Tamron A17NII AF 70-300mm F/4-5.6 Di LD Macro 1:2 Nikon+Motor

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This lens is very lightweight, but without feeling flimsy. The fit and finish of the materials used is good and a metal lens mount has been used, which will stand up to many lens changes. MTF (Modulation Transfer Function) curves describe to what extent the tested lens can faithfully reproduce contrast of the subject in images it captures.

I've also sometimes noticed that the issue shows up purely by focusing on something in the distance, before I even take the shot. In October 2020 Tamron introduced the 70-300mm f4.5-6.3 Di III RXD (model A047) for the Sony E-mount. Now this 4.3x zoom becomes Tamron’s first lens for the Nikon Z-mount – and it’s currently the only lens for Z-mount with this zoom range. Nikon is clearly adopting a two-pronged approach with respect to licensing: for some lenses, Nikon’s decided to build or brand their own versions of Tamron’s optical designs (for example, the Z 18-28mm f2.8, Z 28-75mm f2.8, Z 70-180 f2.8), while the 70-300mm here is clearly a Tamron-branded model and more are likely to follow. This is good news as the portfolio of autofocus lenses for Nikon Z-mount is sure to expand even further and offer more choices for photographers using Nikon mirrorless cameras. I mostly do Nature photography and the lens as most know can become very expensive, so it's imperative to make the right choices. I expect the upcoming choices to be far more expensive than the Tamron. I have no problem with that. I do have problem with the current choices. So you have no idea of what I expect nor need from a lens nor my budget. So don't go telling me what to expect concerning features at what price. Importantly, full-time manual focus override is also possible and the lens is also fully compatible with the "Direct Manual Focus (DMF)" system feature of Sony cameras that enables the user to instantly switch between autofocus and manual focus.The difference in image quality between the 70-300 L and the Tamron 70-300 VC is readily apparent in the results. Overall the lens is usable through its entire focal length, when you keep a few large aperture values in mind that you might want to avoid because of noticeable corner blur. The purple fringing can be quite disturbing in high-contrast photos and it cost quite an effort to alleviate the effect in Photoshop. However, what makes this lens still very attractive is its low weight and relatively small dimensions, making it a good choice for travellers. Given the very low price of this lens, the image quality is actually quite acceptable.

You can view sample images captured with theTamron 70-300mm F/4.5-6.3 Di III RXD at the bottom of this article.

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I bought this lens a few months ago, and tried to do a lot of homework before visiting my photographic dealer, discounting several lenses which didn't reach the starting grid. I then short-listed 2 Canons - 70-200 F4L USM (non-IS) and the much-loved 70-300 IS USM. The salesman threw in the Tamron as a wild card and I'm seriously glad he did. Aside from being narrow at the long end, the 70-300's variable max aperture means that manual exposures utilizing Cons: On the negative side, I would say that images taken with the Tamron lense do not have the richness of colour of the Nikon lenses, however this can be adjusted in post processing to the user's taste.

I actually view this as a positive attribute as it forces proper use of hood (I see hoods used in reverse position FAR too often). The Tamron 70-300 VC will work best in this regard when shooting a subject that remains a near-constant distance from the camera under a healthy level of daylight. One of Nikon's better lenses, the Nikon offers superior sharpness, but poorer CA performance, when compared to the Tamron. We haven't had an opportunity yet to test this lens on a full-frame body. Otherwise, both lenses feature USM style focusing and image stabilization.

Tamron's feature-rich new 70-300mm telephoto lens aims to go top of the class

There's some distortion present in images shot with the Tamron 70-300mm ƒ/4-5.6, but no more than other lenses in this category. At 70mm, the distortion is almost negligible - just a slight amount of barrel in the corners. From 135mm and on, there's significant pincushion distortion in the corners. As usual, this distortion is much more significant when the lens is used on full-frame cameras such as the 1Ds Mark III. Build quality is fine, but not quite as good as past Tamron "SP" branded lenses that we've reviewed. The Tamron 70-300mm F4.5-6.3 Di III RXD feels solid enough in your hand, despite its aluminum-magnesium alloy construction. The Nikon 70 - 300 VR lense I bought subsequently does a better job of photographing birds (at a much higher cost). I also bought a Nikon 105 VR Micro lense which, while excellent, does not provide the same working distance as the Tamron lense. A very usefull lens, sharp between 70 and 260mm but don't forget stopping down while you increase your focal lengh (ex. 70mm sharp at f/5.6 / 135mm sharp at f/7.1 / 200mm sharp at f/11 etc...) to get the maximum out of it !