I wanted a cheap telephoto lens for those times I need the reach. Since I don't use it that often, I felt no need for a large or expensive lens. I debated between this lens, the Tamron 70-300 Di, and the Sigma APO of the same type. This was the cheapest so I went with it. Frankly, I can't believe how good this lens is for its price. At 70mm, it's tack sharp corner to corner. Even 200-300 it's quite good. And the Macro mode is just icing on the cake--1:2 magnification means you can get quite close.
It's true, you need a fair amount of light for this lens to shine--no argument there. But for the individual who only does this sort of stuff for fun, this lens is hard to beat. I can't imagine the APO variant is worth $70 more--I cannot detect any difference from sample pictures posted online. So if you only need a lens of this focal length occasionally, this is the one to get. Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DG Macro Telephoto Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras
Pros: Very well built; Comes with a hood; Has a metal lens mount; Is as big as a baseball bat when fully extended making most non-DSLR users drool(DSLR users shrug it off as just another 70-300), Takes a GREAT Macro at the 200-300mm range with a VERY shallow DOF if you like; Very decently sharp images throughout the range. Great price.
Pro/Con: That GREAT Macro in the 200-300 is from no closer than 4 feet away. I asked a friend why anyone would want to be so far away to take a macro and she said "to take photos of bees and stuff" OH! I had been using a little point and shoot, clicking the photo, then running away screaming like a little girl. So make the previous Con a Pro.
Con: It lacks that fake 'Canon L' little red band that the next model up has. Some people might think it's a little too heavy. (Wimps).
I'd buy it again. (Ok, maybe I'd buy the slightly more expensive one, but only for the red band, I'm VERY happy with the performance of this one)
Yes, a Canon lens with IS would be better than this Sigma, but it's a great start to give you more options with your D-SLR. I used this lens throughout San Francisco and was very pleased with the quality. There is some contrast degradation but I typically fix my best shots in Photoshop anyways. Also, only use this lens if you are going to stick with zoom shots as the 70mm setting is too high for anything within 6 feet.
I recently bought this lens for my Canon XTi. It does lock on focus quickly. I have used it a handful of times in overcast weather. I must say that the focus is not sharp at 300mm. I got some improvement by stopping down the aperture a bit. Still, I wish that I was getting better sharpness at 300 mm. I have not had adequate time to try out the macro feature on this lens, but I will try and leave another review after I have had more time to play with this lens. The focus is better in the middle ZOOM ranges. And lastly, the contrast is not as nice as the stock 18-55mm lens that came with my Canon.
I was leary about purchasing this "cheap" version of the Sigma Lens. Being new to DSLR photography, I really don't know a whole lot about lenses, but I did want something that would give me a good telephoto range and decent picture quality. This lens did not disappoint. I am really happy with the performance of this lens. It brings images in really close, from really far away. The picture quality is perfect ! I use this with a Pentax *ist DL and the pictures it produces are wonderful. If this is the "cheap" version of the Sigma lens, I really wonder what the "high end" version will be like. Thanks for reading this, hope it helps.
This is a very good lens for the money. If you are beginning with a DLSR and want a lens that can produce good images without the expense, this is definetley the lens for you. I took this lens out and shot the Blue Angels during an air show hand holding every shot using it with a Sony A100 DSLR. Pictures were awesome with the lens, I used a UV Filter Lens as I do on all my lenses. I recommend this lens to anyone that wants a 70-300mm Telephoto Zoom with Macro for a low cost. - Lens - Canon - 70-300 - Digital Rebel'
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