Two light giants in the test, part 1
Sigma 300-600mm F4 DG OS | Sports und Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports
A little background
Markus Zitt from fotointern.ch made contact with Patrick Geissmann from Ott + Wyss AG , the Swiss representative for Sigma.||At some point Patrick and I spoke on the phone to arrange a time for the test.||And quite casually I mentioned that there was also rumors about a 2.0/200 mm (we spoke about two weeks before the official launch of this exciting lens).||Patrick chuckled for a moment and then came the surprising question: “Would you like to test this lens too?” At which I almost dropped the phone in joy.||A few days later a rather large package with the two precious lenses arrived.||I simply let the lenses “run along” in my everyday photography and even planned a few photo shoots to put the two Sigma lenses through their paces.
For the speed readers
For those who don't want to read the entire review, here's the short summary with a play on words in English:
«The two lenses are not only big, but they are also great.»
And for those who want to know a little more, feel free to read on:
The 2.0/200 mm
I always had both lenses in my camera bag, although it should be clarified: The 200mm f/2.0 traveled in my camera bag, while the 300-600mm f/4.0 is so large that it comes in a backpack. Which is very practical, because with a live weight of just under 4 kg and a length of almost exactly 47 cm (without the lens hood attached), the thing is so large that it makes perfect sense to pack it separately. I tested both lenses with the L-system mount. I used the Leica SL3 and the SL3-S as cameras. Anyone who knows me knows that I'm not a big fan of testing under lab conditions and pixel peeping. Images are usually shot outdoors or in the studio, not in a lab. Therefore, both cameras and lenses have to prove themselves in the everyday photographer's life, not under some kind of "clinical" test conditions.
Bulky, but not unwieldy: the Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports (Sigma press photo)
A first approach: Portrait shooting in the garden
Almost at the same time as the large Sigma package, Angi and Hannah arrived – two friends of ours on their way from the north to the south. And because I was itching to at least try out the 200mm f/2.0, I asked them if they'd be available for a spontaneous shoot in our garden. "Of course," was their reply, and so I mounted the bulky-looking 200mm lens on the SL3. The combo felt surprisingly comfortable in the hand. Although the lens weighs 1.8 kg, the camera and lens felt well balanced. And when you're holding a lens with a maximum aperture of f/2.0, you naturally want to shoot with the aperture wide open. At least I do. Otherwise, I can always buy a lens with a lower aperture. And these two pairs of shots demonstrate the smaller depth of field that the jump from f/4.0 to f/2.0 brings:
Picture on the left: Leica SL3 with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/320 sec, f 2.0, 100 ISO
Image right: Leica SL3 with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/160 sec, f 4.0, 100 ISO
Picture on the left: Leica SL3 with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/640 sec, f 2.0, 125 ISO
Image right: Leica SL3 with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/320 sec, f 4.0, 125 ISO
All images have been optimized for brightness and contrast in Lightroom, but not sharpened, so you can judge what the lens delivers when used with the Leica. Even zooming in on the images on the camera screen leaves me speechless: The 200mm is so sharp, even at full aperture, and delivers a level of detail that exceeds my expectations.
Leica SL3 with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/640 sec, f/2.0, 125 ISO. The 1:1 crop below shows the fine detail even at the widest aperture. However, the eyebrow is already partially out of focus. Therefore, the AF system must focus with absolute precision.
As soon as you have more than one person in the picture, it becomes difficult to achieve a good sharpness at a fully open aperture.||It may be that the edge sharpness theoretically increases somewhat by stopping down, but in practice you can already exploit the potential of the lens with the aperture fully open.
Image left: Leica SL3 with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/100 sec, f/2.0, 200 ISO. The depth of field is so small that Angi is already out of focus.
Center image: Leica SL3 with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/100 sec, f/2.0, 200 ISO. I asked Angi to move a little further back, but the outermost eye is still not quite sharp.
Image right: Leica SL3 with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/100 sec, f/5.6, 1600 ISO. Stopped down to ensure both people are in focus. The leaves in the foreground become more defined by stopping down.
Luis Aellig in concert
In my opinion, one of the main uses for the 200mm f/2.0 is stage and concert photography. There, the lens can make a real difference thanks to its combination of long focal length and fast aperture. It was a good thing that during my test period, a small, intimate concert by Luis Aellig and his band was taking place just 200 meters walking distance from our house. The small, intimate setting is great, the light is dim, and that's precisely what a real-world test is, where the lens has to prove itself. For the concert shots, I chose the SL3-S because it delivers top results at high ISO ranges.
Left and center image: Leica SL3-S with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/200 sec, f 2.0, 3200 ISO
Image right: Leica SL3-S with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/250 sec, f/2.0, 5000 ISO. I deliberately focused on the glasses because they are the visually dominant element.
And if you get close enough to the musicians, you can also capture wonderful detailed shots with the 200.
Both images: Leica SL3-S with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/250 sec, f/2.0, 2500 ISO. The image stabilizer works very well, but because of the musicians' movement, I have to keep the shutter speed a bit shorter.
Wedding photography with the 2.0/200
During the test window, my wife Ursula and I had the honor of photographing Eva and Raphael's wedding at the bride's parents' farm.||So she grabbed the 2.0/200mm and - purely from a photographic perspective, of course - fell in love with the lens.||In her enthusiasm, she shared the shots with the guests, and suddenly everyone wanted to have their photo taken with the "miracle lens."
And the guests are thrilled with the results.
Ursula's enthusiasm is contagious, and I also take some shots with the 200mm.||Sometimes, the long focal length makes me feel too far away from the people, but of course, there are always situations where a greater distance is definitely an advantage.||Here are some shots from the wedding reception, with special thanks to Eva, Raphi, and all the guests for allowing us to share the pictures:
Image 1: Leica SL3 with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/640 sec, f 2.0, 50 ISO
Images 2 and 3: Leica SL3 with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/3200 sec, f 2.0, 200 ISO
Image 4: Leica SL3 with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/3200 sec, f 2.0, 125 ISO
Image 5: Leica SL3 with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/1600 sec, f/2.0, 200 ISO, black and white conversion in Lightroom
Image 6: Leica SL3 with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/500 sec, f 4.5, 160 ISO
Image 7: Leica SL3 with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/250 sec, f 2.0, 1250 ISO
Image 8: Leica SL3-S with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/320 sec, f 2.0, 250 ISO
Figure 9: Leica SL3-S with Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports, 1/320 sec, f 2.0, 1600 ISO
Especially when light is scarce and a shorter shutter speed is needed due to the long focal length and moving subjects, the wide aperture lens allows you to keep the ISO within a reasonable range. Sure, you can denoise images in post-production these days, but you always lose detail.
Do you need a 200mm with such a large aperture?
If I photograph an object very close up with the same lens and the same aperture, the depth of field is much smaller (macro photographers can tell you all about this) than with an object that is further away, such as a landscape. If I now take a portrait of a person with a 90mm (or 135mm) lens and then mount the 200mm lens on the camera, I have to increase my distance to the subject in order to achieve the same detail. If you can choose your shooting point freely, the high initial aperture of the 2.0/200mm does not give you any real advantage in terms of depth of field.
My assistant Chiara, photographed on the left with a 200 mm f/2.0 and on the right with a 90 mm f/2.0. The perspective naturally changes due to the different shooting distances, but the sharpness and blur are virtually identical. And you can see: the 200 mm f/2.0 is perfectly suited as a portrait lens.
Conclusion on the 2.0/200mm
Reading the lens's specifications is almost dizzying. Not just because of the maximum aperture, but also because Sigma has incorporated many useful technologies into the lens. These read somewhat cryptically and sound something like this: HLA (High-Response Linear Actuator), OS (Optical Stabilizer) with OS2 algorithm, internal focusing, NPC (Nano Porous Coating), water and oil-repellent coating (front lens), OS switch, focus range limiter, and so on... We can assume that a Sigma lens in this price range has everything technically possible on board. And then, only practical use counts.
After ten days of testing, I have to say: My wife Ursula and I have both fallen in love with this lens. The optical performance is outstanding, the autofocus is fast and precise. The bokeh is very beautiful, and the handling is better than expected. The combination of focal length and speed is unrivaled: Besides the 2.0/200 from Sigma, I can only find one other 200mm prime lens, but it's a fully manual lens without autofocus with a maximum aperture of 4.0 from a manufacturer called Zhongyi Optics, also available for L- and E-mount. In other words: The lens is unique. A small disappointment for Sony photographers: Sony allows a maximum frame rate of 15 frames per second. I can only assume that this restriction is in place to limit the appeal of this excellent lens. But be honest: How often do you shoot at a frame rate faster than 15 fps? Probably quite rarely. L-mount photographers also have the advantage of a teleconverter for the Sigma 200mm F2 DG OS | Sports.
Part 2 follows
In the second part of the report, I'll talk about how the 300-600mm f/4.0 performs in practice and, to some extent, demonstrate the focal length difference compared to the 200mm f/2.0. The focus of the second part will be on the 300-600mm f/4.0, but more practical examples with the 200mm f/2.0 will follow.
Small spoiler: In the second part of the review, we'll be out kayaking early in the morning, among other things. Here's a first shot with the really long bag: Leica SL3-S with Sigma 300-600mm F4 DG OS | Sports at 331mm, 1/640 sec, f/4.0, 320 ISO, photographed from a dinghy and thus, logically, without a tripod.
All photos © by Peter and Ursula Schäublin and Chiara Denicolo
