Welcome back!

This is the 6th article in this series about me sharing what are the lenses from the various manufacturers that I will pick & use on a personal basis. The last article was about the Sigma Lenses that I will buy for my system.

Today, I am going to pick my lenses from the Tamron DSLR Lens line-up. It is a known fact fact that Tamron is also an OEM Manufacture for many other camera brands for body parts & lenses. Tamron also makes a good range of compatible lenses for other brands like Canon, Nikon, Pentax & Sony. For those new to 3rd party manufacturers, here’s a quick start.

Some terms –
Canon – (Image Stabilizer=IS/ EF=Full Frame/ EF-S=APSC/ Ultrasonic Motor=USM)
Nikon – (Vibration Reduction=VR/ FX=Full Frame/ DX=APSC/ Silent Wave Motor=SWM)
Sony – (Steady Shot=SS/ SAL=Full Frame/ SAL+DT=APSC/ Super Sonic Motor=SSM)
Pentax – (Shake Reduction=SR/ D=DSLR/ FA=SLR/ Supersonic Drive Motor=SDM)
Olympus – (Image Stabilization=IS/ Zuiko=APSC/ M.Zuiko=M43/ Silent Wave Drive=SWD)
Sigma – (Optical Stabilizer=OS/DG=Full Frame/ DC=APSC/ Hyper Sonic Motor=HSM)
Tamron – (Vibration Compensation=VC, Di=Full Frame/ Di II=APSC/  Piezo Drive = PZD)
Tokina – ( Nil/ FX=Full Frame/ DX=APSC/ Internal Focusing System using Silent DC Motor= IFS)
*There are other Lens Manufacturers covering smaller markets, so will not be featuring or mentioning here.

You are reminded once again that this is NOT a ”buying guide” or a technical review of each lenses. You can easily find those all over the internet. However, I am sharing based on personal experience, usability and how well these lenses compliment your work.

My Pick for Best Tamron Zoom lens (General Lens).
This is the lens that I will probably bring it everywhere I go, for commercial shoot or leisure walkabouts.

My Pick, will definitely be the Tamron SP AF28-75mm F/2.8 XR Di LD ASPHERICAL [IF] MACRO. This versatile lens is one of the most compact “F2.8 Zoom” out there today. Covering a reasonable wide angle of 28mm to a portrait range of 75mm, this lens is very suitable for a wide range of applications. This light weight (510gm) and compact lens (length 92mm) is easy to fit into any camera bag! With that as an added bonus, this lens’ build is solid, very well put together.  So apart from the cosmetic, this lens is one of the few “lucky” Tamron lens to get all 3 types of glass (XR Glass, LD Glass & Aspherical Glass)! Photographers can be assured of quality images produced by this lens. Manufactured as a “Di” Lens, this means it can be used on both Full frame & smaller APSC cameras, and it has a zoom lock button typical of Tamron culture, this award-winning lens encompassed almost all the “know-hows” from Tamron. My only complain is, though it has a “Macro” tag to it, this is not a real macro lens (1:3.9), just a good F2.8 zooms lens that allows you to focus nearer to your subjects. :)~

Some Quick Information:
Tamron SP AF28-75mm F/2.8 XR Di LD ASPHERICAL [IF] MACRO
Format: Full Frame or APS-C with a corresponding 1.5X increase cropped factor (1.6x for Canon).
Focal Range: Wide Angle to Light telephoto 28mm-75mm or 42mm-112.5mm (Canon 44.8-120mm) on 35mm formats.
Filter Diameter: 67mm
Supplied with Box: Instruction, Lens Hood, RHAFA09.
Suggested Alternative Lens (For Cropped Bodies): Tamron SP AF17-50mm F/2.8 XR Di II

My Pick for Best Tamron Telephoto Zoom lens (Telephoto Lens).
This is the lens that I will use for portraiture work, short range wildlife shots & street photography

Easy to guess, my PICK surely has to be the Tamron SP AF 70-200mm F/2.8 Di LD [IF] Macro. Like all the “70-200mm” from other manufacturers, this zoom range is very popular with professional photographers as it allows the use for portraits to wildlife. Tamron’s version is a good challenger to proprietory brands. It has a solid build, sensible design, weights only at 1150gm – probably the lightest in its class, and it produces incredibly sharp photos while giving the option of a creamy bokeh from it’s 9 blades constant apeture of F2.8 sweetened with 03 LD elements. Touted as a “buddy” lens to the SP28-75mm F2.8, their combined weight and size becomes really attractive for the photographer who hates to carry all that weight. 🙂 With a magnification ration of 1:3.1, again, this is not a real Macro lens, but when used on a tripod with a remote switch, it can still produce great Macro-like photos! Best of all, the price is the friendliest among the competition. :)~

Some Quick Information:
Tamron SP AF 70-200mm F/2.8 Di LD [IF] Macro
Format: Full Frame, but can be used for APS-C cameras with a corresponding 1.5X increase.(Canon 1.6X)
Focal Range: Light Telephoto to Mid Super Telephoto 70mm-200mm or (APSC 105-300mm for 1.5X & 112-320mm for 1.6x).
Filter Diameter: 77mm
Supplied with Box: Instruction, Lens Bag, Tripod Ring & Lens Hood  AF001C-700.
Suggested Alternative Lens: Tamron SP AF 17-50mm F/2.8 XR Di II VC LD Aspherical [IF]

My Pick for Best Tamron Standard lens (Prime Lens).
This is the lens that I will use for a wide variety of applications when zooming is not everything.

OK, yet another surprise. My Pick this round will be the Tamron SP AF90mm F/2.8 Di MACRO. Tamron do not make a lot of prime lenses to start with, however, one of the very best fixed focal range lens has to be the 90mm Macro, a real Macro lens. (1:1). Doubling up as a good portrait lens, the F2.8 gives incredible bokehs comparable to more expensive counterparts. At a mere 405gm, this lens is feather weight and but does not mean the lens is plasticky. In fact it feels solid when used and handled, but weights next to nothing when it is inside the camera bag. This is one of the sharpest macro lens available in the market now with a very friendly price tag. Try it for yourself to believe.

Some Quick Information:
Tamron SP AF90mm F/2.8 Di MACRO
Format: Full Frame, but can be used for APS-C cameras with a corresponding 1.5X increase.(Canon 1.6X)
Focal Range: Telephoto 100mm or (APSC 150mm for 1.5X & 160mm for 1.6x).
Filter Diameter: 55mm
Supplied with Box: Instruction, Lens Hood  98FH.
Suggested Alternative Lens: Tamron SP AF 60mmF/2 Di II.

The above 3 Tamron lenses are the lenses that I will buy if I can ONLY buy 3 lenses for my system. The selected lenses above are not your buying guide, but instead, what I will want to have in my camera bag.

Tamron remained the Top 3  third party lens brand in the photography world and they have never stop continuing to research & innovate new optical products making them a popular brand among today’s photographers. Though new models are mostly replacement models for the outgoing and dated ones, the excellent lens build quality & the friendly price tags on most Tamrons sure earned them lots of fans. I am one of them by the way. :)~

Disclaimer:
The above reviews/statement/ findings/ comparisons/ claims are solely personal views consolidated, compiled & based on personal surveys, usage experience, feedbacks from fellow users. This article is NOT PAID by the Brand owner and this article is presented as a reading reference from 1st person point of view.