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Tamon 18-270mm F/3.5-6.3 AF Di II VC Macro  Hot PDF Print E-mail
Lenses Tamron
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out of 5
Editor's rating
out of 5
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Lens Summary

Overview

Tamron's Vibration Compensation—Blur-Stopping Power With No Annoying Motion Delay In Your Viewfinder!

With the advent of the latest 15X zoom lens from Tamron, the pioneer of high power Zoom lenses, the high power zoom lens has steadily evolved from a 7.1X to a 10.7X to a 13.9X and now to the world’s largest zoom ratio of 15X by combining advanced high power zoom design technologies accumulated by Tamron since 1992. The lens covers an Angle of view equivalent to that of a 28mm wideangle to a 419mm ultra telephoto with just one lens, letting the user capture once-in-the-lifetime images of panoramic landscape images or close-up pictures of children smiling, without having to get too close to the subject and without having to change lenses.

Lens Specifications

Generic Lens Specifications
Lens Type: Zoom
IS / VR / OS: VC
Min Focal length (mm): 18
Max Focal Length (mm): 270
Number of Elements: 18
Element Groups: 13
Max Aperture: 3.5
Minimum Aperture: 40
Diaphragm Blades: 7
Closest Focus Distance (m): 0.49
Maximum Magnification: 1.3
Filter Type: Screw In
Filter Diameter (mm): 72
Diameter at widest (mm): 79
Lens Length (mm): 404
Weight (g): 550

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User Lens Reviews

Average user rating from: 103 user(s)

Overall rating (weighted)
4.0
Sharpness
4.1
Build Quality
4.0
AF Speed
4.0
Value for Money
4.1
 

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0 of 0 people found the following review helpful

Mostly very satisfied (VC is worth it) with some d, Monday, 30 August 2010


Overall rating (weighted)
2.8
Sharpness
2.0
Build Quality
3.0
AF Speed
3.0
Value for Money
3.0
My Credibility:
I shot with a Rebel G back in high school, and ,for several years (starting at around the introduction of the DSLR), I spent little time on photography and no time on a SLR. So it's fair to say that I am new to photography (especially digital photography). I purchased this lens in July to go with my T1i. Both this lens and my camera are now with my gf (though I will ask her to borrow the lens and camera sometimes). I've taken a total of about 5.5k pictures with this lens with several videos. My current setup consist of: 7D, 24-105L, 18-55 (Rebel kit lens), 50 1.4, Tamron 10-24. and a 75-300 (USM non-IS from year 2001). I've also taken about 2000 pictures using a 100mm f2.8L IS macro.

The BAD:
--Dust inside!
The first thing I noticed when I opened the box with my 18-270 in it was that there was a piece of dust (that looked like a small grain of glitter) on one of the inner elements. This was a big new-toy joy-killer. My second big disappointment was when I noticed even more dust entering the lens later on. I think I'm being a little lenient on my star rating with this lens as I know many photographers would consider this absolutely unacceptable. Right now I don't think there's enough dust on the inner elements to depreciate image quality, but if more dust has entered through time then eventually there will be a drop in IQ. I have not yet tried to send this lens in for service nor did I try to return it, but I think receiving a "bad copy" the first time merits dropping at least one star. Without this problem I would've given 4 stars. One thing that makes this not seem like such a bad thing to me is that I've heard similar stories with Canon's high-end EF-S lenses, and even a case in which an L lens was letting dust in.
--Macro and semi-macro photos at wide apertures (270mm at 6.3) have a very ugly blur for out-of-focus objects. It reminds me of the effect a drop of water or tears can have one human vision, or maybe even blurriness due to Camera shake and slow shutter speed. Macro shots would often look nice on my T1i screen, but unacceptably soft on my computer screen. I think they should delete the word "macro" from the description to prevent anyone from being mislead. My T1i kit lens took better macros. For all other purposes sharpness is good but not great, and I don't think anyone should expect it to be great.
--Cheap feeling zoom ring (too loose or too tight depending on focal length)
This is a minor problem for me. There are many reviews that mention lens creep and difficulty zooming at around 100mm, so I won't mention much here.
--No full time manual focus.
--Focus ring rotation is small/short
--Auto focus is slow (when compared to USM lenses but about the same as the 18-55)
--Could have a better build (I also own a Tamron 10-24 which is slightly better built than the 18-270)
--VC jumps upon startup. This has only been a problem for me when I was shooting 1sec+ exposures on a tripod and I forgot to turn it off (see the "GOOD" part of my review for more)
--Noisy AF and VC. Though this doesn't bother me. The sound of the VC actually sounds pretty cool to me, it's like a robot or something.
--Barrel Distortion is slightly stronger than 18-55.

The GOOD:

++Nothing else like it (Incredible zoom range)
++VC is very effective. Tamron's VC seems to work slightly different from Canon's IS. For VC I noticed the image would somewhat jump around in between points of near stillness. IS seems to slow down and smooth-out camera shake overall. If I absolutely had to choose I'd say the VC is better than the IS. Others may not agree and I am reluctant to say this, but some quick tests show that I have taken acceptable handhelds at as slow as 1/4sec @ 270mm. With my 24-105 I will not settle for anything less than 1/10sec at 105mm (some photographers note that they have taken good handheld shots at 1/3sec with the 24-105).
++Very small minimum aperture (f40). there's really very very few occasions when anyone would really need this, but it's something to me.
++Compact
++Comes with hood
++Lens lock allows you to keep the lens at it's shortest length when carrying your camera on your shoulder. The locking switch is in a place where it can be quickly disengaged.
++$80 Rebate. I got my lens from an ebay authorized Tamron dealer for $10 cheaper than amazon (though I recommend amazon because I had some trouble with my order - but that's outside the scope of this review). The point I am making is: After I bought my Tamron 10-24 about a month later I bought I my 18-270 I learned that lenses purchased on ebay don't qualify for the rebate. I sent the rebate forms in at the same time and Tamron gave me the rebate anyway.
++6 year warranty, I plan on sending in my 18-270 for service soon and if I do then I'll try to update this review on how that goes.

Conclusion and additional notes:

Do I recommend this lens? Yes. I think it's a great value lens, especially for people who simply want nice family pictures. I believe that the dust issue is just unfortunate for me, and it doesn't seem like there's many people complaining about this. I really thought I could buy this lens and not have anything else, but this is definitely not true. For many, just this lens might suffice, but not if you're serious about photography or take a lot of macros. Even if you're just a casual family photographer I recommend using an external flash with this lens for indoor photography, shadows from the lens and built in flash will show at wider angles and close distances (backing up is a good cure for this).
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

lens creep, Saturday, 14 August 2010


Overall rating (weighted)
4.8
Sharpness
4.0
Build Quality
5.0
AF Speed
5.0
Value for Money
5.0
everybody talking about lens creep on this lens but nobody has said how tamron will tighten the barrel for u at no cost to u except postage to them...they will ship it back...so instead of telling people about the lens creep making people afraid to invest in a dynamic awsum lens for the money...tell people how to fix the small problem ....tamron does this slow creeping so people dont squawk about how hard it is to turn the lens out or in... as im sure people would do as they are on and on about the lens creeping out...there i feel better now i got that off my chest
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0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

Great lens but for one fatal flaw - disappointed!, Tuesday, 10 August 2010


Overall rating (weighted)
2.0
Sharpness
2.0
Build Quality
2.0
AF Speed
2.0
Value for Money
2.0
I've been shooting for over 10 years and currently use a Canon 50D. I've used Tamron in the past with mixed results. Though this lens is a great leap forward for Tamron as far as image quality, range, and vibration control goes, it has two flaws...on of them fatal in my opinion.

First off, if you're a canon user, the zoom ring is reversed and can be confusing at times. This is not a serious set back but will take some getting used to if you get this lens.

As for the fatal flaw; in the mid zoom range, about 70mm to 130mm, the zoom ring becomes extremely tight. If you zoom out and you're aiming anywhere below level this lens will lock up tight when you try pulling it back in. If you're in the middle of a photo shoot as I was, it can completely pull you out of the moment. At this point you'll need to stop what you're doing, tilt the camera backward and shake the barrel back into the body.

In many other ways I love this lens, but I cannot use it and am returning it. Furthermore, I cannot recommend it until they resolve this issue.

I've come to the conclusion that the greater the zoom range the more the sacrifice in light, color, and overall performance. Ultimately, I went with the Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM UD Wide Angle Zoom Lens and am very happy with it - it's sharp, solidly built, and renders very accurate color.

I hope this review is helpful in your buying decision.

Happy Shopping!
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

Good general lens for the zoom capabilty, but qual, Sunday, 08 August 2010


Overall rating (weighted)
2.5
Sharpness
3.0
Build Quality
2.0
AF Speed
3.0
Value for Money
2.0
Usually in cheaper zoom lenses, the build quality tends to be an issue and this holds true for the Canon 18-270mm. Image wise, the lens is quite sharp, though the images seem slightly darker than say a canon 18-55mm lens, but as typical with these types of lenses there are a few flaws...

First of which obviously is lens creep. There is a locking button, however Tamron wasn't very kind to others as you tended to need fingernails to lock it in place. Another issue was the slow focusing... especially at the higher 6.3 scale. But by far the mose anoying thing was the build quality. From the first day i found (and found out others had the same issue) that pointing straight up or down the lens could not be retracted or extended properly... it would become stiff, however would move. Lens sealing technology also lacksa in this lens... meaning that in a dusty environment expect the lens to be compromised. The build itself looks solid but cannot deal with long term use especially zooming in and out often. Unfortunately I just had mine destroyed as the mechanism fo zoom it in or out had broken away, leaving it to slide in or out as it pleases... when I disassembled it I realised all the connectors were damaged... scratch one tamron lens. other places and people have reported inconsistent lens sharpness among other issues...

All in all if you are looking for a general purpose lens, it is a brilliant one. However with all the issues build wise, it may be better to look elsewere.
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0 of 0 people found the following review helpful

Good, but not worth the trouble, Thursday, 15 July 2010


Overall rating (weighted)
1.5
Sharpness
2.0
Build Quality
1.0
AF Speed
2.0
Value for Money
1.0
Good: Great range. Excellent picture quality. Image Stabilization (or what ever Tamron calls it) works well. The free hood is nice.

Bad: My Canon 250mm lens has more 'zoom' than the 270mm on this lens. Turning the lens to 'zoom' is very hard at times.

Comments: My wife and I were excited about having an all-in-one lens. Upon receiving this lens it is immediately obvious how hard it is to turn at times (for 'zooming'), especially at an upward angle. Several people have complained about it, and some say it gets better. We used the lens for 2 weeks, and it never did get better for us. We also picked up the Canon 18-200, and the 'zoom' is noticeably better on the Tamron lens, but not enough for us to keep it. We are returning this lens.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

Tamron 18-270, Sunday, 27 June 2010


Overall rating (weighted)
4.8
Sharpness
4.0
Build Quality
5.0
AF Speed
5.0
Value for Money
5.0
After many years of serious photography and hundreds of purchases from Amazon the Tamron 18-270 has caused me to write my first review ever. This lens in a marvel of lens tecnology and performance. I currently shoot with a Cannon 7D with 40D back up. As pleased as I am with the lens, the auto focus lags on the 40D but performs perfectly with the improved capibilities of the 7D. I own a number of more expensive lenses but for quality and especially price I highly endorse this product.
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0 of 0 people found the following review helpful

Mixed feelings on this lens; mine seems to be defe, Tuesday, 22 June 2010


Overall rating (weighted)
3.0
Sharpness
3.0
Build Quality
2.0
AF Speed
4.0
Value for Money
3.0
After hauling a full bag of camera gear and mixed lenses through numerous vacations, I vowed never to travel with anything more than a single "all-in-one" lens, body, and flash. I purchased this Tamron 18-270mm "all-in-one" based on the stellar reviews and it's 15x zoom. Sure, I realize it will never meet or beat the sharpness or quality of my primes or shorter-range zooms, but the convenience of using a single lens for nearly every shot imaginable was really compelling to me.

With that said, I seem to have a defective lens. I've looked at some 100% crops on various sites and my images definitely are not up to par. I can only presume that my lens is defective and I will be sending it to Tamron for inspection and (hopefully) repair. Nonetheless, there are a lot of other pros and cons with this lens.

Pros:

*This is a traveler's dream lens. That was really my only motivation for purchase. No more switching lens on sandy beaches to get the right shot. No more hauling 25+ lbs of camera gear on vacations. The 15x zoom is the largest "all-in-one" zoom on the market at the moment. Canon only offers 18-200mm and Sigma tops out at 18-250mm.
*Color representation is really good. The images have a lot of "pop" to them.
*The VR (Tamron's equivalent of Canon's IS or image stabilization) is really spectacular. The image just "locks" in place. Tamron advertises 4-stop image stabilization, but I've found that I can only consistently get 3 stops of IS. No biggie. I also have a 28-135mm Canon and Tamron's VR is much better than my Canon (granted, the Canon is an older design). The lens isn't all that fast (f/5.6+ for most of the range), but the VR and high ISO of modern cameras really don't make this much of an issue. You won't miss too many shots with this lens

Cons:

*Image sharpness is really bad on my lens (REALLY bad). It's so bad on my copy that I'm convinced it is defective and am sending it in for service. Sure, I realize this is a "jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none" lens; I understand that some softness on the outer focal ranges are to be expected. I understand that lenses of this nature aren't that sharp wide open. However, my lens is really soft all around--fast, slow, short, long. It's a lot softer than my Canon 28-135mm (which isn't that sharp of a lens to begin with). Of course, I never expected 70-200mm f/2.8 Canon "L" sharpness when I purchased this lens, but this is totally unacceptable.
*Reverse zoom (standard in all Tamron lenses). Okay, I knew this when I bought the lens, but it still DRIVES ME NUTS. Most lenses zoom-in when you rotate the lens to the left, and zoom-out (wide angle) when you rotate to the right. For some stupid reason Tamron does this operation in reverse (right zooms in, left zooms out). My brain is subconsciously programmed to use my Canon zooms, so when I use this Tamron lens, I frequently zoom-in when I meant to zoom-out, and vice-versa. Like I said, I knew this when I bought the lens, so it's not a huge issue, but something to keep in mind.
*VR is really noisy. When the VR engages (when autofocus engages on the subject), it sounds like an old slide projector from the 70s. It's not nearly as quiet as the Canon's IS. Again, not a big issue, but something to keep in mind. After 1000+ shots I've gotten used to it by now.
*Autofocus is slow, especially at longer focal lengths. No real surprise here, and it is to be expected in a lens at this price point. I usually shoot static objects, so this is no biggie for me, but if you're looking to do a lot of sports or fast-action shooting from longer distances, this may not be the rights lens for you.
*Questionable quality-control. I've already discussed my experience with extreme softness. In addition to those problems, when I bought the lens, it also had a decent sized dust spec right in the middle of the lens glass. It doesn't affect image quality one Bit, nor does it bother me, but it does make me question Tamron's QC practices.

I'll update this review at some point in the future once I figure out what is wrong with my lens. Assuming it is defective and subsequently fixed, I can see this getting a lot of solid use. However, if Tamron tells me that it's working as designed, then I'll most likely try to sell it for what I can and change the review to 1 or 2 stars; we'll see. I only wish Canon offered a 15x lens, but hopefully Tamron will make things right.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

Best walk around lens for the money!, Thursday, 17 June 2010


Overall rating (weighted)
4.8
Sharpness
5.0
Build Quality
5.0
AF Speed
4.0
Value for Money
5.0
Overall this is an excellent lens. Granted, its not perfect, but its a good compromise. Here are the Cons first:
1. Struggles to auto focus in low light.
2. Image a bit soft at 18mm or 270mm range.
3. Lens creeps when unlocked and holding it lens down, as many lenses of this size/weight do.

Pros:

1. From super wide angle to super zoomed in, can be used for close up pictures of people and then quickly zoom out to catch the action on the field.
2. It lives on my camera about 95% of the time. Only take it off to use my prime lenses for special shots.
3. Vibration Compensation is very good.
4. When you consider the cost of the lenses you would need to fill the roll of this lens, it is a bargain in the 600 range.

Look for Tameron mail-in rebates. They offer them all the time.
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0 of 0 people found the following review helpful

Versitle though not really a "Macro" lens, Friday, 11 June 2010


Overall rating (weighted)
3.8
Sharpness
4.0
Build Quality
4.0
AF Speed
3.0
Value for Money
4.0
Note: This review is based on the Nikon version of this lens. At the time of posting this review, I could not find the Nikon lens offered on Amazon. I bought mine at a camera store at about the same price. I can't say for sure if there are major differences between the two versions. The canon one appears to possibly be sharper in focus, but that is just by my impression viewing some examples.

This is my first lens and dSLR camera combo. It was an upgrade from a sony cybershot, which also had a 15 x zoom. I've already taken over a hundred photos. Most of the time I'm shooting at the 270 range for telephoto and macro. Some things I quickly realized: It is not really a macro lens, and at 270 it doesn't quite give me the reach I desire for bird and wildlife shots without having to crop. For my needs I'll have to save up for additional lenses. Focusing in low light is also difficult. I had to switch from auto to manual to catch a shot of my cat in the dark (with the flash). Otherwise it kept hunting and focusing way off. Auto focusing on fast moving objects doesn't appear to be a strength either. The auto focus will try to adjust and readjust. This results in some blurry photos especially if shot at a low aperture. I also seem to always find it at the 270 range when carrying it around. Lens creep? Or am I looking for a greater zoom and just happen to have it out? One thing I miss about this lens, that appears to be on Nikkor lens is the M/A setting. Also the focus and zoom dials seem to be reversed from the Nikon lenses. As a result, coming home from work, I occasionally find myself turning the wrong one when trying to either focus or zoom.

The positives, I've found to outweigh some of these shortcomings but I am still looking for and needing to save up for more lenses. It is versatile, fits in a small camera bag, and covers a great range, just like the cybershot did. The added advantage is the wider angle and the detail it captures with the camera. I can shoot landscapes, zoo animals, birds (as long as they are relatively close), larger insects (smaller ones need a great deal of cropping), flowers, buildings, you name it. For now the "all in one" feature is quite handy and I get impressive shots with it. But if I want to get more serious and get more professional results, I'll most likely have to invest in a range of prime lenses and dedicated macro and telephoto lenses. But for now and with my budget the "all in one" will have to suffice for a few years.

Back to why I don't consider it a macro lens:

The focus isn't as sharp as a macro lens would shoot. A Salesperson at the store explained it has to do with the 3-d focusing, vs the 2d focusing macro lens shoot. From my perspective, the results just look "off", not as sharp and the edges seem to bloom a little if it is something really small. Some of the softness can be easily fixed on photoshop as I've done with the examples I put int he gallery.

Before I forget to mention, one strength at close up: the Depth of field. It gives a real smooth bokeh when shot at full 270 close up. (please see example pictures in the gallery) I use this a great deal, so it is great to have on top of being able to shoot landscapes and whatever else strikes my interest.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

Great lens, Tuesday, 08 June 2010


Overall rating (weighted)
4.5
Sharpness
4.0
Build Quality
5.0
AF Speed
4.0
Value for Money
5.0
I'm not a pro, and I don't understand too much about the in's and out's of lens distortion etc. But I do know that this lens take beautiful images on my Rebel XS, and the zoom range is wonderful. I took it to an out of state beach the first week I got it, and it was great to fly with just one lens. The images I got were truly great, from my baby cousin 12 feet away to beachgoers far in the distance, and even action shots involving water. I took about 1500 shots in many different situations. I wasn't sure whether to spend the money on this, but I am really glad that I did. It makes walking-around photography fun and hassle-free again.
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0 of 0 people found the following review helpful

Nice to have., Thursday, 27 May 2010


Overall rating (weighted)
3.3
Sharpness
4.0
Build Quality
3.0
AF Speed
3.0
Value for Money
3.0
Its a nice to have, hassle free and easy to use walk around lens. Moreover this is the only such lens ;) atleast for now.
But given a choice I'll buy 3 separate lenses - a super wide angle, a super macro and a super telephoto.
The optics and build quality are good, not great, but then I did not pay like a grand for it either.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

Great all around lens, Wednesday, 26 May 2010


Overall rating (weighted)
4.0
Sharpness
4.0
Build Quality
3.0
AF Speed
4.0
Value for Money
5.0
I received this lens earlier this year, and was hesitant to purchase it due to some concerns about the sharpness and chromatic aberrations. What i have found is that this lens does everything I expected it to, and I realized that I just dont care about a little softness or aberrations... Im good with photoshop to fix the latter... and as long as the main subject is in focus and I have a good composition, I could care less what the corner sharpness looks like.

Pros:
-huge zoom range
-good weight/build
-lens hood included
-perfectly acceptable pictures.. and if you arent printing then dont worry about ANY lens' corner sharpness since you will not notice it on web sized pics
-vibration compensation is incredible

Cons:
-slow slow focussing in very dim light (only place I ever missed focus was shooting a person from inside a cave looking out, late into the evening with poor lighting. every other time it locked on, but in this situation it beeped for focus, but ended up being off. very annoying since I wont be back in Jamaica for that shot any time soon.

-slow speed... 3.5 is acceptable, but 6.3 is getting way too slow for handheld unless in broad daylight.


overall, a 4/5. if this was a f/4 constant it would get a 5/5.
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0 of 0 people found the following review helpful

Tamron 18-270mm Lens, Saturday, 15 May 2010


Overall rating (weighted)
5.0
Sharpness
5.0
Build Quality
5.0
AF Speed
5.0
Value for Money
5.0
The lens performs beautifully. There is only one small compatibility problem. To give all it's features the barrel of the lens is much larger than the Sigma 18-125mm I was using previously. Therefore for close up photography with built-in flash on a Canon EOS 7D results in a dark shadow on the lower part of the picture.
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0 of 0 people found the following review helpful

Wonderful all purpose lens, Sunday, 09 May 2010


Overall rating (weighted)
4.8
Sharpness
4.0
Build Quality
5.0
AF Speed
5.0
Value for Money
5.0
This is a great overall lens for my canon dslr camera. The best thing is needing only one lens to capture depth of field variety. When traveling, I no longer need a camera case the size of a suitcase.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

Tamron AF 18-270mm f/3.5-6.3 Di 11 VC LD lens for , Friday, 07 May 2010


Overall rating (weighted)
5.0
Sharpness
5.0
Build Quality
5.0
AF Speed
5.0
Value for Money
5.0
I am not one who engages in a long dialog when reviewing items. Like many people reviewing this lens, it would be tempting to elaborate more on the pros and cons when evaluating its performance. By way of introduction and clarification, I am a semi professional photographer, a recent stock photographer, many years of experience, and have taught photography at the high school level and lectured on aspects of photography to adults, therefore I feel very qualified to offer my opinions to discerning prospective buyers.
I was fortunate enough to try out this lens at an extremely well known store where I live. This copy of the lens was smooth and handled perfectly on the 50D. Accurate focusing, quick, reasonably quite, image stabilization or VC performed admirably. Testing the extremities in its zoom range, both in moderately well lit indoors and outdoors, this lens performed better than expected. When viewing images made on the 50D's screen at maximum enlargement, they appeared to be sharp throughout the entire zoom range. This was proof enough, along with further trials and researching, to eventually purchase this lens. Many thanks Amazon for impeccable service and like other photographic products purchased through you, this one has exceeded my expectations.
You may be thinking as to why would I bother with a Tamron lens, when, in my arsenal of photographic gear, are 7 canon L series lenses. The answer is so simple: It is a remarkable lens for what it does. Incredible value for money and incredible performance from an "all in one", wide to long range, zoom lens. I have the Tamron 17-50mm.f/2.8 as well. Another wonderful lens that goes with me on cruises, vacations and stock shooting.
As soon as this lens arrived, it found its way onto the Canon Xsi, then 50D, and eventually the 7D. A total of 3 shoots with each camera, cranking this 18-270 VR. lens from wide to long zoom has given me a load of images to scrutinize. Here are my findings:
A fair amount of Chromatic aberration at certain focal lengths in certain lighting conditions. A quick fix in raw with Lightroom or equivalent essentially removes most of this problem.
Lens creep and stiffness about half way through the zooming action. Just hold the lens barrel while shooting, its not a big deal. As for the lens creep while carrying: Click on the lock. That's why Tamron put it there. Like most other lenses of extreme range, be it Canon or other manufactures, the same minor annoyances apply. Yes, there are other optical distortions that other reviewers have mentioned but with experience in handling this lens, you will quickly discover how to avoid or minimize them in your final processed image.
I have found that if the internal shooting styles for your camera are set with a slight boost in sharpness it helps considerably.
This lens performs very well if there is lots of light and seems to produce reasonably crisp or sharp images using apertures of f/8 to f/11 or sometimes higher should you require the depth of field.
There is an old adage out there that goes like this: "A poor craftsman blames his tools for poor workmanship" The same applies to photography. It is so easy to blame the camera, or the lens for producing a poor image. What about the ability level and knowledge of the photographer?
Am I pleased with this lens? Very much so! Its performance all round, is far better than than I had ever expected.
Would I recommend this lens to any photographer, experienced or not? Absolutely! I would love to show you some of my images to prove it! I have 3 stock images already approved using this lens.
Please do yourself a favor: If you are looking for a one does all lens, look no further. Try one in a camera store to dispel your doubts, if you are able, and then go purchase one through Amazon.. You wont regret it.
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