Not Canon, but Sigma 85mm 1.4

[Daniel Browning]

I hope I am not about to be booted off the forum, but today I picked up the Sigma 85mm 1.4 and it seems pretty good.

Tar and feather him! Burn him at the stake! Only Canon is the one true brand!


[] Seriously, I'm glad to hear your good report on the Sigma 85mm, I've been seriously considering it myself.

[Steve U]

Thanks Daniel, I appreciate your comments and advice.[Y]


I'll give it a bit more of a hiding this week and see how it performs.


Steve

[ddt0725]

Woohoo ...I should have mine in my hands tomorrow Thanks for pushing me over the edge on this one, Steve!! It took me quite awhile to finally find it in stock anywhere! I have been searching daily since the day this thread was originally posted!


Anyway, I will surely be testing it against my Canon 85mm f/1.8 (which I truly love) and see how it compares. This will be my first non-Canon lens and if it

[Steve U]

Good for you, I love mine, just have to learn how to produce with it. I

[greggf]

Here are several shots taken with the New Sigma 85 1.4 on a 1D4. I rented it last week, along with the Zeiss. I haven't had much of a chance to go through the pictures, but here are some. I wasn't too impressed with the zeiss wide open, and as such, didn't shoot a whole lot with it. I had wanted to do more, but I am still working on out Italy trip pictures, and I had a double photo shoot this past Sunday, so I am on a bit of a schedule....


I liked the feel of it, and the build quality was good(better than the Sigma 50), but could not compete with the Zeiss in that regard!! It was fast, too, but my 70-200 2.8ll is much faster, and has a better keeper rate...which is expected!! It can be really sharp wide open, if you hit your focus point accurately(hard sometimes), and it does get really sharp stopped down. The colors and contrast look great, too!!


The bokeh looks fantastic...judge for yourself...and for the price, I think, it can't be beat(compared to the 85<span style="background-color: #993300;"]L)...I am not a tech guru, but if I needed an 85, the Sigma would be the one. But, after playing with it, and doing the type of photography I do, I prefer my 70-200 2.8ll...more versatile, faster, and does everything great, from a family shot, to a extreme close-up....just my 2 cents!! It didn't seem to handle AI servo as good as my 70-200, either, which nails it 98% of the time, but still did a respectable job....especially wide open.


Here are the photos...all untouched either jpg from camera, or raw from camera converted to jpg by LR3, with white balance correction. And all taken at f1.4...


Comments and critique are always welcomed...but remember, this wasn't a studio shoot...just out on a walk with the fam and brought the camera with...as I expect most of you will understand[]


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OK..ok..ok...this one I did some post on...c'mon guys...you know the rule!!!! (My wife)


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And some post on this one, too....my little man, Mason(3 1/4 yrs old)


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[Rob Gardner]

Really gorgeous images - nothing to criticize. I

[greggf]

Thanks for the kind words Rob

[ddt0725]

Really gorgeous images - nothing to criticize. I'm very intrigued about this lens. I LOOOOVE my 85 1.8 Canon, but sometimes wish I had a little more something....but I don't want the 1.2 L. I can't wait to read the comparos....

I know EXACTLY what you mean, Rob! My 85 1.8 is one of my absolute favorites but I am hoping the Sigma will give me a happy medium between it and the 85L I lust for! Expectations are high &amp; I hope it does not disappoint. I am hoping to do comparison shots continuously over the next few days to make sure the Sigma is a keeper but most will probably indoor shots since weather may not be all that good. Hoping for one nice day on the weekend.

Denise

[ddt0725]

Really gorgeous images - nothing to criticize. I'm very intrigued about this lens. I LOOOOVE my 85 1.8 Canon, but sometimes wish I had a little more something....but I don't want the 1.2 L. I can't wait to read the comparos....

I know EXACTLY what you mean, Rob! My 85 1.8 is one of my absolute favorites but I am hoping the Sigma will give me a happy medium between it and the 85L I lust for! Expectations are high &amp; I hope it does not disappoint. I am hoping to do comparison shots continuously over the next few days to make sure the Sigma is a keeper but most will probably indoor shots since weather may not be all that good. Hoping for one nice day on the weekend.

Denise

[ddt0725]

I liked the feel of it, and the build quality was good(better than the Sigma 50), but could not compete with the Zeiss in that regard!! It was fast, too, but my 70-200 2.8ll is much faster, and has a better keeper rate...which is expected!! It can be really sharp wide open, if you hit your focus point accurately(hard sometimes), and it does get really sharp stopped down. The colors and contrast look great, too!!


The bokeh looks fantastic...judge for yourself...and for the price, I think, it can't be beat(compared to the 85<span style="background-color: #993300;"]L)...I am not a tech guru, but if I needed an 85, the Sigma would be the one. But, after playing with it, and doing the type of photography I do, I prefer my 70-200 2.8ll...more versatile, faster, and does everything great, from a family shot, to a extreme close-up....just my 2 cents!! It didn't seem to handle AI servo as good as my 70-200, either, which nails it 98% of the time, but still did a respectable job....especially wide open.

Thanks, Gregg for the mini critique of the lens and the sampe photos! You are expressing everything I am hoping to get out of this lens! Also, your family is very photogenic and these spontaneous shots are well done, exactly what I needed to see to re-convince me that I did the right thing!

Your little guy is so cute and obviously doesn't mind the camera at all! My grandson is approx. the same age and he thinks he is being funny by always NOT letting me take his photo!

Denise