Rebel XT/Sigma 18-125 test and some sunlight

[Bluedog]

This lens blows the Kit lens away.

Used my old Tiffen Circular Polarizer on this one. Little barrel distortion @ 18mm, I'll have to work on that ... :D :

http://img232.echo.cx/img232/5121/sigma18mm040501medium2vb.jpg

This one was cropped and used Center Point AF to make sure focus is accurate and it is:

http://img232.echo.cx/img232/6485/sigma67mm039501medium0on.jpg

[argo0]

Really nice photos -- that second one in particular is spectacular.

[speaklightly]

Bluedog-

It looks like you got a good on! Personally, I prefer the #1 photo. However, both are excellent.

Sarah Joyce

[jamison55]

Nice colors, excellent sharpness, I might just have to pick one of these up for my personal use! Boy, images from the XT have really gone up a notch over the last couple of days with a couple of users mounting better glass... :D

[D70FAN]

Nice colors, excellent sharpness, I might just have to pick one of these up for my personal use! Boy, images from the XT have really gone up a notch over the last couple of days with a couple of users mounting better glass... :D

OK I will now officially eat my words. Canon didn't make a poor camera, they just mated it to a poor lens. The original shots from the 350D were really bad. I agree with Jamie, that the change of lens, in recent posts, really makes a difference. Canon really needs to get rid of the kit lens.

It's reasuring that there are a handful of us getting good results, with different cameras, from the Sigma 18-125. so I will continue to recommend it as a decent day-to-day utility lens.

Jamie, keep in mind that you probably will see some vignetting at wide apertures above about 110mm. If you can work with f8 at 125mm you should be ok. You can also post process it out. The barrel distortion doesn't seem to be any worse than other 18mm lenses I have seen.

[D70FAN]

This lens blows the Kit lens away.

Used my old Tiffen Circular Polarizer on this one. Little barrel distortion @ 18mm, I'll have to work on that ... :D :

This one was cropped and used Center Point AF to make sure focus is accurate and it is:



Nice job Bluedog! Thanks. I'm starting to warm to the 350D (but let's not go crazy here).

[speaklightly]

Bluedog-

Your XT photos were inspiring. Thus, becuase we had a pretty day for a rare change, I headed outside to take a few XT photos with the Tokina lens for a bit of comparison. This photo did not use a polarizer. In place it had a skylight filter in place. It was taken off our back deck, so it was very convenient to take.

Sarah Joyce

[D70FAN]

Bluedog-

Your XT photos were inspiring. Thus, becuase we had a pretty day for a rare change, I headed outside to take a few XT photos with the Tokina lens for a bit of comparison. This photo did not use a polarizer. In place it had a skylight filter in place. It was taken off our back deck, so it was very convenient to take.

Sarah Joyce

Another nice shot. But maybe not a real test of the Tokina at f13, @ 28mm. vs f5.6 @ 18mm on the first Sigma shot and f13 @ 67mm on the flower . I'm not doubting the capabilities of the Tokina lens, but I think you wanted to campare. So if you can get some similar close ups using the Tokina, that would be great.

Thanks.

[sherlock]

Bluedog-

Your XT photos were inspiring. Thus, becuase we had a pretty day for a rare change, I headed outside to take a few XT photos with the Tokina lens for a bit of comparison. This photo did not use a polarizer. In place it had a skylight filter in place. It was taken off our back deck, so it was very convenient to take.

Sarah Joyce

Hey,

Very nice shot Sarah! I wanna live where you live, instead of here in suburbia ^^^.

Andrew S.

[speaklightly]

Thank you, Andrew-

Thanks for the compliment! Yes, we are blessed with a wonderful location, thanks to the fact that we purchased the property some 25 years ago when ocean fronts were reasonable. It would be out of our reach at today's prices.

Sarah Joyce

[D70FAN]

Hey,

Very nice shot Sarah! I wanna live where you live, instead of here in suburbia ^^^.

Andrew S.

The grass is always greener... Depends on which suburbia. Our suburbia is very nice, although a little warmish in the summer. :cool:

Geez...Desert People! :rolleyes:

[sherlock]

The grass is always greener... Depends on which suburbia. Our suburbia is very nice, although a little warmish in the summer. :cool:

Geez...Desert People! :rolleyes:

Hey George,

I guess you're right. My suburbia is nice, but there is not much to photograph. Well I guess it would be more accurate to say there were no landscapes to photograph. There are always sports events and such, so it really isn't too bad. I think of this as a temporary exile until I can move out into the country someday...... :rolleyes:


Andrew S.

[D70FAN]

Hey George,

I guess you're right. My suburbia is nice, but there is not much to photograph. Well I guess it would be more accurate to say there were no landscapes to photograph. There are always sports events and such, so it really isn't too bad. I think of this as a temporary exile until I can move out into the country someday...... :rolleyes:


Andrew S.

There is always a landscape, and a sunset. Even in suburbia.

[speaklightly]

George-

Thanks for your comments. I sincerely do not desire to be crusty. However, I want to convey to you in the strongest of terms that this was not meant to be a DIRECT comparision. Rather it was just another photo that might possibly serve to demonstrate other options that folks who are in the market for an alternative lens might desire to consider.

Nope, no more lens tests for me boys! I have been there and it was not nice.

Sarah Joyce

[D70FAN]

George-

Thanks for your comments. I sincerely do not desire to be crusty. However, I want to convey to you in the strongest of terms that this was not meant to be a DIRECT comparision. Rather it was just another photo that might possibly serve to demonstrate other options that folks who are in the market for an alternative lens might desire to consider.

Nope, no more lens tests for me boys! I have been there and it was not nice.

Sarah Joyce

Easy Sarah, I was not being critical. I truely would like to see a little closer shot at wider aperture with the Tokina and the XT. Honest, we will play nice.

[speaklightly]

George, no promises-

I will work on it. I apologize for my response, but I am still reeling a good deal from last week. That experience has not gone away. Right now, I am getting ready for a big workshop in the Caribbean. So, if I can work a comparison in rather conveniently, I will do it.

Sarah Joyce

[JTL]

Nope, no more lens tests for me boys! I have been there and it was not nice.

Sarah Joyce

Easy Sarah, I was not being critical. I truely would like to see a little closer shot at wider aperture with the Tokina and the XT. Honest, we will play nice.Sorry to interject...but..comparisons certainly are a great help to people who are about to plunk down money and feel lost...because there simply aren't enough people sharing their knowledge and experience out there. I choose to participate in this forum because of the unbelievable level of genorosity and support the members here display and the fantastic depth of knowledge that the more experienced members freely share. There really aren't too many places like this. It would be truly a shame if people stopped sharing because of a couple of possibly mis-construed critical-sounding mis-steps by the all-too-human participants in these discussions...

Alright, I'm starting to choke myself up now...forgive me...I get carried away sometimes... :o

[speaklightly]

JTL-

As you well know, because we have supported each other. I am a very willing contributor, I have posted almost 1,200 posts attempting to help folks on this forum. So I feel, rather realistically that I have indeed, done my part.

As a professional, I also have to support my family, my equipment, and our lifestyle. I am sorry to say it, b ut that is a fact of life. So, as you might expect, when I have a large workshop scheduled within two weeks, I have to pay attention to business and give the workshop attendees their money's worth in full measure, if I am going to expect them to support me and to come back for another workshop.

That means that the photos that I do here, without pay or much encouragement on this forum, to help others here, have to be curtailed somewhat based on the priority dilema that I face.

This volunteer help, it has to take its place in the priority scheme of things, I sincerely hope that you can understand where I find myself, and will cut me a bit more slack. This is not really the time when I can dutifully set up lens tests. Unfortunately, I just don't have the time right now to do that. It is as simple as that.

Sarah Joyce

[Bluedog]

Nice job Bluedog! Thanks. I'm starting to warm to the 350D (but let's not go crazy here).

Did I just read that above statement correct? ... ;)

Well thanks a bunch as I trusted your advice on the Sigma. The 350D is a really nice camera once you learn its little quirks. Probably kinda like any other piece of equipment. The LCD legibility I was so worried about isn't a problem at all once you master the technique of it.

Thanks for the positive comments everyone also ... :)

[TheObiJuan]

Hehe, I thought the same thing Bluedog..
It truely is a nice camera. The guy that just sold me my 488RC4 ballhead has a 20D, had a 1dmkII, and is going to buy an XT. He will have the 17-85 IS permamounted to the camera.
If the sigma 18-200 pans out well, then it might be the lens of choice.