... This is the second copy of the Tamron AF 28-75mm Di lens I ordered, both copies had front focus issues. Both severely front focus at 60mm to 75mm but at the 28mm to 50mm zoom range, focus was excellent at all apertures, very sharp pictures..I'am very satisfied just using at the 28 to 50mm range but may decide to send it back to Tamron for calibration. If they called this a 28-50mm f/2.8 Di lens it would be worth five stars... ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Tamron AF 28-75mm f/2.8 SP XR ZL Di LD Aspherical (IF) for Canon Digital SLR Cameras
... This is an amazing lens. I was initially concerned about distortion that bulged from the center out to the edges but the lens does a fantastic job of dealing with it. This lens is one of the best additions to my glass collection. ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on NIKON 14MM f/2.8D ED AF Ultra Wide Angle Nikkor Lens
... Got mine in the mail yesterday. I had to run errands after work, so I just fiddled around with it a little. Let me tell you what- this lens is tack sharp and has beautiful color and contrast. And, you feel like a secret agent running around surreptitiously shooting people and cars at 200 mm (i.e. 320 on my EOS 50D). At 1600 ISO, you can handhold indoors in minimal lighting. Very pleased with my purchase- off to the zoo the next sunny weekend! ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Canon EF 200mm f/2.8L II USM Telephoto Lens for Canon SLR Cameras
... This is my story of Sigma 12-24 lens for Canon.
How come I always end up shooting on the wide or long end of my 28-70 zoom? I also wanted to go wider than my Canon EF 20mm f/2.8 USM Wide Angle Lens for Canon SLR Cameras. Corners on Canon's 20mm were all smeared on until you stopped down to f16, which is the only usable aperture if you want edge to edge sharpness. So after lots of research I ordered Sigma. I was hoping to hit a jackpot and have a good sample. Unfortunately, that was not the case. The first lens I got was somebody returned lens with missing soft case, and it had a soft zone on the left side. Amazon was quick to correct the problem, and shipped me another copy. Second lens was brand new, but had a soft patch on the right side! I contacted Sigma's Tom Soble, and he advised me to send in the lens AND a camera for calibration. Since I just got back the Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III 21.1MP Digital SLR Camera (Body Only) from Canon after having fixed focus issues - according to Canon "it was found that the adjustment of the AF assembly was incorrect the auto focus did not operate properly Electrical adjustments were carried out of the AF assembly". So I did not send in the lens, but just got my money back from Amazon. As much as I enjoyed the wide angle perspective, I could not justify soft zones in my images. Also, whenever I would try photograph anything using DOF scales, the image would turn super soft, to the point that it would be unusable, maybe that was part of some decentering issues my Sigma 12-24 had. I would love to have a "good" copy of the lens to compare to, maybe all the issues were due to the bad samples I had? I have 2 Sigma lenses - Sigma 50mm f/1.4 EX DG HSM Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras and Sigma 15mm f/2.8 EX DG Diagonal Fisheye Lens for Canon SLR Cameras which are fine pieces of glass.
The also purchased Canon EF 14mm f/2.8L II USM Ultra-Wide Angle Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras, but was not happy with flexibility of use/price ratio, so the lens was returned. I still have Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8G ED AF-S Nikkor Wide Angle Zoom Lens on my short list as a potential candidates. I have borrowed my friends Leica 19mm (first generation) and was very happy with it! He wants it back, so I am thinking about Leica 21-35mm as a compact travel lens. You can see and read more of my thoughts at agniusdigital.com ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Sigma 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG IF HSM Aspherical Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras
... To clear up some of the confusion regarding how this lens will perform, there are two classes of Nikon DSLR's. The first use a sensor smaller than 35mm, about the size of the old APS film cameras, hence the term "APS class." These include the D50,70,80,90,200, etc.
The smaller sensors mean every lens has a built in zoom (or crop factor) of about 1.5. This is why wide angles for these DSLR's have been 18mm while for film it used to be 24-28mm. Lenses built for the smaller sensors also have a circle (inner lens opening) that is smaller than the older film lenses. On these type cameras this lens would perform like a 43-450mm or thereabouts.
Newer Nikons like the D3,D3X, and D700 are "full frame" and have sensors the same size as 35mm. There is no crop factor, and they can work correctly with film lenses.
This Tamron is essentially a film lens, and works best on a full frame camera. I've heard to be wary of superzooms such as this, as they tend to have distortion at the wide and tele ends and have a small maximum aperture at the tele end.
At 300MM it is f6.3 max, and that's not very good, but my D700 has such good high ISO performance I just crank it up and don't worry about. The focus is an old screw drive so it's a little slow and noisy, and it is plastic. (The focus also won't work on the D40, it needs lenses with a built in motor.) I also would prefer it have been 24mm rather than 28mm, but you can't have everything.
However, I've been very happy with the pictures it takes. They have good color rendition, the distortion isn't readily noticeable, and they're nice and sharp across the screen.
If I blew the photos up I'd probably see a lot of differences compared to a high end "pro" lens, but that misses the point. This is a "walk around" lens intended for situations where you can/want only to take one lens with you. In that role the Tamron works very well.
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Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Tamron AF 28-300mm f/3.5-6.3 XR Di LD Aspherical (IF) Macro Ultra Zoom Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras
... I've had this lens for a few years now and am always amazed at its contrast and sharpness. Check out the lens MTF charts on olympus' website for this lens you'll be very surprised.
At f2.8 it's got nice aperture and bokeh. I ordered this lens with my E-300 and I've been in only a couple of situations where I needed a different lens.
I highly recommend this 14-54 as the "first lens" for anyone getting into four-thirds systems. ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Olympus 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Zuiko ED Digital SLR Lens for E1, E300 & E500 Cameras
... I use this lens on my Canon Rebel XTI as a replacement for the EF-S 18-55 1:3.5-5.6 II that come with the kit. I am generally impressed and satisfied with my purchase.
I am not qualified to discuss every aspect of the optical performance, but I can point out a few negatives that would concern the amateur:
1) It is huge! holding the camera makes my wrists sore, and It no longer fits in the carry case I use. The lens attracts a little more attention than I would like.
2) It makes a very faint high pitched noise. The noise goes away when I press the depth of field preview, or when the camera goes into powersave mode after a few minutes of inactivity. It is unaffected by the image stabilization feature. It is not loud enough to bother anyone, but when I hear it, I think of the battery getting eaten away.
3) The lens cap is difficult to put on / Easy to drop.
4) It is just a travel lens. Professionals hate that these are so popular, because they compromise optical perfection for extreme zoom range. ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Sigma AF 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 DC OS (Optical Stabilizer) Zoom Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras
... a great companion for the 100-400LCanon EF 100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS USM Telephoto Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras miss the IS but a monopod is a great help. the f/2.8 is worth the extra $ in added light on a subject. the close up switch is a big help in all cases on both lenses. both lenses literally grab a subject from the air compared to my 70-300 IS USM which is also a good lens for the size and weight.Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Lens for Canon EOS SLR Cameras ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L USM Telephoto Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras
... Lens delivers for its price tag.
Yes its true, it will not capture front cover National Geographic photos nor pocket camera mediocre results.
The main advantage is the additional zoom range, making good for portraits and has some wide angle for those spontaneous group photos.
The lens tends to get lost in details at its widest range of 28mm when is very sunny and focusing to infinity, the Nikon D60 meter does not adjusts well on these light conditions. I leave the wide angle nature photos to the 18-55 giving better results.
I did some testing at a birthday Playground party (sunny, cloudy day), +1 in sharpness, WB to partly cloudy set at zero. I played every now and then with Under Over exposure; +0.3,.7 when cloudy and -.3-.7 when very sunny. This lens likes to give very saturated colors so try to leave it on Normal, not vivid colors or will be super rich reds, greens.
Portraits: I find this lens does well in this category, if the light is right good details, tones can be achieved with blurry backgrounds at 80mm, remember to use the lens hood. The lens delivers well on portraits, I love it for such a cheap lens, colors come out very good. I retouch many photos on Elements 6 and Camera Raw giving it darker values to shadows and highlights to white areas. Good details are revealed by lowering saturation and contrast with no weird out of focus backgrounds.
It may be me, but I have experienced adjusting the Image and quality to Medium instead of Fine gives better results, I guess less is more in this case.
Close ups with the built in iTTL flash are extremely good, details are excellent, I found the lens to deliver easy and without any much processing with flash and set on Auto, piece of cake.
Overall: very good lens, feels sturdy. I have heard bad comments about plastic lens mount, but the Nikon 18-55 is also plastic. I wish the focusing ring was smoother and zoom be linear instead of rotational, makes it hard to manual focus on moving objects like sports etc. I recommend this lens
This lens gives a very pro look to your camera especially with the lens hood on. Do not worry, this lens DOES NOT look cheap or in other words, it does not look like a 70 dollar lens. I replaced the Tamron lens cap for a Nikon one :-)... ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Tamron AF 28-80mm f/3.5-5.6 Aspherical Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras
... The lens has warranty card with it. It's light and fit quite nicely with my Xsi. The images are all good. ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Tamron AF 28-80mm f/3.5-5.6 Aspherical Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras
... Simple and good quality item. It is like a high power telescope for your camera. ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Kenko 420-1600mm Super Telephoto Zoom Lens for Nikon D40, D40x, D60, D80, D200, D300, D3, D700 Digital SLR Cameras
... I was waiting and waiting for an updated version of this lens (with IS hopefully) but finally gave up and bought one. I did not order it from Amazon because it does not seem to stock them and I got it from Norman Camera since they were the first one to receive fresh stock (Date code UX0317, so less than 2 months old). It is light but not that light, AF is super fast, seems to be very sharp too but only tried it for a few shots in cloudy weather. Will try to see how well it works hand held. Oh, did a quick and dirty check for AF microadjustment, seems like 0 works best (only did a quick compare with 3 -5s, 3 0s and 3 +5s). Overall, I'm happy with the lens.
Updated 04/26/09
Finally got a chance to take it out on a hike. Though it may be light by L lens standard, it is kind of heavy if you have to carry it for couple of hours. Image is sharp, very sharp providing you have very steady hand or good support, I think I will mostly have this on either a tripod or monopod. Despite of the weight and lack of IS, I am very very happy with this lens. It should be a 5 star rating if the price is somewhat lower. ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Canon EF 400mm f/5.6L USM Super Telephoto Lens for Canon SLR Cameras
... I compared images I took of a tip of a needle and I could not see a difference between them. I haven't gotten the fine detail tuned in yet but that is a learning curve for me. I just started out playing around with macro photography and think this a fine addition to my arsenal of fine lenses to give me a little more working room than my 60mm Nikon Micro. This Sigma also takes wonderful portraits for head shots if you are on a tripod or are shooting at higher shutter speeds since there is no image stabilization (VR). The build quality seem to be bomb proof - all metal and very heavy. Overall, I'm very pleased with this sample of the Sigma 150mm Macro and look forward to having it on my camera often. ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM APO HSM IF Macro Lens for Canon SLR Cameras
... The main problem with this lens is the speed, or the lack thereof. Compared to the EF 20/2.8, it's only a half stop slower but compared to the EF 35/2, it's one and a half stops slower. While this is not a big deal if you're shooting outside, you have a problem in low light environments. Secondarily, if you're shooting a small sensor DSLR, you're not getting the wide angle benefits of this lens.
For film or for full-frame 35mm sized sensor DSLR users, this is a good choice if you can live with the primary limitation of the slow speed. Optically, it's not bad at all. It has more distortion than an architectural photographer will want but if you're mainly shooting architecture you probably wouldn't be attracted to this lens anyway. As a reportage lens or a travel lens, it will serve well. Although it's relatively large--especially with the dinner plate sized lens hood in place--it's a lightweight. Build quality is industry-standard consumer grade for Canon. Which means it's actually very well put together from mostly plastic components. The lens mount is metal and the lens elements are, of course, glass. Autofocus is fast and the motor is a Canon Ultrasonic so you get the benefit of manual focus without having to flip switches to turn off the autofocus.
I've used this lens off and on for about eight years. I originally shot color nature and landscapes and this was a very useful lens for such purposes. I mostly used a tripod so having a slow lens wasn't a limitation. For the last few years, I have been doing only black and white film work with an emphasis on the artful aspects of photography. When I use 35mm, I've trimmed my most used lenses to mostly primes so this lens doesn't get selected as often as it once was. Still, when the light is bright, I sometimes use this lens for the convenience. It's very versatile with good performance. If used at medium apertures under the same lighting conditions, I seriously doubt anyone would be able to see any practical difference in photos made with this lens compared to one of the much more expensive L-series Canon zooms. For the price, it's very good value. ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Canon EF 20-35mm f/3.5-4.5 USM Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras
... Pro:
- great color, IQ, contrast.
- light weight
- accurate AF when needed
- great MF
- well made
Neutral:
- AF is slow but ok for a true macro lens. (My Tamron 180mm's AF stopped working in the first week even though I only tested a couple for times and never really used its AF for real at all. Being a tripod macro lens, MF (plus live view zoom in, which is far better than my 1.5/2.5 vertical finder) is a must for me. I hope AF on this one last longer because AF is indeed useful for hand-held quick shots)
- price (not cheap for a 3rd party). But with $90 rebate, it's not bad at all.
Minor incovenience:
- Once the lens is extended, the only way to get it back is to pull back the focus ring and switch to MF and turn the focus to infinite. A quick release mecahnism would be nice. This is a common problem not unique to this Tamron though.
- There's only one position the hood and back cap can be attached to the lens, a Tamron design. This design makes the attachment much stronger but much more hassle to attach in the first place. I much prefer Canon or Sigma's in this regard. I've never had accident with Canon or Sigma lenses when the hood or back cap accidentally fell off. (Correction - just had the precious hood on the Sigma 12-24 "bulb" off without noticing it in the bag, with the bulb completely exposed, which scared the day light out of me! But again that is the front cap not the rear one. To be care, I think Tamron does do a better job at designing their caps. Now I am so much more used to the Tamron way of doing things - just aim the special area (feel it with your finger) of the Tamron rear cap at the red dot on the lens, that is where the cap hooks up with the lens.)
- switching AF/MF produces a loud click sound. The switch can only happen at certain positions. My Sigma 20mm/f1.8 got a better design - I can switch any time, the switch is much more smoother. Tokina 11-16 is also smoother. Don't have the Tokina 100mm macro to compare with, though.
Bottom line:
I have the Tamron 180mm macro, great when mounted on a solid platform, not great hand held - too big and heavy. This one fills the gap. The small size and light weight is perfect to be carried around with other lenses on routine outings. Like other Tamrons, this one is plastic all the way (hence the light weight), but well made, MF ring is well damped with plenty rotation for fine tuning. I was a bit unsure about the closest focus distance on this one, turns out it's plenty for real wold use. The protruding front element is not a problem in real world use at all (as oppose to Internal Focus of the Canon 100mm Macro, or the Tamron 180mm ). In short, this is a perfect hand-held macro/portrait lens.
Update: this is fantastic tele as well if you are in no hurry. The IQ is just breathtaking. Tried Canon 100mm macro in store the other day, the Canon AF and build quality are better. But if you only use this sort of lens once in a while, you might want to save your buck here because this lens is for real. ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Tamron AF 90mm f/2.8 Di SP A/M 1:1 Macro Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras
... I do a lot of sports photography, and this is one of my favorite lenses for it. The Canon EF 400mm f/2.8L IS USM Super Telephoto Lens for Canon SLR Cameras is the classic sports photographer's lens, but it's extremely expensive, and so huge and heavy it's not practical to bring to many sporting events.
I had been using the Canon EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM Telephoto Lens for Canon SLR Cameras instead, which is cheaper, lighter, and easier to get past stadium security.
But this lens is probably the most useful. It's smaller than the 300mm f/2.8L. (But not lighter; it weighs almost exactly the same. You will need a monopod if you're going to use it for any length of time.) The street price is a little higher, though the list price is lower. But the extra speed is great for night games or indoor sports. And you can use an extender and get roughly the equivalent of the 300mm f/2.8.
Excellent lens, and definitely one of my favorites. ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Canon EF 200mm f/2L IS USM Telephoto Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras
... Great IQ even wide open at 2.8! Soft focus is fantastic. I only use SF between 0-1, over 1 is too blurry to me. If you believe PS can produce the same effect, good for you. I happen to believe the SF effect from this lens is far more richer and attractive. I use it on both Canon 350D and 40D. The old fashioned AF is in the same league as Tamron and Tokina. I shoot people and flower and everything else that happen to fit into the 135mm view finder. The results are fantastic! Only wish it has better macro capability! The closest focus distance is a bit long in some of the real world applications.
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Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Canon EF 135mm f/2.8 with Softfocus Telephoto Lens for Canon SLR Cameras
... Sorry, this is not a review and don't bash me, but this product has been in my cart for the past month and the price has risen from 1650 to 1999 today?!!! Shame on you folks, there seems to be a recession going on, if you haven't heard already! ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8G ED AF-S Nikkor Wide Angle Zoom Lens
... www.viewfromthetopfloor.com
This is one of the BEST lenses I have used! I purchased this beast after reviewing the lens here and at other sites. I needed a fast lens and this one seemed to be rated very highly. Now I can understand why. I just returned from three days shooting up in Maine (photos up on my website now) and I have to say the detail, and clarity are absolutely incredible! I am able to easily view images shot with this lens not only at 100%, but even at 200% in my Lightroom application! This is not something I could do with my other lenses. Well worth the money for sure. I am using it on my Nikon D300, and Finepix S2 Pro. Since I purchased it the lens has not come off the D300.
This weekend (2/28) I am shooting my first wedding with the lens. It is entirely indoors, with available light and some light flash. I'm looking forward to it now. My other lenses include the 18-200 VR Zoom, though not as sharp and clear as this one still a very good lens. I also have the Tokina 12-24 F4 zoom and some other Macro lenses and a lensbaby 3G. I'm updating this review today, 3/16/09 to report the lens worked flawlessly in the wedding shoot! Quite frankly, I could not have shot the wedding and/or the images would not have been this great. I've not only received many compliments on the images themselves, but have also received enough side orders -- not even from the B & G to help offset the expense of the lens. Wow is the only word that comes to my mind. It is truly an amazing piece of glass. I shot the entire wedding with this lens, and a lensbaby in the confines of a small room, completely lit by tungsten lighting, and one soft box i brought in from my studio for some semi-formal shots.
Like I said, this one has not come off the D300. It's unbelievable. Well worth the money if you shoot pro, or just want the very best results. ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Nikon 17-55mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S DX Nikkor Zoom Lens
... I spent 30 years as a pro shooter, using Nikons. Since I retired, I only use my cameras to photograph my child. My F3s and fast AI lenses are stored away, and I now use a D70s and a new D300. I found the zooms a bit soft, bought a 60mm D lens, loved it, and got the 35 f2D. Very sharp, fast enough (my AI was a 1.4 but that was a working lens, this one is for fun) for my current needs, good color, good edges, seems to do the job for a reasonable amount of money. ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Nikon 35mm f/2D AF Wide-Angle Nikkor Lens for Nikon 35mm and Digital SLR Cameras
... I owned a D80 at the time and wanted a wide angle lens, so ordered a Tokina 11-16mm, but it got back ordered so could not get it in time. So i thought what the heck, i was thinking of going full frame for a while any way and since i could not afford the Nikon variant went for this one,also bought an used Nikon N90s(film). I was amazed by the quality of pictures it produced, very nice colors. It has good build quality too, being an EX series lens, also comes with extended five year warranty, if bought from authorized dealers.Granted it has some chromatic abrasions, but still i do not think this can be beat for the price. If you are going to go full frame this is the widest rectilinear lens available (PERIOD). So by all means get one and enjoy. ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Sigma 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG IF HSM Aspherical Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Nikon SLR Cameras
... This is a really cool product for the effect it achieves. I don't use it a lot, as it's a unique effect that doesn't lend itself to every situation. It's a royal pain to setup and use, very time-consuming compared to any other lens, but when you want this exact effect, it's the only cost-effective way to achieve the selective focus style it captures so well. ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Lensbaby 3G Canon EF mount SLR Camera Lens (LB3GC)
... I have an older version of this lens for my Nikon and always got good results with it. I am using this on a Canon 5D Mk2, believe it or not, and it is great so far. Some barrel distortion that really shows in building shots, etc, but there is good software that can correct that easily. Also, it will be less on non-full frame cameras. Otherwise I think this is one of the best value lenses out there. Probably the ideal travel lens due to it's size, too. It's very small. Maybe the smallest zoom lens of that length. It's also very well made. Mostly metal. I trued out the Canon equivalent and have to say this lens seems sharper and with better color. ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Tamron AF 28-200mm F/3.8-5.6 XR Di Aspherical (IF) Macro Zoom Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras
... inexpensive and fun but poor quality, I love Pentax lenses, but this one is worth the money. Fun too bad there's not a option for a higher quality version, would be worth paying for, Love the 12mm-24mm Lens I bought from them though ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on PENTAX DA 10-17mm f/3.5-4.5 ED (IF) Fish-Eye Lens for Pentax Digital SLR
... I gave this lens a try as a cheaper alternative to the Canon 100-400 L IS lens. After one outing, I returned the Tamron immediately and bought the Canon 100-400mm L IS lens.
This lens is pretty soft at anything above 400mm, and anything below f/8. If you do any kind of print work or like to do heavy cropping the softness of this lens will really bother you - there's no way you can use a 1:1 crop. If you mostly reduce your photos quite a bit for the web, this might not bother you. However, this does affect your ability to shoot in low light though, since f/5 to f/8 is almost unusable due to the softness.
CA is present at longer focal lengths as well, along with pretty poor contrast.
The lack of IS in such a long lens is also problematic - forget hand-held shots.
The one nice feature is the rotating front filter ring - you can buy a cheaper polarizing filter, which is a bonus on such a large filter.
Overall, this lens was a huge disappointment. If you want to take a chance on an off-brand lens, at least go with the Sigma 150-500 with OS. I haven't had a chance to try that lens, but at least it has OS, and the optical quality can't possibly be any worse. ...
Check Amazon Price and Read More Reviews on Tamron AF 200-500mm f/5.0-6.3 Di LD SP FEC (IF) Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras
