Sigma 300-600mm f/4 DG OS Sports review

Sigma’s latest 300-600mm f/4 DG OS Sports lens is a heavyweight performer that makes a serious dint in your finances. But for your £5899, you get a unique super-tele that wildlife and sports shooters will love. There’s nothing else like it at any price for full-frame mirrorless Sony and L-Mount.

The only thing that is comparable is Sony’s own 600mm f/4 GM OSS, which is roughly the same size but a tad lighter, costing more than double. And of course, it’s only for Sony users. Sony also offers the £1559 FE 200-600mm, but this has a variable aperture of f/5.6-6.3, so is much slower.

Sigma’s lens offers good-value zoom, making it a strong contender for serious shooters.

What is the Sigma 300-600mm f/4 DG OS Sports lens?

The 300-600mm f/4 DG OS Sports lens is an all-in-one telephoto zoom with a constant f/4 aperture, rugged build and Sigma’s signature optical quality.

At all focal lengths, the lens maintains a consistent sharpness that can rival primes, with stunning colour fidelity and pleasing bokeh.

What are the key features of the Sigma 300-600mm f/4 DG OS Sports lens?

We tested the lens shooting birds at the local river, tracking dirt bikes at speed and framing up landscape shots to make use of the extreme compression you can get at 600mm.

Size & handling

Weighing in at 3.97kg, it’s heavy, but has a lot of premium glass inside. It’s constructed from a combination of magnesium alloy and carbon-fibre-reinforced polycarbonate, with weather sealing in key areas.

Physically, the lens is long – especially with its hood on. This makes any mirrorless camera very front-heavy. Sigma has tried to engineer as many of the heavy components to sit as close to the mount as possible to bring the centre of gravity back. But balance is critical, and you really need to mount it to a tripod – ideally with a gimbal head. The lens comes with a detachable Arca-Swiss foot and in a decent backpack.

Autofocus performance

The 300-600mm is compatible with Sony’s fast hybrid AF system, and Sigma’s dual HLA (High-response Linear Actuator) motors are fast, quiet and accurate. When using continuous AF, tracking moving subjects becomes a confident experience. Whether it’s filming a bird in flight or a racing car at full speed, the AF sticks well and delivers smooth transitions.

For manual focus users, there’s a traditional focus ring and full support for focus-assist tools on compatible Sony cameras, including peaking and magnification. But as it’s not parfocal, it’s not ideal for zooming while filming.

Optical stabilisation

The optical stabilisation is good. With two modes – one for general use and the other optimised for panning – it takes the wobbles out nicely.

This enables capture of handheld wildlife sequences at 600mm without the constant jitter and vibration that typically plagues long lenses. However, being an independent-brand lens, you’re limited to 15 or 20fps for stills, rather than going up to the insane 120fps you’d get on a Sony A9 III.

Reach and compatibility

If you want some extra reach, the 600mm setting gives the equivalent of a 900mm lens when used on an APS-C crop camera. The L-Mount version is also compatible with 1.4x and 2.0x converters, but the Sony version isn’t.

Optical design and image quality

Sigma uses 28 elements in 21 groups with six FLD aspherical and one SLD element to combat chromatic aberration. The results are impressive, with minimal colour fringing, excellent contrast and detail retention. This excellent image quality is even apparent in high-contrast scenes such as backlit wildlife or sports at golden hour.

Mount, filters and controls

The tripod socket’s rotating mechanism uses bearings for smooth rotation with an optional click/de-click mechanism for each 90° angle. There’s a drop-in filter holder for standard 40.5mm filters. Sigma has also developed a new drop-in circular polarising filter and variable ND, but these aren’t available yet.

The lens has a large function ring that offers two different modes, which can be selected via its setting switch. The first is Focus Preset mode. Turning the function ring to the left or right can instantly shift the focus to a preset position – a great feature. The other option is Power Focus, which alters focusing at a constant speed that can be set in two settings. The lens also features AFL buttons in four different locations, a focus mode switch, focus limiter switch, two-position stabilisation mode switch and a custom mode switch.

Sigma 300-600mm f/4 DG OS Sports lens price and availability

The Sigma 300-600mm f/4 DG OS Sports lens is available to buy, with a starting price of £5899.

For more information visit the Sigma website.

Sigma 300-600mm f/4 DG OS Sports lens specifications

Focal length: 300-600mm

Mount: Leica L, Sony E

Image coverage: Full-frame

ApertureL: f/4-22

Aperture blades: 13 rounded

Construction: 28 elements in 21 groups with six FLD aspherical and one SLD element

Image stabilisation: Yes

Minimum focusing: 2.8m at wide end

Converter ready: Only in L-Mount

Filter size: 40.5mm drop-in

Dimensions (wxl): 167×469.9mm

Weight: 3.97kg (3.99kg L-Mount)