I always like how many samples he posts...for me, missing a landscape at infinity at the longer end. I get that he's not really in the location to make that happen
But overall, looks very nice. Very solid all around performance for a 100-400 in terms of sharpness, contrast, bokeh, etc.
Looks good overall. I am surprised that it rated is better in sharpness than Sigma 100-400 DN which has slightly better official MTF charts in mid axis.
IQ looks "good enough" for me so most likely I'll try one when it becomes available at the end of September. In my case, the haptics outweight the hopefully small IQ differences between other 100-400 options, as it's the former that keep my from using my 100-400 most of the time...
On one hand this looks good but its pretty slow and price for Poland(whole EU?) went up even before it hit the market. Now its like 7290 zł. New Sigma 100-400 costs almost half of it. I dont see this new Tamron selling well at that price. Time will tell.
I decided to go with a used copy of the GM. The Tamron looks nice but the price, after sales tax and with the tripod collar, just gets too close to what you can get the GM for.
For me, the Sigma just isn't a competitor given the AF issues.
It looks like you can get the GM used on eBay for $1,700usd all day. If you're lucky maybe as low as $1500. But I think you still have to pay tax. Where are people buying used lenses where tax isn't charged? Obviously there's craigslist and fb marketplace, but those are weak in my area. Having used tamron's 6-year warranty for lens repairs a couple of times I'd be pretty apprehensive to buy without it.
I wish there was one be-all-and-end-all choice for this kind of lens, but it all comes down, not unexepectedly, to your use case.
I think if you're going only for IQ, then the GM (or maybe 200-600G if you can go bigger/heavier and don't care about mfd / magnification ratio that much) is the best choice. The DN on the other hand, is unbeatable when it comes to price/performance. I was kinda expecting the Tamron to be considerably more expensive because:
* it's new
* it's a top of the line lens in Tamron's line-up (buttons, sealing, AF)
* it's 50mm on the wide end
* it's 1:2 semi-macro, on the wide end though
* it's relatively compact.
The latest price hike (around 85$ equivalent) seems like a joke after the initial price was already announced around here , but apparently Tamron is rising prices of all its lenses besides 150-500 (go figure).
I've never paid sales tax on eBay, but also I haven't bought anything there in over a decade so the rules probably have changed. There are several for sale on this forum. Not that I have an issue paying tax, just comparing apples to apples.
For me, the 70-200 GMII + TCs offers a more compelling upgrade over this Tamron than the 100-400 GM. The former has quite a bit wider aperture at <200mm and <280mm while still reaching 400mm at f5.6. Obviously a far more expensive option though, and a bit more lens changing required.
grahamgibson wrote:
For me, the 70-200 GMII + TCs offers a more compelling upgrade over this Tamron than the 100-400 GM. The former has quite a bit wider aperture at <200mm and <280mm while still reaching 400mm at f5.6. Obviously a far more expensive option though, and a bit more lens changing required.
Yeah, that's a good point. I wonder if the rumored new TCs will be "switchable" as that would put that combo close to the 100-400 zooms...
NastyNick wrote:
Does this video's "not professional" level of sharpness comment disappoint anybody?
I was a bit disappointed at first, too. But then when you think about it: there is zero evidence in this video that the lens is actually less sharp than the GM. The lens was tested indoors and at close range, which could mean alignment issues with the test chart. Also, he might have gotten a bad copy.
Until I see a side-by-side against the GM of landscape shots I'm not convinced that the Tamron is inferior.
Looks pretty good, I expected some IQ drop somewhere throughout the range. It seems that compared to 200-600, it's a bit weaker but still rather close.
The haptics (vs the GM) & 50mm on the wide end might win me over ...
so most likely I'll try one when it becomes available at the end of September. In my case, the haptics outweight the hopefully small IQ differences between other 100-400 options, as it's the former that keep my from using my 100-400 most of the time...