“Enhance”
A couple weeks ago, on the occasion of a supermoon, I finally got my hands on a massive tele lens and it exceeded all my expectations. Let’s go!
I rented a Sigma 150-600 1:5/6.3 at Calumet. Total price for the weekend including VAT: €75. Price of the new lens: about €1000, the used one is readily available for €750.
The thing is HUGE. The lens hood is the size of a 2-liter pickle jar!
Now, let’s see what this thing is capable of, especially when paired with a Canon EF 2x converter!
Side note: 2x converter reduces the max aperture 2x, so you can’t get under f/13, and it doesn’t support autofocus. Still, even without a display zoom-in for focus assistance I was able to focus quite well with very few misses.
Berlin, Drachenberg, wide angle, shot on my phone.
ENHANCE!
ENHANCE!
The autofocus is silent, instant and hits every time. The sharpness is unparalleled all the way to 600 mm and gets blurry only with the 2x converter. I cannot fathom what the top Canon lenses are capable of, let alone military equipment.
Now, the Supermoon! Despite the clear sky during the day, it got cloudy in the evening, as it so often does in Berlin. So the best shot was made out of my window later at night when the moon was high in the sky and shining brightly:
(The first one was taken right after the moonrise, the third one is a cropped out segment of the second one.)
Now, some more magic from a photowalk in the city the next day. Berliner Dom (for scale), some close-ups and a plane flying by the TV tower, the one you see behind the cathedral!
I’ve never been approached by so many people on a photowalk before! I made sure to tell everyone that it’s very affordable to rent this monster and it’s so much fun to play with.
Now, while I enjoyed this lens, it felt that using it required planning. I felt that most shots taken in the city were simply showcasing the equipment prowess and didn’t offer much artistic value. I’ve already taken one great shot of the moon, would I want to do more? Not really. I wouldn’t mind doing some plane spotting once but that would be it. It feels like this lens requires a hobby to match to justify its purchase and I cannot call myself a fan of birdwatching or plane spotting. So I played with it for a weekend, scratched the itch and would leave it at that - for now.