Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 25
 Great lens at the great price. The best lens of Tamron. Nikon version. July 24, 2008
S. Ngo (MO, USA)
38 out of 41 found this review helpful
I have used this lens 3 weeks so far, took around 300 pictures. This is the greatest lens Tamron has ever made, I think! I were so surprised about its optical performance, far more than what I expected!! I owned Tamron 28-75 before and this lens is even much better optically. Super sharp in all aperture stops, even at 2.8 ! The colors are very true-to-life and bokeh are so wonderful, creamy. The AF is pretty accurate although not very quiet ( on my D80), but still quieter than the Nikon 80-200 I tried before. The weight: lightest in the class. Built: very nice.You can take off the tripod collar easily to make it much lighter if you don't need a tripod. If you don't shoot pro and fast sports to earn money, this lens will meet all your needs. The only missing on this lens is VC ( or VR). But you can not require that at this price! Get it, and you will happy with it.
Simply Outstanding September 7, 2008
Philip Loria
23 out of 24 found this review helpful
I have had this lens for a few weeks and it hasn't been off my d300. It's sharp at 2.8 and razor sharp by 5.6. In fact at 5.6 I can't tell it from my Sigma 150 macro. It pairs very well with my Sigma 1.4 TC though the EXIF data is 1 f stop faster than reality. Macro mode is very good and with the 1.4 TC is excellent.
It can be a bit slow to AF in dim light or in macro mode focusing on small objects. If I could only have one lens this would be it.
PL
light weight and extremely sharp. June 14, 2008
Howard Liu
13 out of 14 found this review helpful
quality glass, light weight design, tripod collar can be removed even mounted, focus is fast and accurate, but did it with a noise and impatient way. produce exceptional bokeh and generate vivid color. A++ item.
An excellent alternative to those "high priced" lenses October 21, 2008
James T. Walczak (Cleveland Ohio)
16 out of 18 found this review helpful
After using this lens for a few weeks now, I have to say that I am simply floored by the quality. Using this lens with a Canon 40D, the image quality has been simply superb. Sharpness, color, focus, etc., have all been right on the nose. More over, compared with other "3rd party" lenses, this lens is also quiet and rather fast focusing.
When I first opened the package I will admit that I was rather surprised by the weight of this lens. According to the specs, it's still the lightest lens in it's class, but being a fixed fast, aperture lens (f/2.8), it is still rather heavy...something to be aware of if you have neck problems. That said, the build quality of this lens is top notch. The focus and zoom are both steady and sure, the new auto/manual selector is very nice (once you get used to it) and the fit and finish is very nice indeed. No this lens doesn't have weather sealing o-rings, so I would not recommend it for "extreme" shooting conditions (such as in a desert or the arctic or something) but beyond that this is a serious piece of equipment for your arsenal.
If you are one of those "lens snobs" who will ONLY own L lenses because having that big ol' white chunk of metal on the front of your camera somehow makes you feel special, then this probably isn't the lens for you. However if you are open minded and looking for a great alternative to those high priced lenses, the new Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 is definitely worth a look. For the price this lens just can't be beat!
Tamron vs. it's main competitors May 12, 2010
OZ (New Jersey USA)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
I was doing my research prior to buying this lens for couple of weeks. I read everything I could find on the internet about this lens as well as it's competitors.
First, let me provide you with quick summary of my findings:
1. Major competitors for this lens are:
a. Nikon 70-200mm f2.8 OS. This lens is very sharp according to all reviews I read. It has fast and precise auto focus, high quality image stabilization. This is clearly the best lens out there. The negative side is cost (3 times as much as Tamron!) and watch out for defective lens (quality control issues). Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II AF-S NIKKOR Lens For Nikon Digital SLR Cameras
b. Sigma 70-200mm f2.8. This version doesn't have image stabilizer. Compare to Tamron it has faster focus but lower quality glass. Image resolution is significantly lower and shows worse results with teleconverters then you get with Tamron. There are some complains about focus motor goes bad and coating of the lens is easy to scratch. I also want to mention that tests showed slight color cast with Sigma lens. There is a new version available for pre-order that has image stabilization. Nobody tested this new version yet, also cost went up 2 times! Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 DG HSM II Macro Zoom Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras
c. Nikon 80-200mm f2.8 - No Image Stabilization. This lens received good feedback from user community and from pros. Resolution is good but not as sharp as Tamron. Cost is about 50% more. There are number of complains about quality of manual/auto focus switch that breaks by it-self. Cost of repair is about $300 to $400 (don't remember exact number). Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8D ED AF Zoom Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras
2. Now lets talk about Tamron 70-200mm for Nikon. I got this lens 2 days ago and shot lots of subjects and test charts to calibrate focus and evaluate performance.
a. Focus speed - This is THE MOST common complain about this lens. The focus motor on this lens is faster then screwdriver used on 50mm 1.8 prime, but not even close to Nikkor 16-85mm VR. It's not fast but acceptable in most situations. I usually track my subject for a little while before pulling trigger, so speed should not be a problem. Sometimes this lens takes a while to focus (like 2 seconds). It happens when room has low lights or subject doesn't have contrast edge. Tip: release shutter and press again and it will focus way quicker second time. Focusing performance is fine with flashlight focus assist lamp. I feel that focus is not great, but acceptable sacrifice for high quality glass and lower cost.
b. Resolution - I was concerned with results from dpreview that showed major degradation in sharpness at 135mm f2.8. I'm happy to report that it's not a case with my sample. Resolution is very good from 70-170mm and goes somewhat softer by 200mm at f2.8 aperture. Stopping down to f3.2 from f2.8 increases resolution significantly for entire zoom range. Note: 3.2 vs. 2.8 is only 1/3 EV stop. The sweet aperture spot for my sample is f3.5 to f8. I got very decent results from f3.2 to f16. In general, sharpness in sweet spot is the same as my prime 50mm f1.8 lens at f4.0 aperture (the sharpest aperture for this lens).
c. Contrast - somewhat low at f2.8 but is fine by f3.2 aperture setting.
d. Manual Focus - I liked clutch type focus ring. If you pull focus ring toward camera body it goes to manual focus, push it outside and auto focus is engaged. It's fast and easy. Try it couple of times and it feels natural to use. However, it's not easy to focus at 200mm 2.8. Depth of field is extremely shallow and any minor errors are very easy to see.
e. Macro performance - Tamron is the only lens out of all listed that offers you reasonable macro performance. Sigma and Nikon can't focus as close as Tamron can.
f. Calibration results - lens had front focus which I was able to correct using Nikon D300 lens adjustment settings.
Couple of words about Image stabilization. Image Stabilization allows you to use slower shutter speed by an average of 3 EV stops. Let's say you can make sharp picture without image stabilization at 1/200s with 200mm zoom.Image stabilization would allow you to make similar sharp image at 1/25s 200mm. Image stabilization works great with static objects, but doesn't help with moving objects. You need shutter speed faster then 1/200s to avoid blurry pictures.
Conclusion: I feel that this lens is a good choice for people who want high quality pictures and don't want to spend $2,000. Professionals may want to go all the way up to Nikon 70-200mm. Tamron has awesome optics, good quality construction, acceptable autofocus and reasonable price.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 25
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