Sigma 50-500mm

I have come to the conclusion that to be able to take wildlife photography I am going to have to invest in another lens.
I am considering the Sigma 50-500mm but the cost is prohibitive plus is it too soon for a mere novice?
I can get one off ebay for maybe a little under £500 but maybe there are other options open to me.
I want to take bird photos primarily, any advice

Thanks

Zounds and I have a Bigma, Sigma 50-500mm and it is an excellent lens.

It is fine for an amateur but need a while to get used to and it needs a tripod as it weighs in the region of 2kg.

New they cost over £1000 so £500 is a very good price.

They need reasonable amount of light for bird shots as you need a quick shutter speed, so a few problems like weight and getting used to the limitations of any lens of such length but worth the investment at that price.

Nicola has one too - check out this thread for some egs: http://www.yophotographer.com/page.php?t=8175

If it's out of your price range, how about a 70-300?

I love the photos that Nicola takes. I find that my Tamron 70-300mm seems to take birds at about 15ft away look like dots on the horizon......Well ok maybe not that small but not enough to make a "decent" shot.
I was also toying with the idea of a x2 converter but really not sure?

It is my belief that if the lens is very good and the TC is equally so then that may well work although the same applies with regards to the light and the use of a tripod. When using a TC you are not only magnifying the subject but also any faults in the lens.

Having said that I am thinking of getting one to cover those times when you are out with a telephoto lens and see something that requires that bit more reach, a TC is a handy and not very large thing to carry in your pocket.

Yep, have a Nikon 70-300VR and it doesn't have enough pulling power for small birds at any reasonable range. Nice quality though.

Re it being £500 on Ebay, well remember the old adage if it is too good to be true it probably is. If it's from abroad remember it could get stopped at customs and you would need to pay tax. Also Sigma lenses are known to be very variable in quality so you either have a good copy or not. I thought someone was posting in this forum a few months ago with images from that lens that looked distinctly soft?

I've been really happy with my Bigma, and I got it last year when I'd only really been into photography for a few months, so in my case it was fine for a beginner.

The main thing to get used to is the size and weight of it! It is possible to handhold for short periods, most of my puffin shots from Sunday were handheld, but it is a bit of a lump and takes a while to get used to, my arm still hurts from the Skomer trip!. If I'm shooting from a hide I'll use a beanbag or tripod, mainly to give my arm a break!

It can also be a tad soft in bad light (although this problem has been overcome for me by upgrading my camera body to one with better performance at high ISO settings), and you also lose sharpness if you use it at it's full 500mm magnification, mine seems to have a sweet spot at around 400-430mm.

I use it for pretty much all of my bird and wildlife shots, and for the price I don't think you'll get anything better. It's coming to Canada with me for a bear and eagle watching holiday in the Autumn as well

BC, it may have been me when I first had the lens I did have problems with it, that was operator error. I took advice and have since taken shots that have been very well received and not soft at all.

Heriedax - if you are toying with teleconvertors - make sure your lens features are fully compatible with them.

I have a 70-300 VR and lose AF features if I use them on that lens.

I have the older version 170-500mmD APO DG Sigma Nikon fit. At the 500mm mark it is best used with a tripod due to camera shake but still an excellent lens. If there is a downside to this lens, at least my version, is if you hold it pointing down is the lens travel. I would like to see some sort of locking system to stop this.

I would love to have the Nikon 200-400mm lens but at several times the price it is out of the question. However my Nikon 70-300 VR lens performs extremely well for the range it was designed for

Bazza