Compact High Performance Zoom Lens with a 10.7:1 High Zoom Ratio
28-300mm F3.5-6.3 DG MACRO lens covers all the focal lengths from 28mm wide angle to 300mm telephoto with 10.7:1 high zoom ratio as well as macro capability. 28-300mm F3.5-6.3 DG MACRO packs a lot of performance in a compact package with ultra compact dimensions that make this lens the ultimate traveling companion.
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Optimised for digital photography
The new multi layer lens Coating and lens design reduce flare and ghosting, a common problem with digital cameras and also creates an optimum Color balance through the entire zoom range.
2pcs Special Low Dispersion (SLD) glass elements and 4pcs Aspherical Lenses, produce a high level of optical performance
The 28-300mm F3.5-6.3 DG MACRO lens features 2 Special Low Dispersion (SLD) glass elements and 4 Aspherical lenses to produce a high level of optical performance. Aspherical lenses provide excellent correction for all types of Aberration while making a very compact construction possible.
Macro photography with a 1:3 maximum magnification ratio
The 28-300mm F3.5-6.3 DG MACRO lens has a minimum focusing distance of 50cm at all focal lengths and is equipped with a macro mechanism for close-up photography at 300mm telephoto. This allows for a reproduction ratio of 1:3.
Inner Focus System
This design allows for stability and compactness as changes in focus are made in an internal lens grouping. This also gives the advantage of a non rotating front lens assembly which is of great benefit when using polarizing filters and a petal-type hood.
The "Zoom Lock" device prevents the zoom setting from being changed inadvertently
28-300mm F3.5-6.3 DG MACRO lens is equipped with a zoom lock to prevent the lens from creeping due to its own weight. This also offers protection whilst the lens is being carried.
At the wide end of the lens the performance for a lens of this nature can't be faulted. Resolution is good and Chromatic aberration is well controlled across the frame. Both the Contrast and colour performance were quite good and levels of distortion were impressively low throughout. Having had extensive experience of the pre-DG coating model of this optic, the coating has again impressed with it's improvement in contrast and general picture quality. The lens is well stocked with aspherical elements, numbering four in total, and there's also the inclusion of two of those low-dispersion SLD elements in the design.
Why should you care what I think?
My relationship with this item: Editor review
Conclusions at a glance
Would you recommend this Item: Undecided Pros: Long focal range, good a short end Cons: Some Chromatic abberations
Last updated: Thursday, 07 February 2008
User Lens Reviews
Average user rating from: 45 user(s)
Overall rating (weighted)
3.7
Sharpness
3.8
Build Quality
3.6
AF Speed
3.6
Value for Money
3.7
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0 of 0 people found the following review helpful
bad lens for d3000, Wednesday, 01 September 2010
Overall rating (weighted)
1.3
Sharpness
1.0
Build Quality
1.0
AF Speed
1.0
Value for Money
2.0
this lens does not work on nikon d300 or any camera like it, check out manufactures(sigmas) web site to get a better view of cameras it will work on. Hard to use, apature ring bad position, only manual focus!!!!( no a/m switch like picture shows just bad lens. all I can say,
This is a great all around lens specially for outdoor shooting. The lens is compact and light so easy to carry. The lens has reasonable focussing speed, the Nikon lenses are faster but it is fine for most scenes except sports. The lens has a limited opening (62mm) and as such requires quite a Bit of light which is a challenge at longer focal lengths. However in outdoors it should be OK. I have the Nikon 18-200 DX for my D300 and it is a great lens, but bulky and it creeps. For FX cameras the Sigma 28-300mm brings similar performance in well lit scenes. However the Sigma is lighter and easier to carry. It is a wide-range zoom so imaging is soft at both ends of the spectrum but image quality is generally good, in particular when considering the price.
Get the Tamron 18-270 instead, Saturday, 27 March 2010
Overall rating (weighted)
1.3
Sharpness
1.0
Build Quality
2.0
AF Speed
1.0
Value for Money
1.0
I bought this lens and was absolutely repulsed by it. I bought for use with a Nikon (though my issues were all thanks to Sigma so I include it here for the canon). Though cheaper, and generally inexpensive for this sort of zoom range, what killed the deal for me was two things. First, it has no stabilization (ok, not all lenses need it, but at 200-300mm in anything but sunlight or bright studio, even a steady hand sniper needs VC/IS/VR -whatever your flavor-). Secondly, but most annoying and the primary reason for returning it because it's something that really surprised me, when you focused on an object with the lens racked out to, say, 300mm (full telephoto), then zoomed out even a slight bit to, say, 250mm the lens would suddenly be not clearly focused on that same object (assuming you locked the focus on the object somehow such as keeping the shutter button half-depressed or manually focusing in the first place, and with AF not in servo/continuous mode). In that same situation if you pulled further back to say 75mm or 50mm, the focus would be so out of wack that it destroyed the picture -if it weren't completely destroyed by the blurring earlier-. Everything was blurred and generally unrecognizable at this point. I had come to expect that this would not happen with a modern lens but was very much surprised. This essentially meant that you could not zoom into an object for the purpose of confirming focus on the correct area, then zoom back out to compose the shot. The problem existed if you focused at wide and zoomed in to confirm. It would keep the focus point such that when you came back out to wide it was still focused, but when you were zooming to confirm the shot would be very blurry. I immediately returned the lens upon discovering this.
In its stead I bought the Tamron 18-270mm, whose VC is far superior, the lens has more range (18mm is a huge a difference from 28mm considering angle of view and how much more you get in the shot, but 270 versus 300 isn't a big difference), and performs wonderfully. It is my "workhorse" lens (i bring it around everywhere and keep it attached much of the time). For what it's worth, there's currently an $80 rebate on that lens through 4/30/2010 bringing the price to $550 at places like Amazon.com and [...]. Seriously, a lot of people buy a new lens very seldomly for an SLR (especially if your aren't an enthusiastic hobbyist or amateur photographer). My suggestion for those replacing the unimpressive kit lenses that come with SLRs with a reach of ~55mm, spend the extra money to get a great all-around lens with phenomenal zoom range and great performance that you can use in 95% of the situations. Mine has survived a lot of abuse thus far.
Excellent "all around" lens for the price, Wednesday, 27 January 2010
Overall rating (weighted)
3.5
Sharpness
4.0
Build Quality
3.0
AF Speed
3.0
Value for Money
4.0
I wanted a general purpose lens for my everyday use and this one fills the bill nicely. The lens has a good solid feel, not too heavy, but not so light that you don't feel like you've attached a piece of cheap plastic to your camera body. I've had no problems with resolution throught the range of the lens except for a bit of softness at the edges at 300mm. The only issue I would mention is that the zoom ring is a little stiff for my taste. If you want a good, general purpose lens without having to pay the price of a Canon L series, this is a good bet. Optical stabilization would be nice, but it is available on the newest version of this lens. I shoot a lot and this lens seems to be rugged enough to stand up to difficult environments. For my purposes iit definitely was a good buy.
Low Cost Versatile Lens For the Money, Monday, 19 October 2009
Overall rating (weighted)
3.8
Sharpness
4.0
Build Quality
3.0
AF Speed
4.0
Value for Money
4.0
This is a low cost and very versatile lens so long as one does not expect perfection. Not as sharp as lenses costing 3-4 times more (big surprise there), it is nonetheless good enough for most hobbyists. I bought it as a one lens choice for vacations and travel. I dislike carrying a bag and multiple lenses while traveling, but I wanted a wide zoom range at a low price. This fills the bill nicely. I am a bit disappointed in the telephoto end of this lens. My Tamron 75-300 brings things a good deal closer than does this lens's 300mm setting. I have tested them both at the maximum focal length on the same subjects, and the Tamron definitely renders subjects as substantially larger. I am not convinced we are getting the full 300mm focal length here. I think it's really somewhere around 250mm (either that or the Tamron is really more than 300mm). That being said, I am still happy with the lens over all. It's relatively light and compact and has a big zoom ratio even if its not quite as big as advertised. Macro works well. I have not been disappointed with image quality, although if I were shooting professionally I would want something a bit sharper.
I recently purchased a Sigma camera lens for my Canon xti. 28-300mm I took a trip to Lopez Island last week and cannot express the joy I have gotten with the pictures I took on the trip. Just wonderful!!!!!!!!!
Sigma 28-300mm lens for Canon Digital SLR, Monday, 14 September 2009
Overall rating (weighted)
3.8
Sharpness
3.0
Build Quality
5.0
AF Speed
4.0
Value for Money
3.0
This is my second Sigma 28-300mm lens. The Sigma lens has great zoom range, makes great images, is easy to operate, and will auto-focus quickly. My first Sigma lens lasted about 2 years from constant use and the zoom movement jammed due to keyway failure. The new lens I have now has a tighter zoom movement than the first one and I plan to take several thousand digital pictures with it. Let's go take pictures!!
Good zoom lens, poor build quality, Friday, 28 August 2009
Overall rating (weighted)
3.0
Sharpness
4.0
Build Quality
2.0
AF Speed
3.0
Value for Money
3.0
I had this lens for a few months. It took some nice pictures. It's not very sharp but it's a great walk around lens because of its range and price. The build quality is poor. When a screw inside broke, it wouldn't zoom out anymore when rotated. I think it's would be alright if you're very careful with it and rotate the zoom slowly.
Great lens but hands get shaking, Friday, 28 August 2009
Overall rating (weighted)
2.8
Sharpness
3.0
Build Quality
2.0
AF Speed
3.0
Value for Money
3.0
I'll simply say two things:
It is a good lens enjoyable to use. And U dont need to change lens during your shooting. (although it does not have a wide angle if you dont have a full frame. 28*1.5=42 42 is a normal angled objective(1.5 is the focal multipler of the nikon non-fullframe cameras)) especially gives great macro photos.
The bad thing is when you are using more den 150-200mm focal lenth you must use high shutter speed so you can have a clear photo otherwise you can have a Blur one.
This objective good in static shooting but I dont recomand shooting far scenes with out a tripod.
There is no such thing as a good lens for the mone, Monday, 20 July 2009
Overall rating (weighted)
1.0
Sharpness
1.0
Build Quality
1.0
AF Speed
1.0
Value for Money
1.0
I think a lens is either good or it's not - this one is not! I bought it as a way to travel light on a vacation, but didn't have a dozen keepers out of the whole lot. I realize that you have to make some concessions when choosing a lens at this price point with such a large focal range, but this one required way more concessions than I was willing to make. Amazon allowed me to return it (thanks, Amazon!).
This has been the primary lens on my Digial Rebel (first generation) and is now on my Rebel XSI. I find it is great for travel and its long focal length is perfect for outdoor shots from a distance. I tend to switch to the 18-55 kit lens from the XSI when indoors (when I think of it) but have been very happy with the results even when I have not made the switch.
The only negative is the weight and tendency for the lens to extend on its own due to its weight if the lock is not used (and who wants to switch that every time?).
Anyway for the enthusiast like me this is a perfect lens. For the professional, look to Canon's L-series with the same range but for about $2,000 more - and please buy a spare one and send it my way!
Utility Lens - Works for many uses, Tuesday, 19 May 2009
Overall rating (weighted)
3.8
Sharpness
4.0
Build Quality
3.0
AF Speed
4.0
Value for Money
4.0
I ordered this lens a week ago and played with it over the weekend. I got some great shots. This lens is much better than the Canon 70-300mm - much more solid. I recommend this lens to any beginner trying to learn how to shoot subject close and far. I have already learned alot about the lens' capability and am very happy with it.
The only problem is if the lens is pointing more then 20 degrees down the lens slides. If you are pointing straight up and not holding the lens it slide back in. It just seems like the weight is to much. The lock works well but I choose not to use it for the fact that it prohibits me from shooting quickly...sometimes you only have a second.
I have had this lens twice. I am a semi-pro photographer that doesn't have $1000 to spend on a lens. So after much research I went with the sigma. The first one I had worked flawlessly, but I broke it... re-ordered it and I still have my second one. I've had it for about 2 years. over 5,000 pictures or more and I can't tell the difference between it and a Canon L lens I use from work. I will say the ONLY con of this lens is that it is not built as well as the Canon L lens and the zooming isn't as smooth... but.. I don't plan on changing over any time soon. I am looking for the image quality and relatively sturdy lens. Sigma pulls this off great. Other than a little bit of a stiff zoom the lens is perfect. image quality as I said is just as good as the Canon L series, trust me I know. I have taken over 40,000 pictures. There isn't any difference.. and if there is it isn't worth double the price for a canon L series. Sigma is awesome. keep it up.
