Pros & Cons
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- 10x zoom power.
- Superb fit and finish.
- Weather sealing and fluorine coating.
- Strong optical stabilization.
- Available for Canon, Nikon, and Sigma cameras.
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- Heavy.
- Big zoom sacrifices image quality versus shorter designs.
- Requires adapter for use with mirrorless systems.
Sigma 60-600mm F4.5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Specs
| Dimensions | 10.6 by 4.7 inches |
| Full-Frame Equivalent (Telephoto) | 600 |
| Full-Frame Equivalent (Wide) | 60 |
| Mount | Canon EF |
| Mount | Nikon F |
| Mount | Sigma SA |
| Optical Stabilization | Optical |
| Weight | 5.95 |
| Zoom Ratio | 10 x |
The Sigma 60-600mm F4.5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports ($1,999) is the ostensible replacement for the company's aged 50-500mm F4.5-6.3 APO DG OS HSM ($1,659). The new version is part of Sigma's modern Global Vision series, and as a member of the Sports line features sturdy construction with extensive weather sealing. It's not as strong an optical performer as the Sigma 150-600mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports, but some photographers may find the additional wide-angle coverage to be a worthy trade-off. Our Editors' Choice telezoom is another Sigma lens, the affordable 150-600mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM Contemporary.
Carbon Fiber and Polycarbonate Cut Weight
The 60-600mm is a big lens—not surprising when you consider its full-frame coverage, zoom range, and telephoto reach. It measures 10.6 by 4.7 inches (HD) at its shortest position, weighs just shy of six pounds, and uses huge 105mm filters. Sigma sells the lens in Canon EF, Nikon F, and Sigma SA mounts. It can be used with Canon RF, Nikon Z, or Sony FE cameras with the appropriate adapter.
Despite having more range than the 150-600mm Sports, the 60-600mm weighs about a third of a pound less. In addition to metal, it uses a mix of carbon fiber and polycarbonate in its construction, which helps to account for the weight savings.
There is extensive internal weather protection, as well as fluorine coating for both front and rear elements. Fluorine repels water and grease, so it's easy to wipe fingerprints and water droplets off of the glass.
A lens this hefty requires a tripod foot. The 60-600mm has one—it's permanently attached, but can rotate a full 360 degrees. A thumbscrew locks it into place at the position of your choice and there are detents at 90-degree increments that serve to ensure you've got the collar set so your camera remains level.
The foot itself has a dovetail design, so it can mount in Arca-Swiss tripod heads without the need for a quick release plate. The foot has two tripod screws—one for the standard quarter-inch size, and a second for the less common, larger 3/8-inch size.
Sigma includes a lens hood. It's sturdy and light—carbon fiber—and is secured using a thumbscrew. It's reversible for storage and transport, and a soft protective cover is included to cover the reversed hood and front element. Sigma also includes a dedicated carrying case for the zoom, as well a shoulder strap. The strap secures to the rotating tripod collar.
A bank of switches is on the side of the barrel, just ahead of the collar. The AF/MO/MF switches change the focus mode—AF and MF are self-explanatory, but MO stands for Manual Override, which lets you enjoy autofocus but take over manual control via the large manual focus ring, which sits just ahead of the switches.
A focus limiter is next. You can set the lens to hunt for focus over its entire range, or limit to distant (six meters through infinity) or close-up (the minimum focus distance through six meters). Next, you get a switch to change the stabilization mode—turn it off when you don't want to use it, to Mode 1 for most shots, or Mode 2 when you are panning. Finally, there is the Custom setting, which can be turned off or set to C1 or C2. You can fine-tune lens performance using the Sigma USB Dock and save settings to these custom banks.
Image stabilization is rated to four stops by CIPA, which means you should be able to get a sharp handheld image at around 1/40-second. I found the 60-600mm to do a little bit better in practice, delivering blur-free handheld results at shutter speeds as long as 1/20-second. Moving to 1/15-second introduced some blur into our test shots.
The 60-600mm does telescope as it zooms, not quite doubling in length as it moves from 60mm to 600mm. The zoom action can be controlled via a twist of the ring or a push-pull action. Just be careful to make sure the zoom function isn't locked before you try to adjust it. The 60-600mm can be locked in at any of its marked zoom positions—60, 70, 80, 100, 120, 150, 200, 250, 300, 400, or 600mm.
The close focus distance varies a bit based on the set focal length. At shorter focal lenghts—200mm and less—it locks on as close as 23.6 inches for a very good 1:3.3 macro reproduction ratio at 200mm. When you zoom in further, the minimum focus distance increases and the lens isn't as strong for macro work. At the maximum zoom, the minimum focus distance increases to 102.4 inches.
Not Quite Razor Sharp
I tested the 60-600mm with the 50MP Canon EOS 5DS R and Imatest software. It shows the lens nets its sharpest results at its widest angle. At 60mm f/4.5 we see 3,376 lines from a center-weighted evaluation. We want to see a minimum of 2,750 lines from a 50MP image sensor, which puts these results solidly in the very good range. Edge quality is a concern, with results at the periphery dropping to 2,386 lines—a noticeably soft result.
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Stopping down to f/5.6 grants slight improvement all around—we see 3,456 lines on average and edges that are decent, if still a little soft, at 2,540 lines. At f/8 the average score is 3,549 lines and edges show better detail (2,754 lines). The sharpest results are at f/11, where the average hits 3,550 lines and edges show 3,067. Diffraction limits resolution at narrower f-stops, cutting info the average score at f/16 (3,207 lines) and f/22 (2,530 lines).
Chromatic aberration is a potential issue at wider focal lengths. I noticed the effect, visible in the form of false purple color surrounding dark subjects against a bright background. You can see it in the crop above, taken from the previous image in the review. The purple color is visible surrounding the tree branches. It is not something that popped up in similar scenes at longer focal lengths. If you find that it distracts from a shot—even at web resolution the effect gives the sky around the branches a false purple cast—you can remove it using software.
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Resolution drops off at longer focal lengths. I tested again at 250mm, where the maximum aperture is f/5.6. Here we see 2,968 lines on average—good, but not out of this world. Edges remain soft—2,400 lines. At f/8 resolution improves to a very good 3,404 lines, and the periphery hits 2,856 lines. Once again we see the best results at f/11 both on average (3,486 lines) and at the edges of the frame (3,339 lines). Clarity drops at f/16 (3,183 lines) and f/22 (2,612 lines).
By the time you've zoomed to the 400mm position, the maximum aperture has dwindled to f/6.3. Images are also on the soft side, 2,481 lines on average, but edge quality isn't far behind. There's an uptick at f/8 (2,633 lines), and the best results are at f/11 (2,743 lines), but that's still just a little better than the bare minimum for acceptable results. There's a dip at f/16 (2,551 lines) and f/22 (2,285 lines).
Resolution improves a bit at 600mm. At f/6.3 we see 2,769 lines, and while edges lag behind the average (2,403 lines), they are in line with what we see at wider focal lengths. Results are very similar at f/8, but there is an improvement at f/11—2,939 lines on average, with edges that top 2,700. Image quality is also good at f/16 (2,848 lines), but takes a step back at f/22 (2,112 lines).
Distortion is visible, but not overwhelming. There's about 2 percent barrel distortion at 60mm, so straight lines are drawn with a slight outward curve. It gives way to a bit of pincushion distortion at telephoto lengths—about 0.5 percent at 250mm and 400mm and 0.8 percent at 600mm. You may notice the barrel distortion at the wide end, but you'll have to look closely, and at the right subject, to recognize the more modest pincushion effect. As a third-party lens, automatic corrections for distortion are not typically available, but the modest distortion is easily compensated for using software like Adobe Lightroom Classic CC.
Vignette correction is available in the Canon cameras with which I tested the lens, and has been available in Nikon bodies when we've looked at other Sigma lenses in F-mount in the past. With correction turned on the lens shows a modest (-1EV) vignette at its widest f-stop, through the entirety of the zoom range. You won't notice it in most images.
If you shoot in Raw format, or turn peripheral illumination correction off in your camera, the vignette is more of a concern. We see -4EV at 60mm f/4.5 and -2.9EV at f/5.6, before the deficit cuts to about -1.5EV at f/8 and less than -1EV at narrower settings. You'll be able to notice the effect in images at f/4.5 and f/5.6, but not so much at narrower settings. At longer focal lengths the vignette settles into a modest -2EV when shooting with the aperture open, but isn't visible after you've narrowed it by a full f-stop.
Big Zoom Comes at a Cost
Sigma bills the 60-600mm F4.5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports as the first 10x zoom with 600mm reach. That's certainly true, but you have to remember that, typically, with a longer zoom range, comes a bit lesser image quality. Because of this, the 60-600mm is an appealing lens if you like the idea of a 150-600mm zoom, but think that using it would require you to change lenses too frequently.
And I'll admit, having a bit of extra reach at the wide end is convenient. It allowed me to frame some shots I wouldn't have bothered to snap with a 150-600mm. I don't think of the 60-600mm as an all-in-one zoom, though. It doesn't have the wide coverage of a true do-anything lens like the premium 28-300mm zooms offered by both Canon and Nikon. But neither of those lenses gets you 600mm reach, an important feature for photographing wildlife, sports action, and other distant subjects.
If can live with a bit less wide-angle coverage, you may find the Sigma 150-600mm Sports is a better fit. It sells for around the same price and delivers more resolution. More detail comes in handy if you shoot with a camera with an APS-C sensor or a high-resolution full-frame chip and often print your work, especially cropped versions of shots. If you live with a 24MP full-frame camera, though, you'll see less of a difference—especially if you don't crop heavily and mostly share photos online.
Of course, not everyone has $2,000 available for a lens. If your budget is a bit tighter, don't forget about the Tamron 150-600mm G2, or our favorite affordable option, the Sigma 150-600mm Contemporary. The Sigma is lighter and sells for less than $1,000, while the Tamron offers better build quality, and is priced in the middle.
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