For those interested... first shots with new lens

[Omag 2.0]

As stated before, I went out to buy me new standard-zoomlens today, the Sigma 24-70 EX f2.8

I needed a fast lens for lowlight conditions, but I didn't want to pay over a thousand euro's to buy an L-lens or other f2.8 canon-lens.

So things were narrowed down to the tamron 28-75 f2.8 and the Sigma 24-70 f2.8. As I've worked with the Sigma and I really like the build quality. I was a bit bothered by less positive stories about the softness at f2.8 at full zoom, but the tamron also suffers from some problems, like AF-hunting in low light.

In the end, I choose the Sigma, also because the photographer I know uses it for all his concert shots and is very happy with it. He reported technical problems with Tamron after extensive use, due to the lower build-quality.

I guess it all boils down to personal preferences and one has to choose at some point.

Here are 2 shots at f2.8 - 70 mm. The cat didn't care for all the attention. No postprocessing other than resizing. All things fair I'd say it's pretty much what I expected and not a drama sharpness-wise.





Cheers,

Omag

[J.]

he looks as if he is about to scratch your face on in #1!

nice clear pics though wish i could afford a decent camera

[Brett_Henderson]

Awww ..Awwww.. Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.. Awww  :D


(cat person)

[masmith]

Very nice

But the cat doesn't look to impressed

[Mictheslik]

lovely......my next investment will be a replacement for the kit 18-55....I was thinking an 18-200 as a general traveling lens, but I'll be looking forward to your experiences with this one

.mic

[Omag 2.0]

As far as I've read, those superzooms ( wide to tele) usually suffer some quality issues. My father would like a Tamron 18-200 as walking lens and that one seems to perform very well.

I wanted a fast zoomlens. Mind you, I'm not a pixel-peeper like some other members at forums I visit. When I brought my question about this range up, all they could talk about were the L-lenses, even though I stated my budget. All I want is affordable material that give me good results... not just red lines or white lenses.  ;D ( Allthough they are probably REALLY nice...)

Next on the list is a speedlite flash with omibouncer and possibly the Sigma 70-200 f2.8, but it'll take some time to gather the needed funds...I might even consider secod hand for the lens. After that, my girlfriend will probably lock my bank-account...  ;D

[61_OTU]

Next on the list is a speedlite flash with omibouncer and possibly the Sigma 70-200 f2.8

That Sigma does look nice, both of them in fact  ;)

I don't know what you thought of the 580 EX you borrowed, but my 430 EX is brilliant. I am over the moon with it, and the Stofen Omnibounce has also been very handy.

both bought off ebay, both a real bargain  8-)

Steve

[Omag 2.0]

It also looks good on the camera. One point that's important is the size and weight. At over 700 g ( 1.54 Pounds), it's quite heavy, so I added a batterygrip to the camera for better balance.








As far as the flash is concerned, I'm still thinking about that. The Speedlite 580 I worked with was simply brilliant, but the 430 is about half the price. I don't care to much about the extras on the 580, but the extended range could be important to me.


ps: this post is not to show of my material, nor do I seek comments like "wow, that's a nice lens". I only want to show the lens on a camera, so that other people interested in this matter may understand it's caracteristics.

Cheers,

Omag

[Willit Run]

SWEET!!!!!  8-)

[61_OTU]

Hi Kris.

you've nearly sold me on one of these, are you really happy with it?

Steve

[Omag 2.0]

It's still early for final judgements... It's REALLY sharp at higher apperatures, but at f2.8 and 70 mm it goes a bit soft. I also discovered that it may have a bit of a frontfocus-issue. But I was warned about that. If it's not workable I'll send it in for recalibration. Sigma is a bit known for this issue, but the after-sales service is claimed to be excellent. Hopefully I'll be able to test it some more tomorrow night at a concert and have a better view.

Check my 2 other threads from today, I forgot to sharpen the resized shots  ::), but I didn't notice that before.