Tamron AF 18-270mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD LD Aspherical IF Macro Zoom Lens with Built in Motor for Canon DSLR Cameras

Product Information

All lenses represent a compromise of features - size, weight, price, focal length range, image quality, autofocus performance, build quality and other features.

And also as usual for non-FTM focus lenses, you need to keep your fingers clear of the MF ring as it turns during autofocusing to prevent damage to the internal gears. The Google Pixel 6 may not be the latest Google smartphone any more, but it might still be the best value Distortion is always a major issue for superzoom lenses, and the Tamron 18-270mm is not an exception to the rule. 5.62% barrel distortion was recorded at 18mm, which will be highly noticeable as buildings bow out fro the centre of the image. At 270mm distortion is present, but the 1% pincushion isn't overly disturbing. Get the latest photography news straight to your inbox by signing up to our newsletter. Newsletter Signup How to Become a Professional Portrait Photographer (+ Course) A Guide to Stunning Butterfly Photography (17 Expert Tips) Silhouette Photography: The Ultimate Guide (+ 22 Tips) Landscape Photography Composition: 17 Expert Tips

Introduction

In a lens with a super focal length range, wide open aperture image quality is usually one of these sacrifices. Tamron doesn't make a Pentax-fit model, but the recently-announced Pentax smc DA 18-270mm F3.5-6.3 ED SDM is in all probability essentially the same lens, again without the VC module. When I review lenses I take a look at who they are built for. I realize not every DPS reader wants to lug around a 5lb lens worth a couple month’s rent. While I love my main lens, it’s not for everyone and I’d be a fool to tell you you should buy it if you just want a portrait lens. OPPO's mid-range smartphone aims to provide a sophisticated camera system at an attractive price. Andy Westlake sees how it measures up. The pictures below illustrate the focal length range from wide to telephoto (on Canon APS-C, 1.6x).

At 28mm, the center of the image frame remains reasonably sharp wide open, but the mid and corner areas of the frame are very soft. At 18mm sharpness is impressive right across the frame even wide open, and improves only marginally on stopping down, with best results around F5.6. The lens gets progressively softer on zooming in, however, with the corners of the frame suffering more than the centre. At longer focal lengths it's generally best shot at F8 or even F11 whenever possible. The lens lets you stop down to very small apertures, especially at the long end, but these are generally best avoided as sharpness is poor due to diffraction. Focusing is precise and we didn't really have any trouble with finding our target. Focusing speed is pretty good but we found that it would find the subject then wait a second or so before confirming with the double beep. This lens is actually quite versatile, and it’s a great lens in its class. If the image quality is not much of a concern, this lens basically can shoot anything under sunlight. The 18-270mm's macro coverage is very similar to its predecessor's, which is to say perfectly respectable, although it's now soundly beaten by Sigma's latest 18-250mm f/3.5-6.3 DC Macro OS HSM. Our measured closest focus distance (at full telephoto, in manual focus) is 43cm, slightly shorter than Tamron's specified 0.49m. Note that you won't be able to autofocus quite so close.The Samyang AF 18mm F2.8 FE is the smallest, lightest and least expensive super wide-angle with autofocus for full frame. And the performance is fine. As the name of this lens has suggested, it is an ultra-zoom lens that features a 16.6x zoom ratio, besides having a focal length from 27mm to 450mm (full-frame equivalent). At 18mm focal length, this lens is capable of shooting at a Minimum Object Distance (MOD) of 15 cm with a maximum magnification ratio of 1:2 and MOD at 1 meter at the tele end with a maximum magnification ratio of 1:4. That is a pretty remarkable piece of engineering to me as I love to shoot close-ups a lot.

Autofocus is near-silent, but on the Canon-mount version we tested not especially fast - this is one area where it lags behind similar lenses from Sigma, Nikon or Canon. But the PZD motor is at least faster than the sometimes painfully-slow micromotor used in the older Tamron AF 18-270mm F/3.5-5.6 Di II VC. The image stabilization system works quite well too, although we've found it to be slightly less effective than its predecessor's, it's still good for letting you use shutter speeds a couple of stops slower than you'd otherwise be able to hand-hold without blur. Image quality here is acceptable, but not great. The image is very soft overall at F6.3, with low contrast and blurring that's a signature of spherical aberration. But the centre sharpens up dramatically on stopping down to F8, beyond which it gradually degrades again due to diffraction. With our flat test chart the corners are very soft wide open, and while they improve on stopping down, they never really sharpen up fully. This most likely reflects curvature of field. Full Frame CoverageBokeh is a word used for the out-of-focus areas of a photograph, and is usually described in qualitative terms, such as smooth / creamy / harsh etc. In the AF 18-270mm F/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD lens, Tamron have employed an iris diaphragm with seven rounded blades, which has resulted in quite nice bokeh in our view. We do realise, however, that bokeh evaluation is subjective, so we've included some 100% crops for your perusal.

we got this lens to take on vacation because of its size and range. it was unbelievable how well it performed. we used in on a 400 xti and the results were outstanding. it is not made for low light or professional quality but it is so much better than a compact camera. my wife used one of those tiny digitals and the pictures were not even close to what i was able to get with this lens. It is really neat. close up to long range, it is a deal There is no doubt that the VC technology is very effective at getting sharper images when the light levels are low. Of course, we are not saying that VC means you can throw away the tripod, but when you are travelling light it lets you shoot for longer and that can only be a good thing. Autofocus is achieved via a motor built into the lens. It is not the silent (USM or HSM) type found on many modern zooms, so a noise can be heard during focusing. Focusing is fast and accurate at the wide-end of the zoom, but AF performance is less efficient as the lens is zoomed in, often hunting around in lower light conditions. The minimum focusing distance is 0.49metres (19.3in) throughout the zoom range, which is very close for a lens covering such a extreme focal length range. Before I start, I wish to highlight that this is a lengthy sharing session of my personal experience with this lens but not too much on the technical specifications. You may skip to the Conclusion if you wish to, or just browse the photos.Hi Daniel. Thanks for bringing this to my attention, it seems the results for 100mm got muddled with the results from 18mm & 50mm. If there’s one kind of lens that tends to get a bad press, it’s the all-in-one ‘superzoom’. Conventional wisdom states that zooms with a 3x range can be optically excellent, and 4x can still be very good, but extend that to 10x or more and the compromises become too great. Because of this, many enthusiast photographers feel they should shun superzooms on principle and instead use two zooms to cover the same focal-length range.