Saving for a lens. Help

F

Friggs

Senior Member
Hi folks,
Here is another which should I buy. I am saving for a long zoom and am not sure which to get. It is between the Sigma Contemporary 150-600, Tamron 150-600 and the Nikon 200-500. I shoot mostly birds, but do all kinds of shooting. Sports included. Which has the edge between the Tamron and Sigma? Is the Nikon worth the extra $400? Which to me is a lot of money. Would I notice the difference between the 600mm to the 500mm? I am shooting right now with a Nikon D300. Eventualy I hope to get a D500, or a D7200, but that is a lot more saving and is going to take a long time. Any input would be appreciated.

Thanks,
 
D

Deezey

Senior Member
After a bunch of my own research and shooting both I will be going with the Tamron over the Nikon. The Nikon just seemed to be producing less contrast at the same focal distances and F stop. And in all honesty the 5.6 vs 6.3 never came into consideration since both sharpen up from f8-f11.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
D

Deezey

Senior Member
The Sigma is roughly on par with the Tamron. Still better than the Nikon was at the same F stop


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
F

Friggs

Senior Member
Thanks. They are close to the same price. Sigma comes with a case. Tamron doesn't. That would save me a few bucks buying one of them. I have some more time to think about it. The Tamron zooms the same way as the Nikon. Sigma is reversed. That is something to consider as well.
 
D

Deezey

Senior Member
I have no Sigma lens. But I do have the Tamron 70-200 2.8. So I am familiar with their product.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
B

Blacktop

Senior Member
Deezey said:
After a bunch of my own research and shooting both I will be going with the Tamron over the Nikon. The Nikon just seemed to be producing less contrast at the same focal distances and F stop. And in all honesty the 5.6 vs 6.3 never came into consideration since both sharpen up from f8-f11.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

It should. You can put a 1.4TC on the 5.6 and still look pretty nice. Also 5.6 on the Nikon is as sharp as f/8 (from everything I hear)
Not trying to push the OP one way or another. 400 dollars is a lot of money.

Another thing to consider. If it is between the Tammy and the Siggy, you can buy a USB dock for the Sigma and fine tune the lens through the computer at all focal lengths. (also from what I hear and read)
 
Last edited:
M

mikew_RIP

Senior Member
Is weight a problem the Nikon is heavier,ime not sure its any better than the others when they are pulled back to 500.
Cant suggest which to get as although i have had the Sigma C and Tamron,i could end up with anything :D
 
M

mauckcg

Senior Member
Blacktop said:
It should. You can put a 1.4TC on the 5.6 and still look pretty nice. Also 5.6 on the Nikon is as sharp as f/8 (from everything I hear)
Not trying to push the OP one way or another. 400 dollars is a lot of money.

Another thing to consider. If it is between the Tammy and the Siggy, you can buy a USB dock for the Sigma and fine tune the lens through the computer at all focal lengths. (also from what I hear and read)
Click to expand...
It is a time consuming PITA to fine tune a sigma lens with the dock, especially with a Zoom. BUT, if your planning on a high MP camera without the AA filter like the D7200 or D500, the extra fine tune work is worth it.

Took a few hours to fine tune my 17-70 C for my D7100, but I did notice a little bit of a difference when i was in daytona with the lens two months ago.
 
P

paul04

Senior Member
dck22 said:
I have the Tamron and am very happy with it. Lowepro lens case was not expensive.
Click to expand...


Same here, I got a lowepro case of ebay for the tamron 150-600mm

20160114_154026.jpg
 
D

D200freak

Senior Member
I have the Tamron 150-600, have tried the Nikon 200-500, and am budgeting to buy the Nikon.

Why? Three reasons all in favor of the Nikon: More accurate autofocus (the Tamron gets lost easily), FASTER autofocus action, and better VR for the Nikon. It (to me) is clearly the better lens for sports oriented shooting. I do NOT see any difference in image quality, clarity, or contrast. The minor loss of range (out to 500mm instead of 600mm) has been found to be trivial in my opinion, not enough to sway my decision.

That being said, I am in no way displeased with the Tamron. It's just that I see the Nikon lens to be better in ways that are important to me and relevant to my shooting preferences.
 
F

Friggs

Senior Member
Well after a lot of debating, reading reviews, watching youtube videos. talking with people who know one or the other or both, I decided to go for the Nikon. In fact I just ordered it. It should be here tomorrow. No sleep for me tonight. And every noise I hear tomorrow I will be looking to see if it is the UPS truck. Now it is time to start saving for a new body. My D300 is getting old. Thanks for all the help.
 
B

Blacktop

Senior Member
Friggs said:
Well after a lot of debating, reading reviews, watching youtube videos. talking with people who know one or the other or both, I decided to go for the Nikon. In fact I just ordered it. It should be here tomorrow. No sleep for me tonight. And every noise I hear tomorrow I will be looking to see if it is the UPS truck. Now it is time to start saving for a new body. My D300 is getting old. Thanks for all the help.
Click to expand...

Congratulations. Don't drop it on your foot.:p
 
Top