Tamron's SP17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II Lens
Several weeks ago I got my hands on a Tamron SP17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II lens. I was hoping that this lens would solve a few problems that I have been dealing with in my digital photography.
My first issue dealt with wide angle coverage. The kit lens that camera with my Canon EOS camera was the ubiquitous 18-55mmIS lens. As digital camera lenses go, the 18-55mm is OK in most uses but less satisfying when the photographer steps beyond snapshots. This particular kit lens took a nasty fall from the top of some stairs to the ground and didn't survive the drop. I reached into my camera bag and snapped on my old Canon 28-105mm lens and kept on shooting for months.
The problem with a lens that starts at 28mm is that it isn't really wide angle at all. In fact, in my living room the 28mm length had me backing up into the kitchen in my attempts to shoot birthday parties and family gatherings. This was a problem for the family photographer in me.
The other difficulty I wanted to overcome was shooting in low light. While a gym may seem to be brightly lit it is in fact a most difficult environment to shoot in. My maximum aperture of f/5.6 on the 28-105mm (the same aperture on the original kit lens for that matter) didn't permit a fast enough shutter speed to prevent motion blur during volleyball games.
Lastly I enjoy shooting in aperture priority mode (Av) most of the time so that I can control the depth of field in my pictures. Here again the maximum f/3.5 to f/5.6 aperture really didn't cut it.
With these problems to solve I looked through the offerings in mid-range zoom lenses. Canon's 17-40mm f/4.0L lens was attractive but too expensive. Plus I wanted more max aperture. After poking around at the other options from Sigma and Tokina I settled on the Tamron SP 17-50mm f/2.8 lens.
Right away I appreciated the compact and light design of the lens. The fit and finish were high quality and a noticeable improvement over both my original kit lens and the trusty 28-105mm Canon. The lens also came with a lens hood; a tool I try to always have mounted on any lens.
After shooting some indoor basketball, a children's concert and our own family reunion I found that the wide angle coverage coupled with the fast f/2.8 aperture fixed every problem I had. The lens is very sharp wide open and even surpasses any other lens I own once it stops down to f/3.5 or f/4.
The Tamron SP17-50mm f/2.8 lens comes in both a standard and VC image stabilized version. I opted for the non-stabilized model; most wide to normal lenses aren't as inherently prone to as much camera shake as tele-zoom lenses are.
Overall I really like this lens and it has fast become my camera's best friend. The build quality, image quality and exceptional fast aperture put the original kit lens to shame. If I ever change camera brands I'll choose the Tamron SP 17-50mm lens right off the bat and skip the so-so kit lens most manufacturers stick on their camera bodies.
My first issue dealt with wide angle coverage. The kit lens that camera with my Canon EOS camera was the ubiquitous 18-55mmIS lens. As digital camera lenses go, the 18-55mm is OK in most uses but less satisfying when the photographer steps beyond snapshots. This particular kit lens took a nasty fall from the top of some stairs to the ground and didn't survive the drop. I reached into my camera bag and snapped on my old Canon 28-105mm lens and kept on shooting for months.
The problem with a lens that starts at 28mm is that it isn't really wide angle at all. In fact, in my living room the 28mm length had me backing up into the kitchen in my attempts to shoot birthday parties and family gatherings. This was a problem for the family photographer in me.
The other difficulty I wanted to overcome was shooting in low light. While a gym may seem to be brightly lit it is in fact a most difficult environment to shoot in. My maximum aperture of f/5.6 on the 28-105mm (the same aperture on the original kit lens for that matter) didn't permit a fast enough shutter speed to prevent motion blur during volleyball games.
Lastly I enjoy shooting in aperture priority mode (Av) most of the time so that I can control the depth of field in my pictures. Here again the maximum f/3.5 to f/5.6 aperture really didn't cut it.
With these problems to solve I looked through the offerings in mid-range zoom lenses. Canon's 17-40mm f/4.0L lens was attractive but too expensive. Plus I wanted more max aperture. After poking around at the other options from Sigma and Tokina I settled on the Tamron SP 17-50mm f/2.8 lens.
Right away I appreciated the compact and light design of the lens. The fit and finish were high quality and a noticeable improvement over both my original kit lens and the trusty 28-105mm Canon. The lens also came with a lens hood; a tool I try to always have mounted on any lens.
After shooting some indoor basketball, a children's concert and our own family reunion I found that the wide angle coverage coupled with the fast f/2.8 aperture fixed every problem I had. The lens is very sharp wide open and even surpasses any other lens I own once it stops down to f/3.5 or f/4.
The Tamron SP17-50mm f/2.8 lens comes in both a standard and VC image stabilized version. I opted for the non-stabilized model; most wide to normal lenses aren't as inherently prone to as much camera shake as tele-zoom lenses are.
Overall I really like this lens and it has fast become my camera's best friend. The build quality, image quality and exceptional fast aperture put the original kit lens to shame. If I ever change camera brands I'll choose the Tamron SP 17-50mm lens right off the bat and skip the so-so kit lens most manufacturers stick on their camera bodies.
