It’s a long read but I think worth every word. I gave you the rundown of why I been using the gear I’ve been using over these last two years in the previous post [link]. But things changed when Canon began delivering the 5D Mark III camera just a few weeks ago.
I photographed my first wedding with the 5D Mk3 and loved it, particularly the high ISO aspects of the camera. The problem was that I didn’t have a comparable lens to my 18-200mm IS lens I loved on my 7D to shoot with on the new 5D. I set about finding a replacement lens. I wasn’t interested in Canon’s $2700 six lb. lens in that same focal length so I opted to hit the NET and see what I could find. The Tamron 28-300mm VC looked to fill the bill and my good buddies at Tamron were gracious to loan me the lens for a month. My report below is based on my experience from my first week shooting hundreds of images with that lens.
Test Driving the New Tamron 28-300mm VC Lens; Is It the Best Wedding Lens Available?
After working with the Tamron 28-300mm VC lens on my Canon 5D Mark 3 for the last week, I’m finding this gear combo is going to be my favorite wedding gear, camera/lens combination from this point forward. Let me explain why. First, the superior image quality, quiet shooting, and super high ISO's have made the Canon 5D Mark III the most exciting camera I have ever photographed with.
Now add to that the Tamron 28-300mm VC lens and I’m thinking I may just have the ultimate gear combination for photographing weddings. Having said that - let's discuss the different features of the Tamron 28-300mm VC lens Since the 5D Mark III is a full frame sensor camera versus the APS sized sensor on the Canon 7D, the Tamron 28-300mm VC lens is the equivalent focal length lens on the full frame 5D Mk3 considering the 7D’s 1.6x magnification factor which is exactly what I was looking for at a non-wallet busting price of only ($600) for my 5D Mk3. Okay, your wanting to know, “Just how good is this new Tamron lens?” My first impressions signaled me that it is significant step up in image quality when compared to the images I was getting off of my 7D/18-200mm lens combination. What I’d like to do in today's post is walk you through several images taken with the Tamron lens at the various focal lengths from 300mm all the way down to 28mm and at pretty wide apertures to boot and then let you draw your own conclusions.
Focal Lengths Compared
300mm: Look at the first image. It was taken with the Tamron lens racked out to 300mm and shot at F8. Looking at it in full frame mode it looks just fine. But now let's zoom in and look at it at a 2:1 magnification. You can see, upon very close inspection of this image, that we have plenty of detail in this image.
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 300mm, F8.0 @ 1/250 second, ISO 800
Now let's look at the next wedding image along with their 2:1 magnification view. The important thing to notice on these next two images is that they were made at the lens’s widest aperture and at its longest focal length. It's with this focal length/f-stop combination that we would expect the worst performance from the lens. From my subjective observation I find the results to be amazingly good. 
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 300mm, F6.3 @ 1/200 second, ISO 200
During my Master Class last week, I actually printed a 24 x 36" print from this image series and it looked fabulous. So even using the Tamron lens and what many would consider the worst-case F-stop scenario, I am getting beautiful portraits of my bride.
I have to admit I found the results surprising. You can see that were holding plenty of detail in the bodice of the wedding gown. Surprisingly I had the lens fully extended to the full 300mm focal length.
250mm: Now look at the next image. It was made it at F5.6 handheld a 1/13th of the second and even in the close-up of this image you can see that we have plenty of detail in her facial features and in her pearl necklace. 
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 249m, F5.6 @ 1/13 second handheld, ISO 800
200mm: The next image at 200 mm could be argued to look even better. You can clearly see the texture of the skin and, see plenty of detail in the pearl necklace even under the extreme 2:1 magnification. 
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 200m, F5.6 @ 1/80 second handheld, ISO 200
150mm: The next image, the bride leaning against the piano, still continues to exude a high level of image quality zoomed to 154mm. Notice once again that the aperture was nearly wide open at 5.6 handheld at 1/50 of the second. 
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 154mm, F5.6 @ 1/50 second handheld, ISO 800
100mm: As I continue to shorten the focal length of the lens – look at this next image at 100 mm at F5 .0. You can see that the quality is still just as strong as in the previous images. I think the key point that I’m trying to make is that these images are made at the lens’ very wide apertures. That's telling me that we have excellent optics attached to the camera. 
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 100mm, F5.0 @ 1/60 second handheld, ISO 200
Sure, stopping down the lens even further could give us even greater sharpness but what I'm seeing is that is not necessary. And, the larger aperture allows us to separate the subject from the background very effectively. Take a look at this next image. Once again it was made at the 100mm setting at F5 .6 handheld at 1/60th of a second. It’s a very exciting image to view capturing the beauty of our subject against the dramatic Cincinnati skyline.
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 100mm, F5.6 @ 1/60 second handheld, ISO 1600
But now check it out at the one zoom magnification. You can see that even at this magnification we are looking at an extremely sharp image. And, once again it was made at nearly the full aperture of the Tamron lens. 
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 100mm, F5.6 @ 1/60 second handheld, ISO 1600
This next image of our bride leaning against the piano was made at a slightly wider 92 mm setting of the lens. I did absolutely no retouching on this image and even under close inspection you can see that it is tack sharp throughout. 
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 92mm, F5.6 @ 1/30 second handheld, ISO 800
50mm: The next three images were captured at the zoom range between 55 – 39mm. These images corroborate the results we saw in the longer zoomed photographs. In the tight 2:1 close-ups we are maintaining superior detail at this wider zoom range. 
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 55mm, F6.3 @ 1/160 second, ISO 200
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 50mm, F11 @ 1/200 second, ISO 200
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 39mm, F8.0 @ 1/200 second, ISO 100
28mm: At the Tamron's widest setting, 28 mm, we can easily identify that the lens is exceedingly sharp. I guess the main point I'm trying to make is I would have no hesitation at all in using this lens throughout its full focal length at my next wedding. 
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 28mm, F5.6 @ 1/80 second, ISO 6400
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 28mm, F5.6 @ 1/80 second, ISO 6400
Chromatic Aberration: Many times, at the extreme range of super zoom lenses you will see some chromatic aberration in the brightest parts of the scene. Take a look at this next image. 
After we wrapped the Master Class last Friday LaDawn and I wanted a little R&R so we checked to see what was showing around town. Low and behold there it was - a Barry Manilow concert just 10 minutes away from our home. On top of that, some decent tickets were available for only $10 each! We decided, heck, let's give it a try and enjoy a $10 concert. We actually spent more money on refreshments and parking than we did on our two tickets. It was certainly a was a nice diversion, an excellent concert and most importantly we had a good time;~)
But I digress. The topic here is chromatic aberration. When we look at this image under extreme 2:1 magnification you can see the chromatic aberration quite clearly around Mr. Manilow’s jacket. Notice the red and green halos on the left and right of the jacket.
Is this a big problem? For me, it's not. Why? Because I'm using Lightroom 4 as my image processor. And, in the Lens Correction Module, by simply profiling the lens and telling Lightroom 4 to remove the chromatic aberration we really make this issue disappear easily and quickly so it's really a non-issue.
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 300mm, F8.0 @ 1/160 second, ISO 6400
VC - Vibration Compensation: Okay, I know what you're thinking next, “The lens sure looks good throughout it’s complete zoom range from 28 to 300 mm but how good is the built-in image stabilization of the lens?” I have to tell you, I never carry a tripod with me to a wedding. That means I am essentially relying on the lens’ built in image stabilization to save the day for me. Tamron calls their image stabilization VC for Vibration Control. They claim their VC to give you three f-stop safe range when shooting at the slower shutter speeds. That means that you can shoot at a 3 stop slower shutter speed than what would normally be needed to capture a sharp photograph with their lens at a certain focal length.
After Mass on Sunday, LaDawn and I headed to the Cincinnati Art Museum. In the dim surrounds of the Art Museum I decided to check out the vibration control characteristics of the new Tamron lens. Take a look at the Gainsborough painting below. It was shot at the 160mm setting at 7.1 at 1/10 of a second handheld. In my quick test it looks like Tamron vibration and roll is working just fine.
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 60mm, F7.1 @ 1/10 second handheld, ISO 6400
Take a look at the zoomed in image. I don't see any motion blur whatsoever even under very close inspection. Later in the evening, after we returned, LaDawn grabbed the camera with the Tamron lens attached and started shooting a few photographs of me standing in our living room. I did hear that the shutter speed was quite slow so I asked her to take her time and just click off a few images and let's see what we could capture.
In the following image - you can see that I look quite sharp – easily sharp enough for a 4 x 6 print. Now prepare to be amazed! Look at the shooting specs on this image.
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 109mm, F7.1 @ 0.6 second handheld, ISO 6400
About 2/3’s second at 7.1 – that's over half of a second handheld, by LaDawn who is truly not a professional photographer, and I think the image captured looks pretty darn good. I have to admit I was really amazed when I saw this image. I'm not suggesting that you routinely go out and shoot at exposures longer than a half a second counting on them the be tack sharp. But, that there are times when, in a pinch, you could get away with it using Tamron's new lens.
Shooting Macro Shots: Another really nice feature of the Tamron lens that really surprised me was just how close it could focus. I racked out the lens to 300mm and proceeded to take some close-up photographs of some flowers in our garden. The lens was only about 10 inches away from the subject but, as you can see both in the full view and the super close view, there is plenty of detail in the image. That's an indication to me that we could also use this lens to do a great series of scene setters as part of our wedding coverage. 
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 300mm, F8.0 @ 1/320 second handheld, ISO 1600
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 300mm, F9.0 @ 1/500 second handheld, ISO 1600
I even clicked off a quick photograph of LaDawn and my wedding and engagement bands. I had no idea my wedding ring was so beat up – a wedding photographer’s hands take such a beating you know ;~) 
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 300mm, F16 @ 1/50 second handheld, ISO 1600
HDR: And finally, during last week's Master Class I did decided to give the HDR feature on my Canon 5D Mark III a try. I framed up the city and clicked off the image you see below of the city skyline. The camera captures three sequential shots and then matches up the pixels of each of those photographs, works it’s HDR magic, and gave me this final result. Even handheld at 1/80 second and once again at F5 .6 - a fairly high ISO 6400 we have one of my favorite images I've taken so far this year. 
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens at 42mm, F5.6 @ 1/80 second handheld, ISO 6400
How About On A Canon 7D or Any Other APS-C Sized Sensor? Good question – let’s think it through. Take a look at the diagram below I put together showing the actual field of view of the camera lens and then compared the field of view of a full frame vs. APS-C size sensored camera. If you're shooting a full frame camera you need to be using a lens that will cover the full 24 x 36 area of frame. That's what the Tamron 28-300mm VC lens was designed to do.
We’ve discussed the sharpness of the Tamron lens throughout its full zoom range of 28 to 300mm. Many times, in lens reviews, the reviewer will discuss light fall off and less-than-perfect sharpness at the corners of the lens particularly at the longer focal lengths of these all-in-one zoom lenses.
As a wedding photographer, this is not so an important consideration for me. We’re not shooting scenics or architectural objects. I don’t necessarily need perfect sharpness in the corner of my lens. Please, no nasty emails here – when I do need that perfect sharpness, I choose a lens that gives me just that.
But, as a wedding photographer I’m pointing my camera at people. Corner sharpness and vignetting are less of a consideration for me. Hence, the reason I put less than heavy emphasis on this aspect of lens reviews when considering a lens for my wedding photography. Nevertheless, the Tamron lens ranges from excellent at the center to good at the edges throughout its range in the tests I've seen online. This makes it a good all-in-one lens and a good choice for a full frame sensor camera like the Canon 5D Mark III when shooting weddings and events.
So what about the smaller sized sensors? If what I indicated above is true then the only conclusion you can draw is that the Tamron 28-300mm VC lens will do even better on a smaller size sensor like the one on the Canon 7D camera. Look at the diagram above one more time – we’re using the sharper, center part of the lens’ field of view so the easy conclusion is that you will get very good image quality and a great result.
One thing to remember though is that your effective focal length changes when shooting with the smaller sensor cameras. The Tamron 28-300mm VC lens will give you an effective range of 43-465mm on the 7D – quite a long throw on the long end but not so wide on the short end. Hey, there are always trade-offs, but you do pick up that added center sharpness when using the lens on a Canon 7D and wow, what a focal length on the long end!
In Conclusion: The conclusion for me is that this is a great lens to be married to the Canon 5D Mark III especially for the wedding photographer. It gives me a superior shooting range I like along with good to great sharpness throughout it’s entire range. That along with good VC - vibration control this lens will allow me to continue to shoot handheld at all my future events.
Would I marry it to my Canon 7D – I sure would when I wanted the added center sharpness and the longer much focal length. But remember, I give up the wide angle versatility I get with the Tamron lens on the Canon 5D Mark III. It’s all about choices. I’ll keep this post updated as I continue to work with the camera.
This camera/lens combo is been on my shoulder every day for the last week and as I continue to shoot with it, I'm continually amazed by the results I'm getting.
The results I'm seeing with the new camera-lens combination – Canon 5D Mark III /Tamron 28-300mm VC lens is giving me results that I find at least two notches above the quality that I was obtaining previously with my older shooting combination. I'm sold on this lens. I plan to use it throughout our shooting sessions at Texas School next week. Plan to stop by my blog to see some more images. Over the next few weeks and throughout June we have several weddings on the books. I can't wait to shoot with this camera-lens combo. I'll continue giving you feedback on how the camera and lens combo works for me.
Candid shooting at a wedding reception is a different beast. I'm generally shooting at F6.3 ranging the focal length from 28mm to the full 300mm range of the lens. I suspect, based on my results so far, I’ll be extremely pleased with the images. .
Once again, let me say that I'm not discouraging people from buying the fast glass, and expensive lenses. It comes down to what floats your boat. Those lenses just aren't my style. I’m most interested in maximum versatility and an image stabilization kind of a guy. When shooting one image every nine seconds for 9 hours, you have to be quick on your feet and quick on your trigger finger to bring home the best images for your clients.
Sure, I'll also be using my Sigma 12-24 ultra wide-angle lens, my 8-15mm zoomable Canon fisheye lens, my Canon 24-105mm image stabilized lens for most of my bridal portraits and group photographs, and my 85mm F1.8 Sigma telephoto when I really want to isolate on the subject or work in extremely low light conditions. These optics are a few of my favorite optics in my gear bag.. With this gear combination I think we’re able to capture more moments most efficiently and creatively than ever before. I’m more excited than ever before to be photographing weddings and Mitzvah events in this extremely exciting digital age.
Links to this post:
Tamron 28-300mm VC lens
Canon 5D Mark III
Sigma 12-24 ultra wide-angle
Canon 18-200mm IS lens
Canon 8-15 Fisheye
Canon 24-105mm IS lens
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Hey gang, that's it for me today. I knew it was going to be a long post and if you've read this far, congratulations for hanging in there. I’d certainly like to hear your remarks about the conclusions I'm drawing about my favorite gear combination fo event shooting. If you've got your own thoughts on the matter, why not share with our DigitalProTalk readers below in the Comment section following this post. I would love to hear from you.
On that note gang, I'm out here. Enjoy the rest of the day and I'll see you soon.
– David
Thank you David for giving us your thoughts on the Tamron 28-300 mm lens. You are the Best!! I previously purchased the cannon 24-105 lens for my Cannon 7D because of your comments in your Book and I love it! I will be looking forward to your future comments about the Tamron 28-300 lens.
ReplyDeleteDiane Landrum
I searched for a review on this lens and found that you just posted this one today! I was thinking the same thing as you. With the 5D Mark III I can probably get away with a bit slower glass and this was the first lens that came to mind. I had not considered using it for wedding though. Thanks for the review. I just hope the price of this lens doesn't go up after people read your review. :)
ReplyDeleteI wonder how much difference there would be with attaching the Tamron 28-300 to a Canon 60D? Your review almost makes it sound like the 5D is what makes the lens so great. Have you tried it on any other cameras?
ReplyDeleteI think that a big consideration when purchasing a lens is knowing if you are going to be using supplemental lighting or not. Those not adding light, or creating it with flash, probably have a greater need for fast glass to get the image. At f8 with off-camera flash you can use just about any lens and get great results.
ReplyDeleteHi there David,
ReplyDeleteExcellent lens review, but i think i may make your choice a bit more difficult with what im about to post.
Tamron make an equivelent lens for cameras with APS-C sized sensors such as the 7D you own. It is the 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC with the new piezo electric focus system for fast autofocus performance.
This gives a 35mm equivalent of 29-432mm which is a massive range.
Over here in the UK an excellent second hand example can be had for £379 which is about $612. If it is as good as the full frame option you could have a very compelling lens for a canon 7D. Just food for thought!!! All the best
I purchased the 28-300 about a year ago for my 20d to shoot outdoor scenery and it works great. I am also using it as a 2nd camera at weddings just for the length and it works just as good there. I have also used it several times at sporting events and works great there too. Just a long way around to say it's a great lens.
ReplyDeleteHi David,
ReplyDeleteIs this a new version of the A20 AF 28-300MM F/3.5-6.3 XR Di VC LD Aspherical (IF) that was produced in 2007?
Do you know when it will be released?
Hi David,
ReplyDeleteGreat stuff! I'm interested in the 18-200 for my 40d. You've almost convinced me to give it a try.
I'm very curious.... The photos of the girl in the polka dot dress with the toupe sweater, against the very blue sky- how did you light that? Quantum??
Great photos and very informative post. Thanks
Hi David,
ReplyDeleteI am interested in this lens but I had some hesitation till I read your review. It's been great help and now it is my firm decision to get this lens.
Thank you.
Ziya Şefik Atun
Hi David,
ReplyDeleteAs I told you previously before you really started shooting with this Tamron lens, I have used it for over a year and it is now the only lens I shoot with. I do carry another Tamron lens, but I have never used it. I love this Tamron 28-300mm VC lens and I use it on my Nikon D300s and I get just terrific shots.
Didi McConnell, Dragon Ridge Photography
Kudos to you Dave, splendid in your approach in explaining the lens, I just purchased the lens and hopefully will be here this weekend. Thanks for the time and effort.
ReplyDeleteSome may think I suffered from temporary insanity, but I traded my almost new Nikkor 24-70 for this lens while on vacation in Hong Kong. It's extremely more versatile and lighter weight than both the Nikkor 24-70 and the Nikkor 28-300. A bit smaller as well, it's much more fun to use and gets exceptional results; better photos than I got with the Nikkor 28-300 which I borrowed to make the comparison.
ReplyDeleteHi David, is this lens still a good performer? Are you still happy with it?
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking of buying one for the 5Dmk2, and like your blog.
Pim Augustinus, Mierlo, Netherlands
I'm in complete agreement with David on this lens for use in wedding photography. I shot my niece's wedding a year ago with it on a Canon XT1, and got an amazing set of images. Unlike David, I put it on a tripod and was able to shoot closeups of the exchange of vows from the back of the audience without intruding into the ceremony. That was especially important, as it was an outdoor wedding with the vows on a raised gazebo. Set at 28-50mm, it took excellent closeups of family portraits.
ReplyDeleteHi Mr. David, I just want to know your opinion about using tamron 28-300mm with a 6D. Do you think I can still have (almost) same results you had with your 5D mkIII?
ReplyDeleteLooking at the details of the pictures I tkink they are not very detailed an crisp. This is what I also see using my Tamron 28-300 VC on my EOS 5D mk II, also the color fringing at high contrast parts of the picture. This seems to be easy to correct in photoshop after tweaking the standard settings for the lens correction. Taking care to use the correction for the right model 28-300 tamron, ther are a lot of them! I have very different feelings about this lens, optical not bad and not very good but very good optical stabilizer. And very useful range of 28 - 300mm. If detail is not the most important you cam make really amazing pictures with this lens.
ReplyDeleteI have one of these lens attached to either a 350D or 20D, depending.
ReplyDeleteI find it to be extremely versatile, but it has faults too.
AF is a bit slow, and positively useless in low light conditions, it hunts like a madman. I can (almost) live with this, except.........
The biggie in the annoyance stakes is the gravity-induced droop of the lens in extension when in use. I know some Canon lens have an andjustable friction ring to compensate for this, but the Tamron doesn't seem to have this feature. If I am shooting at anything slightly off-level, the lens begins to creep by itself, and I truly hate it for that, it's a deal-breaker for me. Otherwise, it is a good lens, particularly for the price.
Hi David, how would the lens perform with a Canon 5D classic? I guess, its you don't have this antique in your bag anymore but with its 12MP less demanding sensor, maybe we could see more sharper images?
ReplyDeleteHi Uj,
DeleteI would have no qualms at all using it on a 5D. David
Hello! First of all just wanted to say i liked your review and thank you for that!
ReplyDeleteCould you be so kind to tell me the lens's focus throw? How many degrees..
Thank youu :)
Thanks for review, it was excellent and very informative.
ReplyDeletegreat shoot photo
thank you :)
Will you be reviewing the new Tamron 28-300mm f/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD Lens? If this lens is your "favorite wedding gear", I wonder what your thoughts are on this new and improved IQ, quiet/fast focus and weather sealed lens.
ReplyDelete