The clouds were coming in, and I was knee-deep in the tidal marsh, photographing the horses. You could feel the pressure drop, and the air got a strange quality of humidity and static. While out on an island, photographing wild horses, a maritime thunderstorm blew in. Rescheduling meant all my trips were now back to back, so the lens got tested in all manner of conditions, from the salty sandy beaches, to photographong wild horses, to the mountains of New England for alpine wildlife. I was able to reschedule, and that is where the fun began. Two back-to-back hurricanes completely ruined my plans. Next I had plans to take it on assignment with me, and then, disaster struck, literally. A few fawns in tall grass were a good test, and the lens accurately picked the fawn over the blades of swaying grasses. With the rut about to begin, I went hiking where I hoped to see deer and caught a gorgeous young buck crossing the river. With many trails near home, I was able to test it on some birds and local wildlife like deer and squirrels. So, what adventures were had with this beast of a lens? Well, first off, I took the lens around locally just to get a feel for it. It would totally work as a handle, but I am spoiled by the grip of a tripod foot with indents for your hand. The Sigma TS-81 Lens Foot for 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sport Lens is much longer, but it still has the same flat design, no finger indents. I did some digging and saw that Sigma offers an optional replacement foot for purchase. I use the tripod foot as a handle, and the older, much longer version even has finger indents for this exact use. As an avid hand-holder for my gear, the tripod foot is much smaller than that of my older Sigma 50-500mm. This is a nitpick for sure, as it has nothing to do with the stellar optics but rather the design of the exterior. In using the Sigma 150-600mm for several months, the only part that I wished I could change was the included tripod foot. Sigma took note of how much of a valuable tool telephoto lenses are for us and added so many ways to adjust and tweak the lens to suit your specific needs. The luxury of the customizable zoom and AFL buttons felt great. It also has some extra features that photographers may enjoy including a zoom torque switch to customize the zoom resistance, OS mode switch, focus limiter, and three customizable AFL buttons. My favorite aspects of the Sigma 150-600mm lens are that its compact size allows it to easily fit in my carry on camera backpack, it has the versatility of the zoom, and the weight is hand-holdable, with the backup of a strong optical stabilizing system. What I Enjoyed Most About the Sigma 150-600mm Lens Precise gear like this can be the difference between getting the shot or missing a key moment. The Sigma 150-600mm quickly picks up targets and in my camera's continuous mode, which is my go-to for birds in flight or wild horses, the autofocus stayed locked onto the subject. Sigma has completely overhauled the lens, and the “redesigned autofocus system offers both speed and precision by incorporating an AF actuator driven by a stepping motor, as well as a high-precision magnetic sensor.” As someone who has used both lenses, I can feel the difference in the speed. The new Sigma 150-600mm is a huge upgrade from my old 50-500mm.
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