Customer Reviews

Tamron AF 60mm f/2.0 SP DI II LD IF 1:1 Macro Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Before I bought this lens I used a friends Canon 100mm Macro. While that was a great lens I felt 100mm was too much reach to use everyday. I also used another friends 50mm f1.8 and wasn't happy with it either, though the distance was better for using as a walking around lens.

This lens is the best of both worlds for me.

Pros:
60mm is a great distance
Fixed lenses offer incredible image quality, this lens is no exception.
Solid contruction.
Light weight (much lighter than the 100mm)
Comes with a hood.

Cons:
AF can be slow/sometimes it searches, but it isn't too loud.

Conculsion: This lens hasn't left my XSi body sense I got it. It is truly wonderful. The AF was a bit of a problem at first but once I attached a Speedlite 430 the AF assist beam almost completely eliminated the problem.

I highly recommend this lens.

UPDATE: 3/9/11:
- Canon has confirmed that some Tamron lenses (including this one) do not work as they should with the Canon xxD line and the Canon 7D. I just upgraded to a 7D and the Auto Focus is practically useless. If the lens is starting in a "very out of focus" position when you press the shutter release, sometimes it won't do anything at all. Other times it will hunt through the entire focus range return to where it started and then confirm the focus. If it is close to focus sometimes it will still take seveal seconds to lock on.

I do no recommend this lens of you have a xxD body or a 7D.

UPDATE: 4/18/11
I haven't touched this lens in a while. But I got it back out the other day to play with it. And it seems that if I select one a single AF point the autofocus is much better. If I select Zone AF, or All 19 points it gets worse. The performance from a very out of focus position is still not good. For my test I used the Tamron 60mm and a Canon 24-70 f2.8L. I used a blank wall with a small hole where a nail used to be. I sat about 6-8 feet away, I started both from the minimum focusing distance and tried to get the lenses to focus on the hole using All 19 AF points, and Spot AF (center point). With Spot AF both lenses found the hole and locked on, however the Tamron took 2-3 times longer than the Canon L did.

I then switched to All 19 AF points. The Tamron failed to achieve focus on the nail 3 times out of 3. However the Canon L successfully found focus on the hole every time.

This is my first true macro lens. I have had it for about a month now and am using it with a Canon Rebel XSi. I am very pleased with its performance and the great shots it has produced. The pictures I've gotten are extremely crisp. The ability to use manual focus while in the Auto focus mode is a very nice feature. You don't have to take the camera from your eye to switch off the auto focus. That is a time and picture saver especially when you have a situation such as a bee or other insect flying around and you only have seconds to get that great shot. I love the feel of the focus ring and overall feel of this lens. It feels smooth and has the feel of a quality product. I find the speed (f2) great for those close-ups of insects such as bees or flowers on an overcast day where you don't want to use a flash. Image stabilization would be nice, but that would add to the cost. This is my second Tamron lens and again I am very pleased with this product and the results I have gotten. I would not hesitate to recommend this lens.

My friend just bought this lens and let me check it out. In one word Fantastic! It is among the sharpest lens I have seen in a lens of this class even wide open. I have a 50D and that camera is pure torture on lesser lenses, but the Tamron has no problem keeping up with its hunger for resolution. The other two reviewers commented on the price, but I don't see that as a con as you are paying only a little more over Nikon and Canons (other brands to) for an extra stop. This is worth it to me. Most would argue you don't need the extra stop on most macro as you usually want more depth of field and this is true, but this lens also is intended for portraiture and for that the extra light does come in really handy, even when doing flowers and what not a shallow DoF can help add interest to a subject.

This lens does not have the build of say an "L" lens but does seem sturdy and have no doubts it would hold up well even if it got some rough treatment. The focus ring is smooth and responsive combined with its light weight makes this lens a joy to use. I will defiantly be ordering my own copy of this lens as soon as I get paid and can't wait. I highly recommend this lens to anyone looking for a macro in the 60mm range.

I had been looking for a lens to shoot flowers, food and objects with that beautiful, shallow dof and crisp focus of subject. This is a great lens all around. I have an older Canon EOS D10 and it makes this camera like new. Also great for portraits.

This lens feels solid, looks good, and works well. It's for Canon digital (APS-C sized sensors) only, there's also a version for Nikon and Sony setups. The focal length is the equivalent of 93mm in the 35mm world. This is very close to the traditional 100mm Macro lens length. But it's a full stop faster than either the Canon EF-S 60mm macro (f/2.0 vs. f/2.8) or the Canon EF 100mm macro (full frame usable, f/2.0 vs. f/2.8 again). And it's more expensive than the Canon. Usually the third party lenses appeal to us on cost, but not here. The appeal and what you get for your extra money is a full stop of additional light gathering ability.

Price aside, this is a very nice lens and no Canon system owner would be unhappy with it. Until there's a Canon L-series Macro in the 100mm focal length range (in 35mm terms), either the Canon or this Tamron are as good as it gets. But the cost? I'm using this lens and reviewing it, but I'd probably purchase the cheaper Canon lens myself. In my own macro photography I typically want as much depth of field as I can get. Typically outdoors I'd shoot at f/5.6 or higher. Indoors, with lights, f/11 or 16 is more typical. For how I do it, that extra stop isn't too useful. Your mileage, obviously, would vary on that issue.

I have had the lens for a few days and find there are some pros and cons .
On the positive side, it is light, feels sturdy but not pro like glass (does not feel like a tank which allow it to be light). It is able to take crisp and well balanced images. It is nice and crisp from about f/4. Gives you a great portrait and macro lens with 1:1. It goes to f/2 which is great in the case of low light and allows for faster focusing vs. a darker lens. Great bokeh and internal focusing so filters don't move. It allows manual focus in AF mode which is very nice and does not require a switch to be moved.

On the con side, it is not cheep. For the Canon 60mm you pay a lot less.I liked the idea of the MF in AF mode and the f/2. It also is a bit sluggish in general on focusing (more so then my other lenses - Sigma). It does not have image stabilization, which considering the cost vs. other 60 mm macro lenses one would think they could have added it on to help justify the extra spend (but it did not stop me from buying).

So over all I am very happy and would suggest this for other interesting in a macro lens. Because of the cost and sluggish focusing I give it a 4/5 but would really say it is a 4.5 if given that as an option.

I've had a handful of macro lenses over the last few years (Sigma 105mm, Tamron 90mm, Canon 50mm), but this is my favorite. I got rid of my 50mm 1.8 to make room for this, and I have no regrets.

It works great as a macro lens (love that internal focusing) and as a portrait lens.

It's actually a pretty quiet lens when it comes to focusing, and the full-time manual focus (might be a first for Tamron) seals the deal.

Now, do I think it's worth $100+ more than Canon's 60mm f/2.8 macro? Probably not. But through Amazon, I got a "used" (barely) copy of this lens for $310, and at _that_ price, it's a steal. If the two lenses were at the same price, I'd buy this one every time.

This lens will mount on a full-frame camera, something the Canon 60mm will not. I've not extensively tested it on a full-frame, but it works pretty well. As good as a macro designed for full frame? No, but close.

I had been wanting a macro lens for a while ever since I had to chance to use a Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM Lens for Canon SLR Cameras. That Canon lens is sharp and has great build quality so it is easy to see why it has gotten so many good reviews. I also toyed with the idea of getting the Tamron AF 90mm f/2.8 Di SP A/M 1:1 Macro Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras which is also supposed to be very good. However, after playing around with my 18-200mm zoom set at 90mm/100mm, I found this range was simply too long for practical daily use.

I was looking at the Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 Macro USM Digital SLR Lens for EOS Digital SLR Cameras as I wanted something that had a more useful focal range and could perhaps replace my Canon 50mm f/1.8. But f/2.8 is not f/1.8. Then I discovered this lens and it seemed to fit the bill. I have had good experience with the Tamron AF 17-50mm F/2.8 XR Di-II LD SP ZL Aspherical (IF) Zoom Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras so I ordered the 60mm. I am happy to say this lens is excellent!

For macro shots, this thing is very sharp. But if you are trying to shoot macro at f/2.0, you'd better have pretty still hands because it's easy to miss the focus if you even move a hair. At 60mm, it's good as a walkaround lens and the length also works well as a portraiture lens (on a 1.6x crop it is 96mm). The bokeh is very nice... better than my 50mm f/1.8 for sure, but not as creamy as the Canon 100mm. This lens is already sharp at f/2.0 and incredibly sharp at f/3.2 and higher. The construction is pretty good and feels very balanced on the camera. The full-time manual focus, even with the lens set on autofocus, is a fantastic feature. It's great being able to tweak your focus without having to flick a switch. The included hood can be reverse-mounted on the lens when not in use, but completely hides the focus ring when mounted this way, so you should get in the habit of mounting the hood properly when you are going to be shooting macro.

The one negative I could point out, and this is not a biggie, is that the focusing seems to hunt a bit in lower light situations and is a little noisy. In reality, it's not very loud at all, but it certainly is not as quiet when compared to Canon's USM found on their 60mm or 100 macro lenses.

Overall, if you are looking to get into macro photography and would like a useful walkaround lens for your camera, get the Tamron AF 60mm f/2.0 and you won't be disappointed!

This lens works just as you'd hope. The wide aperture helps when used as a normal telephoto and aids focussing for macro work. The build is as good as you'll get in this price range and it is very light compared to some macro lenses. there is a nice big grip for manual focus and the autofocus has no issues. I can't think of any negatives worth mentioning.

I'd say the lens is solid all around. I'm not the most experienced with sharpness/etc. I've taken a few hundred pictures with it all ready. I never realized how difficult macro photography really is. Getting the focus right is so, so difficult at 1:1 ratio.

The focus on this lens seems pretty fast on my Canon 60D. It should work well for sports photography, especially with its 60mm + 2.0 aperature.

I'd definitely recommend the lens to someone looking for a cheaper + faster lenses than the canon alterative. I'm replacing my 50mm 1.8 with this lens, since it's more versatile.