Home > Consumer Reviews > Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM APO HSM IF Macro Lens for Canon SLR Cameras

I have numerous Canon L lens, the 135L, the 200L, 24-70L, the 70-40L, additionally the canon 60 mm macro lens, the 50mm f/1.4, and the 85 f/1.8, lens; this lens and the Tamron 200-500 zoom are the only non Canon lens that I own. This lens stays on my camera more then any of the above lenses. The 2.8 aperture, the ability to do macro and 150 mm distance gives it such flexibility that it stays on my camera 1Ds the most and it is often on my 20d (the 1.6 multiplier makes it a little less flexible).

great lens and a great price. it has a nice feel to it. not too heavy and not too light. autofocus is somewhat slow but that is expected from a macro lens. otherwise its a great lens

I recently bought the Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM APO HSM IF Macro lens, and used it on my Panasonic DMC-L1 DSLR, and I couldn't be more satisfied!
(THE FOLLOWING REVIEW IS BASED ON USING THIS LENS ON PANASONIC DMC-L1 DSLR, AND SOME FUNCIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO OTHER CAMERAS, SO PLEASE VISIT SIGMA'S WEBSITE FOR MORE DETAILS ON CAMERAS COMPATIBILITY).

Image Quality: The images that this lens produce is really sharp, detailed, and very dramatic when it comes to the depth of field. The colours are all excellent and real. Knowing that this lens is a macro lens, you could really get lots of sharp details. And the fact that the apreture is f/2.8, means no more blurry images.

Focal Length: This lens has a fixed focal length of 150mm, which is really good for sports, animals, and portrait photographers. You could easily get a good shot of an animal from a good distance with total discreetness. Also, at this focal length, the focus would be emphasized on the object, while the background would be kept blurry and fluid-like, creating a very dramatic effect. Finally, because it is fixed, you need to move back and forth to get the right composition.

Focusing: The focusing could be done automatically by the lens, or you can simply rotate the focusing ring to have a manual focus without pressing any buttons or levers to convert it from auto to manual. The only disdvatange of the auto focus is that sometimes it could take up to 10 seconds to focus on the object, if the scene is crowded with objects at different distances.

Materials & Construction: The lens is mainly made from metal with a protective matt black paint, that would give it a professional look. The focusing ring is covered with hard grooved rubber for a better grip. And all these items fit nicely with each other (so don't expect loose fittings :D), and the lens itself would fit firmly on the camera mount.

Size: Weighing at about 1kg (2 pounds), this lens could sometimes leave your hands tired (keeping in mind the weight of the camera itself). So I prefer using a tripod whenever I have the luxury of time.

Price: I think the price is reasonable, considering the prices of other macro lenses with telephoto capabilites.

Overall: An excellent, award-winning lens that is capable of achieving high quality and dramatic images.

Ahmed Safer.

I have nothing bad to say about this lens. It's very sharp, fast focusing and tough build. I also like the additional working distance over my 90mm macro lens.

On nikon mount: pretty good working distance (1:1 magnification at shortest distance, magnification decreases as distance increases), needs a tripod to start working with. The autofocus - though you don't really need it in macro - is silent but spends a lot of time searching in low light conditions (no miracles!). Really sharp.