Sigma 100-300mm f/4 EX DG IF APO with 1.4 TC

Hi folks...Went out today with my new Sigma 100-300mm f/4 EX DG IF and Sigma 1.4TC...I must say, it is an impressive combo...It is large and heavy, but not like the bigma. The image quality is impressive to say the least...Now today was my first day out with it....

The first samples where all shot at 200 ISO and a distance of appx 120 Yards away...Focal length with TC IS 420MM...All exif in tact...

http://img205.imageshack.us/img205/9...ylight1rv7.jpg

http://img103.imageshack.us/img103/4...ylight2iq0.jpg

http://img174.imageshack.us/img174/5...aylighton2.jpg

These next few where taken at ISO 500 and getting pretty dark...My other gear, would be struggling a little bit with the conditions. If you look close, you can see some motion blur that is caused when there is simply not enough light...
http://img103.imageshack.us/img103/2...eveningdy9.jpg

http://img404.imageshack.us/img404/7...vening1rm7.jpg

These next few I would not have been able to get with my other gear...This beast at F/4 (F/5.6 with TC) is amazing..It focuses really fast...I was using the K10D, not my K20D....These are at ISO 500 and quite dark conditions...With my other lenses, I would have had the ISO at about 1100-1600, but with this large glass, ISO 500 and some EV comp, I was in good shape...
http://img242.imageshack.us/img242/5...00dark3ar9.jpg

http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/5...00dark2ah0.jpg

Good photos as usual. I want to express my appreciation for your photos and the different lens and your candid appraisal of them. It makes more sense than some reviews I have read Now I just have to find a Tammy 1.4 TC It's kinda like the Holy Grail It's out there but where?.

Great pictures and review, Javier!

Thanks a bunch for the kind words. Well, Today I took out both my new Sigma 100-300 F/4 and Pentax DA*300 F/4....So far, there is no difference what so ever..None, nada that I can see. I will post some pics tomorrow. By the way, the Sigma 100-300F/4 with out the Sigma TC's HSM motor is quiet and extremely fast and precise. Amazon had three of them when I bought it. I was surprised it was HSM as I thought Sigma was not going put it on pentax mount. With the Sigma TC the HSM does NOT work and it is still pretty fast to auto focus, but noisy...

When I was looking for it, I called Adorama and they had this one.
Sigma 100-300mm f/4 EX DG IF AutoFocus Telephoto Zoom Lens for Pentax AF Cameras I am pretty sure this is an old model, but really good.

This is the one I bought.
Sigma 100-300mm f/4 EX DG IF HSM APO Fast Aperture Telephoto Zoom Lens for Pentax and Samsung SLR Cameras
Amazon.com: Sigma 100-300mm f/4 EX DG IF HSM APO Fast Aperture Telephoto Zoom Lens for Pentax and Samsung SLR Cameras: Camera & Photo
Along with the dedicated TC that only works with certain APO lenses.
I tried to use this TC on some of my other lenses, but would not even fit.

Here are a few more from this combo, taken today.
http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/1588/stranger1ta6.jpg

http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/2...ranger2ei0.jpg

http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/2426/strangerfg6.jpg

Congratulations on your news lens! Wow! very sharp with great color rendition. Even the ones shot in lower light are sharp. I love long lenses! Too heavy for me to carry, but I enjoy looking at other's images. Thanks for posting them. That's a great lens.

Liz

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Originally Posted by Liz

Congratulations on your news lens! Wow! very sharp with great color rendition. Even the ones shot in lower light are sharp. I love long lenses! Too heavy for me to carry, but I enjoy looking at other's images. Thanks for posting them. That's a great lens.

Liz

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Thanks Liz, I got me another G9 and boy, what a great camera that is..We should start a G9 only thread.

I need to stop clicking on this thread, or I'm going to end up getting one of these... :)

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Originally Posted by jgredline

Thanks Liz, I got me another G9 and boy, what a great camera that is..We should start a G9 only thread.

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Congratulations! I'm glad you ended up with the G9 - I agree, it's a wonderful camera with many features, and probably one of the best if not the best out there. The IQ is exceptional, too.

Liz

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Originally Posted by spiraleyes

I need to stop clicking on this thread, or I'm going to end up getting one of these... :)

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Go ahead Jim...you know you want one!!!!!! :thumbsup:

These are very impressive. I was looking for a 70-200mm f2.8 for low light photography, but I like the extra 100mm reach.

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Originally Posted by Snapac

These are very impressive. I was looking for a 70-200mm f2.8 for low light photography, but I like the extra 100mm reach.

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The 70-200 is still not a bad choice. Infact, as soon as they are out I will be picking one up as well. That 1 stop is huge.. Add a TC 1.4 and you will be close to the the 100-300 F/4 and Pentax has a 1.7TC that will put you past the 300 mark. Things to consider.

Now where is that money tree growing? lol

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jgredline

The 70-200 is still not a bad choice. Infact, as soon as they are out I will be picking one up as well. That 1 stop is huge.. Add a TC 1.4 and you will be close to the the 100-300 F/4 and Pentax has a 1.7TC that will put you past the 300 mark. Things to consider.

Now where is that money tree growing? lol

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LOL, when you find the money tree, send me a few seeds...The reviews that I have read on the 70-200mm are just ho-hum, I really like your set-up and the reviews at FM gave the Sigma a 9.5. Now, will the TC 1.4 work well with other manufacture lense? 2nd...do you notice any reduced image quality by adding the TC? And lastly, I am not understanding what you mean by "...and Pentax has a 1.7TC that will put you past the 300 mark"

Also which you think is the sharpest, your Sigma 135-400 APO or the Sigma 100-300mm?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Snapac

LOL, when you find the money tree, send me a few seeds...The reviews that I have read on the 70-200mm are just ho-hum, I really like your set-up and the reviews at FM gave the Sigma a 9.5. Now, will the TC 1.4 work well with other manufacture lense? 2nd...do you notice any reduced image quality by adding the TC? And lastly, I am not understanding what you mean by "...and Pentax has a 1.7TC that will put you past the 300 mark"

Also which you think is the sharpest, your Sigma 135-400 APO or the Sigma 100-300mm?

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The 70-200 F/2.8 i am waiting for is the sigma HSM version.
The best TC for Pentax right now is the Tamron 1.4 TC. It will work with all lenses. It needs to be the MC-4 model. The Sigma 1.4TC will only fit high end APO sigma lenses. Example, It will not fit my 135-400APO..
As far as sharpeness between the two lenses, the 100-300F/4 APO is razer sharp with and with out the TC.

What the TC does is add length.
300mm x 1.4= 420mm
300mm x 1.7= 510mm

200mm x 1.4= 280mm
200mm x 1.7= 340mm

I should also mention that with a TC, You will loose a full stop.
example. an F/2.8 becomes F/4.0
an F/4.0 becomes F/5.6

There are some 2.0TC'S out there, but will only manual focus and do suffer some loss of image quality.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jgredline

The 70-200 F/2.8 i am waiting for is the sigma HSM version.
The best TC for Pentax right now is the Tamron 1.4 TC. It will work with all lenses. It needs to be the MC-4 model. The Sigma 1.4TC will only fit high end APO sigma lenses. Example, It will not fit my 135-400APO..
As far as sharpeness between the two lenses, the 100-300F/4 APO is razer sharp with and with out the TC.

What the TC does is add length.
300mm x 1.4= 420mm
300mm x 1.7= 510mm

200mm x 1.4= 280mm
200mm x 1.7= 340mm

I should also mention that with a TC, You will loose a full stop.
example. an F/2.8 becomes F/4.0
an F/4.0 becomes F/5.6

There are some 2.0TC'S out there, but will only manual focus and do suffer some loss of image quality.

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Thanks for the explanation. So if I understand you correctly; even with the Tamron 1.4 TC on the Sigma 100-300 F/4, will still lose a stop, so the only benefit is length increase. Am I correct?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Snapac

Thanks for the explanation. So if I understand you correctly; even with the Tamron 1.4 TC on the Sigma 100-300 F/4, will still lose a stop, so the only benefit is length increase. Am I correct?

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Yes. you are correct.

"Evil laugh" The Sigma 100-300mm will be mine...

original, resized only.
http://img443.imageshack.us/img443/9...gp05261dm6.jpg

100% crop
http://img78.imageshack.us/img78/1091/imgp0526az5.jpg

original, resized only.
http://img205.imageshack.us/img205/3923/imgp0653ww9.jpg

100% crop
http://img443.imageshack.us/img443/7...gp06531bv3.jpg

One more from today.This bird was about 4 feet infront of me and the lens (sigma 100-300 F/4 with 1.4TC ) was still able to lock focus on it...This would be 420mm locked in at 4 feet or so.
http://img366.imageshack.us/img366/5702/imgp0586wt2.jpg

OK, Some bonus shots with this lens.
http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/4149/imgp0678gf1.jpg

http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/493/imgp0691eo5.jpg

http://img507.imageshack.us/img507/9136/imgp0603yc9.jpg

Man thats nice.

Javier you have convinced me...great job BTW

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Snapac

Javier you have convinced me...great job BTW

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Not trying to convince, just trying to help...We pentaxians are few here, but we can more than hold our own :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jgredline

Not trying to convince, just trying to help...We pentaxians are few here, but we can more than hold our own :)

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so true and I thank you for your help

This setup seems to have some minor colour fringing issues, but printed at realistic sizes (or edited with Lightroom or something) I don't think it's significant.

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Originally Posted by SmartWombat

This setup seems to have some minor colour fringing issues, but printed at realistic sizes (or edited with Lightroom or something) I don't think it's significant.

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Hmm, I have not noticed anything paul. Can you point them out?