Some of my favorite things to photograph are birds and animals, but in order to get close up shots of these animals it is sometimes necessary to use a longer lens. I recently acquired a Sigma 150-500 lens through Amazon and have been extremely happy with the results.
Often a good, high quality lens will cost several thousand dollars. I don’t have that kind of money to spend so I will research lenses from other companies such as Sigma or Tamron. I shoot with a Nikon camera, but these companies make lens mounts for most DSLR cameras.
My Sigma 150-500 can be hand-held but I find it works best with a tripod. But for those times when a tripod isn’t practical (like trying to photograph a bird in flight or a moving animal), I’ve been very happy with the hand-held results. I continuously practice taking hand-held photos to improve my results.
Below is the lens which will link you to Amazon. Since I purchased my lens, they have come out with a 150-600mm lens at comparable prices, but I will have to wait a bit before I purchase another lens.
Sigma 150-500mm lens
Happy photographing!!
Maralee
Through My Lens 
As you might know, I seriously contemplated the Nikon 200-500mm for its high rating. I ended up opting for the P900 as more manageable. Not a decision based on quality alone (the 200-500mm photo quality if likely much higher) but I already carry around 18lb worth of gear and the 200-500 is neither small nor light.
Still, when I read about people who bought a “proper” lens, I get this feeling that I abdicated my self-applied label of “serious hobbyist” and that I might have made a mistake . . . thanks a lot!
I had one of these and I found it was just too heavy for me to carry about so I reluctantly got rid of it. Arthritic hands aren’t helped by holding up heavy cameras. You are making good use of your lens.
Cool! I really want . . . well, there are a lot of things I want. 🙂 But I would love a lens like this to get closer to wildlife. Thanks for the rec.
🙂 I have a lot of wants too. I have a wish list a mile long.
I have a 70-200 Tamron that I lug about 😉 What I really want is the Sigma 24-70 Art that hasn’t come out yet.
Awesome work!