Tamron SP 150-600mm F5-6.3 DI IF VC USD

sthwild said:
Apart from AF issue this lens is actually great. Build quality, contrast, sharpness, stabilisation. The other thing I'm worried about is this lens with 1D body on a gimbal. It's a bit too light I think.
Anyway, once I test it on BIF and in Cad West, I'll give my final verdict.
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i'd be interested in your review on bif and cad west. a real life test from an owner/user is way better than a cam mag review. cheers mike.
 
dinorock said:
i'd be interested in your review on bif and cad west. a real life test from an owner/user is way better than a cam mag review. cheers mike.
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I did all the autofocus and MTF sharpness testing for the review in Digital SLR Photography magazine. The pheasant shot isn't mine, but the AF servo-tracking sequence is (on a Canon 7D) and the report is an accurate reflection of how the lens performs. As are the comments I've made on this thread. If I needed a lens of that focal length for £1k, I'd buy it.

BIFing is much more a test of the photographer's ability to nail the AF point reliably on the subject, than of anything any lens can do. Getting the best out of that kind of focal length with moving subjects, almost 1000mm equivalent on a crop-format camera, is not at all easy. And given the Tamron's f/6.3 at the long end, rather than f/4 or f/5.6, it needs a bit of help now and then. That's inevitable, and that's also why it's affordable and sharp.

Pin the AF point accurately on a contrasty area of the subject, and it will focus fast and reliably; if you don't, it won't. Depth of field is almost always very shallow and when you initially go to frame up a subject, everything's such a blur that the lens doesn't know what to do and can hunt around. All very long lenses are the same here, and the expensive primes have multiple/adjustable focus zone limiters to help, whereas the Tamron has one AF zone limiter setting. The technique I used was to tweak the focus manually to get it close (the control layout is well suited to this) while selecting a contrasty area, and then the AF locks on fast, and it will stay locked as long as that AF point stays planted. AF performance all hinges on that.
 
HoppyUK said:
I did all the autofocus and MTF sharpness testing for the review in Digital SLR Photography magazine. The pheasant shot isn't mine, but the AF servo-tracking sequence is (on a Canon 7D) and the report is an accurate reflection of how the lens performs. As are the comments I've made on this thread. If I needed a lens of that focal length for £1k, I'd buy it.

BIFing is much more a test of the photographer's ability to nail the AF point reliably on the subject, than of anything any lens can do. Getting the best out of that kind of focal length with moving subjects, almost 1000mm equivalent on a crop-format camera, is not at all easy. And given the Tamron's f/6.3 at the long end, rather than f/4 or f/5.6, it needs a bit of help now and then. That's inevitable, and that's also why it's affordable and sharp.

Pin the AF point accurately on a contrasty area of the subject, and it will focus fast and reliably; if you don't, it won't. Depth of field is almost always very shallow and when you initially go to frame up a subject, everything's such a blur that the lens doesn't know what to do and can hunt around. All very long lenses are the same here, and the expensive primes have multiple/adjustable focus zone limiters to help, whereas the Tamron has one AF zone limiter setting. The technique I used was to tweak the focus manually to get it close (the control layout is well suited to this) while selecting a contrasty area, and then the AF locks on fast, and it will stay locked as long as that AF point stays planted. AF performance all hinges on that.
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hi rich,so are you suggesting its user error with the posts already saying there are af "issues" i'm seriously interested in this lens and i know it took me a while to get used to my 150-500 siggy. cheers mike
 
I have the Sigma 150-500 OS, would the Tamron be a worthy upgrade or just a side step?
 
dinorock said:
hi rich,so are you suggesting its user error with the posts already saying there are af "issues" i'm seriously interested in this lens and i know it took me a while to get used to my 150-500 siggy. cheers mike
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I'm not quite saying that, but I'd put money on 90% of reported AF problems being either user error, or down to the camera, or less than optimum AF set-up. Or possibly users having unrealistic expectations. Very long lenses are simply not easy to use; they're not like say a slightly longer version of a 70-200 or 70-300 - they require a whole new approach, whatever the brand or spec.

I have also spoken to the chiefs at Introphoto (Tamron importers) twice on this subject, and they officially deny any inherent problems with the AF. That doesn't mean the odd rogue won't slip through, but they're selling these things faster than they can make them and Tamron would be totally dumb to be sending out new stock with any known issues that would only come straight back to bite them very hard.
 
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double post
 
HoppyUK said:
I'm not quite saying that, but I'd put money on 90% of reported AF problems being either user error, or down to the camera, or less than optimum AF set-up. Or possibly users having unrealistic expectations. Very long lenses are simply not easy to use; they're not like say a slightly longer version of a 70-200 or 70-300 - they require a whole new approach, whatever the brand or spec.

I have also spoken to the chiefs at Introphoto (Tamron importers) twice on this subject, and they officially deny any inherent problems with the AF. That doesn't mean the odd rogue won't slip through, but they're selling these things faster than they can make them and Tamron would be totally dumb to be sending out new stock with any known issues that would only come straight back to bite them very hard.
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cheers for taking the time to explain,i understand that there are lots of amateurs including me who have a steep learning curve when it comes to long lenses. i have a full frame D700 so no massive crop factor to take into account although my siggy performs very well on my D300 which is a crop. i'm looking for more reach on my D700 without the need for a teleconverter, cheers mike.
 
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For storage when not using I have one of those maplin aluminium cases with foam blocks you can remove to make the right shape and the case fits the lens nicely.

When in use I bought one of the new manfrotto back packs ( a 'professional 20') which allows the camera ( I have 5d3 too) with lens attached to fit 'nose down' and still have room for several other lenses, bodies, flash etc in a neat and compact package. One of the best bags I've bought IMO...
 
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HoppyUK said:
I think this ThinkTank Holster will take it with hood reversed. Designed for a camera with battery-grip http://www.thinktankphoto.com/products/digital-holster-50-v2.aspx

I had a smaller one, and they're good. Use the shoulder strap or it'll pull your trousers down with that lens :D
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Thanks for pointing me in that direction, Richard. I see the DH30 is the same depth but it's designed for a camera without a grip. It might do as well.

I will be careful with the trousers.........

Jamie, I'm looking to carry the lens with body attached separately to the rest of my gear, so a backpack isn't really suitable. Thanks though......
 
Cancelled my order for the nikon mount of this lens. Thought long and hard about it and decided i would rather get the 300MM F4 and a 1.7tc. Think i will probably still end up with this lens but not for 12 months.

Will still be interested to see how the nikon mount performs
 
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I've found a holster-style pouch which will fit a canon 5d3, with fitted L-plate, plus mounted 150-600 zoom, plus tripod foot, plus hood (reversed).

It's the Tamrac 5630 or Pro Digital Zoom 10. Price about £55.

I tried the Think Tank DH30 (as almost recommended by HoppyUK) but found it was just too small in every dimension. The DH 50 would probably have fitted the 5d3 plus L-plate, but I suspect the slim dimensions of the holster lower down would have caused problems with the tripod foot and hood.

Hope this might be of help to someone!
 
yeah I thought that, but figured you would want to use the lens foot, but if you where swapping lenses then that would be better ;-)
 
pingu666 said:
yeah I thought that, but figured you would want to use the lens foot, but if you where swapping lenses then that would be better ;-)
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L-bracket stays permanently fitted to the camera, whether you're using it or not.
 
Wow - after having it sit on the desk staring at me for two weeks I finally went out yesterday - and was blown away with the results!

View attachment 8927
The above was at 600mm handheld in crappy African light...

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The above was shot on Ai Servo

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And lastly a panning shot at 1/80th of a second - no focus dramas at all, even in crap light!

(The above images look soft because I've reduced the quality for speedy upload - I am on Kenyan internet after all!)
 
when will this lens be back in stock seems to be very popular because its on pre-order on all my usual websites i visit. i wanna try one :D
 
I've only just found this 'thread', and what a fascinating read it has been has been.

I have a 5D Mklll, and until now, my longest lens was the EF 703-300L f.4-5.6 IS USM.

As this lens doesn't work with a TC, and I wanted a bit more 'reach', I started looking at longer focal length lenses in the 'not silly money' range.

My first consideration was the Sigma 150-500, but having read many reviews, spoken users of this lens on another forum, and at my camera club, it clearly wasn't going to give me the image quality (IQ) I wanted, at the long-end, when wide-open. So this lens was removed from my 'shopping list'.

My next, and quite a serious consideration, was the Tamron 150-600. Having had the Tamron 70-300 f/4-5.6 Di VC USD, which at the time I used with an EOS 7D, being impressed by both the build quality, and the IQ over most of the range, it even being reasonable at the long-end, the 150-600 seemed very tempting at <£1k.

I read several reviews, which while being quite favourable were, perhaps not unexpectedly on a big zoom like this at less the £1k, critical of the fall off in sharpness at the long-end, if used wide-open (f/6.3). It was said that in order to achieve good sharpness at 600mm, an aperture of f/10 was needed.

Until reading this 'thread', I was unaware of the AF problem, but what I had already read regarding not being able to use the lens wide-open at the long-end, without some degradation in IQ, and needing up stop down to at least f/10 to improve things, caused me to step back and 'take stock' of where I was heading.

My main concern was that with my other lenses being Canon L series (24-105 & 70-300), which are 'pin sharp' wide-open throughout their focal length range, I was not going to be completely happy with anything less. Even less so, if I had spent close to £1k.

If had £5k to spend on a lens, then life would be very simple, but that just isn't going to happen.

So, I canvassed the thoughts of experienced photographers (wildlife and aircraft) on another forum, and eventually whittled it down to what I considered was the most sensible and affordable way forward for me. Primarily, this meant sticking with L Glass, but without spending 'silly money', while retaining the sort of IQ that I was used to.

As result I bought the EF 400mm f/5.6 L USM, to which I intend the add a Canon Series lll 1.4x TC, to give my f/8 at 580mm, when needed. Total cost <£1200 new, with frugal shopping that is. :)

Yep, I know this lens doesn't have IS, but one very experienced wildlife photographer, who has used a variety of long lenses, says the vast majority of his 'keepers' at these long focal lengths, are those taken with the IS switched off. Another guy, who uses the non-IS EF 400mm f/5.6 L, plus 1.4x TC, posted some images taken hand-held in woodland, with this set-up, and they were 'pin sharp.

Of course, you are going to have to use a shutter speed, of at least equal that of the focal length, which means upping the ISO accordingly. However, with the 5D Mklll, that isn't an issue, as it's high ISO low noise performance is excellent.

Having read through this 'thread', I have to say that I am now even more comfortable with my choice.

I sincerely hope that Tamron resolve the AF issue, as I'm sure they will, and that the dust problem experienced is a one-off, and not inherent in the design.

Dave
 
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i panted and fussed over this lens to ,luckily a friend of mine bought one and we met up and did a swap for a day ,on various wildlife targets ,i already have a 400mm f5.6 and a 1.4mkii t.c ,(which btw daveS20 ) gives 560mm not 580 .
anyway after a full day of hide shots followed by b.i.f the conclusion was the on a pro body 1D or 5D with f8 a/f the canon set up has just got the edge slightly ,and as i would have to sell mine to fund the tamron it was a no brainer ,however for someone who didn't already have that reach the tamron is a excellent lens and there was virtually no noticeable difference ,using my 1Dmkiii i achieved lock on with b.i.f around 60% of the time roughly the same as my canon rig ,and having previously owned a sigma 150-500mm.os the tamron was far superior all round .
i'll go so far as to say that given time if a s/h one comes on the market or the new price drops a bit i would get a tamron as a back up lens without a doubt
 
Taking a long time for the new batch (reportedly due early March) to become available - maybe not so easy to resolve the A/F issues.
 
None, I've been hoping there would have been someone from Japan who'd review the Nikon mount by now but I've not found any. Still no news on the Mid-May release for Nikon & Sony & still no stock for the Canon... I guess the issues are harder to fix than expected!

I'd really like to get hold of this lens before Sunderland Air Show but with all the delays I'm not confident about it's quality now, lets just hope that the delays are needed to have a perfect lens released!
 
Think two of our nikon members from the USA now have them in nikon so any problems must be sorted
 
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