Sigma Telephoto 180mm f/3.5 EX DG APO Macro IF Autofocus Lens for Pentax AF

Comments about Sigma 180mm f/3.5 EX DG APO Macro IF AF Lens for Pentax AF:

i bought this lens after reading a lot of blogs talking about macro... and is my first macro lens. quality won`t be a issue, trust me. is really god, color are as you expect them... and after a wile you get adjusted even at the weight.
the autofocus is always hunting for something... but, hey, you have a great occasion to learn how to use manual.
a must if you want to shot macro.

after many search bhp has the best price online.. :-)

Comments about Sigma 180mm f/3.5 EX DG APO Macro IF AF Lens for Pentax AF:

About 120 degrees turn of the full focus range makes focusing fast both manually and automatically. Additional range limiter can further reduce the autofocus searching time.
It looks like that Pentax K10D sometimes has problems due to such fast focusing speed - it misses the focus and starts over again. The situation gets much better with multi-point focus mode and more objects in the frame.
The focus is internal, all types of polarized filters are sutable.
The lens is bright for its 180mm (F=3.5). With K10D it gives 270mm. I found this very useful because in many cases you cannot or do not want to come to the object very close. At the same time you may virtually photo in front of your nose to the infinity - the lens has really tremendous focus range!
Colors are vivid, and pictures are sharp, that is true for many Sigma's and Pentax's lens nowadays.
The weight is not a problem with a tripod.

Comments about Sigma 180mm f/3.5 EX DG APO Macro IF AF Lens for Pentax AF:

You know how frustrating it is when you are looking at a great macro shot but you can't get close enough for any reason. This lens will get you where you want to go. With a 3.5 max apeture you can get the foregroud/background effects you want and with an apeture setting all the way to f32 you can get everything in focus if that is what your shot requires. It is tack sharp at all apetures. Auto focus is fast and accurate. I also carry the Sigma 1.4 and 2.0 tele-converters and the autofocus still works with the 1.4. With the 2.0 it can hunt and sometimes you have to go to manual focus. The lens uses 72mm filters, I simply use my many 77mm filters with a step ring. It is a bit heavy but that is expected with a lens of this quality. Not for hand holding, must use a tripod or monopod.