Tamron AF18-270

The following review for the Tamron AF18-270 includes information from Cnet, a Tamron Rep,  and industry pro.

With its vast zoom-range, the Tamron AF18-270mm F/3.5-6.3 Di II VC lens enables the user to cover virtually any photographic subject from wide angle to ultra telephoto simply by turning the zoom control.

It covers angles of view equivalent to 28mm to 419mm when converted to the 35mm format. In addition, this breakthrough lens is equipped with Tamron’s exclusive, proprietary tri-axial Vibration Compensation (VC) mechanism that eliminates or substantially reduces the effects of handheld camera shake. As a result, the user can enjoy the convenience of handheld photography in virtually any situation, from shooting candid images, to covering sporting events, to news photography, without worrying about camera shake having an adverse effect on image quality.

Pro Opinion

More from the floor, this time Tamron’s rather popular 18-270mm ultra-zoom lens. Seriously, 15x zoom. Now, I’ve talked in the past about the compromises inherent in a zoom lens that goes from wide to super-tele, but this doesn’t purport to be a pro lens that delivers the absolute best image quality ever in every condition. What it does do is save you a whole lot of swapping–covering about 27-405mm equivalent, and image stabilized too–which for some shooters is worth more. I applaud its ambition, and from the charts I’ve seen it performs just as well as any lens in its quality grade. And that’s really kinda boffo.

Customer Thoughts

Good vibration control. Great for up close and distance shots. It is a bit heavy, but nothing to fret about. When adjusting the zoom ring it tends to be a bit tight and not real smooth to operate. Love how the lense has a six year warranty. (Nikon has a 5 year warranty.) 

Complete Cnet Review

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Tamron Video Description From Tamron Rep

From The Manufacturer

Tamron AF18-270 Specifications

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Tamron Lens AF18-250mm

Tamron’s new high-power zoom lens is a photographer’s dream come true – it is the result of Tamron’s continuing mission to develop the world’s most unique “one-lens-does-it-all” zooms to satisfy our customers’ desire.

Di II: Lenses are designed for exclusive use on digital cameras with smaller-size imagers and inherit all of the benefits of our Di products. These lenses are not designed for conventional cameras and digital cameras with image sensors larger than 24mm x 16mm. 
While conventional 35mm film cameras required two lenses to cover 28-388mm, Tamron’s new zoom is 13.9X, the world’s most powerful zoom delivering enormous photographic freedom in a single compact lens. The life of a digital photographer has never been better.

Review

Zoom is the stuff. At least as far as convenience goes. When I hired in, it was Nikon’s 18-200mm VR. We just could not keep that sucker in stock. That’s an 11x zoom (welllllll…. 11.111111 yadda yadda, rounding is our friend here.) Last year Canon jumped onto that game itself with the EF-S 18-200. 11x, that’s not too darn shabby there. The average point-and-shoot for years has been 3x.

Best Price Tamron Lens AF18-250mm F/3.5-6.3

We should really stop to talk about how unuseful “zoom” is as a measurement. The x zoom of a lens is found by dividing the longest length by the shortest. So, it tells you how much there is, but now where it exists between. Is the widest point 36mm, or 28mm? How long is that telephoto? 100mm? 200mm? Who knows? Zoom is a handy quick measurement, but it’s useless if you don’t also check to see where the limits are at.

So, 18-200 is the popular “super-zoom” length for crop sensors (more or less the same as a 28-300 would’ve served in 35mm days). So, 28mm (or equiv) is pretty solid wide-angle. Certainly better than the 38mm or so that’s standard on point-and-shoots. And, 300mm equiv is a pretty nice telephoto length. But, what if you want more (me, I like 400mm equiv)? What if you don’t want to change lenses much or ever? Why not a Sigma 18-250 (about 27-375)? Or, for you hardcore junkies, Tamron’s 18-270 (about 27-405)? Those are some amazing zooms, they really are.

Now, let’s get this out there: There will always, always, always be a compromise or two in lens design. All-in-one zooms like the 18-200s, 18-250s, and 18-270s are stellar for convenience. That’s basically every focal length a non-specialized shooter could ever want. But, it’s like the old saying, jack of All Trades, Master of None. It’s very, very hard to the point of impossible to make a lens with that much zoom perform as well as a lens with only 2 or 3x zoom. Does that mean they’re bad? Heck no. Optics have gotten so much better I’d wager these super-zooms outperform most of the consumer zooms designed for film all those years ago. But, don’t expect premium grade, either. There’s a reason the top lenses from any manufacturer are huge, short zoom, and high price.

But, if you don’t need the sharpest, fastest lens ever made period dot exclamation mark, an All-in-One lens is definitely a nice way to simplify your life and stress by removing lens swapping from your day-to-day shooting experiences. Interest piqued? Under Photo: Camera Lenses: Zooms (All-in-One) you’ll find our ever-growing selection of zooms with mighty ranges. Check it.

Tamron AF18-250mm F/3.5-6.3 Di II LD Specs