Sigma 70-300 APO or DL ???

[yamcake]

The red ring or the gold ring???

how much are these going for???

are these undoubtly better then the 75-300 USM lens? i used the lens before.. i find they are okay... soft yes.. but not pathetically soft as some had described..

maybe i just didn't see the REAL sharp lenses...

[metals99]

gold ring = APO

red ring = DL

i have the gold ring one apo technology is great.. and the gold ring cost more.. anyway this lens is seriously not bad at all.. good enough for me orelse
if u have $$ go for the 70-200L usm lens..

[Digiman]

Originally Posted by yamcake The red ring or the gold ring??? how much are these going for??? are these undoubtly better then the 75-300 USM lens? i used the lens before.. i find they are okay... soft yes.. but not pathetically soft as some had described.. maybe i just didn't see the REAL sharp lenses...

I've used both the Canon 75-300 USM and the Sigma 70-300 (red ring). I personally prefer the Sigma as I find it much sharper and has less CA compared to the Canon. I also like its 1:2 macro capability which is great for most insect shots.

Some sample shots taken with the Sigma:

300mm f5.6 1/100s ISO 400


238mm f8 1/200s ISO 400


190mm f5 1/200s ISO 200

[+evenstar]

Originally Posted by metals99 gold ring = APO red ring = DL i have the gold ring one apo technology is great.. and the gold ring cost more.. anyway this lens is seriously not bad at all.. good enough for me orelse if u have $$ go for the 70-200L usm lens..

i thought the red ring one is APO??

[Ah Pao]

Both APO and non-APO versions feature the red ring, I think. The red ring only denotes that it is a DL ("deluxe") series of lens.

Haha, the red ring reminds me of the Canon L lenses...

Anyway, why are we talking about red and gold rings?
I think for the budget you're looking at, for best future-compatibility go for original Canon lenses. Or else, if you want to save some money but get good (if not better) quality, go for Sigma.

[yamcake]

ok.. thanks for the replies..

i gotta no $$ to get the 70-200L even the F4 version.. just a poor student...

i gotta a good offer for the canon lens... so i'm kinda stuck you see..

how much is the 70-300 sigma? the gold ring version?

[metals99]

my sigma is gold ring got APO...
but rechecking the sigma site now it seems they have change to a newer version like canon also got market 2.. hehe mine i bought last year.. now the apo version is "RED" ring.. but the DL version no ring colour.. but seriously i reccomend u to get the APO version cost a little bit more..

check the sigma lens here on the chart.. u can see the comparison
http://www.sigmaphoto.com/html/lenschart.htm

actually tamron also got this version 70-300mm

Tamron AF70-300mm F/4-5.6 LD 1:2 Macro - using LD glass.. not bas also..
sometimes i always think tamron have far better optics than sigma..

can check the tamron here http://www.tamron.com/frame.htm

u can check this out too but i think cost a bit more than the sigma 70-300 APO

i bought mine at 400 at lucky plaza but u can try to ask for it at alan photo or CP or mscolor must bargain lah k..

i seriously think this lens is worth buying the optics are seriously not bad for the price u pay.... anyway u can't compare to L lens rite and please dun it cost much more .. and build is also quiet tough for this lens too..

[mpenza]

Sigma 70-300 APO has a version 2. costs around $340 with warranty.

[yamcake]

Originally Posted by mpenza Sigma 70-300 APO has a version 2. costs around $340 with warranty.

ya.. i asked at MS colour today.. but they ran out of stock already..

[jbma]

Originally Posted by mpenza Sigma 70-300 APO has a version 2. costs around $340 with warranty.

Sounds like a good price to me....value for money.