Some Geese Pics

Very cold outside today, but I decided to try and shoot some pics of geese. Most were hand held and anywhere from 70-300 mm. It is the CHEAPER version of the Sigma 70-300 (non apo) i believe. I bought it for 130 bucks shipped. Good for me to practice with this, before I venture out into buying a better one. AI Focus is impossible with this lens, so most were manual. Would be nice to get better bokeh, as when opened up it only hits 5.6 at 300 mm.

Shot at Cedar lake, Olathe KS. Literally hundreds of them flew in for an hour, round after round. It was very peaceful, and noone but the geese and I were out there.

17-40

What a shitty lens......(or at least mine is). Very soft on the left side, and I swear that my KIT lens is sharper. Needless to say, I'm sending it back for the Sigma 17-70 f2.8, which is what I should have bought in the first place. I'm also picking up the Sigma 10-20.

Couple of Sample shots from the 17-40 are below. It lacks great color and sharpness, which is what the "L" series is supposed to be about. Darin and Mike Parker both have the 17-70, and the pics are night and day. Parker showed me some comparisons between the two, and the Sigma wins in a blowout. At a price of only $349, after you enter the secret code at bh ;), I have to pick it up, along with the 10-20.

I also have a telephoto on the way (A cheap Sigma 75-300). So hopefully I can share some photos on here in the upcoming weeks.

Spring needs to hurry up.