I have been missing a moderate telephoto in my bag as I have been neglecting my Nikon 18-200vr for my faster glass. You guys have definately spoilt me for the need for depth of field control and bokeh.
With my three small children, I find I have to keep them close for safety reasons and the wider end (50mm) was important to me as 70-80mm seemed too long to start with. I had a twin ring Nikon 80-200/2.8 for many years and I did not want a lens that heavy when chasing 3 little boys by myself. The 2lbs Sigma 50-150/2.8 seemed like a great choice.
Even though my Sigma 30/1.4 and 10-20 were sharp and problem free for me, I was nervous about this purchase: I read reviews with decentered lenses, or front/back focus issues, etc. My local store had 3 in stock, so I went to try them instead of mailorder this time...glad I did. The first one was pretty spot on except for a slightly softer right top corner at F2.8. The other two were much much worse, I could not believe it. The softness in the corners on the other two were quite concerning.
I purchased the best of the three and took a few shots today playing with the children. I have to say focus speed is very fast; I wasn't using the hood and I did have some flare; F2.8 has slightly lower contrast, but sharpness was good; overall, I am really pleased. In dark conditions I would miss VR, but for the price and weight, I think the lens is fantastic.
150mm @ F2.8. My middle child, Lukas. This picture shows the flare I was seeing; the sun was shining through some cloud and hitting the front element of the lens (I wasn't using the hood). You can see the lower half of the image has lowering of contrast.
50mm @ F2.8. My youngest son, Niklas. The bokeh looked pretty nice for 50mm I thought; smoother than my Tamron 17-50/2.8.
50mm @F2.8 heavily cropped. What amazed me here is that I holding my sleeping baby in my arms taking the shot: I don't think the Nikon 18-200vr or the Tamron 17-50/2.8 could focus this fast to lock on in continuous focus mode and get tack sharp results with photos of my kids on the swing: I got several in a series all in focus. Too early to tell how good the focus speed is, but seemed to be better than my previous lenses.
150mm @ F4.0. I thought I need a little more depth of field with two faces in the picture. Still blurred out the background nicely. Lukas is squirting Markus, my oldest, with the water as he tried to drink.
150mm @ F2.8. I have other photos that I focused better on his eyes, but I like his expression the best on this shot. Nice bokeh if there is not small bright highlights in the background with portraits.
With my three small children, I find I have to keep them close for safety reasons and the wider end (50mm) was important to me as 70-80mm seemed too long to start with. I had a twin ring Nikon 80-200/2.8 for many years and I did not want a lens that heavy when chasing 3 little boys by myself. The 2lbs Sigma 50-150/2.8 seemed like a great choice.
Even though my Sigma 30/1.4 and 10-20 were sharp and problem free for me, I was nervous about this purchase: I read reviews with decentered lenses, or front/back focus issues, etc. My local store had 3 in stock, so I went to try them instead of mailorder this time...glad I did. The first one was pretty spot on except for a slightly softer right top corner at F2.8. The other two were much much worse, I could not believe it. The softness in the corners on the other two were quite concerning.
I purchased the best of the three and took a few shots today playing with the children. I have to say focus speed is very fast; I wasn't using the hood and I did have some flare; F2.8 has slightly lower contrast, but sharpness was good; overall, I am really pleased. In dark conditions I would miss VR, but for the price and weight, I think the lens is fantastic.
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150mm @ F2.8. My middle child, Lukas. This picture shows the flare I was seeing; the sun was shining through some cloud and hitting the front element of the lens (I wasn't using the hood). You can see the lower half of the image has lowering of contrast.
Subscribe to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
50mm @ F2.8. My youngest son, Niklas. The bokeh looked pretty nice for 50mm I thought; smoother than my Tamron 17-50/2.8.
Subscribe to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
50mm @F2.8 heavily cropped. What amazed me here is that I holding my sleeping baby in my arms taking the shot: I don't think the Nikon 18-200vr or the Tamron 17-50/2.8 could focus this fast to lock on in continuous focus mode and get tack sharp results with photos of my kids on the swing: I got several in a series all in focus. Too early to tell how good the focus speed is, but seemed to be better than my previous lenses.
Subscribe to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
150mm @ F4.0. I thought I need a little more depth of field with two faces in the picture. Still blurred out the background nicely. Lukas is squirting Markus, my oldest, with the water as he tried to drink.
Subscribe to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
150mm @ F2.8. I have other photos that I focused better on his eyes, but I like his expression the best on this shot. Nice bokeh if there is not small bright highlights in the background with portraits.
I am deciding which to let go. IMO the 50-150mm gives up very little to the 70-200mm VR. The 70-200mm is probably a little better but it really is close. This is my 3rd copy of the 70-200mm and this one has no decentering, yea! Nikons are not immune to sample variation either. 
