FA* 300 mm f4,5 or Sigma 100-300 f4

mgbirder · 02-12-2011, 10:10 AM

Hi, i do primarily wildlife photography have been using the da 55-300 but really feel that i need more speed and reach (serious LBA

), after doing some research i have found that both the Sigma 100-300 as well as the FA*300 work good with a TC.I have the opportunity to get the FA* here in my home town for about the same price as a sigma 100-300 1.4 TC combo that is currently on ebay. For those of you that have had the opportunity to use any or both of these lenses, what would you recomend? I have a Promaster 1.7 TC, would it work ok with the FA*?

**Clinton** · 02-12-2011, 10:23 AM

MG, also keep in mind that one on ebay has some nicks on the glass. You might try to make them an offer for less.

If you wait a bit till I get my 100-300mm I can compare them for you. I've already got the FA*300.

mgbirder · 02-12-2011, 11:15 AM

Hi Clinton, you beat me on the 100-300mm by 10 minutes :-)!!
Right now my feelings are moving more toward the FA* it has exceptional reviews and is a lot lighter (And i can personally inspect the lens before I buy it...). What have your impression been with the FA*? Have you used it with a k7? I have read that the focus speed with a K20 is pretty fast alltough not up to par with the sdm, hsm of the modern lenses. I do (or inted, try... ) a lot of bird pics, favorites are Hummingbirds and would like a pretty good C-AF speed, aldo for other BIF pics.

Ole · 02-12-2011, 11:53 AM

I have the FA* 300/4.5 and have no complaints on focus speed and image quality. The only negative is the lack of a tripod collar. I have had to buy a special add-on to my tripod to get a stable setup for night shooting. During the day the lens is light enough for hand held shooting.

You will lose auto-focus with most teleconverters and at least a stop of light, so you get a 450mm f/6.3 lens with a 1.4x teleconverter. Perhaps such a setup becomes too hard to focus for bird photography.

Last edited by Ole; 02-12-2011 at 12:02 PM.

birdoprey · 02-12-2011, 12:16 PM

I have a Sigma 100-300 F4 and I have taken hundreds of hummingbird pictures with it. I use the 1.4x Sigma TC as well. It's great! It is on the heavy side but it's like having a prime lens from 100mm all the way to 300mm.

**Clinton** · 02-12-2011, 03:53 PM

Originally posted by mgbirder

Hi Clinton, you beat me on the 100-300mm by 10 minutes :-)!!

Heh, so I heard.

I actually saw it within moments of him posting it through blind luck, but it took me about 20 more minutes to decide to make the purchase. Now I'll be putting off the FA* 24 for a few months.

The FA* 300/4.5 really is nice glass, and it's surprisingly light, but I find the exact 300mm focal length to not be flexible enough for what I'm doing most of the time, hence the purchase of the 100-300.

As Ole pointed out, no tripod collar, which hasn't seemed all that much of an issue for me because it's so light, but I expect it would be more stable with one attached. Especially after you double it with a 2x TC.

AF on it is wicked fast; I expect faster by a fair margin than it's DA* counterpart.

mgbirder · 02-12-2011, 07:42 PM

Hi, thanks to all for your input, i made the dealer in my home town an offer and he dropped the price by the equivalent of 100 $ So i bought it. Now i will only have to find a way to make things up with my wife, who is already looking a me with disaprovel. I will post some pics on Tuesday (if i find the lens is in good condition).

MG

02-12-2011, 10:10 AM	#1
mgbirder Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Cali Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 235	*FA 300 mm f4,5 or Sigma 100-300 f4** Hi, i do primarily wildlife photography have been using the da 55-300 but really feel that i need more speed and reach (serious LBA), after doing some research i have found that both the Sigma 100-300 as well as the FA300 work good with a TC.I have the opportunity to get the FA here in my home town for about the same price as a sigma 100-300 1.4 TC combo that is currently on ebay. For those of you that have had the opportunity to use any or both of these lenses, what would you recomend? I have a Promaster 1.7 TC, would it work ok with the FA*?

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02-12-2011, 10:23 AM	#2
Clinton Site Supporter Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Salt Lake City, UT Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,910	MG, also keep in mind that one on ebay has some nicks on the glass. You might try to make them an offer for less. If you wait a bit till I get my 100-300mm I can compare them for you. I've already got the FA*300.

02-12-2011, 11:15 AM	#3
mgbirder Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Cali Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 235 Original Poster	Hi Clinton, you beat me on the 100-300mm by 10 minutes :-)!! Right now my feelings are moving more toward the FA* it has exceptional reviews and is a lot lighter (And i can personally inspect the lens before I buy it...). What have your impression been with the FA*? Have you used it with a k7? I have read that the focus speed with a K20 is pretty fast alltough not up to par with the sdm, hsm of the modern lenses. I do (or inted, try... ) a lot of bird pics, favorites are Hummingbirds and would like a pretty good C-AF speed, aldo for other BIF pics.

02-12-2011, 11:53 AM	#4
Ole Administrator Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Copenhagen, Denmark Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 4,408	I have the FA* 300/4.5 and have no complaints on focus speed and image quality. The only negative is the lack of a tripod collar. I have had to buy a special add-on to my tripod to get a stable setup for night shooting. During the day the lens is light enough for hand held shooting. You will lose auto-focus with most teleconverters and at least a stop of light, so you get a 450mm f/6.3 lens with a 1.4x teleconverter. Perhaps such a setup becomes too hard to focus for bird photography. Last edited by Ole; 02-12-2011 at 12:02 PM.

02-12-2011, 12:16 PM	#5
birdoprey Junior Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: ATL Posts: 38	I have a Sigma 100-300 F4 and I have taken hundreds of hummingbird pictures with it. I use the 1.4x Sigma TC as well. It's great! It is on the heavy side but it's like having a prime lens from 100mm all the way to 300mm.

02-12-2011, 03:53 PM	#6
Clinton Site Supporter Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Salt Lake City, UT Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,910	Originally posted by mgbirder Hi Clinton, you beat me on the 100-300mm by 10 minutes :-)!! Heh, so I heard. I actually saw it within moments of him posting it through blind luck, but it took me about 20 more minutes to decide to make the purchase. Now I'll be putting off the FA* 24 for a few months. The FA* 300/4.5 really is nice glass, and it's surprisingly light, but I find the exact 300mm focal length to not be flexible enough for what I'm doing most of the time, hence the purchase of the 100-300. As Ole pointed out, no tripod collar, which hasn't seemed all that much of an issue for me because it's so light, but I expect it would be more stable with one attached. Especially after you double it with a 2x TC. AF on it is wicked fast; I expect faster by a fair margin than it's DA* counterpart.

02-12-2011, 07:42 PM	#7
mgbirder Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Cali Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 235 Original Poster	Hi, thanks to all for your input, i made the dealer in my home town an offer and he dropped the price by the equivalent of 100 $ So i bought it. Now i will only have to find a way to make things up with my wife, who is already looking a me with disaprovel. I will post some pics on Tuesday (if i find the lens is in good condition). MG