 - Darren J. Gilcher  Contact Darren J. Gilcher Darren J. Gilcher's Gallery |
Returning a lens I recently bought the Sigma 100-300 f4. lens for my Canon 20D. The pics are nice but soft. I have seen online photos that are razor sharp from this lens. I called Sigma and they said send the lens and camera so they can sort of calibrate the lens to the camera. Has anyone done this and has it made a difference? I hate sending things off to the factory.
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Mark Feldstein |
It depends Darren. That's a fairly substantial lens to be hand holding at shutter speeds less than say 1/250th of a second. Hence your problem may simply be nothing more or less than good old-fashioned camera shake. Remember: When you hear hoof beats think horses, not zebras. Did you try shooting using a tripod and cable release or at least a monopod? I've never owned a Sigma lens but I've often sent lenses to Nikon, Leica or Hasselblad for CLA without any subsequent problems and they all did an excellent job. So, you should be fine and be able to get a definitive answer as to whether it's your technique or the equipment. And it's also best to do it now under warranty.
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- Dennis Flanagan Contact Dennis Flanagan Dennis Flanagan's Gallery |
I have had a friend whose Minolta Camera that would not auto focus clearly. Minolta had her send in the lens so they could calibrate the lens and camera electronics. It cured the problem.
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- Darren J. Gilcher Contact Darren J. Gilcher Darren J. Gilcher's Gallery |
Thanks for the responses guys. I thought it was me shaking for a while so I finally did a few tests with a tripod and it's definately the lense. I found a comparison test someone did online and the shots he had were so sharp I couldn't believe it. I tried some action shots at my stepsons lacrosse game. Shutterspeeds of 1600 at 300mm and f4 are very soft. However a handheld I took of my wife at 173mm were pretty sharp. I just wonder if I get another camera after this will the lense need to recalibrate to a new camera.
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- Darren J. Gilcher Contact Darren J. Gilcher Darren J. Gilcher's Gallery |
I should proofread before submitting. I did use a cable with the tripod too. Sigma sounded like it's a fairly common problem and the result is soft shots.
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- Gregory LaGrange Contact Gregory LaGrange Gregory LaGrange's Gallery |
That lens may not be sharp at the 300mm focal length. That's a drawback to tele-zooms that can be more pronounced in some lenses.
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- Darren J. Gilcher Contact Darren J. Gilcher Darren J. Gilcher's Gallery |
For anyone that's interested, I just got the lens back today and have tried it. I took a few at f4.0 and 300mm and there is a big improvement in the sharpness. And they were handheld. I have to say I'm pretty happy. I'd recommend this lens.
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