[Atlantic]

Hello all

I know it may be two different lenses (and prices), but I need one for inside church, etc.

Which one do you recommend? - Thanks.

[JinDesu]

If you can afford it, that Sigma is going to be much better for inside a church. It's 1 stop faster on the short end, and 2 stops faster on the long end.

(Stop means: if the 55-300 shoots a scene at F4 at 1/300s, the Sigma will do it at 1/600s at F2.8)

And it's got HSM, which is silent, compared to the screw drive of the 55-300.

[jatrax]

Assuming this is the Sigma 70-200 f/2.8 and that all you will use it for is inside the church then I would go with the 70-200. I think the 55-300 is a great lens, longer reach and possibly a better value if you need the range but it does not do well in lower light. And I doubt you will need the 300mm inside the church unless it is really big. And unless it is really well lit, you will have to use higher ISO to keep your speed up with 55-300. The 70-200 is just in another class, and price point.

Both are good lenses, just for different applications.

[crewl1]

The Sigma is a great lens and at 2.8 it will allow you to shoot indoors without a flash.
If you don't need that long a focal length I hear the Pentax DA*50-135 is a great option as well.
I think the 55-300 will require too slow a shutter speed without flash. It's a great lens otherwise.

[Atlantic]

Thanks a lot. I will go for the 70-200mm then.

[kent]

70-200mm all the way. It is fine lens, with some stunning quality however it has some flaws too. I had it about 1.5 year and finally sold it then bought Pentax 70mm lens. The weight and dimensions means a lot to me.

[ubizubi]

I really really like my 55-300mm but as others have said, it's reallllly noisy and a bit slow. Not the ideal lens for a church. Are you sure you won't want something wider than 70mm, though? Or will you be able to change lenses?

[Giklab]

There is no contest. 2.8 is the slowest you'd want in a church.

Also, did you try handling the Sigma? It's heavy.

Assuming you are talking about the OS version, you could get a Sigma 50-150 or the mentioned Pentax 50-135. Depending on the size of the church, the extra wide angle might be useful.

[Lowell Goudge]

Are you looking new or used. If used, I suggest getting the APO 70-200/2.8 EX or EX DG but avoid the macro version. The earlier version is much sharper wide open, and the screw drive AF works very well with sigmas 1.4x and 2x TCs to give additional high quality reach and speed.

[bdparker]

I have the Sigma APO 70-200 f2.8 EX DG HSM and I do use it inside Churches for shooting religious ceremonies. one thing I would do is not use the OS in the lens because it has a tendency to clunk (well mine does anyway) and just use the Cameras OS (K-7) I'm happy with quality of the images that I'm getting.

[zapp]

If you need a 300 mm lens inside a church, something is wrong with your position.
Many people really like the Tamron 2.8/70-200 check it out on photozone or in the lens discussion section.

[Atlantic]

Which one is better then, the Tamron or the Sigma?

[crewl1]

For your needs the Tamron may give better image quality.
If you needed it for sports shooting I would go with the Sigma due to its faster autofocus, but for static subjects the Tamron IQ wide open is the winner.

[joe.penn]

Which one is better then, the Tamron or the Sigma?

Well, if that't the case, why not throw in the DA*200? (well, I guess if you are looking for the zoom that wouldn't work)

AASN: The DA*200 gives you silent AF plus weather sealing (better looks I think also too ), the weather sealing is a plus if anyone tries to splash you with holy water

[crewl1]

the weather sealing is a plus if anyone tries to splash you with holy water

That wouldn't help me, as I would just burst into flames.