SIGMA 500mm F4 SPORTS canon-mount tested on the Sony (Gustav Kiburg).

Gustav Kiburg tested this massive Sigma 500mm f/4.0 lens on the Sony A9. Click on the images to see the large size version or download them at Wetransfer (Click here). Check out his first impression:

As a nature photographer, Sony does not have many telelenses, specially primes not yet. I photograph with the A7rIII and A9 in combination with the Sony 100-400, a lens which is very good at both, sharpness and speed. But still, eventually I would like a prime telelens. Sony comes this summer with a 400mm 2.8, in my opinion this will be a very suitable lens, especially in combination with the 1.4 and 2x tele converter. However, this lens will be pricy. Is there at this moment an alternative? I heard that the Sigma 500mm F4 Sports in combination with the Sigma MC11 adapter had to work well on the latest Sony camera’s, next to that this combination is a lot cheaper. I am a practical person, I am not the person that theoretically researches everythinging. Give me the lens and I’ll give the lens a real test. I take it into nature to do some serious photography. My feeling and later my photo’s will give the outcome. I am gladly surprised by this lens, the speed is great, all AF possibilities from the camera are still possible with this combination, even as the silent mode and of course many photo’s per second! The lens has been used with speed (Northern Gannets), but also with limited light (Brown bears in the evening). For the Northern Gannets I went to Heligoland and for the European Brown Bear I went to Finland, close to the border of Russia. Sometimes the lens searched a bit (AF), but this was only a very few times, following by that you have the ability to fine-tune this lens even more with a docking station. Sadly enough I did not have this docking station in the package. To summarise it, the Sigma 500F4 sports is a very good lens with gives great results in combination with a good speed and an attractive price card. As end… This lens will go back to Sigma this week and I will definitely miss it