit on the inner hood just like it does on the lens itself. To me this is a brilliant feature to the over all design of the lens. It offers just that much more protection to the lens elements. and it is very convenient.The Sigma 70-200mm 1:2.8 APO DG HSM Auto focus Zoom Lens is a Beast .It is beautifully crafted, well thought out and heavily constructed for its class and price range.It has a removable 1/4 x 20 rubberized tripod socket collar for mounting on a tripod or mono pod for switching between horizontal or vertical shooting that just adds to it's prestige.Sigma touts that with its optical stabilization system you can capture tack sharp images 4 steps slower than without it on. And its true.When I first mounted the lens to my camera I was in video mode at 24p and when I switched to camera mode I was shooting at ISO 100 f2.8 and 1/45th of a second. Late afternoon with the sun past my tree line in open shade. All shots are tack sharp and properly exposed.even with the 2x tele-converter on the lens.When my lens arrived, I was at first a little dismayed when I opened the shipping box. Adorama didn't put a whole lot of bubble wrap or protection in with the lenses I had bought to keep them from jostling around. Just three lens boxes and one strip of bubble wrap. But, to my delight, when I opened the first lens box (the 70-200) I found a beautifully made, well padded zipper topped lens case/pouch specially made for the 70-200 lens with it's own carrying strap. Fantastic!The best part of this whole deal is that I bought two high quality lenses (Also got the Sigma 17-50mm f2.8 EX DC OS) and got one 2x tele converter and still payed less than I would have had I bought another Canon 2.8 L class.If you want to check out the true performance of a lens...Try shooting chicken portraits!

Yes, it's worth it!

My only complaint about the lens is at 200mm in low light conditions the auto focus has problems with obtaining a clear focus. Guessing it can't pick up enough contrast, thus the 4 star rating. Other then that, no complaints. Debated for months on purchasing this lens and now I'm glad I did and wish I had gotten it sooner. Have attached 5 photos taken using this lens under various conditions so you can see for yourself what the lens can do. Photo 1 was taken at the track on a bright sunny day with subject moving fast, very fast. Photo 2 was taken on a darkened stage, subjects standing still, at 200mm. Photo 3 was taken late evening under the lights, subjects moving, with lens around 150mm. Photo 4 was taken at night, under the lights, about 180mm. Photo 5 was taken ... MoreMy only complaint about the lens is at 200mm in low light conditions the auto focus has problems with obtaining a clear focus. Guessing it can't pick up enough contrast, thus the 4 star rating. Other then that, no complaints. Debated for months on purchasing this lens and now I'm glad I did and wish I had gotten it sooner. Have attached 5 photos taken using this lens under various conditions so you can see for yourself what the lens can do. Photo 1 was taken at the track on a bright sunny day with subject moving fast, very fast. Photo 2 was taken on a darkened stage, subjects standing still, at 200mm. Photo 3 was taken late evening under the lights, subjects moving, with lens around 150mm. Photo 4 was taken at night, under the lights, about 180mm. Photo 5 was taken indoors, very low light, at 200mm, with subjects moving fast. You can see in photo 2 and 5 that the focus is off just a bit...but still usable photos. The Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 is MUCH better then the kit lens or my 300mm 4.5 in fact I purchased it to only use in low light conditions like ball games and theater but now find I use it 99% of the time. Of course it isn't as good as the Canon version, but it is close and costs 1/4 as much.