Tamron A16 for Canon

PROS: PRICE, 2.8 constant aperture, build quality, warranty, sharpness,

CONS: manual focus switch is hard to operate, focus ring could be larger

I recently needed a good wide angle lens for an upcoming assignment. I was on a budget (aren't we all??) and the choices came down to this lens and the Canon 17-55mm IS f 2.8. I rented the Canon lens and purchased the Tamron (here on Ebay for under 350.00 with shipping). I figured if the Canon outperformed the Tamron substantially, I could re-sell the Tamron and buy the much more expensive Canon.

I conducted my test (I am not a professional tester, but have sold enough photographs to consider myself a good photographer) between the two lenses using both inside and outside subjects. Frankly, I was a bit amazed at the results.

The Canon performed well (as expected) but the IS did not seem to be as helpful as I had hoped in low light situations. It actually did a fair amount of searching on auto-focus while the Tamron did seem faster. When it finally locked on, the result was sharper with the Canon, in the beginning. I say this because after using the Tamron for awhile, I was able to steady myself enough, that the results were every bit as good as the Canon's.

As for saturation, contrast and overall color, I shoot RAW format mostly and the most important thing for me is sharpness, but in jpeg (highest settings) I did notice that the Tamron compared favorably to the Canon in all catagories.

I ended up choosing the Tamron lens over the Canon due to cost, saved enough to buy a back-up camera body!! I have not regreted this decision at all!!

Other points to consider, it is made for smaller digital sensors - however, since I doubt that I am ever going to buy a 5D or 1Ds, I think I am safe.

It does not have any type of image stabilization, so if your not able to use a tripod AND your not careful - your results will vary. (though I still believe with some practice, ANYONE can use this lens and be happy!)

CAMERA EQUIPMENT OWNED
40D - body and battery pack (with camera armor on both)
xti (400D) - body and battery pack (with camera armor on camera)
Tamron 17-50mm f2.8
Canon 70-200mm f4 L with IS
Sigma 170-500mm

Recieved my 17-50 f/2.8 Tamron today in the mail. After testing all the functions and evaluating the color, sharpness and overall quality of the lens, I have nothing but good things to say about this lens. I should have bought one sooner, but I'm glad I've got this one now. I tried several other lens solutions for my 20D, but this is by far the best. The quality of the images is stunning overall, and at 2.8, it is easily the best performance I've seen. Very usable wide open. Only the slightest loss in sharpness, but you really have to look closely to see it. By f/3.5 it is superior. I won't hesitate to shoot this lens wide open for portraits or low light if I need to however. It is FAR better at 2.8 than the Sigma lens I returned. That Sigma wasn't usable until f/5.6. Zoom action, overall size and weight and lens hood (included) are great. I think this is the best possible lens I've seen short of an "L" series Canon, and I honestly think the image quality is better in some cases (wide open and in the corners). Corners look fantastic at all apertures. No kidding.

I've heard about certain "L-series" canon lenses giving the "3-D" affect on the images because of their sharpness. I've never seen this with the "L-series" lenses, but I do see it with this lens. Only thing I can compare it to is my old Bronica medium format images. This lens, even on my 8MP Canon 20D provides images that are so sharp, they just look "different" than other images. Even my wife asked me what the difference was after looking at just a few images from this lens. She said they looked so real. I agree.

If you're reading this, then you're interested in this lens. If you are, I suggest you just get one. It will save you a lot of time, money, and most of all, frustration.

This lens is a top shelf performer! It is razor sharp throughout the focal range! Contrast & color reproduction are top notch! This lens shows some of the absolute best resolution capabilities, in fact the tests I have studied show it out resolving anything in the Tamron & Canon line up on MTF50! Focus is not HSM/USM so it is not super lighting fast, but it is quick and accurate!

Definitely worth every penny!

Had been using some Canon lenses from my old Canon Elan II E film camera. Did a pretty good job, but this Tamron lens blows them away!

This lens has a fabulously low DOF (depth of field) for the price point and zoom range. I have been very pleased with the results. For the price, and considering the 6 year manufacturer's warranty and included lens hood, it cannot be beat.

This was my chosen upgrade for my Canon DSLR from the Canon kit lens. I chose it over the Canon17-55 f/2.8 IS because of the price (less than half), weight, superior warranty and lens hood. I am very happy with the result, and spectacular photos from a lens I can trust to last for the long haul.

The only slight downside is I have noticed just the slightest bit of hesitation when focusing in low light, low contrast area (shooting a black bug on a dark wall with no lights on)

For portrait and walkaround lens, this quality can't be beat for the price point! It hasn't come off of my camera since I bought it a month ago.

I'd been researching lenses similar to this one for quite awhile. Finally decided on this lens, and I'm glad I did! I've had it for about a month now and am loving it. The pictures are very sharp and the colors are great. It focuses quickly. The only thing I'm not fond of is the noise, as it is louder than my other lenses. For wedding ceremonies, I will probably manually focus, but otherwise the noise isn't a bother. I definately recommend this lens!

Not having a 'bench' on which to test my lenses, I go by performance, and at this point that means performance on my PCs LCD display. Let me start by saying that my first hands on experience was with the closest equivalent lens in Canon's arsenal (though not a digital-only lens, for what it's worth). The lens I refer to was also a 2.8 at similar if not same focal length as the Tamron I bought. It was far quieter and may have even been faster to focus, but for the difference in price, my keen eyes have not detected differences in the performance of the Tamron when compared to the $1300 (or more) Canon worth spending that money for. Sorry. For one-third the expense I am very happy. And ya know what? It's a good looking piece of hardware, too, which according to last month's issue of Popular photo' means a whole lot to men who play with cameras. Buy the lens with confidence, but always compare so you know what you are giving up and gaining in the process.

Just received this lens for my 30D, have already taken 1000 photos in all kinds of conditions, preformed great and super sharp photos. Do not waste your money on the Canon 17-55, this one is 1/3 the price and you wont be able to tell the difference in photo quality

I took a chance. A friend of mine bought a Tamron lens and after a few years the elements separated. Tamron said he must have dropped it - even though it was NOT dropped and they never saw the lens. Tamron's attitude was "too bad, it's your fault". So far, I am happy with the resolution and color.

I bought this Tamron lens to use with my Canon EOS 50D and I've been very happy. I use it to replace the kit lens and it works wonderful. This lens is worth the money.

cette lentille donne des images tres piquées à partir f4 , même à f2.8 l'image reste tres satifaisante (légèrement flou). Les images sont plus nettes que celles prises avec la lentille kit 18-55mm IS de Canon.