Tamron 75-300 AF f/4-5.6

[Kiron Kid]

Hello All

Anyone have experience with this lens. What do you think of it?

Thanks
Kiron Kid

[JDArt]

Hmm, i wouldn't expect much. Too dark. Too much zoom. Third-party maker.

[Jwilmot]

I have the 80-300mm from Tamron for my Nikon I got used and JDArt is correct about dark and the amount of zoom. I only use it on sunny days or very well lit rooms. I almost never use it without the tripod. I purchased it due to the cost (well under $100 from ebay) and to use it for the interim until I could get a better lens.

Johnathan

[Kiron Kid]

Originally Posted by Jwilmot

I have the 80-300mm from Tamron for my Nikon I got used and JDArt is correct about dark and the amount of zoom. I only use it on sunny days or very well lit rooms. I almost never use it without the tripod. I purchased it due to the cost (well under $100 from ebay) and to use it for the interim until I could get a better lens.

Johnathan

How is the image quality? Can I get acceptable 8x10's from it?

Thanks
Kiron Kid

[jya]

I took http://users.rcn.com/jyavins/snow_dog.jpg with one on a Konica-Minolta 5D. The web picture is compressed to 185 Kb. It's just possibly a little soft, but I haven't run a resolution chart with it. I also have a Minolta 70-210 f/4 (the old original heavy one) that seems about the same. You've encouraged me to do a side-by-side comparison as soon as I can borrow it back.

Jerry

[Kiron Kid]

Jerry

Thanks. I'd love to see your test results.

Kiron Kid

[narrowfeather]

I have this lens. Tamron makes some really nice lenses, this is not one of them. Yes it is very inexpensive and sports a great zoom range but you will be better off saving the money and buying a better lens.

The image quality is poor at tight zooms, especially at faster aperatures, but stopping it down, on a tripod, in open daylight, it still renders soft images with readily apparent chromatic abberation.

It says right on it that it is a macro lens, but it is not. The instructions tell you to switch it to macro mode for shooting macro, but there is no switching mechanism to do so and it will NOT shoot as a macro lens.

Also the front element rotates during focusing, making use of polarizers a pain in the backside.

The specs make it look like a great deal for the money, but it is not. It isn't a good lens at all in my opinion, although others say they get pretty good shots out of it, I find it nearly impossible. If you are a beginner, FORGET IT, you will never be happy with this guy, spend a tad more and get much better shots.

[dragon_fang]

Hi I use this lens on my Nikon D200. I find I have to be around f8 for best use of this lens. Here are a couple examples.

[ront]

I have one on order and I should have it next Tuesday. I will take a few pics when I get it and post them. It sounds like it does have descent IQ and the above 2 pics also show that. From what I have read it also can suffer from some purple fringing in high contrast situations. Here are a couple of links from another forum where this lens is being discussed.
TAMRON 70-300 f4-5.6 LD DI Purple Fringe: Sony SLR Talk Forum: Digital Photography Review
Tamron 70-300 f4-5.6 LD DI MACRO: Sony SLR Talk Forum: Digital Photography Review
Here is also a short review of the lens.
Tamron AF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 LD Di macro (Pentax K) - Review / Lab Test Report

It seems to me that if you are some what careful, it is not a bad lens for the money.

Ron