I would say this is among the top Macro lenses on th...e market if not the top macro lens on the market!! The only lens that may beat it out would be the Sigma 180mm Macro lens, lol. The focus is HSM so that makes it much faster then many other macro lenses. But don't get too excited as it is still a macro lens so focusing is still slower then a non-macro lens! It does have a focus limiting switch as well so you can limit the range to either close or far your choice and it really helps speed things up! Contrast, sharpness, and color reproduction are top shelf all the way! Build quality is nothing short of amazing! I have used this lens and just about every other macro lens on the market, and this is the one I settled on! It produced images every bit as great as the Canon 180mm L macro but the Sigma is a fraction of the cost! I do have to add though, that being a 150mm focal length and a macro lens working at a true 1:1 (life sized) ratio it will take some practice to use it properly!!!! When working at 1:1 and greater any mistake can and will ruin your image! This lens can be handheld easily, but a nice tripod setup with a macro rail slide is quite beneficial!
I do almost all wildlife photos in the field, have used th...is lens a month and it's perfect for it. I'm starting an exhibition for a local library, main theme garden critters, so far have 25 8x10 framed (including several 1/8 - 1/4" spiders). Not one has required serious post processing - I just crop, adjust levels and maybe touch contrast. Focus, contrast and exposure are good. My subjects range from 1/8" to 4" long, using manual focus and a tripod is usually a must. At macro distance the lens hunts focus a little, not much. At further distance no hunting (nice touch - optional 2 focus ranges). The speed of the lens is nice (flying Bees and such), and the focal length of 150 keeps me at a comfortable distance. The tripod bracket removes in one movement.
I was looking for an addition to my 60...mm macro lenses. The 60mm I have warrants that I get too close to the subject. Yep it flew away... Advice from a Professional camera friend suggested the 150mm Sigma lens was the recommendation for my Canon 50D and not the canon 100mm or 180mm lens which I was toying with purchasing. With the 150mm lens the photos are real sharp,AF focusing is slow but using Manual focus then switching to AF it's right on.. At 10 feet it's close, nice & sharp ..but at 14 inches the image is on your eye ball...Wow !! The Sigma 150mm Macro lens is a nice size, compact, light weight and I like the shark skin lens feel...Overall a super lens.....
I sold my Nikon 105mm in favor of the Si...gma 150mm f2.8 EX APO DG lens. I did this mainly because I have a Sigma 1.4 EX DG teleconverter. I wanted more working distance between me and the subject when doing macro photos. The Sigma Macro lens is amazing. Great photo quality, sharpness and contrast. The 1.4x converter is another great product. I have bought and used all of the teleconverters Nikon has to offer, including the new 2x II series but find the Sigma, matched with the Sigma EX series lenses, better in every way. Was my buy of the Sigma EX 150mm macro and the Sigma 1.4x converter a good choice? Better than I could have hoped for.
I love the way it is built, very strong, very nice finish and... not too heavy at the same time. It takes great pictures, very sharp if you place it on a tripod or if your subject is still (not moving) or you can use higher shutter speed if you decide to hand held your camera to prevent or bring blur to its minimum.