Tamron 20-40mm f/2.8 DI III Reviews
Light, Compact, and Sharp!
By Nicholas V.
Rated 5 out of 5
Date: 2023-10-01
I rented this lens for a trip to Europe to try it out, and within my first few hours of using it, I INSTANTLY decided I would be purchasing one to own. The 20-40mm range is unique because it gives me exactly how wide I would want to go (I don't really like any wider than 20mm) while still giving me a little reach for flexibility. I highly suggest this lens for anyone looking to travel light while still having sharp images. On a recent trip, I only traveled with this lens and the Zeiss 85mm which offered a great 2-lens option that was both compact and lightweight.
Sharp, Fast, Lite, Small
By Eduardo
Rated 5 out of 5
Date: 2023-05-22
Just what I was looking for. Sharp and fast, lite and small. Feels great on the Full frame Sony, the color rendition is very nice, the almost macro feature is also great for flowers and other closeup interests. The range fits my interest of intimate (close-in) landscapes, 20mm at its widest so that everything doesn't get pushed back far from view, then up to 40mm so I don't have to change lenses as soon as I get past 28mm, very nice focal range balance. Highly recommended.
Winner
By Brian
Rated 5 out of 5
Date: 2023-05-19
This lens reminds of old Canon 20-35mm f/2.8 L...that wide angle zoom that I owned back in 90's. Optically, Tamron is superior and it costs way less. This lens is jack of all trades and master of some. For me, short close focusing distance is a massive plus. If you can get really close to your subject, you will be rewarded with fantastic bokeh!
Focal range is so useful for many shooting situations. If you are wider range person, this lens might be a perfect fit. It covers 21mm, 24mm, 28mm, 35mm and 40mm and that alone is pure gold. The picture quality is surprisingly good considering the price. from 20mm to 35mm, sharpness and contrast @2.8 is very good...it falls just slightly at 40mm but still very usable.
Overall, I can easily give this lens 5 stars because it performs way better than many other wide angle zooms (2.8 versions).
Good enough, great range
By Marcus R
Rated 5 out of 5
Date: 2023-04-27
I am a hobby / Dad photographer. Interests include family, landscape, travel photos. Also take a lot of kids sports photos, many of them indoors. Camera is A7iii.
Prior to this I used the Tamron 28-75 and 70-180., with the 28-75 being the default lens on my camera.
Image quality is good enough for my needs. I am not a pixel peeper but have traded in lenses that fall short of my eyeball test (e.g. Sony 24-240).
Autofocus is fast enough for indoor volleyball shots, and similar to the other Tamrons.
I really, really like the range of this lens. The 20mm end enables me to frame a lot of shots I couldn't before, often with creative results I am happy with. The 40mm means that I have a normal and not specialized lens on my camera.
I used it for a day of street photos on a recent trip to India and was really happy with the results.
I thought long and hard about whether to opt for this or the 17-28, and am really happy with my choice. The 29-40 extra range is much more useful than 17-19 if you are walking about with a single lens.
Wide video
By Peter
Rated 4 out of 5
Date: 2023-03-19
I use it to shoot indoor event work especially hand held for parties where there isn't much room. Also a perfect lens for gimbal work, doesn't extend far and gives flexibility of a zoom instead of a prime. If you want to shoot interiors at 4k 60 most cameras crop 1.5 making the 20mm essential (30mm).
Very light weight small and compact and a joy to use. Could see myself bringing this on vacation. AF is good. The optics probably aren't extraordinary but get the job done with 2.8 constant aperture is a big step up from a kit lens.
excellent
By Gene
Rated 5 out of 5
Date: 2023-03-13
I really like this lens for its small size, very useful focal range and being f/2.8
The lens is very good optically, except for corner softness at the wide end, which mostly goes away by f/5.6. The focusing is fast and precise. The rings are butter smooth, which can be rotated with a little finger and the lens extends just 10mm or so. In that regard I didn't like the new Sony 20-70/4, because the zoom ring feels stiff, like plastic rubbing plastic with some stickiness at the wide end, and that lens also extending a lot. The tactile experience with Tamron is great.
This lens despite such wide angle has pretty low distortions, you don't even need a software profile for it. Vignetting is somewhat heavy, but not difficult to correct. If you are shooting at 16:9 aspect ratio, those dark corners will be mostly cut off.
Being f/2.8 means I can use this lens indoors in many situations and due to its size/weigh it can travel with me anywhere. If you like 20-40mm range this is a great lens to have.
I also tested this lens on Megadap adapter on Nikon Z6ii. The bad part is that the mounting is very stiff, which is common for Tamron lenses. The good part, the lens works perfectly, and focusing is very quick and precise.
This is the lens
By Asa
Rated 5 out of 5
Date: 2023-09-06
Vlogging, portrait photos, street photography, landscape shots, gimbal work...it isn't the absolute best at any one of these but it does each of them really well. This lens rarely leaves my A74
Stays on my Sony ZV-E1 all the time
By Brian
Rated 5 out of 5
Date: 2023-06-13
I use this as my primary videography lens on my Sony ZV-E1. It's light, sharp, fast focusing, and offers an ideal focal range for all my event work. The 20mm wide end is especially helpful when using the Dynamic Stabilization mode on the Sony where it crops significantly, so the 20mm essentially becomes about 30mm and still offers a wide enough perspective when recording the footage while moving.
