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by Tim Zurowski on Sat Jul 22, 2017 1:30 pm
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I am trying to AF Fine Tune my D500 with my Sigma 150 Macro. I fine tuned my 500 VR and my 300 PF, both with and without the TC-14E III, without any issues, but with the Sigma macro it is acting strange. 

First, the camera will not AF while in Live View. Every time I press the shutter half way to AF, it goes more and more out of focus. It first moves out of focus in one direction, and then back the other direction.

Second, it will not accept and keep the AF Fine Tune setting I apply. I am trying to take shots from -20 to +20 in increments of 5, but it will not hold the setting after I hit OK. It seems to jump to a random + or - setting on its own. Very strange, and I have never seen this happen with any body/lens combo before. 

So since this is a new body for me, is there some setting somewhere that may be causing this? Has anyone ever experienced anything like this? Fortunately this was not an issue with my other lenses, so perhaps it has something to do with this particular combo of the Sigma Macro and D500?

Any help is greatly appreciated.
 

by E.J. Peiker on Sat Jul 22, 2017 3:25 pm
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That lens needs to go back to Sigma for a FW update - I had the same issue and had to do the same thing.  Got it back in a week and it worked perfectly.  Since the lens predates the Sigma Dock and Global Vision series, you can't do the FW update yourself.
 

by Tim Zurowski on Sat Jul 22, 2017 3:31 pm
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Thanks EJ. I suspected as much. I will contact Sigma and get it done. Any chance the firmware update might speed up the AF system in it?
 

by E.J. Peiker on Sun Jul 23, 2017 8:45 am
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Tim Zurowski wrote:Thanks EJ. I suspected as much. I will contact Sigma and get it done. Any chance the firmware update might speed up the AF system in it?
No, it's a macro lens - not designed for speed ;)  BTW, when I called them and I read them the serial number they said that my lens shouldn't have an issue as is.  SO I asked if it has the current FW and they said no.  So I asked if they would update it anyway, knowing that they were likely wrong, and they agreed to do the update and of course it fixed everything.  Now this was about 9 months ago so they probably have better date ranges now for lenses that don't work with the D500.  But just in case they tell you your lens is OK, you can relay this story. 
 

by Tim Zurowski on Fri Aug 04, 2017 5:27 pm
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Got my Sigma 150 Macro back from Gentec (Sigma service for Canada) today with the latest firmware update. Unfortunately, it fixed nothing. I still cannot AF while in Live View and the 0.38-0.52m selection will not AF properly. So I decided to test it with my D600 to confirm that it was just with the D500, and it will not AF in Live View with the D600 either. So I guess this is a lens issue and not just a firmware issue. Any idea what is going on, and what could be done about it?
 

by E.J. Peiker on Fri Aug 04, 2017 8:16 pm
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Mine wouldn't focus at all in any mode even with normal AF before the FW update. Haven't tried Live View at close distances. Do you have the OS version or the older version. I have the OS.
 

by Tim Zurowski on Fri Aug 04, 2017 8:28 pm
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I have the older original non OS version. With Live View I did try it at very close macro distances, as well as 10-15 feet or so. It tries to focus, but never finds the correct spot. It just keeps going in and out and never focusing correctly. With the 0.38-0.52 selected, it focuses one direction only. If it goes too far in the other direction, it will not do anything then. And then there are times when it just will not AF at all. Fortunately I do about 50% of my macro with manual focus, but naturally I still want the lens to AF properly. I admit I was surprised when I discovered that it has the same problems with the D600. I guess it is looking like this lens may be too old to function properly with these newer bodies? It does AF properly with it set at FULL mode, but I still cannot AFFT the lens at all. Plus, I have generally found that Sigma lenses need to go to extreme settings when doing AFFT. So if it is only working at zero or off, then it could be way out for maximum sharpness/detail. I guess for now it is a manual focus macro lens, until I can afford to replace it. Sad, because these are IMHO, one of the very best macro lenses. The new Sigma replacement 180 f2.8 is around $2300 in Canada. May have to look for a used 150 f/2.8 OS model.
 

by E.J. Peiker on Fri Aug 04, 2017 9:20 pm
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Ah OK, that explains the difference in experience. The non-OS is a pretty old lens now that predates any camera with Live View and I doubt that Sigma wants to or even can make that lens work with it.
 

by Tim Zurowski on Sun Aug 06, 2017 5:12 pm
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Out shooting again today with this Sigma 150 macro and I have come to the realization that, if I want to do the kind of macro I am into right now, I am going to need to replace this lens. EJ, with the firmware update in your OS lens, does it now function perfectly in all aspects with your D500? Also, does the OS work as good as Nikon's VR? If yes, I will sell my lens cheap locally and try to find a used newer OS version of the same lens.
 

by E.J. Peiker on Mon Aug 07, 2017 4:54 am
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Tim Zurowski wrote:Out shooting again today with this Sigma 150 macro and I have come to the realization that, if I want to do the kind of macro I am into right now, I am going to need to replace this lens. EJ, with the firmware update in your OS lens, does it now function perfectly in all aspects with your D500? Also, does the OS work as good as Nikon's VR? If yes, I will sell my lens cheap locally and try to find a used newer OS version of the same lens.
The lens has been out about 7 years now and the OS is on par with other manufacturer's stabilization from around that time which is pretty good.  I just tested the lens in Live View to make sure it works since I don't think I've ever really shot that lens in LV and mine does.  Like I said, it did need to be updated by Sigma to new Firmware to AF in any mode.  If you buy one, you just can't know how long it has been since it was produced and there's a good chance it would need the FW upgrade straight out of the box to work with a D500.  A used one locally you could first try but it would have to have been produced in the last year which is unlikely.
 

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