I'm thinking about getting a "universal" lens for my K100D, probably a Sigma 18-200mm (rrp about £330, but available for £230 on the net). Seems on paper to be a good walkabout lens. Are there any drawbacks, apart from the slightly small aperture (f3.5-6.3)?
I'm thinking about getting a "universal" lens for my K100D, probably a Sigma 18-200mm (rrp about £330, but available for £230 on the net). Seems on paper to be a good walkabout lens. Are there any drawbacks, apart from the slightly small aperture (f3.5-6.3)?
Not so much drawbacks as compromises - separate wide angle mid zoom & longer zoom lenses will do a better job than a single lens IMO - I have tried the Sigma & Nikon 18-200mm and that was the conclusion I came to - If you decided to only have one lens both are decent enough & the Nikon has VR (vibration reduction) which is a big bonus (if you can afford it or find one!)
HTH - Paul
I used one on the end of my EOS 350D for a while and was fairly pleased with the results. The zoom range is extremely useful and I found that it covered all of my needs in that department, but, the image sharpness is a compromise as PaulBoy says. They are well made and sturdy so as a 'cover all' lens is a fairly good option.
Examples of some images taken with the lens can be seen in my flickr photostream in the Chester Zoo, Green Man and Morfa Nefyn sets.
The 18-200mm is a great lens. You have to understand it's limitations but performance is much better than made out by many lens afficionados. If you want a single walkaround lens and understand that the resolution isn't pro level, then it makes a good choice.
p.s. resolution compares favourably with the much praised Nikon 18-200mm VR, beating it in quite a few places, just check out the MTF charts in the respective reviews on the ePhotozine site.
Check out my 18-200mm lens test set of photos with this lens on a KM 5D:
The Photozone.de test is unreliable, it just doesn't match up with the experiences of users of this lens, even on Canon cameras. I think that they must have had a faulty lens or camera body. It is also at variance with other online reviews.
The Sigma consistently outperforms the Tamron (and it's KM/Sony variants) in tests.
The Photozone.de test is unreliable, it just doesn't match up with the experiences of users of this lens, even on Canon cameras. I think that they must have had a faulty lens or camera body. It is also at variance with other online reviews.
The Sigma consistently outperforms the Tamron (and it's KM/Sony variants) in tests.
I have this lens with my 350d and im not expert but for a general purpose walkabout lens it does its job perfectly. It will enable me to travel a lot lighter when i go on holidays as i will only need to take 2 lenses with me my 10-20 Sigma and my 18-200.
Clockworks doesn't need the stabilised version on his Pentax K100D as the camera body has built in image stabilisation (just like my KM 5D). If you have a Canon or Nikon body then the stabilised version would be good.
Clockworks doesn't need the stabilised version on his Pentax K100D as the camera body has built in image stabilisation (just like my KM 5D). If you have a Canon or Nikon body then the stabilised version would be good.
I'd like an IS lens and the posts here about the new Sigma/Tamron might just push me over that way. I'm sure I wont be the only one so it may be worth waiting for the new IS lenses (that you dont need) to see if you can pick up a bargain second hand 18-200.
