400mm telephoto – P365 Jun02

This is my ‘monster’ lens. It’s a Sigma 80-400mm f4.5-5.6 telephoto zoom lens with optical stabilisation. It’s about the size and weight of 1.25L bottle of soft-drink when zoomed in to 400mm.

Normally a brand new Canon equivalent of this lens would set one back approx $4000aud, but Sigma make excellent quality but more affordable lenses that deliver 95% of the perfomance at 60% of the cost. I managed to get mine second hand, so it was even more affordable, and I’ve had a lot of fun with it since.

It’s heavy, so it’s not comfortable for extended hand-held use, but I usually whack it on my monopod or tripod. This gives it a lot more stability as well as taking the weight. With a lens this long, I can get close up to distant objects and bring the whole world closer to me. Also, telephoto lenses give a unique look and feel to an image that wide-angle lenses simply can’t.

I love this as a portrait lens, and due to the magnification, it’s easy to “snipe” casual photos of people who may not be aware you are photographing them, for example at a wedding. If they spot you, however, this canon barrel of a lens can be more than a bit intimidating!

Here’s a few of my favourite photos with this lens: