Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 EX DG OS HSM review

An affordable telephoto lens for Canon, Nikon and Sigma DSLRs

Reviews
By Dave Stevenson
published
Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 EX DG OS HSM
An affordable telephoto lens that fits Canon, Nikon and Sigma DSLRs

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Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 ex dg os hsm review

The Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 EX DG OS HSM is a cracking piece of kit. At the apertures it's most likely to be used at it's very sharp, autofocuses quickly and offers the kind of sterling build quality you need from a lens that's likely to spend most of its working life outside.

We liked

The telephoto lens is made from durable, sturdy metal and has decent weatherproofing for outdoor shooting. Image quality is also excellent, particularly at wider apertures and using the built-in impressive optical stabilisation.

We disliked

The waterproofing falls down in the lens's lack of a rubber seal on the lens mount, and parts of the lens are tricky to manouvre at times.

Final verdict

The big maximum aperture undoubtedly makes it a more unwieldy lens, which isn't particularly welcome news, but that will often make the difference between a comfortable shutter speed and one that produces wobbly shots. The Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 EX DG OS HSM is well worth a look.

Dave Stevenson

Dave is a professional photographer whose work has appeared everywhere from National Geographic to the Guardian. Along the way he’s been commissioned to shoot zoo animals, luxury tech, the occasional car, countless headshots and the Northern Lights. As a videographer he’s filmed gorillas, talking heads, corporate events and the occasional penguin. He loves a good gadget but his favourite bit of kit (at the moment) is a Canon EOS T80 35mm film camera he picked up on eBay for £18.