Fstoppers Reviews the Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG OS HSM APO Macro Lens

The Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG OS HSM APO Macro is somewhat of a red herring that doesn’t get talked about very often. Most macro shooters are content with a 100mm macro lens, and most portrait shooters tend to go with a 70-200mm for their telephoto needs. 150mm just isn’t a focal length that is commonly seen these days. Does that make this Sigma lens a sleeper gem or just another lens to overlook in favor of other options?

On a side note, Sigma, I’d like to take this moment to point out that there is a point where adding acronyms to the end of a lens name gets ridiculous, you have exceeded that point, in this case.

What Is The Sigma 150mm f/2.8 Macro Designed For?

In the simplest sense, it is a macro lens, so it's designed to take pictures of tiny stuff with exquisite detail. In a broader sense, though, the Sigma 150mm offers a bit more telephoto than your average macro lens which lets you shoot from farther away. Furthermore, it is one of few macro lenses that include optical stabilization. Combined, these two factors make it handy for when trying to capture macro images of creatures that can be easily disturbed.

However, a lens like the Sigma 150mm excels at far more than what it optimally is designed for. It is also fantastic as a portrait lens and makes for a killer lens to shoot product photography with.

Build Quality

The Sigma 150mm is part of the Sigma EX series lenses, which was their “pro” line before their Global Vision series was released. Unlike the many of the new GV lenses, the EX series lenses have plastic casings with a gold ring similar to G series Nikkor lenses.

However, despite a plastic body, the Sigma 150mm feels very sturdy in build, and personally, I’m glad that it doesn’t have a metal body to keep the weight down.

I really don’t have any complaints about the build quality of this lens. It is exactly what I’d expect and want. The focus ring is smooth and accurate with a very reasonable focus throw. The switches are crisp and responsive. The lens shows no signs of loose bits or strange sounds. Overall, it is built like any other professional lens that I’ve used.

Autofocus

When I first purchased the Sigma 150mm, I remember being quite surprised by how fast it focused. It also has Sigma’s hypersonic motor (HSM) which makes the focusing almost silent. After using it for a more prolonged period, I’ve come to realize that the speed of the autofocus depends largely on optimal situations. While it still can focus in low light, the lens often finds itself whirring back and forth in search of its focus point.

I’ve also had mixed results with the accuracy of the autofocus, I wouldn’t call it bad, but I’d say it misses more often than I’d like for a lens that retails for more than a thousand dollars.

Bokeh

I’d argue the bokeh that the Sigma 150mm macro creates is mediocre at best. Personally, I’m quite fond of how it renders the bokeh but the limitation to how soft the bokeh can become keeps it from achieving the sweet, glorious, buttery bokeh that a 70-200 f/2.8 (at 200mm) or a 135mm f/2.0 can create. 

One thing, however, that I’m quite fond of about with this lens is that it does offer a similar subtle “swirling” that is present in images created with Canon’s 135mm f/2.0 (very subtle, unlike, say, certain Helios lenses, which are known for more extreme swirling). My only real complaint about the bokeh is that it can be a bit jittery at times, and not as soft as I'd expect from a telephoto lens at f/2.8. 

My complaints really only extend to using the Sigma 150mm as a portrait lens, at portrait range. When shooting at macro range the bokeh is the mushy smear of color that you'd expect from a macro lens focusing extremely close.

Sharpness

When the Sigma 150mm nails focus, it is quite sharp at all apertures. Even wide open it performs quite well which was nice to see. The image below is straight out of camera shot wide open. Below are full size crops of the center of the shot at both f/2.8 and f/4.0 to give an idea of full resolution sharpness on a D800. There is a slight increase in sharpness as the lens is stopped down, however, but overall, I was quite impressed by the sharpness wide open even towards the edges of the frame.

The methodology used to create these sample images was the placement of the camera on a tripod, remotely triggered, in mirror up mode, with a shutter speed of 1/250th of a second at ISO 100. Exposure was adjusted by altering flash power to account for changes in aperture. OS was turned off and there was no filter on the lens.

Optical Stabilization

As mentioned above, the Sigma 150mm macro does have OS which is a nice feature to have for a macro lens. Especially for someone like me, who mainly uses the lens as a handheld portrait lens. Like many pro level Sigma lenses with OS, the Sigma 150mm macro has both mode 1, and mode 2 of OS.

For those unfamiliar with Sigma OS modes: OS 1 performs similar to any other stabilized lens by other manufacturers (VR, VC, IS). OS 2, however, only corrects for vertical vibration for situations when the lens is being used while panning. Great idea in theory, not terribly useful for this lens as it isn’t really the type of lens you’d be bringing when the goal is to be shooting subjects that are moving quickly such as cars, athletes, or birds.

Finally, one other one aspect that I feel I should mention is that sometimes when engaging the OS, as it begins to focus, the lens does a strange “shift” that manifests by the viewfinder doing a slight jump. I’ve never experienced this from a stabilized lens before. It doesn’t seem to impact sharpness at all but it can be a bit distracting while trying to compose your shot. I’m not sure if this is a systemic flaw or behavior unique to the copy of the lens that I have.

Mega Lens Hood

One interesting addition that is included with the Sigma 150mm macro is a lens hood extender. This extender is designed for use with cropped sensor camera for when you want a lens hood that more than doubles the length of the lens. it introduces slight vignetting when used on a full frame camera so is only recommended if the lens is being used on a cropped sensor body.

Personally, I’m not sure why you would ever need such a huge lens hood. I suppose one bonus is that when used with the extender the lens hood vastly enlarges the lens without adding much weight, which does make it look quite large and impressive, but for me the extender is really just a pointless gimmick that stays in the box.

Below is an example of the 150mm macro's size naked, and with the two lens hood configurations. I also included the Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 for scale.

What I Liked?

• Very sharp
• Quiet focusing
• Good build quality
• Plenty of accessories (lens hood, lens hood extender, tripod collar, carry strap, and protective case)
• Optical stabilization

What I Didn’t Like?

• Autofocus accuracy wasn’t great
• Strange, occasional OS “jump”

Bottom Line

The Sigma 150mm f2.8 macro comes in at a hefty $1,099 price tag; that puts it in the same neighborhood as the Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 OS which would serve better in the vast majority of situations that do not require close focusing.

If you are shooting macro primarily, the Sigma 150mm f/2.8 macro is a beast of a contender, however, I’d argue that a 100mm macro lens is a smaller, more versatile in most situations, and at a lower price for similar sharpness. Though, if you are looking for a bit more reach this lens is a nice alternative to the larger, much more expensive, and traditional 180mm macro lenses on the market.

Overall, the Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG OS HSM APO macro is a fantastic lens that struggles to find a niche where it can live up to its beautiful design and performance.

Regardless, though, I’d say that it is unlikely that you would regret purchasing this lens for any of the above uses. I’m happy with my copy of it and one major benefit is that very few photographers shoot at 150mm which means your images will have a slight uniqueness and character to them that isn’t offered by purchasing a more mainstream lens.