Sigma 500mm F4 DG OS HSM Sports

Not so long ago for my birthday, I bought the Sigma 500mm F4 DG OS HSM Sports, Canon mount, to complete my lenses collection.
That was for me a long awaited type of lens, that I couldn’t afford until recently.
I was also looking at the Canon EF 500mm F4 L IS II USM, but it is too expensive. I don’t even talk about the 600mm ^^
Through this article you will discover the features and specifications of this Sigma lens Sigma 500mm F4 DG OS HSM Sports, review and tests, especially with the videos.

Technical Specifications
– Maximum aperture: F4
– Minimum aperture: F32
– Minimum Focusing Distance: 3.5m
– Filter Diameter: 46mm (Rear)
– Dimensions (Diameter x Length): 15cm × 38cm (Lens Length with Hood: 54cm)
– Weight: 3.3kg (Lens Weight with Hood: 3.6Kg)
– Accessories: Carbon fiber hood LH1388-01

Some details about the abbreviations of the Sigma 500mm F4 DG OS HSM Sports.
– OS: Optical image stabilization technology.
– HSM: Hyper Sonic Motor is a ring-type ultrasonic motor designed to provide quick and silent focusing. It is Sigma’s equivalent to Canon USM and Nikon SWM technology.
– DG: lens designed for Full-frame DLSR cameras
– S: Sports: Offering sophisticated optical performance and expressive capabilities, to be used in challenging conditions.
The Sports line lenses are good for wildlife photography, action / sport photography, fast-moving subjects, even at distance.

Female red deer into the Wild, capturing Wildlife from a distance with a telephoto lens
F4, 1/1000 sec, 500 mm, ISO1250, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Bird photography with the Sigma 500 F4 and Canon 5d mark iv
F4, 1/250 sec, 500 mm, ISO500, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Photographing a bird catching fish
F4, 1/800 sec, 500 mm, ISO640, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Bird swallowing fish, Sigma 500 F4 telephoto lens for bird photography
F4, 1/1000 sec, 500 mm, ISO640, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Bird photography with the Sigma 500 F4, birds in flight
F4, 1/8000 sec, 500 mm, ISO640, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Highlands cow portrait wide telephoto lens Sigma 500
F5, 1/1000 sec, 500 mm, ISO640, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Yellow bird in a tree, on a colorful branch
F4, 1/3200 sec, 500 mm, ISO500, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Wildlife photography with the Sigma 500 F4, red deer rutting period
F6.3, 1/130 sec, 500 mm, ISO2000, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Chamois photo. Cropped from full frame Canon 5d mark iv + Sigma 500 F4
F4, 1/400 sec, 500 mm, ISO1250, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Sigma 500mm F4 test, during the red deer rutting period
F4, 1/250 sec, 500 mm, ISO1250, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

The Sigma lens Sigma 500mm F4 DG OS HSM Sport is a stabilized super telephoto lens (for Sigma, Canon and Nikon mounts) and completely customizable for DSLR (Optimized for Full-frame sensors) .
Compatible with the Sigma’s USB Dock and Sigma Optimization Pro software for fine-tuning the lens performance and updating its firmware

With its wide aperture at F4, the Sigma 500mm F4 DG OS HSM Sport telephoto lens is very bright and therefore allows you to take pictures with less light.
This is useful for wildlife photography at dusk or dawn, without getting too high in the ISOs.
There is always a learning curve, but it took me a bit of time to before I could better use this 500mm fixed focal length. And I will surely need a few more photo sessions, under different conditions before I can master it.

If like me you happen to use your lens in difficult shooting conditions, especially in autumn and winter, the SIGMA 500mm F4 DG HSM | Sports features a highly efficient splash proof and dust construction.
The front of the lens has a water and oil repellent coating that allows water to be easily wiped off and prevents oil from sticking to the surface.

With a weight of 3.3kg, the Sigma 500mm F4 DG OS HSM Sport lens is designed to be lightweight, resistant and handy, with a structure made with a magnesium alloy and a lens hood made of carbon fiber.

Bird on riverbank, bird photography with the Sigma 500 F4 for Canon mount
F4, 1/2000 sec, 500 mm, ISO640, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Eurasian coot, bird photography and depth of field with the Sigma 500 F4
F4, 1/1000 sec, 500 mm, ISO640, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Frog in the water, cropped image
F5, 1/2000 sec, 500 mm, ISO640, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Grass snake swimming, cropped image from Canon 5d mark iv and Sigma 500 F4
F5, 1/2500 sec, 500 mm, ISO640, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Sigma 500 F4 cropped image, uncropped image following below
F8, 1/160 sec, 500 mm, ISO2500, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Reddeer portrait during the rutting season with the Sigma 500 F4
F4, 1/1000 sec, 500 mm, ISO2500, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Sigma 500 F4 uncropped image, see cropped image further above
F8, 1/160 sec, 500 mm, ISO2500, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Red deer in the snow, capturing Wildlife with Sigma 500 F4 telephoto lens
F5, 1/2000 sec, 500 mm, ISO400, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Red deer rutting period under the rain, testing the Sigma 500 F4
F4, 1/320 sec, 500 mm, ISO1250, Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

In terms of image quality and sharpness, I am very pleasantly surprised with the results.
You can zoom and crop the image while retaining lots of details. We may not see it well on the photos above, due to their size and compression, but the Sigma 500mm F4 DG OS HSM Sport offers a very nice picture quality.
I was able to mount the Sigma 500 F4 on a Canon 5d Mark iv (full frame DSLR) and a Canon 90D (APS-C), and on both cameras, the rendering is really excellent.
Due to the weather conditions lately, I have not been able to use this telephoto extensively yet, but you will of course be able to see more photos taken with it in future articles.

In my previous article about the Sigma 150-600mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sport version super zoom lens for Wildlife photography, I said I was going to have a look at the Sigma 500mm F4 DG HSM OS Sports lens, and it’s done. I can’t wait to be able to share with you the future photos that I can take with this one!

Sigma 500mm F4 OS Sport videos from Dustin Abbott’s channel on Youtube

Sigma 500mm F4 OS Sport: First Look

Sigma 500mm F4 OS Sport Review

Sigma 500mm F4 OS Sport: IQ Breakdown