Telephoto Lens ‘That Has Never Existed Before’? Sigma 300-600 f4

[Mal Paso]

Wow! Two other old guys…now there’s three! I also shot a lot of tri-x. The contrast was good…. But plus-x was a tad better with grain and panatomic-x @ 32asa was really fine but the contrast was terrible. I’m probably mis-remembering some stuff too. I remember using microdol-x and Agfa paper (brovara, portriga?) when I could find it…. Memory lane is full of potholes ya’ know..

About 1969 I was pushing Tri-X to ASA 1600 to shoot by available light in jazz clubs using Acufine developer. ASA 400 was the fastest film at the time without special processing. ASA stands for American Standards Association and was how film speed was rated until we got PC and switched the term to ISO or International Standards Organization.

I was a regular at the Lighthouse Cafe in Hermosa Beach for years until they found out I was under 21. LOL

 

[arbitrage]

Sigma is rumored to soon announce a new 800mm f/6.3 E-mount lens | sonyalpharumors

Image on top shows the "old" Sigma 800mm f/5.6 lens According to a Weibo source, Sigma will be presenting two new lenses at CP+. One is a zoom lens and one is a fixed focal length lens. The fixed focal length lens is said to be a new 800mm f/6.3 full-frame lens for Sony E

www.sonyalpharumors.com

Not a lens that has never been done before. Even Sigma has made a very similar 800 f/5.6 before.

 

[Larry S]

About 1969 I was pushing Tri-X to ASA 1600 to shoot by available light in jazz clubs using Acufine developer. ASA 400 was the fastest film at the time without special processing. ASA stands for American Standards Association and was how film speed was rated until we got PC and switched the term to ISO or International Standards Organization.

I was a regular at the Lighthouse Cafe in Hermosa Beach for years until they found out I was under 21. LOL

Yo….old guy…..yup, pushed my share of Tri-X to 1600 back in the 60’s too. Actually kept one Nikkor reel & tank for sentimental reasons… Thought about posting a picture of it here and seeing if anyone under 40 knew what it was….

 

[fcotterill]

Tamron Patent Points to Exciting New Lens

Tamron may be eyeing an ambitious new lens: a 200–800mm ultra-telephoto zoom for mirrorless cameras. A recently published patent in Japan reveals optical designs for a Tamron 200-800mm f/6.7 lens, as well as a companion 200-600mm f/5.6 design. Such a lens would offer tremendous reach for...

fstoppers.com

 

[arbitrage]

Seems like we are going to be flooded by these "slow" 800mm lenses in 2025.

 

[fcotterill]

It's a 300-600 f4 Sport

Sigma 300-600mm F4 DG OS Sport

I was looking at DP Review this evening and saw they were covering a live announcement from Sigma which included a 300-600 f4 for L-mount and E-mount. I thought it might interest the board. It's around 4 kg, 467.9mm long with a diameter of 167mm...

bcgforums.com

It will likely not be for Canon or Nikon, because Sigma is not permitted to make any Z mount lenses and I think only APS-C R mount lenses. Sigma full frame mirrorless lenses are for Sony and Leica. The heavy weight was for their SLR lenses; the new Sigma 500 f5.6 for mirrorless I believe is light weight? And if, as they say, it is a lens that has never existed, surely people will be interested.

 

[fcotterill]

Sigma 300-600mm f/4 DG OS Sports Review: Way More for Way Less

Can Sigma make a lens that does way more for way less? The Sigma 300-600mm f/4 Sport might be the best deal of the year.

petapixel.com

 

[JWest]

Yo….old guy…..yup, pushed my share of Tri-X to 1600 back in the 60’s too. Actually kept one Nikkor reel & tank for sentimental reasons… Thought about posting a picture of it here and seeing if anyone under 40 knew what it was….

I borrowed a friends Nikon F2 with a handheld Seconic and a 50mm/f2, it was the first time I looked through and camera and pondered, "why"?

Having found a new passion, from the very beginning I actually shot ONLY chrome because I wanted to see the actual results nearly immediately.

Seeing as I was experimenting, this made sense. What I didn't know at the time was that it also forced me to learn exposure very quickly without the leeway that negatives allowed, as well as seeing my work in just a few hours. I worked at a pro lab so I could run film for free and the supply shop gave industry employees a discount.

Being drawn to night scenes, then of course I was pushing 400 chrome to 1600 all the time and learning to hand hold to 1/30 as a standard and slower under pressure. This was all on 35mm and a Nikon F3 HP. Some of the old images are still on my website.

I was self taught for the first couple yrs, then worked as an assistant in a major player Chicago studio after several assisting jobs trying to find my way.

Later I found some love for B&W but by then I had my vision for what I wanted where color had nothing to do with the message. Some work however went in the direction of monochromatic scenes or a reduced palette which I still love to explore now.