90mm Tamron or 105mm Sigma

[Daniel Harrison]

I have used the Sigma and really enjoyed it but have an opportunity to get the Tamron. Any thoughts on how it performs?
Thanks!

 

[KrisCarnmarker]

The UK magazine Practical Photography just had a small test which included both of those. They conclude that they are so close that it comes down to personal preference, with the Sigma having a slight focal length advantage and the Tamron a very slight sharpness advantage. Overall winner was the Canon 100mm

 

[Tom Yi]

I've the Tokina version but agree with Kris, the 100mm ish range macros are all really really good lenses. I don't think you can go wrong with any of them. My personal feeling is that the Tamron is a bit sharper than the Sigma, but I don't think this is a difference you can see unless you pixel peep 100% crops next to each other. I'd make my decisions more on features and price, rather than absolute sharpness difference between the lenses.

Now, if it was me, I'd probably get the Tamron btwn your choices.
Good luck

 

[Daniel Harrison]

Thanks Guys,
That is what I wanted to know!

 

[Michael Brown]

Either is optically good.
I had a Tamron 90mm once and loved it. Sold it when I switced over to Canon.
The only thing that I did not like about the Tamron macro was that the front element is recessed in and away from the front of the lens about a 1/4 inch or so. Since I sometimes will attach a Nikkor 50mm lens in reverse to the macro for added magnification (for flora abstracts), this would not work with the Tamron since the front element was to far away from the reversed 50mm lens.

If you never think you would do anything like this, ... then the Tamron is a excellent choice. Sigma is great too!
Right now, my primary lens is the Canon 100mm macro. I usually have a couple of tubes, 2x teleconverter, diopter, and the old Nikkor in my vest to add to the 100mm. It is all that I ever will need for what I shoot.

Best of luck!

 

[Tom Yi]

Ah, also to note is that Canon is the only one that doens't extend out when it zooms. However, b/c the front element is not recessed and the hood is not supplied with the lens, one must be cautious as to not hit the subject with the front element.

 

[Daniel Harrison]

Wow Michael you must get pretty close with all that , do you know if the canon TC works on the tamron? Also about extension tubes, do you have canon tubes od do you use 3rd party tubes that are manual focus only?

Thanks!

 

[Diane Fields]

Wow Michael you must get pretty close with all that , do you know if the canon TC works on the tamron? Also about extension tubes, do you have canon tubes od do you use 3rd party tubes that are manual focus only?

Thanks!

The Canon TCs won't work with the Tamron. I have used Kenko extension tubes with it--in fact the macro I posted on the macro forum here was done with the Tamron and Kenko tubes.

 

[Kyle Nagel]

I own the Sigma 105 (newest version), Canon and Sigma have an interesting issue in that they are not very consistent from one lens to the next in terms of sharpness, as a matter of fact from talking to the owner of the local pro shop he says the Canons are worse in inconsistency than Sigma. I actually shoot with a Pentax but I did hear about the consistency issue several years ago, so when I bought my 300mm and my 105mm I actually bought more than one, I bought four of the 300mm and shot test charts and compared, then I would return the under performers until I got one that was razor sharp, my 300mm is really sweet, I only went through two of the 105s before I found one that was really nice, at least 3 times better than the first one, I find with some lenses this is the only way to get a good one, it also explains why some reviews are good and some bad for the same lens. I you want to do this check the return policies before buying more than one, one of the local shops here has started letting customers mount them on their camera and shoot test shots in the store. The Tamrons are more consistent than Canon or Sigma, but if you happen to get a really nice Sigma it will smoke the Tamron.

Kyle

 

[Michael Brown]

Wow Michael you must get pretty close with all that , do you know if the canon TC works on the tamron? Also about extension tubes, do you have canon tubes od do you use 3rd party tubes that are manual focus only?

Thanks!

Right now, I have nothing but the Kenko tubes & teleconverters for the Canon macro lens.
Works like a charm, and cheaper!

 

[Mike Spinak]

A lot has been said, already, so I'll try not to repeat.

If the focal length differences are a factor in your decision, then I'd say which of those focal lengths is best for you will depend upon what sort of macro photography you intend to do. As a broad (too broad, really) generalization, I'd say that the shorter focal length will probably be a bit more convenient for plant macros, and the longer focal length will probably be a bit more convenient for animal macros. With plants, especially flowers, the desired position for photographing them is frequently top-down; when the flowers are waist high or more, it is easier to get far enough above the flower to frame your shot properly with a shorter focal length macro lens. With animals, a longer focal length makes it easier to keep the necessary distance to keep the animal from fleeing or becoming stressed and behaving abnormally.

Besides that consideration, longer focal lengths make it easier to isolate your subject with a clean background, as is often desired with close up photography.

Despite what I've said above, the difference between a 90mm and a 105 mm is minor enough that these considerations should be merely minor parts of the decision-making process.

Mike

www.mikespinak.com

 

[Tom Yi]

I own the Sigma 105 (newest version), Canon and Sigma have an interesting issue in that they are not very consistent from one lens to the next in terms of sharpness, as a matter of fact from talking to the owner of the local pro shop he says the Canons are worse in inconsistency than Sigma. I actually shoot with a Pentax but I did hear about the consistency issue several years ago, so when I bought my 300mm and my 105mm I actually bought more than one, I bought four of the 300mm and shot test charts and compared, then I would return the under performers until I got one that was razor sharp, my 300mm is really sweet, I only went through two of the 105s before I found one that was really nice, at least 3 times better than the first one, I find with some lenses this is the only way to get a good one, it also explains why some reviews are good and some bad for the same lens. I you want to do this check the return policies before buying more than one, one of the local shops here has started letting customers mount them on their camera and shoot test shots in the store. The Tamrons are more consistent than Canon or Sigma, but if you happen to get a really nice Sigma it will smoke the Tamron.

Kyle

There is an article in one of the UK Photography mags that compared three sigma 105mm macros randomly picked for a supply chain to check for variability. They state that there was a very small amount wide open but when stopped down to about f8 the difference is not noticable. I think it was an interesting read.

Hey Daniel, did you decide on what to get?