Sigma 500mm 5.6

[helged]

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1 hour ago, rim_light said:

It's a shame to read that. I think it's the AF of the SL3 though. I also get slightly blurry pictures occasionally, but most are razor-sharp.

No, it's not about AF. I did run tests with and w/o AF, same result (also with/wo stabilisation, with/wo electronic shutter). The lens is sharp at close distances, though. At longer distances, the images are soft, possibly due to lens misalignment. The lens is now being serviced, so I have some hope that things can be resolved. Second option is to test another version of the lens.

[rim_light]

Saturday is bathing day - 500mm f/5.6 with SL3 at ISO1000

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[rim_light]

Today at womens soccer with the sigma 500mm on the SL3.

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[lightsourcekauai]

On 2/24/2024 at 1:03 PM, FlashGordonPhotography said:

have ordered one. I expect it to thoroughly trounce my 150-600 (which I don't like) on my upcoming SL3. The S5II will be less demanding, of course. I also expect superior performance when using teleconverters. The only downside I see is a lack of filter compatibility.

My plan is to have the Sigma 500 with 1.4x on one body and the superb 90-280 on another. That should cover most eventualities.

I am very interested in how this lens works for you. I look forward to hearing your thoughts after you’ve had a chance to use it with the SL3. I am in the process of selling the R3; RF 100-500; EF 300 f/2.8; EF 1.4 ext; and RF 70-200 f/2.8. Keeping only the R5 and RF 600 f/4 as I never want to sell the 600. I have the SL3 on preorder and have the Leica 90-280 arriving this week. Hopefully the SL3 will be up to speed for wildlife. I don’t expect it to be as fast as the Canons nor do I want it to be as fast. I just want the AF to track and hit with accuracy. If it does and if the Sigma 500 f/5.6 is as good as reported, then I think that will be a wonderful combination as I prefer the IQ and depth of field from tele primes to the versatility of tele zooms. 
Good luck with your new kit and let us know how it goes.

Oh, I’ve never been to Uganda but have been to Tanzania and absolutely love it. I’m guessing in Uganda you photograph the silverbacks?

[rim_light]

On 2/25/2024 at 12:03 AM, FlashGordonPhotography said:

My plan is to have the Sigma 500 with 1.4x on one body and the superb 90-280 on another. That should cover most eventualities.

I made some shots with the 500 plus 1.4x on the SL3. My observations showed that a slight cropping resulted in sharper images than with the converter. My converter is currently being checked by Sigma. If that doesn't help, I'll try switching to the 2x converter. If that doesn't work either, I'll send it back. The 500mm works well on the SL3.

[FlashGordonPhotography]

2 hours ago, rim_light said:

I made some shots with the 500 plus 1.4x on the SL3. My observations showed that a slight cropping resulted in sharper images than with the converter. My converter is currently being checked by Sigma. If that doesn't help, I'll try switching to the 2x converter. If that doesn't work either, I'll send it back. The 500mm works well on the SL3.

Yes. My SIgma 1.4 isn't very good. But I also have the Leica one which is really really good. I suspect my Sigma is simply off. I should send it in.

The Leica TC works just fine on my 150-600 (also a dud) so I don't expect any problems with the 500. I pick the lens up tomorrow.

Gordon

[helged]

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7 hours ago, FlashGordonPhotography said:

Yes. My SIgma 1.4 isn't very good. But I also have the Leica one which is really really good. I suspect my Sigma is simply off. I should send it in.

The Leica TC works just fine on my 150-600 (also a dud) so I don't expect any problems with the 500. I pick the lens up tomorrow.

Gordon

Please report back regarding your Sigma 500! The lens I picked up a week ago or so was soft at long(ish) distances. It was sharp on short distances, though. But still unusable. The lens will either go to service, or it will be swopped with another lens. The size/weight is really something; one can easily bring this lens around (given it's a 500mm).

[Ivar B]

On 3/20/2024 at 2:38 PM, helged said:

I picked up a Sigma 500 f5.6 DG DN Sport today. The lens will unfortunately have to go back to the store; it's simply not sharp. I suspect I have got a bad copy and I want to test another copy just to check...

Those that are using the Sigma 500 DG DN in L-mount; please chime in regarding the sharpness of your copy ( @mschuette and others...).

I add an example here, shot at f5.6 from tripod with electronic shutter on and stabilisation off (I also run some tests with the stabiliser activated, same results; also same result stopping down to f8). To be sure, I shot with both SL3 and SL2-S, same softness. Image is with SL3, the cropped image is from the centre of the main image and with 100 percent magnification. No processing, just uploading in Lightroom and exporting jpegs.

Regarding Sigma and sharpness: The Sigma 70-200 f2.8 DG DN Sport is amazingly sharp...

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This is not good. Knowing your skills, we can also rule out user error. Bad for Sigma that such a lens is not stopped in the final quality control before being shipped, but this can happen to everone, I guess  

 

 

 

 

 

 

[helged]

1 hour ago, Ivar B said:

This is not good. Knowing your skills, we can also rule out user error. Bad for Sigma that such a lens is not stopped in the final quality control before being shipped, but this can happen to everone, I guess  

 

 

 

 

 

 

+1. I eagerly wait to report back that the issue with the 500mm has been resolved! I do have - and I am overly satisfied with - Sigma 70-200 f2.8 DG DN (as well as Sigma 85mm f1.8), so Sigma delivers, no doubt about that. The quality control can, as always, improve.

[Ivar B]

1 hour ago, helged said:

+1. I eagerly wait to report back that the issue with the 500mm has been resolved! I do have - and I am overly satisfied with - Sigma 70-200 f2.8 DG DN (as well as Sigma 85mm f1.8), so Sigma delivers, no doubt about that. The quality control can, as always, improve.

What was the source of the problem?

[helged]

2 hours ago, Ivar B said:

What was the source of the problem?

I was told it was likely a misalingnment/decentering of a lens element.

[mschuette]

My copy seems to be really sharp. I did not have the time yet to test it in the wildness. But I am off to Masai Mara tomorrow and really excited how the Sigma 500 5.6 performs. Here are two pictures from today from the coast 😉

 

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[mschuette]

Both pictures with SL3 and Sigma 500 5.6

 

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[helged]

4 hours ago, mschuette said:

My copy seems to be really sharp. I did not have the time yet to test it in the wildness. But I am off to Masai Mara tomorrow and really excited how the Sigma 500 5.6 performs. Here are two pictures from today from the coast 😉

 

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Looks excellent! The lens is very small  and light, so I would really like to use it. Hopefully I get the lans back fixed, or another lens that is acvirding ti the specs…

Looking forward seeing images from your adventure!

[FlashGordonPhotography]

On 3/26/2024 at 5:39 PM, helged said:

Please report back regarding your Sigma 500! The lens I picked up a week ago or so was soft at long(ish) distances. It was sharp on short distances, though. But still unusable. The lens will either go to service, or it will be swopped with another lens. The size/weight is really something; one can easily bring this lens around (given it's a 500mm).

I have picked the lens up. Early testing shooting trees but it's VERY sharp. Tested to about 45 meters on a not too hot day with excellent results. Also seems super with my Leica branded 1.4TC. Focus speed unaffected. So I think I have a good one. I post up a sample if I can find somthing not too dull to show.

It's so light......

Gordon

Edited March 28 by FlashGordonPhotography

[HPFM]

Am 28.3.2024 um 13:13 schrieb mschuette:

My copy seems to be really sharp. I did not have the time yet to test it in the wildness. But I am off to Masai Mara tomorrow and really excited how the Sigma 500 5.6 performs. Here are two pictures from today from the coast 😉

 

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Great! So I will order the Sigma 500 5.6 too.... Don´t find a dealer in Germany who is able to deliver the Sigma.... same procedure as Leica - waiting for my SL3😂

[rim_light]

 

Today, at the second Bundesliga match between FC St. Pauli and SC Paderborn, the Sigma 500 lens is on an SL2s with a decent crop.

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Edited March 31 by rim_light

[mschuette]

SL3 with Sigma 500 5.6 Sports. It's a fantastic lens and really sharp! Animal AF ist still not very reliable, but in beta version. I hope for better AF in future firmware updates, especially eye AF for animals. Picture taken at Lake Nakuru, Kenya.

 

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[helged]

9 minutes ago, mschuette said:

SL3 with Sigma 500 5.6 Sports. It's a fantastic lens and really sharp! Animal AF ist still not very reliable, but in beta version. I hope for better AF in future firmware updates, especially eye AF for animals. Picture taken at Lake Nakuru, Kenya.

 

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Excellent. Still waiting for service of my lens; I got an update last week confirming that the lens was/is out if spec.

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Hallo,

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[FlashGordonPhotography]

5 hours ago, helged said:

Excellent. Still waiting for service of my lens; I got an update last week confirming that the lens was/is out if spec.

I am surprised a brand new lens was not replaced rather than serviced. Unless there's just no availability, I'd have requested replacement.

Gordon