Sigma 120-400mm F/4.5-5.6 DG OS HSM - Super Telephoto Zoom Lens On A Shoestring Budget

Super telephoto zoom lenses make the heart's "pitter-pat" speed up just a little. We are referring to a lens that has a focal length on the long end of more than 300mm. Thus, you can get up close and personal with just about any subject, even some critters that are very skittish and not at all social.

The Sigma 120-400mm f/4.5-5.6 DG OS HSM is just such a lens. The good news is that it can be had for less than $1K. Compare that price to the most popular Canon lens in the same focal length arena, the Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L which tips the economic scales at more the $1.5K and you have a real bargain.

But the good news isn't over yet. If you have a camera with a "crop sensor", you will be shooting at the equivalent focal length of 192-640mm. This is with a Canon APS-C sensor camera such as the 60D or a Rebel T3i. At that length, you can pretty much see the nose hairs of a Dallas Cowboys running back from the end zone, or, if you are a birder, the feather patterns in a Carolina Chickadee at 100 feet.

The Sigma 120-400mm lens is ideal particularly for photographers who are looking for a lens to take photos of sports action, wildlife, and even street photography (the photographer can remain totally anonymous with regard to the photo subjects). Other types of photography that have been the target of the buyers of super telephoto lenses are nature and landscapes in special instances. Obviously, this is not a wide-angle lens, but when you want to photograph the moon or Mt. McKinley from a distance, this lens will fill the bill.

An important feature of the Sigma lens you don't want to overlook is HSM. This stands for hyper-sonic motor which determines how fast the focus locks in on the subject. HSM is awesome, especially for subjects that tend to move around quickly (like that Chickadee already alluded to above).

A couple of hints about expectations from this or any other lens with super telephoto focal lengths. The lens comes with a tripod collar for a reason. Use it on a tripod whenever possible. Yes, it has "OS" - Sigma's version of image stabilization, and the lens will perform pretty well when light is good. However, the longer the focal length, the more difficult it is to hold the camera steady. The least little movement is magnified simply due to the focal length.

Also, try to get a shutter speed at least as high as the focal length you are shooting. For example, if you are zoomed to a focal length of 300mm, you want to have about a 1/300 sec shutter speed to keep the blur to a minimum. You can boost the ISO on your camera to help get a faster shutter speed.

This lens has been quite popular at the online camera stores. It has a 4.5 out of 5 rating, which is almost as high as the Canon L lens. And just a reminder, it is about $500 less expensive.

As far as negatives are concerned, the most frequent comment was that it is heavy. The other comment that appeared several times was that these is some "lens creep."

Overall, this looks like a great alternative to the more costly super telephoto lenses, especially if price is a concern (and isn't price always a concern?).

Please see http://canoneoslenses.org/ for more about Canon EOS Lenses. There is a whole section devoted to Canon zoom lenses.

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Telephoto Lens

There are different types of lenses in photography and cinematography world; each with its own specifications and uses. Telephoto lens is that lens whose angle of view is very narrow yet it has focal length that is longer than a normal camera. The appellation telephoto means it can act from a distance. Given these peculiarities, a telephoto lens most times acts like binoculars as it makes the image bigger and of course brings the object closer to the viewer.

The lens has these powerful features because it is equipped with one of the newest lenses known as the telephoto group. It is this cutting-edge technology capacity that gives it the ability to stretch the path along which light travels otherwise referred to as the long focus. However, it is good to know that the impact of the long focus ability of a telephoto lens and angle of view are usually the same for telephoto lenses as long as they of the same specification in focal length.

In the ongoing development of the lens, different sub types have been discovered. Among many other types, we have the super telephoto and the medium telephoto. As the name implies, the super telephoto has a far reaching ability which covers not less than 8° and 1° field of view (over 300mm in 35mm film). The medium type is also of the same powerful capturing ability as it reaches between 30° and 10° field of view. That is about 85mm to 135mm in 35mm film format.

Given these unprecedented features, telephoto lens is the best for use by anyone whether for professional or personal use. It is the best for instance for a paparazzo who earns his living taking pictures of people and marketing such. He does not need to walk through a crowd for example to snap his object of interest. All he just needs to do is to stay at his comfort zone and adjust his camera very well and take the picture.

Journalists especially the photo journalists will also find the telephoto lens a very good companion in the ever increasing urgency in their job. The reason is that it removes the usual stress that accompanies taking pictures of events they are reporting. The lens is also good for personal use. It can be used when visiting tourist centers to take pictures of scenes which will keep the memories when the visitor has left the place.

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