Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens USA

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

Bought Tamron 17-50mm VC lens to compliment Nikon 80-200 mm f/2.8 to shoot video with D7000. This is my first Tamron lens ( have plenty of Nikon and couple of very good Sigma (10-20mm and 50-500mm). Nikon 24-70mm f2.8 was not an option because of size and weight- U don`t want to carry Nikon 24-70mm with Nikon 80-200mm. Hence Tamron, also was curious, saw beautiful vids shot with this lens.
Got to say: very, very happy with this lens. Glad I got it. Built very good, have really nice feel in your hands. The size just right ! The lens are very Sharp and Bright. Yes, sharp at all F stops. I was pleasantly surprised with gorgeous colour rendition. Now , i have my eye on Tamron 28-75mm f2.8 lens.
Reading some reviews, I`d like to point out one obvious, but apparently not for everyone, thing to remember :
At large apertures f2.8/3.2 depth of field is Very shallow , so only tiny!! slice of picture is in focus, the rest is out of focus and it is Not !! malfunction. That`s the idea of wide aperture. Try to keep that in mind when You evaluate lenses. Be sharp, don`t listen to bad-mouthing. Try Tamron , I think You will be happy as I am. Thanks, Tamron. Keep it up!

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

It was great in low light, but I found that it didn't work for many things I shoot.
Terrible if shooting into the sun and the VC was too slow for action (like animals on the move). And it was a bit heavy.
Though, it was very impressive in low light situations. I was amazed at the clarity that it produced when shooting in a dimly lit room. Some things were a compromise, but for the money it could be a good addition.

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

Very good lens with awesome service.
Had very little back focus issue. Send it back to Tamron. Five days later it was back to me. That's fast service. It was also done under warranty, icing on the cake. Very pleased with tamron.

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

I am a prosumer, photography is my passion. I probably shoot as much as a professional, but I don't earn money for it.

That being said, I use a D7000 and love to shoot cities at night. Before bying this lens I was suspicious about Tamron and other brands like this (Sigma, Tokina ...). I only had Nikon Lenses until then.
But I tried, and jumped on this cheap and great opportunity.

So far I have to say :
- The lens is a little big, not too heavy but well constructed. It feels pretty good.
- The stabilization is good, but produces a little noise (take it in account if you shoot video without an external mic (who DOES ??))
- For its price and range, it is sharp. Not super sharp but great. And it is from corner to corner. I don't see any difference between the middle and the corners at 17mm 2.8.
- The VC (stabilization) takes half a second to start, but then it works great. I don't see a lot of difference between my Nikkors VR and this Tamron VC.
- When you engage the manual focus, it is smoothand great to manipulate, one of the best I used.

For this price, I think that you get more that what you're paying for. It is a great deal for any one who wants a fast, everyday lens :)

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

I had tried the Nikon 17-55 f2.8 lens at a local camera store a couple times and have been wanting to get it for awhile. The lady at the camera store then starting telling me about this lens and said the people at the store had been messing around with that lens and were amazed at how sharp the pictures were. She thought it was just as good as the Nikon. So I went home and started reading some reviews and it didnt appear to be as good as the Nikon, but have the VC where the Nikon does not intrigued me. I really loved the feel of the Nikon and how fast and quiet it was, but as always, the price was a big problem. I found this lens used for a great price and compared to a used Nikon, I was saving $600, so i just couldnt justify the extra cost. I got this lens today and have been testing it out. I was not impressed with it as much as I was the Nikon. It is noiser and a tad slower in focusing. The zoom ring is stiffer then the nikon and I dont like it as much. But the biggest annoyance is the VC. When it is active, it will cause your picture frame to shake right before it locks focus. The manual states that this is normal. I dont really care for my picture to shake for a second before my focus locks on. Kind of annoying. As far as quality of pictures...i have not taken very many yet, but they do seem to be good quality pictures and it does a good job. Is it as good as the Nikon? I dont think so, but is the Nikon worth $600 more?....probably not. If you have the money, get the Nikon, but if you are on a budget, then this lens is worth the money and you will be hard pressed to find the difference in picture quality vs the Nikon.

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

great low light. make noise when it auto focus but its not terrible. can live with it. just be sure to pick the lens designated for nikon or canon. works great with crop sensors.

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

I got this lens hoping that the positive reviews of it were the norm and the negative ones were the exception. Just returned this lens few days ago after using it for about 10 days. Biggest problems: focus issues(sometimes sharp, other times soft from 2.8 and up) , images shot at 2.8 were too soft for my liking(2.8 is why I made purchase). The build of lens seemed good, auto focus a tad slower than I'm used to and the VC did seem to work. I got this lens for the constant 2.8 aperture, thought I could use it for weddings and other events. OMG highly disappointing to say the least. Looks like I'll shell out the extra $$ for the Nikon 17-55 2.8 at some point.
I used the lens on a D90
I can not recommend this lens to anyone.

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

product use for special event

great in low light
auto focusing very fast

I Purchased this lens a month ago use it right out of then for a special event. this lens preformed well beyond expectations.

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

sharp but noisy

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

I purchased the Tamron 17-50 VC specifically for my Nikon D200 and use this particular combination mostly as my travel gear. I'd read a lot of pro and user-reviews of the Tamron and was actually preparing to be a little disappointed. The reviews did point out the lens' qualities, such as excellent center sharpness, good color and contrast, etc. But nearly all of them talked also of softness at the borders and extreme borders, regardless of focal length. Still, based on my previous experience with the non-VC version on one of my Canon bodies, I decided to try the new VC-version.

I am not at all disappointed. This lens is sharp edge-to-edge, with only the most minor softness when shooting wide open. The level of detail this lens can capture is exceptional for this price range, and the VC is exceptional as well ... providing at least a 3-stop advantage over the non-VC model (some say 4-stops).

Another thing is the lens' excellent control over CA. It's practically non-existent. The absence of CA is very noticeable in terms of image crispness overall, even when shooting high contrast scenes.

All in all, this is a great lens ... well above average and worth its cost. The lens is larger and heavier than the non-VC version, but the added weight doesn't upset the balance of camera and lens.

This lens, along with my Nikon D200, provides a very high level of "keepers," higher than I'd be used to with other lenses I've used on the same body.

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

Another great lens from Tamron. Vibration Compensation allows hand held shots inside without flash. Crisp photos every time with this lens.

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

This is the 2nd Tamron lens I purchased for my Nikon D90 and love them both. They take exceptional pictures especially in low light situations. This is a versatile lens that I use for both indoor and outdoor photos. Although a 72mm lens can seem a big large, it feels solid in your hand and it works flawlessly with my Nikon.

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

My use- outdoors /travel / family
Like - Good value, good features, good quality
optics. Tamron has been reliable for me in
the past.
Don't like - Heavy, but that comes w/ VC feature
and internal motor.
- Adjusting zoom, binds in center ranges - Aware of that before purchase, hope will smooth out w/ use.

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

I needed a lens that gave me a wider angle than what I already had. So far, I think the lens is great. It's very fast, the quality is good, and the wide angle is more than sufficient for what I need.

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

The lense auto-focuses rapidly and the vibration control works effectively with my Nikon D40. Some pictures are not in perfect focus so I'm now planning to purchase a better camera body. Enlarged pictures show fine detail without distortion. It's a great value.

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

Event Photography. Great images so far. Focus is very sharp. Lens is a little noisy in autofocus. Still a great buy compared to the cost of Nikon lens.

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

The ability to hand hold in low light with out a flash is amazing. I'm sure not the only lens like it out there, but wow a feature I've been looking for a long time. Only draw back I've noticed is the mechanical noise from the lens.

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

I purchased this lens to use on my D300s and replace my kit 18-55. I needed a faster lens, but didn't have the cash flow to purchase Nikkor. A week after having the lens, I put it through the paces. I shot a low light indoor church wedding with a low light indoor reception. A couple days after that, I shot a X-mas party with a band, also low light. The photos came out amazing. The VC is a must for me and love the 2.8. The VC is alittle noisy but not a problem. An excellent purchase, plus a great price.

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

Great quality for the price you pay. Maybe not a killer lens as it can be its Nikon counterpart, but half price.
Focus is fast, thought the motor is a bit noisy for what one can be used with Nikon lenses. And zoom ring is a bit harder to move than expected.
But quality is nice, and aperture with optical stabilization makes it a great lens.

Comments about Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Lens:

The pictures I have taken with the lens have been very good. I have used it through out its range and I saw no flaws. The only knock on it was often stated in other reviews.It's heavy. But not having another lens to compare it with. I am not sure. B&H Photo deserves 5 stars.I have bought Nikon D300 with 70-300 lens,Cannon Pro 9000 printer,Nikon flash. They were always [...] the stated price,which was low compared to other retailers.