Bigma and Widema Head South

Bigma
Widema

Sigma lenses have a mixed reputation – neither uniformly good not unformly bad. There are a few lenses in that company's line though which have developed strong followings over the years and which are a cut above the usual third-party mass-produced lenses for the cost-conscious amateur. These include the Sigma 50-500mm and 12-24mm, both of which are lenses which cover focal length extreemes and which have no counterparts from the major camera makers.
The 50-500mm has long been nicknamed theBigma, for obvious reasons. To my knowledge the 12-24mm has no nickname, but just for fun I've decided to call inWidema, again for obvious reasons.
Having decided to acquire a Sony A900 for long term testing in late 2008, I then looked to put together a complement of lenses that would provide appropriate versatility. After a couple of months of testing I decided that this would be my primary camera system for a major shoot in Antarctica in January, 2009, which, based on exp...