We talked about this lens some time ago and I think the consensus was that it may be too compromised for many people.
It is not an EX lens (Sigma's brand name for their best lenses) and it does not have HSM (Sigma's name for their better/faster/generally more accurate focus motor technology).
The formal reviews seem to bear out that it is probably limited in usage to consumer and snapshot images (primarily):
I said that my next lens purchase would probably be the Canon EF 70-200mm, f4L IS USM. I got the lens and I do love it.
Combined with the EF-S 17-55mm, f2.8 IS USM they give me tremendous flexibility and the vast majority of what I shoot can be accomplished with those 2 lenses.
I own the older 18-200 Sigma lens (no OS). Good for travelling with the old 300D but it is really slow and rather heavy.
I like the lens lock which prevents the front element move inside the camera bag or when the camera is hanging on the shoulder.
Still using it (for my daughter to start photography). It produce good picture occasionally.
I have it in the Nikon mount. I have only a couple of problems with it. The barrel tends to stick as I zoom in or out so thats a bit annoying.
Also, with all of my sigma lenses, I must keep the contacts clean or else the lense does't work properly with the D300. Funny thing is that the Sigma lenses work just fine with my D70. Nikon Lenses however work very well.
Its big and heavy. Sometimes that's not so great.
The OS is a bit weird. It ticks and clicks a bunch, locks on, then sort of drifts around before locking on again. I've heard that other OS lenses of sigma do this as well. The Nikon VR (on my 70-200) works much better in this regard(though I wish I could turn off panning detection).
Image IQ is decent, though my Nikon lenses really do seem to be sharper at times (to me, but I'm not really a pixel peeper)
HSM does not have the override ability. You have to flip a switch on the lense. (I find this annoying as some lenses you must flip the camera's MF switch, and some you have to switch the lens' switch.) Ziggy said the lens does NOT have HSM. I'm not sure about the Canon version, but my lens says "HSM" on it.
Its a slow lense with fairly small apertures wide open.
What I DO like about the Sigma 18-200, you've got a range of lenses packed into one lens. If you are using 1 body and you are in a dynamic situation requiring tele and wide angle shots, you can't go wrong. I had the opportunity to witness, in person, the Olympic torch relay as it ran through China. I would have liked having this lens then as I got the only three shots of the runner I could get, and then wanted to shoot the wildly excited crowd, which of course needed a wider angle lens. It was largely for this reason that I bought the Sigma.
Now however, I've discovered the stunning IQ of propietary glass (in my case, Nikon) and the benefits of lighter, smaller lenses for street stuff, and faster glass, I usually use a Nikon 35 F2 lens. I do carry the Sigma 95% of the time and I do use it when i need the OS or the zoom range. Which is the other thing. As I tend to rely more on wider angle lenses, and faster glass for night shots, the Sigma tends to be forgotten.
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HSM does not have the override ability. You have to flip a switch on the lense. (I find this annoying as some lenses you must flip the camera's MF switch, and some you have to switch the lens' switch.) Ziggy said the lens does NOT have HSM. I'm not sure about the Canon version, but my lens says "HSM" on it.
...
You are quite right and my bad.
Curiously, the Nikon version does indeed have the HSM. I do wonder why the Canon version has a micro-motor instead? Nikon owners are just sooo lucky.
Curiously, the Nikon version does indeed have the HSM. I do wonder why the Canon version has a micro-motor instead? Nikon owners are just sooo lucky.
Weird I guess. I'm not sure, perhaps it has to do with the way Canon and Nikon designate the "HSM/Ultrasonic/Hypersonic" lenses? Or maybe with that switch on the barrel, and the lack of the HSM override feature, maybe, there's a bit of deception or something, and its not true HSM?
I know that on the Sigma lenses that do have Manual Overide ability, that doens't work on Nikon lenses. Unlike a real nikon lens, turning the focus ring wont deactivate the camera's AF. Some say it is because Nikon won't share all of its secrets with Sigma. Perhaps the same for Canon?
Comments
It is not an EX lens (Sigma's brand name for their best lenses) and it does not have HSM (Sigma's name for their better/faster/generally more accurate focus motor technology).
The formal reviews seem to bear out that it is probably limited in usage to consumer and snapshot images (primarily):
http://www.photozone.de/canon-eos/321-sigma-af-18-200mm-f35-63-dc-os-canon-test-report--review
http://www.photodo.com/topic_305.html
Definitely need good light for that lens as best results are stopped way down.
Moderator of the Cameras and Accessories forums
http://dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=91497
I said that my next lens purchase would probably be the Canon EF 70-200mm, f4L IS USM. I got the lens and I do love it.
Combined with the EF-S 17-55mm, f2.8 IS USM they give me tremendous flexibility and the vast majority of what I shoot can be accomplished with those 2 lenses.
I don't miss the slight gap at 55-70mm at all.
Moderator of the Cameras and Accessories forums
I like the lens lock which prevents the front element move inside the camera bag or when the camera is hanging on the shoulder.
Still using it (for my daughter to start photography). It produce good picture occasionally.
flickr.com/photos/photoskipper/
Also, with all of my sigma lenses, I must keep the contacts clean or else the lense does't work properly with the D300. Funny thing is that the Sigma lenses work just fine with my D70. Nikon Lenses however work very well.
Its big and heavy. Sometimes that's not so great.
The OS is a bit weird. It ticks and clicks a bunch, locks on, then sort of drifts around before locking on again. I've heard that other OS lenses of sigma do this as well. The Nikon VR (on my 70-200) works much better in this regard(though I wish I could turn off panning detection).
Image IQ is decent, though my Nikon lenses really do seem to be sharper at times (to me, but I'm not really a pixel peeper)
HSM does not have the override ability. You have to flip a switch on the lense. (I find this annoying as some lenses you must flip the camera's MF switch, and some you have to switch the lens' switch.) Ziggy said the lens does NOT have HSM. I'm not sure about the Canon version, but my lens says "HSM" on it.
Its a slow lense with fairly small apertures wide open.
What I DO like about the Sigma 18-200, you've got a range of lenses packed into one lens. If you are using 1 body and you are in a dynamic situation requiring tele and wide angle shots, you can't go wrong. I had the opportunity to witness, in person, the Olympic torch relay as it ran through China. I would have liked having this lens then as I got the only three shots of the runner I could get, and then wanted to shoot the wildly excited crowd, which of course needed a wider angle lens. It was largely for this reason that I bought the Sigma.
Now however, I've discovered the stunning IQ of propietary glass (in my case, Nikon) and the benefits of lighter, smaller lenses for street stuff, and faster glass, I usually use a Nikon 35 F2 lens. I do carry the Sigma 95% of the time and I do use it when i need the OS or the zoom range. Which is the other thing. As I tend to rely more on wider angle lenses, and faster glass for night shots, the Sigma tends to be forgotten.
YMMV
You are quite right and my bad.
Curiously, the Nikon version does indeed have the HSM. I do wonder why the Canon version has a micro-motor instead? Nikon owners are just sooo lucky.
Nikon version:
http://sigma4less.com/sigma-zoom-wide-angle-telephoto-18-200mm-f35-63-hsm-dc-os-optical-stabilizer-autofocus-lens-for-nikon-digital-slr.html
Canon version:
http://sigma4less.com/sigma-zoom-wide-angle-telephoto-18-200mm-f35-63-dc-os-optical-stabilizer-autofocus-lens-for-canon-digital-eos.html
Moderator of the Cameras and Accessories forums
Weird I guess. I'm not sure, perhaps it has to do with the way Canon and Nikon designate the "HSM/Ultrasonic/Hypersonic" lenses? Or maybe with that switch on the barrel, and the lack of the HSM override feature, maybe, there's a bit of deception or something, and its not true HSM?
I know that on the Sigma lenses that do have Manual Overide ability, that doens't work on Nikon lenses. Unlike a real nikon lens, turning the focus ring wont deactivate the camera's AF. Some say it is because Nikon won't share all of its secrets with Sigma. Perhaps the same for Canon?