As a wedding photographer, I often get comments on the size of my 70-200mm lens. Yes, it’s a beast, but it works wonders at ceremonies.
However, the 150-600mm lens dwarfs the 70-200mm in the size comparison. If you’ve ever been sideline at a football game, you’ve probably seen the photographers with giant lenses, sometimes with a monopod below the lens itself to hold it up. This is the class of lens we’re talking about here. This lens is great for sports photography, surf photography, nature photography, or anything where you want a versatile amount of super zoom.
[caption id="attachment_5401" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Credit: Kylie Nicholson[/caption]While it may be giant, the quality of the lens is as large as its body. I often shoot in low natural light, so I took this lens out with me to Santa Monica at sunset. I figured the pier would be a great place to test out the various focal lengths of the lens, as well as the zoom and focusing features. I was not disappointed.
I thought if anything, a lens this large would be hard to focus. In enough light, it is extremely fast. Even in low light, it focuses relatively quickly considering the size. {eh maybe take this part out}
The quality of the zoom and focus is stellar.
[caption id="attachment_5410" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Credit: Kylie Nicholson[/caption]Check out how it freezes the motion of the plant even at 1/60 second shutter. The focus was fast and sharp, and the colors in the background are gorgeous and creamy. Also, this is shot at ISO 3200- how crazy smooth is the background?!
Then I took to the pier. I let the sun go down to really test out the zoom and focus on this lens- and it didn’t disappoint.
The following series featuring the pier keeps the settings constant, so that the lens itself is featured. The settings for the following [x] photos are: ISO 4000, f 6.3 aperture, 1/160 sec shutter speed. The zoom is noted under each photo.
[caption id="attachment_5404" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Credit: Kylie Nicholson[/caption] [caption id="attachment_5409" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Credit: Kylie Nicholson[/caption] [caption id="attachment_5405" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Credit: Kylie Nicholson[/caption] [caption id="attachment_5403" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Credit: Kylie Nicholson[/caption] [caption id="attachment_5406" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Credit: Kylie Nicholson[/caption]Here’s two bokeh shots to show the buttery quality of the lens, as well as the way it handles light and color. Settings are for both: ISO 4000, 600mm, f 6.3, 1/160
[caption id="attachment_5408" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Credit: Kylie Nicholson[/caption] [caption id="attachment_5407" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Credit: Kylie Nicholson[/caption]Here’s one more sunset shot. Note the 1/15 shutter speed, even with a slow shutter speed the lens managed to capture a gorgeous, steady focused image.
[caption id="attachment_5402" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Credit: Kylie Nicholson[/caption]Read more of Kylie's reviews here.