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Just have a quick question, recently purchased a cheap Canon 1DMK2 but until then I have exclusively used Sony DLSRs so I am not familiar with Canon mounts/lenses. I have been looking on eBay for a lens to match (Canon 1MK2 can only accept EF lenses) and have had trouble, but have found this "Sigma AF Telephoto 1:5.6 f=400mm Multi-Coated Lens Japan for Canon AF 072". They seller doesn't know what mount it is, but from some internet searches I believe it is EF.

I hope someone here can confirm this for me. The item in question is this eBay listing.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Sorry the link hasnt worked, please highlight the entire link and paste that in the URL, that worked for me. Thanks again! \$\endgroup\$
    – Rudiculous
    Commented Nov 7, 2013 at 13:32
  • \$\begingroup\$ The link doesn't work. Not even when pasting the entire URL. It is an image hosted on ebay. Please put the link to the Ebay Auction there instead! \$\endgroup\$
    – Unapiedra
    Commented Nov 7, 2013 at 13:40
  • \$\begingroup\$ Ah, sorry guys! What you get on your first time around eh. Heres the link to the whole thing, thanks for your reply :) ebay.com/itm/… \$\endgroup\$
    – Rudiculous
    Commented Nov 7, 2013 at 13:41

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The lens in the photos at the link you provided is indeed an EF mount lens. It appears to be a design from the early 1990s. Be aware that older third party lenses may or may not be completely compatible with newer Canon bodies. Most Sigma lenses from that era are not compatible with Canon bodies made since 2001. When mounted on a post 2001 Canon body the camera indicates an "Error 99" code.

Although Canon makes all of their new bodies compatible with every Canon EF lens ever made, they don't guarantee compatibility with third party lens makers. Since Canon does not share their proprietary data with other lens makers, companies such as Sigma and Tamron design their lenses using reverse engineering. In the past some Sigma lenses have not been 100% compatible with newer Canon bodies released after the Sigma lens was designed. In some cases Sigma has offered to re-chip the lenses to bring them up to compatibility with the newer bodies, but for a lens that old I doubt that is a possibility.

Based on my own experience using pre-2001 Sigma lenses on later Canon bodies, you can shoot in M mode with it as long as you set the aperture in your camera to match the maximum aperture of the lens. You will be unable to stop down and you will need to focus manually as well. The best home for a lens such as this is with an owner of a early film EOS body that would control the aperture and auto focus of the lens.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Thank you, thats really helpful. Messaged the seller but unfortunately he wont accept returns outside of the US (I reside in the UK) so no chance to check compatibility and then return. Seeing as the 1DMK2 is 2004-05 I suppose it would be a risk. I have read about the rechipping, but after contacting the seller he isnt aware if wether it has been chipped or not and Sigma no longer provide said service. Would you therefore recommend a more recent third party lens or something like an older Canon EF lens? Thanks! \$\endgroup\$
    – Rudiculous
    Commented Nov 7, 2013 at 14:33
  • \$\begingroup\$ There's nothing that comes close to 400mm f/5.6 for less than 5-10x the price of the old Sigma unless you are willing to try a fixed aperture manual focus mirror lens like the amazon.com/Rokinon-Multi-Coated-Teleconverter-Digital-Cameras/… \$\endgroup\$
    – Michael C
    Commented Nov 7, 2013 at 14:57
  • \$\begingroup\$ On the other hand, 70-300mm f/4-5.6 zooms are cheap and plentiful. \$\endgroup\$
    – Michael C
    Commented Nov 7, 2013 at 14:59
  • \$\begingroup\$ Yes, true! However I have only heard very mixed results about the mirror lenses, the other alternatives I had in mind were things like 120-400mm Sigma lenses or a 70-200mm variant with a teleconverter but again they're at least a couple of hundred pounds over the 400mm f/5.6. I will take what you said into consideration, thanks for all your help! I have found a more modern variation of the 400mm f/5.6 going on eBay - ebay.com/itm/… so maybe this will do the trick! \$\endgroup\$
    – Rudiculous
    Commented Nov 7, 2013 at 15:05
  • \$\begingroup\$ That looks like the model 171 that will also have compatibility problems with a post-2001 Canon body. Using the link below, hover over 'Dedicated Lenses' and click Sigma in the drop down, then scroll down to the Sigma AF 400mm f/5.6 APO [171]. canon-eos.bplaced.net \$\endgroup\$
    – Michael C
    Commented Nov 7, 2013 at 15:11

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