Customer Reviews

Tamron AF 17-35mm f/2.8-4.0 Di LD SP Aspherical (IF) Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

For film cameras, 17-35mm has become the most versatile "very wide angle" zoom range. With digital bodies this focal range translates to ca. 25-52mm, what makes this lens a "wide to standard" zoom. Because the lens is calculated for full 35mm size frame, vignetting is not a problem. Most of full frame lenses are in their best sugar spot, when used on DX sized digital sensors, and this Tamron is not an exception.

The lens is not f2.8 in its entire range, but seemingly Tamron chose to design it this way as a compromise toward making it small and light. Compare this lens to the Nikkor 17-35 f2.8 AFS, both in terms of weight, and also in terms of its very attractive price. Of course, for some users all this plastic is just "too cheap" and is not an acceptable option. Personally I vote rather for less grams/pounds, if optical valors are comparable.

The lens seems to be quite sharp, and tests confirm its excellent resolution. Mine has only very little distortions, however I saw exemplars of this lens exhibiting visibly more barrel distortions! Probably the manufacturing tolerances are not tight enough...

Front element does not rotate with focusing, but the focusing ring rotates and thus the lens does not support the automatic AF/MF overwrite, like in a AFS Nikkor or in a usual Canon EF lens.

The hood is a total loss. It simply reflects too much light on its internal side. Tamron should really coat their hoods for better light absorption, like others do! Fortunately, this lens seem to control flare quite well. I tend to shade the lens with a hand anyway.

Considering the very attractive price, resolution and weight, this is a good product, great value for the money. If you do not like plastic like that, consider than the need to spend $1200 for the genuine Nikkor alternative, and maybe than the plastic will not appear that bad after all.

My generic problem with all Di XP Tamron lenses is however their lack of good grip to perform quick lens exchange. When changing this lens, you will end up turning both focusing and zooming rings to some degree, sometimes to a lot of degree... I wish that Tamron would have made the both rings a bit shorter, and provided good grip in the middle to turn the lens reliably into and out of the mount.

Since I am not super-professional making money from taking pictures, I was looking for a reasonably priced wide angle lens for my Nikon D700 camera. This Tamron lens is exactly what I needed. It focuses very fast and I take great quality pictures with it.

NOTE!!! If you use the same (or similar in functionality) camera as I do (D700), don't forget to move the lens's aperture ring to the locked position! Otherwise you will get an error message on your camera. With the locked ring on the lens you control the lens's aperture by the CAMERA dial (in manual M or A modes). Another word, the aperture ring should stay at locked (at 22) in any mode, but the actual aperture will depend on the camera setting.

I've often read the great reviews Tamron lenses get in magazines and have often thought of buying one, but always ended up going for a cheaper option. Finally, I decided to buy this. Was it worth the little extra? The answer is a resounding YES. The lens feels much better built and the results are far superior. The photographs are as sharp as they could possibly be and the colour saturaton is amazing. The lens covers 17-35mm which is great for covering the wide angle/standard range. Anyone who buys this is in for a treat.

Bought this lens for my Nikon D50 camera. Coupled with circular polirizing filter and great blue skies (with a dash of clouds) this lens can capture amazing shots. I won't bother you with all the tech details - you can read that on the product description page. This lens needs good light - by that I mean good amount of natural light or an assist from your add-on flash. My camera's built-in flash is barely adequate to capture the wide-angled shots. Under good lighting conditions even the basic jpg shots show vertually no pixelation noise. I've kept it mounted on my camera ever since I bought it. Sharp, fast and light-weight - that's enough to make me happy. Very satisfied. Thank you Tamron for yet another great lens.

I bought this lens for use indoors at family gatherings and for scenery. I knew this was a fast lens (f/2.8) but was surprised at the physical size of it. I was also amazed at the filter size it required as well. Anyway, I gave the lens to my son (we both shoot with Nikon D50s) and he LOVES this lens. He has taken hundreds of images with it and the ones I have seen are GREAT. Sharp and clear. I should mention that I went with the Sigma 18-50mm because it was physically smaller, utilizes the 58mm filter size available in my camera bag, and cost about $200 less.

I bought the Tamron used as a temporary measure during a cash-poor period of my life, when I needed a wide angle zoom for a photo assignment. I intended to keep it only until I could afford a Nikon lens, but after using it for awhile, didn't see any reason to switch.

I only have one data point, and can't speak for consistency or build quality, but I've had remarkable results with this lens. I shoot real estate photos (interior and exterior shot) and have found this lens to be remarkably sharp. When the Nikon 16-35 VRII came out, I rented one thinking I would switch, but with careful side-by-side testing at several focal lengths, I found that the Tamron was sharper. Maybe I got a bad copy of the Nikon lens -- again, I only have one data point -- but from what I've seen, I'd take the Tamron any day. It is one hell of a value.

Adobe Lightroom has a lens correction profile specifically for this lens that works extremely well. The lens doesn't distort a lot even at 17mm. The Lightroom profile corrects what's left.

I have some high-end Nikon lenses, and I don't try to fool myself that cheap lenses are "just as good", but I also don't try to fool myself that mere expense always buys your quality. In some cases (the Nikon 85mm f1.4, for instance) there's no substitute for the real thing, but in other cases, a third-party lens can provide exceptional value. The Tamron 17-35 is a good example of the latter.

The appearance and construction seems very high quality. Finish, feel and texture is excellent - far more superior than some of the Nikon branded ones at this price range.

Has slight trouble focusing in low light but this problem isn't exactly unique to this lens.
Very, very good picture quality. Wide angle at f/2.8 at this price range with this quality and performance level is very, very rare. I was pleasantly surprised.

The lens body lacks enough gripping area for mounting or removing -you'll always end up turning something while trying to get a grip. Otherwise, this is an awesome bang for the buck.

I have recently expanded my lens package to include this beauty from Tamron, which is the only wide angle lens that I'm carrying in my kit right now.

My penchant is landscape & architecture pictures, and this lens never disappoints in either of those two arenas. Now - having said that - I must also admit that I've wandered around Walt Disney World for days at a time keeping ONLY this lens on my camera and taking portraits, interior pictures of rides, and architecture shots, all the while getting great shots.

The focusing mechanism is smooth and works well for my needs. I've noticed precious little if any distortion, even on the far edges of my images, and although this is rated a f/2.8 - 4.0, I have to wonder if it doesn't outdo that just a bit - it performs spectacularly well in dark conditions; I've been very pleased with the images I've captured, even in less than stellar light. Daytime images are equally spectacular.

See a sample image taken with this lens here: [...]

I'm very pleased with this lens, and would highly recommend it to anyone interested in a wide angle lens.

NOTE: I use this in conjunction with a Nikon D90, I have also used it on a Nikon D70 with similar results.

I use with my Nikon d200 and the lense is wonderful. worth every penny

Bought this lens from Amazon for a 35mm film SLR (Canon EOS 7NE) and it is
the best lens I had so far.

Color & sharpness are unbelievable!
The only drawback is a very minor barrel distortion.