Solid build. Secure hood attachment. Image quality. Value.

TS-41 extended tripod mount should be standard. Soft lens cap falls off when removing lens from camera bag.

If you want a fast telephoto, but don't want to pay Nikon or Canon prices, this could be the ideal answer. A very well built lens at less than half price of the Nikon equivalent, works very well on my Fuji S2 Pro. In particular the focus ring is very well damped. Also works well with Sigma's 1.4x or 2x convertors. Weighing in at 2.4KG, this lens can be tricky to handle, but the addition of the TS-41 extended tripod bush improves things dramatically. This has a good handgrip and strap attachment. A little disappointing that you have to buy this separately, but it is worth the extra £100. Good long lens technique essential, especially on the S2, and a bean bag is better than a tripod at slow shutter speeds.

Customer Service

Dealer had to special-order TS-41 from Sigma UK, arrived in 4 days, which is pretty good.

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Sigma 400/5.6 Centon 500mm mirror Nikon 70-200 2.8 VR

solid, well-built. Auto-focus very fast. Crisp and clear picture on canon 10d. the lens hood locks with a screw knob and so far has been very solid.

there is no focus de-limiting switch, which can cause the autofocus to bounce whem shooting through fences etc.

sigma 300 f2.8 hsm - I spent alot of time trying to get user feedback on this lens(and the 120-300 2.8), with little success. I bought this lens from Henry's in Toronto and am totally satisfied. The canon version is 7k, and the reviews are great. However, if your not making your living with the lens and just want a great 300 2.8, the sigma is great. Picture quality is very close to the canon 200mm f2.8 I own, the autofocus locks quick and sure, without any front focus/back focus out of focus problems. I can't tell the difference between it and the cnon 200mm 2.8 autofocus.

Customer Service

7 year warranty from sigma canada, 48 hr turnaround. have not had to test them.

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canon 200mm f2.8

Construction, sharpness of glass - cost. Removable tripod collar. Price

Tripod collar sorta clunky to turn. Not as fast as Nikon in focusing. No focus limit.

My Experience is in architectural photography - 4 by 5, medium format's etc. Although I do shoot 35mm, I can't say I invested a lot of time or money in this format in fact, truth be told, I was shooting a Pentax PZ70 up until last Nov. 2002 when I purchased the Nikon F100 and subsequently D1H this past Jan. 2003. Simply put, 35mm is 35mm... I dont care what camera you're using or quality of lens. To have any significant differences in print quality, you need to shoot at least with a 645 (chrome film of course) or larger. Having said that, I've been pondering the thought of a 300mm 2.8 lenses - obvious choices are the Nikon or one of the 3rd party lenses. I've been carefully evaluating my choices and finally decided there was no way to truly make this decision unless I could hold these giants in my hands and try them my self. Living about a 30mm drive north of NYC's B&H, I headed down to the store with my ATM card loaded with cash expecting the worst (buying the $4,500 Nikon because I had no choice due to overwhelming quality) but curiously apprehensive about the Sigma..or perhaps the Tokina etc. I approached the counter at B&H and after explaining my purposes to the sales person he brought over the Nikon 300mm 2.8 AF-S (silent motor), Sigma's 300mm 2.8 APO - HSM and the Tokina 300mm 2.8 - and an F5 body with charged batteries. 1st up, the Nikon 300mm...never having actually held this lens my 1st impression was "wow? it's all plastic on the outside?" The Nikkor lens was brutally fast, locked on to the subject with authority as expected....I switched to Continuous autofocus and panned around the store looking for subjects to lock onto (peoples heads, sales clerks lighting fixtures) I would say 80% of the time the Nikon would re-find it's subject and lock dead on with out any hunting...in fact, it didn't hunt at all but, there were a few times when it didn't engage to refocus at all... this puzzled me...all I saw was a blur as if it didn't realize I had moved over to a closer subject. Next up, Sigma's new 300mm - 1st impression was I lked the all metal construction, felt solid in my hands (not slighting Nikon by any means but it did have waaay more plastic on the outside) screwed it on the F5..now, I was expecting Sigma to be slower but I was curious as to how *much* slower than the Nikon....well I can honestly tell you,.. not much. The Sigma lens locked onto everything blistering fast and in one aspect,...it didn't stall in continuos autofocusing like the Nikon. I would say the speed difference between the Nikon (Nikon being faster) and the Sigma was about 10% maybe 15%....maybe. Either way, both lenses are so fast in focusing ...for someone like myself who manually focuses everything with larger clunky medium format cameras..this was a blessing in any case. Next up, the Tokina,...all metal construction..I engaged the auto focusing and the whole barrel turned, sounded like a toy car. I went back to the Nikon....then the Sigma, then Nikon, then Sigma...Nikon etc. This process continued for about 40 straight minutes.....me trying to figure out which lens felt better, focused faster,..hunted less etc. I chose to purchase the Sigma 300mm APO HSM lens, at $2,000 less than the Nikon....I was convinced atleast from a mechanical/construction/speed in focusing perspective, Nikons highly touted 300mm 2.8 was not worth an additional $2,000 dollars. "But what about the optics! you did not test the optics! Nikkor lenses are superior!" Next up "my" optics test...I own the Nikon 80 - 200 2.8 AF zoom lens...one of Nikons TOP lenses in sharpness and optical quality. I was expecting the Sigma to be softer by a little especially considering I was shooting one lens at 300mm fixed and the other at 80/120/150/200. at F8 you can not see a difference in fact,...at 2.8 (wide open) you can not tell the difference! The Sigma is as sharp as bright no vignetting and contrast is excellent ( a moot point now with digital files anyway) feel free to email me,.. I will be happy to send you the digital D1H files in raw .NEF or jpg so you can see the stats for your self. So, in conclusion I was not surprised that the Sigma kicks major butt because truth be told...all glass for Nikon/Canon/Sigma/Tamron/Tokina and other major lens makers in Japan is purchased from the same manufacturer in Germany. With today's computer grinding you're splitting hairs trying to find slight difference in a lens...infact, there are soooooo many variables if it matters that much to you.....shoot medium format. John

Customer Service

B&H is the best or calumet.

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just what I tested in my review

Small for a f2,8. Fast AF Well build. Unlike previous Sigma''s, this one withstands the everyday abuse. No need to fiddle with switches to change from AF to MF on the lens.

tripod collar is sticky to operate Slight light fall off peripherally with the X2 converter. the HSM only works with newer Nikon bodies. Sigma can back their top of the line lenses with longer warranties.

Great, but not perfect. I am very pleased with the performance of this lens. It makes a compact package with the X1,4 and X 2 teleconverters for travelling. It is a excellent combination for wildlife and bird photography, especially with regards to close focussing when the conveters are added in comparison to primes. Adding IS or VR technology would make it perfect. It''s performance is not on par with the Nikon, but for the price difference it is a better buy.

Customer Service

Sloowww in NZ and expensive.

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Lots of Nikon, Sigma, Tokina stuff

Tiny,Sharp,Fast autofocus!! tele Extenders really work!!!
smooth manual focus that overrides anytime.straight forward lens. mini nikon 3002.8 S

Tripod collar is alittle stiff but getting better.
where is the 400 2.8??
and 600 4 ??

this 300 2.8 is barley larger than the 80-200 2.8
nikkor s lens.. it's focus is actually quieter than Nikon. not quite as fast but like canon it seems to need to move as far.. if that makes sense? I shot college tennis and tried the 1.4 and X2 extenders. wow they work great!! as with any the sharpness falls off a bit with the X2 but the 1.4 is like the 14e no difference noticed in focus speed or sharpness.. I don't bang my stuff around so maybe under pro use- pro's who don't have to pay for the gear they thrash.. well it may not take that abuse but who knows? bottom line it's fun to make the same quality images with the Sigma as the big boys.. :-) :-) images will be on www.tommyphoto
in a few days. (fhsu sports) check it out warning big files ahead!! and models are next..

Customer Service

it's new and none needed so far..

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every nikon and canon tele usm and s versions the Sigma works the same.