Tamron AF 18-270mm F/3,5 -6,3 Di II VC LD Aspherical [IF]

[alphaomega]

Some of you may have noticed that Tamron have announced a new 18-270 lens available for Nikon and Canon this month and Sony early next year.
http://www.tamron.eu/uk/lenses/overview ... [sp]=false

Product features at a glance

* 15X Zoom – largest focal length range in the world
* Compact and light-weight, easy to always carry with you
* Silent and very fast Piezo-ultrasonic motor
* VC (Vibration Compensation) image stabilizer
* Maximum magnification ratio 1:3.8 at a minimum focus distance of 0.49m
* Di II lens – optimized for use with APS-C format digital sensors

With inbuilt motor and VC it seems an ideal lens for NEX at only around 79x101mm and 550g. Only problem is that Tamron may be silly enough to delete VC for their Sony model as they have done in the new 70-300. I have sent Tamron UK an e-mail enquiring about this.
Barry F. may want to ponder why Tamron are not releasing a model to fit Pentax mount.

[David Kilpatrick]

Tamron's major rival other than Sigma, Tokina, effectively owns Pentax (through Hoya). Tamron is not going to make any special effort to issue Pentax fit lenses. Sony has a significant minority share in Tamron and has probably pressured Tamron not to include VC in lenses for Sony, especially as some might become Sony lenses in a different skin, and Sony has no in-lens IS for Alpha (only for NEX).

This may answer your speculation. The 18-270mm for Alpha has no VC.

David

[alphaomega]

The 18-270mm for Alpha has no VC.

That would be a shame. That leaves the Sigma 18-250, which has OS even for Sony. Same dimensions but heavier at 630g. I wonder if David has tried the Sigma on his NEX-5 and what he thinks of the results. My son inherited my Tamron 18-250 and I purchased the Sony 18-250 at a very competitive price (£340 or thereabouts). I am impressed by both lenses and the new Tamron would seem to be ideal for NEX5 if equipped with VC. So I might consider the Sigma if I can get one without breaking the bank. I recollect that David was quite impressed by it and was only put off by the OS action until fucus acquired or something like that.

[bfitzgerald]

No idea what Tamron are up to for K mount I'd be surprised if they drop the mount (very) what they might not do is put tons of effort in making available some designs on K mount. If they turn up (like this one) at some point it's hard to know. There is a chance of that later on (production priorities etc)

At the end of the day I doubt Sony are actively stopping K mount releases they are not Sony's biggest rival (and minority shareholder is just that) I'd imagine K mount has had improved sales in the last 12 months of so that might help lens development. Regardless of that Sigma will fill the gaps that Tamron might leave. If there is money to be made a lens maker will be there.

[bakubo]

That leaves the Sigma 18-250, which has OS even for Sony. Same dimensions but heavier at 630g.

A few days ago Tamron announced a new 18-270mm VC and it is supposed to be available later this month. It is smaller, lighter, and has a new PZD motor. Here is the dimension and weight info for several of these lenses:

75 x 85mm 430g 62mm filter Tamron 18-250mm
79 x 101mm 630g 72mm filter Sigma 18-250mm
75 x 88mm 450g 62mm filter Tamron 18-270mm new
80 x 101mm 560g 72mm filter Tamron 18-270mm old

I have the old Tamron 18-270mm in Canon mount that I bought over a month ago. It has a $150 rebate and I figured that it was about to be replaced with a new version. Quite happy with the current one. The new one looks interesting and I am looking forward to seeing what reviews say about it.

I suspect that the new Tamron will vignette a bit more than the old version. Also, the aperture will probably decrease more rapidly as you zoom. I also have the Sony 18-250mm f3.5-6.3 and it has a 62mm filter. Basically it is a rebadged Tamron 18-250mm with a few improvements -- faster AF, rounded aperture blades, maybe better lens coatings, and the outside is the Sony style. I mounted my Tamron 18-270mm on my 60D and slowly zoomed and watched as the aperture decreased as the focal length got longer:

Tamron 18-270mm old
18mm f3.5
28mm f4
40mm f4.5
60mm f5
100 f5.6
220mm f6.3

I mounted my Sony 18-250mm on my A700 and did the same:

Sony 18-250mm
18mm f3.5
22mm f4
35mm f4.5
50mm f5
70mm f5.6
150mm f6.3

Maybe the new Tamron 18-270mm will be more like the Sony/Tamron 18-250mm than the old Tamron 18-270mm, but we will see when it is available.

[alphaomega]

David Kilpatrick wrote

The 18-270mm for Alpha has no VC.

Unfortunately this is confirmed by the listing on tamron.com

18-270mm F/3.5-6.3 Di II PZD

VC is missing from the Sony model.
What a shame and a missed opportunity to make it fit for NEX use. Either Tamron are blind to opportunities or Sony just have too much influence on them as hinted at above.

[bfitzgerald]

I'd imagine the target users are DSLR shooters. I can't think that many NEX shooters will use such a lens.

[alphaomega]

I'd imagine the target users are DSLR shooters. I can't think that many NEX shooters will use such a lens.

Barry Fitzgerald has an answer to all questions even as now as a committed Pentax shooter he has no interest whatsoever in the NEX system. At 75 x 88mm and 450g weight it's the ideal lens for NEX-5 if it had VC as well as a new motor system. Without VC I would not consider it and buying a Nikon or Canon version for my NEX-5 would make it unusable on my A mount DSLRs. In my opinion Tamron have made a big mistake in omitting VC in the Sony model. For users of both NEX and A mount it would make a lot of sense to buy this lens in preference to the E-mount 18-200. Hopefully David will comment on his experience mounting their Sigma 18-250 OS enabled on NEX-5.

[bfitzgerald]

I don't have the answer to all questions but you have to open your eyes a bit here. Primary focus for lens manufacturers is not NEX..it's DSLR users they drive the sales. That is quite a logical point to make.

[David Kilpatrick]

The Sigma 18-250mm doesn't work on the LA-EA1. It certainly attempts to focus and very occasionally, one in thirty tries maybe, it will lock focus but never indicates a stable locked focus state. The focus motor is simply much too fast for the CDAF to handle. I can get a sort of AF by jabbing the shutter button, but CDAF is disabled during movie shooting and C-AF is disabled with the adaptor and lens, entirely.

I guess one reason the SAM lenses have such clunky slow motors is that this enables CDAF to be used. And Sony SSM focusing is leisurely compared to the Sigma. Same for the 70-200mm f/2.8 HSM (non-OS). It can very occasionally lock focus, but generally overshoot and undershoots repeatedly.

The situation on the A580 body is exactly the same. The fast AF action of the HSM Sigma lenses - I bought the 70-200mm HSM because it focuses twice as fast as the Sony/Minolta SSM - seems to rule out CDAF.

The 70-300mm OS (micromotor, not HSM) sometimes works OK on either camera, but generally hunts around too much and fails to lock a solid green confirm - you get 'nearly good enough' flashing green which allows shutter release. Sometimes this can show when the image is clearly out of focus.

Much the same story with the 8-16mm, sometimes I can get a green focus confirm plus correct focus, quite fast. Most of the, it hunts or confirms focus when the focus is not correct.

Sorry to say it, but unless Sony changes the CDAF algorithm or Sigma reprogram my lenses, they are only usable on CDAF Sony in a very limited and usually 'total failure' mode. Sony SSM and SAM lenses, in contrast, work on both bodies and work well.

David

[alphaomega]

Here is the all knowing Barry Fitzgerald again

I don't have the answer to all questions but you have to open your eyes a bit here. Primary focus for lens manufacturers is not NEX..it's DSLR users they drive the sales. That is quite a logical point to make.

It has been pointed out by several Knowledgeable writers here and other places that in camera SSS works bedst at focal lengths at or below 200mm and above that in lens stabilisation is generally superior. So by removing VC from new Tamron lenses for Sony A mount Tarmron are both making the 18-270 lens pretty unusable on the NEX-5 and less usable on the A mount as the focal length runs above 200mm. The question is who should open the eyes?

[alphaomega]

Thanks for the detailed comments on the suitability of Sigma's 18-250 fitted to NEX-5 with converter LA-EA1. These results essentially rule out the Sigma lens for me. I already have the Sony 18-250 for my DSLRs. Very satisfied with it but it will not provide AF on my NEX-5 (still snowbound somewhere). In any event the new Tamron PZD motor may be too fast for NEX contrast AF.

The 18-270mm F/3.5-6.3 Di II PZD employs a newer technology, the PZD (PIEZO Drive), which functions according to the standing wave principle.

A standing wave ultrasonic motor utilizes high-frequency voltage to extend and turn the piezoelectric (piezoceramic) element, thus moving the entire element in a standing wave movement. The metal tip is the contact point of the element to the rotor, and moves in an elliptic motion from the swiveling motion of the moving element. The friction from this motion subsequently turns the rotor. Standing wave ultrasonic motors have the distinct advantage of being faster, quieter and more precise and compact than their traveling wave counterparts.

May just lead to the same kind of hunting as seen with the Sigma. Not keen on spending £650 on the SEL18200 E18-200mm just to get something reaching beyond the SEL1855.

[bfitzgerald]

It has been pointed out by several Knowledgeable writers here and other places that in camera SSS works bedst at focal lengths at or below 200mm and above that in lens stabilisation is generally superior. So by removing VC from new Tamron lenses for Sony A mount Tarmron are both making the 18-270 lens pretty unusable on the NEX-5 and less usable on the A mount as the focal length runs above 200mm. The question is who should open the eyes?

The question of in body AS performance v lens based stabilisation is so open to debate it's really pointless trying to swing it one way or the other. And do I not remember David complaining about the lag time for the IS/VR to kick in on a lens before? As for knowledge I'm still waiting for someone to demonstrate the effects of mirror slap for hand-held shots at certain shutter speeds and that SLT ones are sharper (I'll be a long time waiting I think)

Tamron are an optical company and are looking to make a profit. I very much doubt despite the interesting conspiracy theories it's got anything at all to do with Sony sending a few suits around to "stop them making a VC lens for A mount" Shareholders get to make some important choices but they don't call the shots on the ground and the company is run like any other by a board or directors. I doubt NEX even crossed the mind of Tamron when making a choice about this lens but there could be an element of maximizing profit (maybe a non VC design is cheaper to build or faster off the line)

The only surprise to me was that Sony did not go with in body AS for NEX. It no doubt would have added more to the width but as we've had compacts with sensor shift by no means that difficult.

[David Kilpatrick]

Barry, when you are shooting with a Canon 1D MkIII - an extremely fast-reacting camera - then the 0.5 to 1 seconds which a Canon IS lens requires before stabilisation operates can be critical.

Since it takes rather longer for any current live view system (whether in a DSLR, SLT, or NEX) to be ready for the first shot, or to wake up, the IS lens delay issue is not relevant to that - the lens has usually stabilised before you even see a view on the screen.

The main benefit of IS over SSS at long focal lengths is viewing stabiisation. Framing any shot much over 200mm focal length on a NEX is very difficult indeed, it's not like using an optical finder as you have no line of sight. Any additional help from a stabilised lens is important, but the NEX also has no SSS - and for extended video filming, as when trying to capture moments at a bird nest site, the A55 and A580 also need to have SSS turned off for maximum film clip time.

Therefore, for these models, VC/OS/OSS is important anyway - whether or not they have SSS - for video clip length, and very important for NEX.

David

[alphaomega]

First of all a thanks to David Kilpatrick for making it clear above that in lens stabilisation is an advantage at longer focal lengths. Secondly a final answer to the Barry Fitzgerald kind of logic.

Tamron are an optical company and are looking to make a profit. I very much doubt despite the interesting conspiracy theories it's got anything at all to do with Sony sending a few suits around to "stop them making a VC lens for A mount" Shareholders get to make some important choices but they don't call the shots on the ground and the company is run like any other by a board or directors. I doubt NEX even crossed the mind of Tamron when making a choice about this lens but there could be an element of maximizing profit (maybe a non VC design is cheaper to build or faster off the line)

So when Sony omits features they are quite stupid and unaware of market expectations (what Barry deems fit for purpose). When Tamron removes features on Alpha mount lenses they are smart business people out to make money. I rest my case.