Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM APO HSM IF Macro Lens for Nikon SLR Cameras
Monday, August 9th, 2010Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM APO HSM IF Macro Lens for Nikon SLR Cameras Review
Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM APO HSM IF Macro Lens for Nikon SLR Cameras Feature
- Telephoto macro lens with Nikon-D AF mount
- Special low-dispersion glass for high image quality
- 150-millimeter focal length
- f2.8 maximum aperture
- Ultra-quiet high-speed autofocus with full-time manual focus override

I purchased the Sigma 150mm Macro lens after reading some stellar reviews on various websites (check out the MTF chart on [..]). After testing the lens myself for a couple of days, I will have to agree with the current consensus; this lens is incredible.
For use as a general long-telephoto prime, you couldn’t ask for more. Lens is sharp and clear from corner to corner. Autofocus is fast and accurate. Colors with this lens seem natural. I am shooting with a 12.3 MP camera (Nikon D5000#, and detail in the images is preserved until the point at which individual pixels are evident. This would be the perfect lens for those shooting with higher resolution sensors #15-24MP#, as the lens can certainly take advantage of the higher pixel count.
Macro function on this lens is likewise incredible. You get a comfortable working distance with this lens #about 10″ for minimum focus), so definately a good lens for bug hunting. Autofocus is a little iffy up close, but as others have said; You’ll want to use manual focus for macro shots. This is especially true for this lens due to its extremely shallow depth of field (not a defect, just an unavoidable physical property of a long macro lens– Telephoto= shallow DOF, Macro = Shallow DOF, Telephoto+Macro= really shallow DOF), even at smaller apertures. You will probably want to stop the camera down to about f/11 to f/22 for most macro shots in order to get most things in focus. For this reason, a tripod is pretty essential. A macro lens with a shorter focal length (such as the similarly well-reviewed Sigma 70mm macro- my next purchase)will have larger depth, but you sacrifice the longer working distance. Nothing’s perfect.
Fortunately, this is one of the few lenses that retains critical sharpness at smaller apertures, and works equally well wide open at f/2.8. Anyone who’s taken the time to research this knows that it is a RARE lens that performs well across all available apertures. Even some of the best lenses out there rated at f/2.8 need to be stopped down to about 5.6 before focus is sharp and even across the field (the Sigma 150mm Macro is sharpest at f/8, but still outperforms most lenses at all apertures). With the Sigma 150mm Macro, f/2.8 is still unbelievably sharp, so you can shoot wide open without concern for loss of image quality. (*** note: the lens no longer has a maximum aperture of f/2.8 during close focus, but due to the depth-of-field issue I mentioned above, you really don’t want it. This is a common characteristic of most macro lenses)
Also of note: There is practically no distortion at all with this lens. The image remains flat throughout all apertures. As mentioned on Sigma’s website, this lens is ideal for reproduction of documents or artwork. Chromatic aberration is minimal as well.
There’s no such thing as a perfect lens, but this one comes pretty close. Recommended without reservation or qualification.
Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM APO HSM IF Macro Lens for Nikon SLR Cameras Overview
This large aperture telephoto macro lens enables you to shoot up to 1:1 life size close-ups. Its large F2.8 aperture makes it an ideal lens for digital SLR as well as film SLR cameras. Two Special Low Dispersion (SLD) glass elements control various color aberrations and assure high image quality. Super Multi Coating gives superb color performance whilst cutting down flare and ghost. Its compact, yet advanced, construction has an overall length of Length 137mm (5.4in.), maximum diameter of 79.6mm (3.1in.), filter size of 72mm and weight of 895gr/31.6ounces
Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM APO HSM IF Macro Lens for Nikon SLR Cameras Specifications
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