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Tamron 18-250mm F/3.5-6.3 XR Di II LD Aspherical (IF) AF
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Review Date: Nov 18, 2008
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Recommend? yes |
Price paid: Not Indicated
| Rating: 8
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Pros:
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small, light, easy to travel, wide angle and excellent zoom
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Cons:
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image is deformed at 18mm, quality may be poor at big apertures, zoom only usable in bright light
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I've been pretty happy about the Tamron 17-250mm:
- it has the best trans-standard zoom, from very wide angle at 17mm to strong zoom at 250mm. It can be used in lots of different circumstances from architecture shots, holiday shots to portraits. It can also be used for macro pictures. I don't need to carry several optics with me anymore.
- it is very light and easy to carry around for travel. I used to travel with my Canon 17-55mm f2.8 but now I changed to the Tamron, being much smaller and lighter.
- it is quite cheap...
However, there are some setbacks that you need to be aware of:
- Aperture is not that good, especially when using the zoom. Sharpness is also not at its best when reaching maximum aperture, especially at 3.5.
- Due to low 6.3 aperture at 250mm, you can only use the zoom in bright light. Most of the time under 1/250s, your shot will be blury.
However, I have made quite a lot of nice shots thanks to the Tamron, so I definitely recommand it.
Here are some examples from my Mexican holidays:
18mm at f7.1 and 1/160s: http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=4953 (it's the best quality you can get)
18mm at f3.5 and 1/10s: http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=4909
18mm at f3.5 and 1/2s: http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=4929 (you'd better hold your breath while you shoot)
23mm at f3.5 and 1/30s: http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=4938 (I had to sharpen the picture a little bit)
23mm at f5.0 and 1/80s: http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=4944
29mm at f5.6 and 1/60s: http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=4862
42mm at f4.5 and 1/13s: http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=4942
129mm at f8.0 and 1/320s: http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=4951
168mm at f7.1 and 1/250s: http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=4827
250mm at f6.3 and 1/100s: http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=4919 (definitely lacking sharpness)
250mm at f6.3 and 1/160s: http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=4825 (a bit better)
250mm at f6.3 and 1/320: http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=4842 (not blury anymore but not best sharpness)
250mm at f7.1 and 1/320s: http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=4921 (better quality)
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Canon EF-S 17-55 f/2.8 IS USM
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Review Date: Jan 3, 2007
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Recommend? |
Price paid: Not Indicated
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Pros:
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Excellent lens (!!!) - very sharp - Image Stabilizer - Build
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Cons:
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Dust (!!!) - heavy
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I have to change a little bit my review of this product (see below) because it is now back to Canon repairing after six months of use.
Ok, I still love it. It's the lens I use 99% of the time and the IS is really a life saver.
But there are definitely dust problems. I mean, some people don't have any dust problem. But, bad luck for me, I'm part of the people who have it and it just breaks my neck to have paid so much money for a lens, which sucks dust like crazy.
Of course, you can't see the dust on the pictures. So, no harm... But even though, when you want to sell your lens, you'll have to send it first to clean the dust otherwise noone would buy it. So, this is quite annoying...
So, now, if I had the choice, I would surely buy some L lens and not this one because you never know if you'll be part of the lucky "no dust" people or the unlucky ones...
In the meantime, I'll get it back from the repairing and it's probably going to stay my favorite lens for a while (until the dust is back 
Looks like people liked to have some shots samples. Here are more below. Night pictures were taken without tripod only with IS. It shows how powerful it is !! You can go as for as 0.5" handheld !
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=1299
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=1304
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=1373
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=1304 (at 2.8)
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=1365 (with IS)
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=1350 (with IS)
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=1287 (with IS)
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=1368 (really sharp, even though it's taken handheld with IS)
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Canon EF-S 17-55 f/2.8 IS USM
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Canon EF 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye
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Review Date: Jul 28, 2006
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Recommend? yes |
Price paid: Not Indicated
| Rating: 10
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Pros:
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build, picture quality, deformation
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Cons:
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-
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This lens is just amazing. I'll never regret buying it.
First, the build is extremely strong. Just when I bought it, I let the lens fall on a stone floor from a 80 cm height and it had nothing ! No mechanical problem, no optical problem, it was just good as new... (However I don't recommand that you test your lens the same way as I did)
Second, the image quality is really good. The colors are really bright. The focus makes a strange mechanical noise but you get used to it.
And of course, it has this special Fisheye effect that you are looking for.
You can see picture samples here :
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=231
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=453
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=637
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=140
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=428
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=475
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=223
Anyway, I love it !!
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Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM
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Review Date: Jul 26, 2006
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Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $300.00
| Rating: 10
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Pros:
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picture quality, aperture, dof, price
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Cons:
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50mm is a bit long for a digital camera
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I bought this lens after reading the critics on this website and as a matter of fact, I was really not disappointed. I just love the quality of the pictures and the sharpness.
Its depth of field with the maximum aperture is definitely amazing. Within a few centimeters, it goes from sharp to blurry. The effect is quite amazing !
Here are some pictures to show you the impressive quality of this lens (taken with a EOS 300D):
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=808
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=806
http://www.zenzi.org/bigphoto.php?photo=824
However, I find the 50mm a bit long on a digital camera. It's definitely not a walkaround lens. I still prefer my 18-55mm for this. But when you know you wanna take good pictures or in the evening with low light, it's definitely making a good job.
So, in my point of view, it's definitely a must buy !
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Canon EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III USM
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