TAMRON - 16-300 mm F/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD Nikon F Cameras - Black - B016N

Product Information

Let’s talk about all those letters on the side of the lens that were mentioned earlier and go over their meanings. The “Di-II” designation simply means that the lens is intended for use with digital SLR cameras. The “VC” means that the lens is equipped with a vibration compensation (image stabilizer) feature and the “PZD” indicates the lens has Tamron’s proprietary Piezo Drive autofocus mechanism. Fit and Finish Closest focus distance is 39cm, which is very close for a lens that covers up to 300mm and focusing is performed internally. The 67mm filter thread does not rotate, which should make this lens ideal for use with graduated filters and polarisers. A petal shaped hood is supplied with the lens, which attaches to the front via a bayonet fitting. This lens gives the equivalent of 24.8mm wide-angle zooming to 465mm, on Nikon and Sony APS-C crop cameras, and 25.6mm to 480mm on a Canon camera, in 35mm terms. Previously the most optical zoom you could get in an APS-C super-zoom DSLR lens started at 18mm (27/28mm equivalent Nikon/Canon) and zoomed to either 200mm (Canon) 250mm (Sigma), 270mm (Tamron), or 300mm (Nikon). At the wide-angle end, sharpness is very high, right to the corners from f/5.6. At 16mm (24mm equivalent) it's wider than any other superzoom. There's obvious barrel distortion and CA visible in this uncorrected image. If you’re going to shoot on the fly, you want to ensure you get a camera that provides image stabilization. Without it, the shutter speed drops below the focal length, and the resulting image is blurry.

But there's a fairly long list of downsides too, with image quality at longer focal lengths being perhaps at the top. Sharpness is very high at the wide end when stopped down a little, right across the frame, and that's great for landscapes. At F8, high edge-to-edge sharpness is available up to 100mm or so, but then there's a notable downturn with the edges in particular taking a hit. From 200-300mm, edge sharpness is never very good, not helped by the plentiful levels of chromatic aberration present, but to be fair it stays crisp in the centre. It looks as if Tamron has prioritized central sharpness, on the basis that this is most likely where the main subject will be at longer settings - and as a very rough generalization, that's probably true. Levels of chromatic aberrations are an issue for this lens towards the edges of the frame, especially at 300mm. Here it exceeds two pixel widths, which is a level that may be clearly visible along high contrast areas towards the edges of the frame. The Tamron 16-300mm is a wide-angle telephoto lens designed for DSLR cameras with the APS-C sensor. It offers premium features like a 35mm focal range of 24-450mm, Vibration Compensation for combating blur, 39cm minimum focus distance, Piezo Drive motor, and more. It comes in different fits for various camera types, including Nikon, Sony, and Canon. ProsA: The Tamron 16-300mm comes in three fits; Nikon, Canon, and Sony. The Sony version doesn’t have VC stabilization since all Sony cameras have built-in image stabilization. As with most gear, people place varying degrees of importance on minute details. Here are a few small points that impressed me about the Tamron 16-300mm.

Resistance to flare is high, with good control of veiling glare, colored flare spots and ghosting, when shooting into very bright light. Though far from immune, the Tamron compared well in side by side tests against some of Canon's L-grade zooms. Testament to the efficiency of Tamron's BBAR multi-coating and good attention to internal baffling. Focus BreathingThe stated focal length of a lens is only technically true at infinity focusing distance. 'Focus breathing' is a reduction in focal length at closer range, as a consequence of the internal focusing (IF) mechanism used to keep the overall length of the lens down. All IF lenses do it to some extent, but superzooms are known to be particularly prone as manufacturers push the limits to reduce bulk. I could have saved myself a lot of time and money if I had simply selected this lens as my only lens for the A65. As it is, I will probably sell my prime macro lens and my Sigma 70-300mm zoom. As a walk-around lens that covers a wide variety of shooting situations, this lens is the enthusiasts' dream lens. Plenty of distortion present, with strong +3.2% barreling at 16mm, transitioning through neutral at 18-20mm, then on to almost equally strong pincushion distortion at longer focal lengths, easing off slightly to around -2% at 200-300mm. This is very noticeable in critical subjects like architecture, but easily corrected in software. Specific optical characteristics Macro