Sigma Zoom 80-200 f4.5-5.6 A Surprise Packet

Oldhand

I received this lens from a friend and on first glance it looked abysmal. Inside, the front elements were fungused, and it was - well - an old Sigma from an era when Sigma quality control and performance were pretty patchy to say the least.
I was tempted to toss it in the bin.
But with a little time to myself today, I decided to see if the front elements were cleanable, and if so - to see where that led.
As it turns out, the front elements are easily reached and easily cleaned - the rest of the lens was relatively fungus free.
Quick re-assembly and a few shots later and - to say the least - I am amazed.
First - here is the lens, followed by some samples.

#1

#2

#3

#4

#5

#6

#7

#8

#9

Not at all the absolute dog that I was expecting.
In fact, a very nice lens indeed
Tom

uddhava · Expire: 2021-06-21

Congratulations for the repair and the photos.

Oldhand · Posted: Tue May 18, 2021 12:05 pm Post subject:

uddhava · Expire: 2021-06-21

Nice! What focal lengths did you shoot them with?

stevemark · Joined: 29 Apr 2011 Posts: 3908 Location: Switzerland

Your posting reminds me of two other Sigma tele zooms from the late 1980s:

1) Sigma APO Zoom 3.5-4.5 f=50-200mm (manual focus, unusual white lens barrel, around 1984)
2) Sigma Zoom AF-APO 3.5-4.5 f=70-210mm APO (autofocus, unusual olive colored lens barrel)

Both are not very common; especiually the 50-200mm APO is prone to a fogged lens element.

The AF 70-210mm APO is exceptionally well corrected for CAs (both lateral and longitudinal); at f=70mm the corners are a bit unsharp, but otherwise its a very capable lens, especially considering its age.

My MF 50-200mm APO has the typical fogged element - since it's hidden quite deep inside the zoom and since it's said to be a glued element (not easy to repair) I didn't bother to clean. A few test shots however suggest that the lens would be unusually sharp and CA free as well.

S

Oldhand · Posted: Tue May 18, 2021 12:58 pm Post subject:

alex ph · Joined: 16 Mar 2013 Posts: 1659

In fact, Tom, that makes reconsider some "forgotten" zoom marks. This one does not give the same punch as Minolta zooms, but its shapness and even colour rendition are notorius.

Very fine captures of leaf shades superposed on leaves, congrats!

Oldhand · Posted: Wed May 19, 2021 4:59 am Post subject:

Oldhand · Posted: Wed May 19, 2021 9:26 am Post subject:

And for a change of pace:
The maximum aperture f4.5-5.6 makes shooting in available light indoors something of a challenge.
ISO 3200, and we are good to go:

#1

uddhava · Expire: 2021-06-21