| Author: | | Veteran Member Registered: June, 2011 Location: New York City Posts: 5,638
3 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: November 8, 2011 | Recommended | Price: $700.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Sharp, beautiful bokeh, very nice colours, smallest of the 70-200s, good build quality | | Cons: | Still heavy, noisy AF, seems to be a dust magnet, AF-MF switch system is stupid | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 9
Value: 10
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I personally believe this is the best of the 70-200s, even when taking into account Canon's L 70-200 V2. This lens, priced at $700 retail, beats out everything except the Canon lenses in sharpness. The picture quality is quite astounding, and the colour rendition is very good (slightly warm). I really enjoy using this lens on my k-x (which seems like quite the mismatch in size) and practically use it as my daily walking lens (at least until I get a 17-50).
Picture quality:
Again, I cannot rave enough about this lens for sharpness - at F2.8, it beats out my 90mm macro lens. At F8, they're about even, but I still feel that the 70-200 is sharper. Seeing test comparisons between the Tamron and the Sigma, the Tamron beats out the Sigma everywhere at every aperture except at 135mm F2.8.
Chromatic aberrations with this lens is very well controlled. I barely get any PF or CA in high-contrast areas except maybe at F2.8. At F5.6, it's clear as crystal in any high-contrast border.
The lens performs better it seems at 200mm than 70mm, with it's weakest focal length at 135mm. Fortunately for me, I got this lens to go to 200, and to pull back to 70 for close portraits.
Autofocus:
Not the forte of this lens. The MF-AF lens switch function is useless - when you switch from AF to MF, you more than likely changed the focus by a bit, so it's not a quick-shift system. I personally leave it on MF mode and let the focusing ring spin while focusing. The focus throw of the lens isn't huge, so it's not that easy to manual focus this lens - especially if you are hand holding it. It uses the screw drive motor in the k-x, so at least it's better than the mini-motor that Canon and Nikon get in tihs lens.
The AF is relatively loud - not something I would take to a wedding or the church, but in practically any other event you can't hear it. There is a tendency for this lens to try to focus and slowly grind it's way into perfect focus - it does this especially in low-light conditions. I can shoot sport with this lens, but it takes some practice and I can't say I can shoot it with a good success rate.
Handling/build:
The lens is pretty well build - the body is a nice solid plastic without the plastic feel. The tripod ring I believe is metal - it feels like it anyways. The entire body is pretty weighty, but is supposed to be 70% lighter than the Sigma and the Pentax 80-200. The huge petal hood is nice, with the ribbing inside to absorb additional stray light. The lens is not weather sealed, and I think some dust has already gotten in (a nice speck can be seen on mine on the inside) - so try to take care of it in a dusty environment. The zoom ring feels very smooth throughout - I keep playing with it, which I guess is partly the reason why I get dust inside!
No aperture ring, as it is one of the DI lenses from Tamron (Digital something). Tripod mount is easy to adjust. The plastic body feels very nice, and the bayonet is metal.
Overall:
I would definitely suggest this lens to anyone who needs a 70-200 F2.8 for general use. It does amazing portraits, very sharp shots of wildlife, beautifully renditioned pictures of flora, and at 2.8, I can go into concerts and sport events and get everything.
Sample Pictures:
I have uploaded full-size shots onto flicker, so you can pixel peep if you want.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jindesu/6281466575/sizes/z/in/photostream/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jindesu/6281980698/sizes/z/in/photostream/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jindesu/6281465105/sizes/z/in/photostream/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jindesu/6203525265/sizes/z/in/photostream/ | | | | | | | New Member Registered: July, 2011 Location: Tennessee Posts: 7 | | Review Date: November 29, 2011 | Recommended | Price: $699.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Build quality, fast and seemingly sharp | | Cons: | Autofocus noise, but not much worse than other lenses I have. | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 9
Handling: 9
Value: 9
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This was my first big lens purchase after weighing this unit versus the more expensive Sigma...reviews researched were mixed, but I took the plunge for the lower cost Tamron. I have not had it very long however, I have also not been disappointed in the least with the sharpness and quality of the lens.
Amazon had the best price at 699 with free delivery. Packaging, lens pouch was more than expected. Actually, the product photo on Amazon does not do the lens justice. The measurements and weight was accurate, but when you actually have it in your hand and compare it to the picture, you feel like you got a great value. Highly recommend this and am looking forward to working with it extensively.
| | | | | Senior Member Registered: July, 2008 Location: Arizona Posts: 283
2 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: December 8, 2011 | Recommended | Price: $550.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Fast and sharp with good color rendition | | Cons: | AF a tad noisy | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 8
Handling: 9
Value: 10
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I bought this as a "Like New minus" from a US dealer, and received an excellent lens without a mark on it. As others have said, this lens is well-built and optically excellent. The only two negatives are the noisy screw-drive autofocus and the manual quick-shift. The latter can be worked around by depressing the camera lens release button while manual focusing - actually a lot easier than it sounds.
Although I would have preferred a lens with a quiet SDM system, these are all double the price and the Tamron represents the best value.
Mike
| | | | | Senior Member Registered: November, 2009 Location: Kennewick WA Posts: 167 | | Review Date: February 11, 2012 | Recommended | Price: $590.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Sharp, solid built lens, | | Cons: | weight | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 9
Handling: 10
Value: 10
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I would recommend this lens any day of the week, dollar for dollar it doesn't get much better!
Full Image
Zoomed in
 | | | | | | | Veteran Member Registered: October, 2010 Location: Hong Kong Posts: 327
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: March 20, 2012 | Recommended | Price: $900.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | great IQ, great bokeh, nice zoom ring | | Cons: | push/pull MF -> AF is a little cumbersome | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
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great lens, extremely sharp even at f2.8, has made a lot of my favourite pictures
AF can be a little slow and noisy at times but im not a sports shooter
highly recommended in terms of value for money and IQ, can't be beat (comparing to the sigma and pentax offerings)
have used this a lot for wildlife and nature pictures, as well as portraits
i will probably never let this lens go!
| | | | | Senior Member Registered: February, 2011 Posts: 274
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: July 3, 2012 | Recommended | Price: $769.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | sharpness, accurate focus, low price, great feeling | | Cons: | not so sharp at f/2.8 | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 9
Value: 10
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I bought this lens from amazon for portrait purpose more than a year ago. It came with 6 year US warranty. So far I am very happy with this lens.
Pro:
1. very sharp if you stop down to f/3.2 and above.
2. great feeling when holding the lens in hand.
3. focus speed is not fast, but not that slow. Good enough to take portraits or even kid running around.
4. value/performance: great compare to Sigma and Pentax lens.
Cons.:
1. not sharp at f/2.8
Notes: from my personal usage on my K-5, I always keep in mind several notes that I wish to share
1. This is a tele and heavy lens, so it would be better to take pictures with high shutter speed, maybe 1/400 and faster to avoid blurry image. With K-5, I normally use TAv mode with this lens instead of Av mod, so I may also have control on shutter speed.
2. Great focal range of this length is 90-135mm for highest performance.
@f/4.0
HIEP1678 by ngnhuhiep, on Flickr
@f/5.0
HIEP1701 by ngnhuhiep, on Flickr
@f/5.6
HIEP1725 by ngnhuhiep, on Flickr
@f/8.0
HIEP1779 by ngnhuhiep, on Flickr
@f/3.2
HIEP1804 by ngnhuhiep, on Flickr
| | | | | New Member Registered: August, 2011 Posts: 22
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: July 13, 2012 | Recommended | Price: $550.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Constant 2.8, smooth focus/zoom | | Cons: | Heavy (duh!), no quickshift focus | |
Just picked up this bad boy yesterday. Got a great deal on craigslist for $550. I've played with it some tonight and must say this is a very nice lens (enough for me to actually write a review about....haven't felt compelled to do that yet for any other lens). I've had the Tamron 28-75 f/2.8 for a couple months now and liked it so much that I just had to get this one to complement it.
Pros:
Even though it's expensive, it's still a very good value in my opinion. I would expect to spend closer to $900-1000 for a lens of this caliber. Build quality in my copy seems excellent. Both the zoom and focus adjustments turn smooth as butter. I really love having f/2.8 throughout the zoom range so I can finally get that nice bokeh for the background. My previous lenses only went to f/4.0 max, which just doesn't cut it in my opinion. One thing I really like about this lens is that the barrel doesn't move in/out when you zoom/focus. Everything is done inside, which is actually a big plus to me for some reason. I don't know why, but it just is.
Cons:
This is obviously a very heavy lens since it's a constant f/2.8. Even so, it still surprised me with how heavy it is. I've heard people complain about much lighter lenses and wonder what kind of sissys they are for complaining about those lenses. But this lens is the real deal. Just using it for a few minutes causes my hands to hurt. Thankfully I don't expect I'll be hand holding this one too much since the best images will come when it's on a tripod. I think the biggest negative for me is that it doesn't have a quickshift focus capability. I love having this ability with my other lenses and miss it in this lens.
Disclaimer:
I am by no means any kind of pro. I'd call myself a very enthusiastic amateur. As such, I don't really feel qualified to rate the image quality of this lens. I personally think it's outstanding, but you also have to keep in mind that I used the 18-55mm kit lens and junk 50-200mm budget zoom until very recently with satisfactory results. Only within the last year have I purchased the Pentax 12-24mm, Tamron 28-75mm, Pentax 55-300mm, and this lens (LBA is a real B**** isn't it?). All of these lenses are great for me, but I also realize that they likely aren't on the same playing field as primes and limited. Are they good enough for me? Heck yeah. Would I recommend any of these lenses to someone? Absolutely.
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: June, 2011 Location: Sacramento(formerly from B'Ham, England). Posts: 1,424
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: July 18, 2012 | Recommended | Price: $625.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | AF | | Cons: | Heavy. | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 9
Handling: 9
Value: 8
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Until I bought this three weeks ago, my only fast 2.8 zoom was a Tokina 80-200 ATX that I purchased new back in '89. That lens was all metal and not as heavy/large as this plastic-fantastic. It was also manual. It'll be my only zoom as I have primes that go from 17 up to 300mm. Once I buy a second body, I'll be good2go.
| | | | | Senior Member Registered: December, 2010 Location: Missoula, MT Posts: 175
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: September 25, 2012 | Recommended | Price: $425.00
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Fast, good zoom range | | Cons: | Slow AF | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 8
Handling: 7
Value: 9
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Picked this lens up locally on craigslist.
Can't really complain about it too much, given the price - pretty sharp and contrasty overall, but the AF at times can be hit or miss.
It does get more hits than misses in spot focusing mode, but even then, it can have a hard time with fast moving subjects (I like to shoot baseball), and the more light available, the better.
Handling is pretty decent considering its size and plastic build, but it's definitely the biggest lens I own; when attached to my K20 + battery grip, I figure the combo must weigh close to 5 lbs.
| | | | | Senior Member Registered: August, 2010 Posts: 210 | | Review Date: October 28, 2012 | Recommended | Price: $640.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Sharp, well-built, IQ | | Cons: | Weight, size | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 8
Value: 10
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HOLY MOLY GUACAMOLE!
There's not much to add that hasn't been said already. I've had it for two days, and I'm blown away by the excellent image quality.
Up to now I had only used a Pentax-A 70-210 f4 and a Tokina AF 70-210 f4.5 at this focal length, and while by no means bad performers for their price, image quality will never ever come close to what the Tamron can deliver, even at 2.8!
I've found the autofocus to be snappy and fairly accurate in good to moderate light. I'm still trying to figure out whether it will be ok in adverse conditions. As a matter of fact I'm looking forward to using it for concerts and other theatre performances.
More so than with either lenses I mentioned beforehand, the shutter speed / focal length rule becomes critical due to the weight of this rocket!
| | | | | Senior Member Registered: November, 2012 Location: London Posts: 157 | | Review Date: December 10, 2012 | Recommended | Price: $740.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | sharp, superb bokeh, weight | | Cons: | af | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
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Superb lens, the bokeh is stunningly creamy. Sharp wide open and superb stopped down to f4. AF is slightly hit and miss for close subjects. The thin dof is nice for isolating subjects and it is at least as sharp as the DA* 50-135.
| | | | | New Member Registered: January, 2013 Posts: 2 | | Review Date: March 18, 2013 | Recommended | Price: $800.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | sharp as hell, nice bokeh, f2.8, 5 years warranty | | Cons: | heavy and big (= unpentaxian ;) ) | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 9
Value: 10
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Great lens! It comes with a hood, with a bag and with a ring to put it on your tripod. This lens is sharp as hell up from f2.8 (okay, at 200mm you have to stop down to f4 to get it that sharp but hey: f4, sharp as hell, 200mm: where do you get this?  ).
I like to use it. At 70mm it is as sharp as my Pentax 70mm f2.4 limited and I really can not see any diffrence in sharpness between them. But: it is A LOT heavier than my tiny 70mm  .
Recommended!  | | | | | Veteran Member Registered: February, 2009 Location: egypt Posts: 435 | | Review Date: May 19, 2013 | Recommended | Price: $900.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | very sharp.ballanced well.awesome bokeh | | Cons: | | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 9
Value: 10
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I bought the lens new from B&H.The lens is tac sharp at wide open and the focus is very good when used with my k5.I found it very quick compare with my pentax prime/fa 35 f2+fa 43+fa77/.
the color render is very similar to the pentax fa 35 f2. it is prime like than a zoom like.
thanks tamron for still keeping pentaxians this fantastic lens.
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: August, 2009 Location: Southeast USA Posts: 390
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: June 5, 2013 | Recommended | Price: $769.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Image quality, value, build quality | | Cons: | No aperture ring, rear cap mounting, quick shift doesn't really do anything | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 9
Handling: 7
Value: 10
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This is a great lens overall, but especially great for the price. I paid $769 new, which gets me the 6 year warranty.
I've only had the lens for a week but so far I've loved the images that this can help me produce. Very sharp images and it can focus pretty close too (not a true macro lens, despite the Tamron advertising copy). 70-200 is a great range of focal lengths for me because I love portraiture.
Unlike the Tamron 28-75, nothing on this lens changed when focusing or zooming. It maintains a constant shape whatever the focus or zoom, which will be good for minimizing dust entry.
Nothing to elaborate on the pros, so here are the cons:
For whatever reason, when I'm at a long focal length, the camera feels the need to do one full cycle through the focus ring before finding focus. I haven't noticed this happening on my Tamron 28-75.
I find the rear cap difficult to get on, as you apparently have to have it in just the right position because of the rear cap design. Unlike the Tamron 28-75, the front hood is much easier to take off.
The quick shift doesn't do anything to override the camera body's focus setting, so it's largely pointless. It could be that I need to have the camera AF setting on AF.A??? (I have the K-30)
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: March, 2007 Location: U.K. Posts: 685
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: September 7, 2013 | Recommended | Price: $782.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Optics | | Cons: | Autofocus | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 9
Handling: 8
Value: 10
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Fantastic value compared with comparable lenses. My newly acquired today Tamron SP AF 70-200mm F/2.8 Di LD [IF] Macro Lens has been put through the mill to make sure it's OK. After much deliberation I've set the AF adjustment on my K-30 to -5, it's OK at default but definitely better at this setting, it was slightly front focusing so that the subject was only just on the edge of the in-focus region. This didn't seem to change with FL.
As for sharpness/colour/contrast issues, there aren't any - it's almost perfect but f2.8 is a bit softer than f4 (razor sharp at all FL) much as you would expect but still extremely usable. The AF is generally fast enough for most things, no full rotations unless pointed at a white wall or something. I bought this after seeing some YouTube videos that showed it was slow on a Canon body but much faster on a K-5. My old Tamron 70-300 f4-5.6 was good enough for fast-ish AF on my K-30 so I reckoned this 70-200 would be also. It is but not always, mostly it goes to a new focus position in a blink but sometimes it goes there and does a little tremble before locking, I've noticed there's a tiny bit of backlash in the lens gearing not there on the 70-300. I've set my K-30 to release priority to enable me to decide when to finish pressing the shutter and a few dozen shots showed me that this could be a viable solution when the lens hesitates - nothing was out of focus when I released after the main movement.
The AF is not loud but obviously can be heard being screw drive. Focus seems to hold good if the zoom is adjusted, always useful.
All in all, I'm happy with this lens at £500, it performs wonderfully as far as the optics are concerned - I've got a load of low light high ISO images a friend took at a wedding reception with his Canon 5DmkIII and 300/2.8 L prime (£5k)/ 24-70 2.8 L (£1.7k) and this K-30+Tammy competes at the same ISOs! Not as good but strewth it's close.
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