Hits: 114
Tamron has a history of crafting great supertele lenses, and its latest Tamron Tele zoom 100-400 mm f/4.5-6.3 Di VC USD is no exception. This full-frame lens covers a very useful and comprehensive range, making it worth a look for anything from wildlife to sport to portraiture. And if you switch it to your APS-C body, you’ll get a 150-600 mm lens, or 160-640 mm with Canon’s l.6x crop factor.
Performance
When buying a superzoom, there are two very important things to factor in. Firstly, you’ll want to make sure the lens is sharp throughout the focal range. Secondly, you need to ensure the distortions at the extremes are kept in check. Thankfully, this Tamron optic passes both requirements with ease. The lens features a tough plastic construction, and is also kept reasonably light (1.115 g for Nikon fit or 1.135 g for Canon) due to its magnesium lens barrel design, making it the lightest in its class. Inside the housing you’ll find 11 groups in 17 elements, including LD (Low Dispersion) elements and eBAND coating. Both of these help protect against ghosting, flare and chromatic aberrations, and they do a great job. Images are generally free of such distortions, and though you may notice slight aberrations in the corners at 400 mm, you’ll have to strain to make them out.
We were very impressed with the level of sharpness on offer, with the centre sharpness being extremely good throughout the zoom range. This is where the relatively narrow aperture, f/6.3 at 400 mm, comes into its own, with the sweet spot never too far away at around f/8-f/11. The corners are also impressive, and while they do suffer a slight drop off in sharpness, it’s very well handled.
For anybody who wants to use this mounted on a tripod, you’ll be glad to know that there is an optional tripod collar which can be purchased separately. However, thanks to the 4 stops of VC image stabilisation and relatively light construction, you’ll get on very well hand held if that’s your preference.
The last, and arguably most important aspect, is the autofocus performance. Tamron’s in-lens dual processor allows for some very fast and accurate focusing, and thanks to the USD (Ultra-Silent Drive) it’s virtually noise-free – a real bonus if you’re shooting skittish animals. Finally, this lens is also compatible with the optional Tamron 1.4x teleconverter, if you need that smidge more reach.
Verdict
Tamron has produced a run of great lenses lately, and with a comprehensive focal length, 4 stops of image stabilisation and the lightest construction in its class, this one is equally as capable. It also helps that it’s under 800 Euro, so represents superb value for money. We thoroughly recommend you give this one a look, so long as you’re happy with the variable aperture.
