Theater photography with Sigma 120-300mm ƒ/2.8 DG OS HSM | S

Nikon D4, Sigma 120-300mm ƒ/2.8 DG OS HSM | S, ISO 5000, ƒ/2.8, 1/1000

I love using the Sigma 120-300mm ƒ/2.8 DG OS HSM | S for shooting things other than just sports.

My daughter is in the high school theater and I am getting lots of opportunities to capture her and her friends on stage. In a few years she will be off to college and these photos of her performing are going to be even more valuable to our family.

She is in the center in the photo above playing a blind girl.

Nikon D4, Sigma 120-300mm ƒ/2.8 DG OS HSM | S, ISO 12800, ƒ/5.6, 1/640

Why is the lens what I like so much? It is a zoom. I never know if I need a tight shot or wide shot of the stage. By being a little back shooting over the audience I can get those closeups and not miss some of the wider shots.

Nikon D4, Sigma 120-300mm ƒ/2.8 DG OS HSM | S, ISO 5000, ƒ/2.8, 1/1000

The other thing is in theater you may have just a few actors or many in a scene. Sometimes I just need a little more depth-of-field and other times I just need a shallow depth of field. The lens lets me open up to ƒ/2.8 and close down as needed.

Nikon D4, Sigma 120-300mm ƒ/2.8 DG OS HSM | S, ISO 5000, ƒ/2.8, 1/1000

For the first four photos the audience was smaller and I was much closer to the stage. But another play I was in the very back of the room. Here I used a Sigma 2X converter to change the lens to a 240-600mm.

Nikon D4, Sigma 120-300mm ƒ/2.8 DG OS HSM | S, Sigma 2X, ISO 4000, ƒ/5.6, 1/250

Had I been shooting with my Nikkor 28-300mm I would have to use ƒ/11 if I put a 2X converter on it, but I was shooting at ƒ/5.6 with the Sigma.

There are many times where I need this specialty lens. Maybe you only need it once in a while. If that is the case then rent the lens. I decided I use it enough to justify buying the lens.

The key to getting the photo is sometimes having the right gear for the situation. Consider the Sigma 120-300mm ƒ/2.8 DG OS HSM | S for more than just sports.