3/3/11
The Tamron SP AF70-200mm F/2.8 Di LD (IF) macro lens is a low cost alternative to the more expensive Sony model, also tested here. Is it worth it? It all depends on how you plan to use it.
The Tamron 70-200mm lens performs very well optically, with relatively low distortion, good control of both axial and lateral color fringing, and is surprisingly sharp from F/4-8. The Tamron is well under half the price of the Sony 70-200mm F/2.8 G, so there always has to be some compromises, right? Build quality is not great like the Sony, and instead of silent and fast SSM, you’ll get the older slot/screw drive focusing system, which in this case is slow, although pretty accurate. Check out the review if you’re interested in my assessment of this lens.
Readers have long demanded some changes concerning page load times and test images on the lens reviews, so I’ve decided to acquiesce and put the test sample crops for both APS-C and full frame on a separate page, with reference images!! Hopefully by splitting up the review people with dial-up
service (or lousy broadband) won’t have to wait too long for each page to load. My problem; since day one I’ve put the entire lens review on a single page, and my newer reviews offer much more in the way of samples and information than I originally intended. So now that’s been fixed, and I can add even more! The main review page has been changed slightly towards the top. The link to the second, or “test samples” page will be at the beginning, under the first lens image, and again just above the Conclusion. The test sample page is wider than the regular page, so if you’re using a standard 4/3 monitor, you might want to wipe out your fav list or bookmarks and view it full screen. This site is best viewed with Firefox 3.0 or higher.
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| Check out the Tamron 70-200mm F/2.8 review |