Auto Focus - Struggling

futureal33

futureal33

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Hiya,

I recently got hold of a Tamron 28-75mm f2.8 SP AF lens, which I mainly bought for low light photography to improve over my kit lens 18-55

However, upon first use last night in a nightclub where last week I had been using my kit lens, the Tamron really struggled to focus - even in conditions which I wouldnt describe as low light!
I took 4-5 photos with the Tamron and for each one it tried 3+ times to focus and I ended up using MF! So I went back to the Canon 18-55 lens, which immediately performed fine and focused regardless of the light??

Am I doing something wrong, but shouldnt a £300+ lens perform better than the kit lens at Auto Focusing?

I was using the standard camera flash... but even without using flash the Tamron still struggled to focus on things the 18-55 had no problem at all with?
 
Does sound a bit strange. Have you used the Tamron in normal conditions? I've not used that lens so can't comment, but would've thought it would offer an improvement over the kit lens. What body where you using? And what kind of exposure settings were you using in this light?
 
I have read reviews of that Tamron lens being slow to focus in low light or even fail to lock on. Probably indoor photography could mostly be classed as low light.

Does your camera have AF Assist illumination for poor light. If so is it enabled?

Possibly the Tamron you have is a bad one. Can you take it back>
 
are you using the center focus point only? if not try that maybe.
 
My Tamron 90 f2.8 macro is fairly slow to autofocus, and isnt particularly reliable at focussing on my D60 in poor light but is much better on the D90.

Tamron seem to have good optics but focussing appears a weak point......
 
I had a 28-75mm years ago.

AF was abysmal even in moderate light - I simply could not trust it. I hear the 17-50mm F2.8 is much better in this regard.
 
Hi,

Over the few years I have been into photography, one thing has become clear. You can work your way up from third party lenses, but if you want quality and performance you will end up buying Nikon or Canon.

I know some will tell you how good their lens is and of course they are correct. But once you start to use the 'real' thing you will understand what I mean.

I had the Tamron SP AF17-50mm F/2.8 XR Di II a couple of years ago and was not happy with it's clarity nor it's focusing speed. Changed it for a Nikon! I had the Sigma 70 - 200 f2.8 and thought it was great. That was until I changed it for the Nikon!

Worth popping into a shop that will allow you to try.

Best regards

Chris
 
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