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Tamron SP AF Di LD Aspherical [IF] 17-35mm F2.8-4 Review RSS Feed

Tamron SP AF Di LD Aspherical [IF] 17-35mm F2.8-4

Sharpness 
 8.7
Aberrations 
 7.3
Bokeh 
 7.3
Handling 
 8.4
Value 
 9.1
Reviews Views Date of last review
9 41,681 Sat March 23, 2019
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Recommended By Average Price Average User Rating
100% of reviewers $354.38 8.44
Tamron SP AF Di LD Aspherical [IF] 17-35mm F2.8-4

Tamron SP AF Di LD Aspherical [IF] 17-35mm F2.8-4
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Tamron SP AF Di LD Aspherical [IF] 17-35mm F2.8-4
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Description:
Aperture: f/2.8-4
Minimum Aperture: 22
Construction: 14 Elements-11 Groups
Angle of View: 104-63 degrees.
Minimum Focus: 0.30 m
Filter Size: 77 mm
Length: 86.5 mm
Weight: 440 grams
Macro Ratio: 1:5.4
Coating: Multi-coated
Focus System: Automatic
Price History:



Add Review of Tamron SP AF Di LD Aspherical [IF] 17-35mm F2.8-4
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Sort Reviews by: Date | Author | Rating | Recommendation | Likes (Descending) Showing Reviews 1-9 of 9
Site Supporter

Registered: October, 2018
Posts: 19

6 users found this helpful
Review Date: March 23, 2019 Recommended | Price: $250.00 | Rating: 9 

 
Pros: Great value. Very sharp in center. Price. Weight.
Cons: Soft in corners (stopping down helps), CA, flare
Sharpness: 9    Aberrations: 7    Bokeh: 8    Handling: 8    Value: 10    Camera Used: K-1   

Figured I should add an updated review since the newest one here in from 2015. Used on the K-1, this brings additional value, given the limited wide angle zoom options in this price range. If you know what to expect - soft corners unless you stop down (F8-11), try to limit shooting directly into sun, and may have to clean up some CA - then you really can't beat the value. It is also very light weight and easy to travel with. Found this copy on ebay. Sample images below.





   
Forum Member

Registered: April, 2010
Location: Adelaide
Posts: 84

1 user found this helpful
Review Date: April 10, 2015 Recommended | Price: $200.00 | Rating: 9 

 
Pros: Sharp. Nice handling. Good weight.
Cons: Range could be bigger.
Sharpness: 8    Aberrations: 7    Bokeh: 7    Handling: 9    Value: 10    Camera Used: Pentax K-5, K-1   

I bought this to replace my excellent DA-16-45mm as I'm gearing up for FF. I was a bit worried it wouldn't match the 16-45mm as it has been such a great lens on the Samsung GX10, the GX20 and more recently the Pentax K-5. I needn't have worried. The Tamron matches the Pentax in sharpness and CA performance is better. The 77mm filter doesn't bother me too much. 77mm filters aren't too expensive if you hunt around and I also have a 77mm adapter for Cokin P.

Along with my Tamron SP 24-135mm and an old SP 60-300mm, I'm ready to give FF a try. Will hopefully add a couple of FF primes before that arrives.

(June 2021 update) After over 4 years of non use, I'm happy to say the 17-35mm works well on my recently acquired K-1.
   
Senior Member

Registered: December, 2012
Posts: 135
Review Date: May 26, 2014 Recommended | Price: $275.00 | Rating: 8 

 
Pros: Sharp center, light
Cons: Limited FOV range, soft corners wide open, some CA, pronounced geometric distortion, noisy AF, max aperture not fixed, focus ring turns on AF, large filter Ø
Sharpness: 9    Aberrations: 7    Bokeh: 7    Handling: 9    Value: 9    Camera Used: Pentax k-5II   

Center is sharp but corners require stopping down.
There's some CA and pronounced geometric distortion at 17mm.

Despite this, the lens performs better than the 18-55mm WR and the 21mm Limited I own.

Built quality is very nice and the lens is reasonably light, although the 77mm filter diameter does make it look (not feel) a bit bulky.
AF is noisy and the focus ring turns.
   
Junior Member

Registered: March, 2011
Location: Michigan
Posts: 29
Review Date: March 2, 2014 Recommended | Price: $450.00 | Rating: 9 

 
Pros: Sharp on the K-5, decent color
Cons: variable aperature
Sharpness: 9    Aberrations: 8    Bokeh: 8    Handling: 9    Value: 8    Camera Used: K-5   

This was a very mediocre lens on my 1stD. Sat unused for several years since I mainly use primes. Then, at a family deal I decided to use it instead of changing lenses. Took about 20 shots and I was amazed how good this lens performed on the K-5. Even edge sharpness was not that bad stopped down several stops.
   
Pentaxian

Registered: May, 2010
Location: now 1 hour north of PDX
Posts: 3,897
Review Date: June 5, 2013 Recommended | Price: $185.00 | Rating: 8 

 
Pros: wide-angle coverage, film/full-frame ability, color, contrast
Cons: more flare than current lenses
Sharpness: 9    Aberrations: 7    Bokeh: 9    Handling: 9    Value: 9   

I was seeking a 17-50 Di-II to cover the range below my DA40 but prices were beyond my budget. For about $190 shipped, KEH sent this to me. I had owned and liked it before in my SonyAlpha days but wanted more range. Now I'm older and wiser, using Pentax and holding zooms to 2-4x total range. And it doesn't interfere with my Limited, which I was going to regret!

This is somewhat large for its range, but it replaces my 24mm and 28mm primes and 'saves' me from buying a DA21 . It also works with film and any future 24×36 sensors, so given those abilities the size is definitely not bad! It feels good on both K-5 and K-01. The 77mm filters are a bit of a pain but I am not a big-time filter user so I'm OK with that. Seeing as this is the ancestor of the 17-50 it's no surprise that this lens provides excellent image quality, with nice contrast and color.

Its main drawback is that when shooting into the sun it won't do clean starbursts like my Sigma 15 or the DA15 - too many flare bursts interfere with the effect. It's not veiling flare just the blobs. I have a fine shade to reduce the problem, but some times it's cool to include the sun (like sunsets for example?).

This is a very good lens, and when the price is right it's an excellent value!

image at 17mm f/2.8
   
Senior Member

Registered: January, 2011
Location: Sao Paulo
Posts: 149
Review Date: October 2, 2012 Recommended | Price: $375.00 | Rating: 9 

 
Pros: Fast AF, very sharp wide open.
Cons: Bulky, lens hood to big to carry reversed
Sharpness: 9    Aberrations: 6    Bokeh: 5    Handling: 8    Value: 9   

Had this lens for over a year and half. Used mostly on a K10D, so pictures taken with it was always outstanding, if you shoot RAW. Not to mention that the max aperture of f2.8 at 17mm, helps a lot on AF (although it still was a K10D ), but AF with K-5 is a lot better, specially low light.

Chomatic aberration only visible if you nitpick it, so no complains here.

I sell it to make some money to buy other lenses (wich i couldn't get due to financial issues...) and regret it a lot. Really miss that lens.

Only real downside was that it was prone to flare. Image won't get dull, but might lose a little on contrast, so a hood is highly recomended here. But since it is a UWA for 135 format, the lens hood is to big to carry all around, so to counter that i made a hood on my own, that worked nicelly.

Some might think the size and wheight is a downside, but it looks cool on K10D an K5.
   
Loyal Site Supporter

Registered: January, 2008
Location: Paris, TN
Posts: 3,349

3 users found this helpful
Review Date: October 27, 2011 Recommended | Price: None indicated | Rating: 8 

 
Pros: Sharp, consistent with Tamron SP rendering
Cons: 77mm filter size, only 2x zoom
Sharpness: 8    Aberrations: 9    Bokeh: 7    Handling: 7    Value: 9   

I picked this up used on e-Bay at such a bargain price I won't skew the numbers by entering the price ($122) as typical current used prices are at least 2 1/2 times that number.

This lens renders like an extension of my SP AF 28-75/2.8 for color and sharpness which is exactly what I was hoping for -- an SP AF 28-75 and a SP AF 24-135 stretched to 17mm at F 2.8. If you like the 28-75, I'm sure you'll find this a perfect WA partner.

I concur that the sharpness falls off somewhat above 28mm, but only in comparison to other excellent WA lenses, and that accounts for my lowered score in that category.

I'd note that there's no AF/MF switch on this lens and that effective manual focus over-ride requires that the body auto-focus switch be OFF. The manual focus ring is optimized for auto-focus and isn't well damped. No zoom lock is required.

This is a large lens, about 20-percent larger than the DA 16-45, and the hood can be inconvenient to pack at 77mm but results are noticeably improved when using it under conditions conducive to ambient flare off of the lens axis. Direct flare is no worse than any other WA lens of this type with modern coatings. Auto-focus speed and accuracy is similar to the DA 16-45.

I'm seriously considering replacing a very good copy of the DA 16-45 with this lens as results are excellent and I'd use the extra speed for ambient/low light interior shots.

(I'd add that I recently sold a Tamron SP AF 10-24 because I wasn't using the range wider than about 16mm, but that lens also fit well for color and rendering with other Tamron zooms and adds a very satisfactory and versatile extension into the UWA range.)

H2

Later -- I've never used the Adaptall 17mm lens but I've always been interested in 'em. They seem to be going for around $250 today -- about what I paid for this lens. Unless size was a VERY critical item, I wouldn't trade this for the 17mm prime based on the many images I've studied.

And if FF ever returns to PK/A . . .


   


1 user found this helpful
Review Date: April 6, 2008 Recommended | Price: $580.00 | Rating: 8 

 
Pros: decent quality, light weight
Cons: not as good as a prime, but then again, it is not a prime

This lens has served me well in the wide angle range. It has never let me down and has been one of the best wide angle zooms in this price range since it was released.
   
New Member

Registered: February, 2008
Location: sydney,australia
Posts: 6
Review Date: March 16, 2008 Recommended | Price: $520.00 | Rating: 8 

 
Pros: sharp throughout with K10D,no autofocus issues,good build for plastic lens
Cons: slight flare when wide,need to replace lenshood if using with digital

Used this lens previously on MZS ,wasvery happy with its IQ when stopped down a little.Delivers sharp ,vibrant images when used on K10D. I tend to use centreweighted metering 90% of time, then EV adjust and have had very reliable exposure with K10D and MZS.Would recommend it highly for either camera.
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