Taking picture of small animals and insects can be difficult, because they often run or fly away, or can be dangerous or become aggressive if you approach them. Therefore it is advantageous to have a greater working distance between the camera and such subjects. This is where the Sigma 180mm F3.5 APO MACRO comes in to its own. Longer focal length lens can provide this greater distance, but most long lens do not focus close enough to provide a large image of small subjects. The tele-macro type lens solves this problem by producing a large, high quality image, up to life-size, while maintaining a long working distance.

The Sigma 180mm F3.5 APO MACRO has a very narrow field of view, and can allow very narrow depth-of-field for selective focus and less distracting backgrounds. The Sigma 180mm F3.5 APO MACRO is most desirable for photographers who are serious about producing high quality images both of macro subjects at life-size reproduction, as well as normal telephotography.