We've been to see the new monster zoom lens from Sigma, the 200-500 f/2.8 - all 14 kilos (30lbs) of it!
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Sigma announce the launch of the new APO 200-500mm F2.8 EX DG Ultra-Telephoto zoom lens.
Hogging, literally, pride of place on the Sigma booth here at PMA, and probably unlikely to be half-inched by a casual thief, is the new sigma 200-500 f/2.8 zoom lens.
Complete with its massive lens hood, the lens is about a metre long and weighs 14kg. It's so big and bulky that Sigma decided not to display it on the booth mounted on a tripod as they couldn't find one that they could trust with the task of holding the lens steadily.
The lens has such large and heavily elements that it needs its own independent power supply to operate the motors that power the zoom and focus actions.
An LCD display is used to indicate distance focus information instead of a traditional analogue scale.
Why did Sigma produce such a behemoth of a lens? Apparently there is demand from specialist sports photographers who need an extra bright telephoto lens for covering night time sports events under the far from ideal lighting situations.
Indeed, there is apparently an immediate and ready demand for the lens and it isn't even needed to be made to order. It will be available in Canon, Nikon and Sigma DSLR mounts later in the year. I'll have half a dozen, please!
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