Tamron 70-300mm f/4-5.6 Di VC USD

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Performance
At first glance you could be mistaken for thinking this was a 70-200mm f/2.8 lens. Its length and chunkiness make it seem very similar to Canon and Nikon’s shorter telephotos. This optic, however, has an added 100mm zoom, making it an ideal choice for any keen nature or sports photographer on a budget. Coupled with a maximum aperture of f/4 at 70mm and f/5.6 at 300mm, the Tamron also boasts a Vibration Compensation mode, giving you more freedom to shoot handheld in low light conditions. Or even shooting at full zoom with a slower shutter speed than you’d usually try to handhold. Another bonus to this beefy lens is the Ultrasonic Silent Drive (USD) that makes it perfect for keeping noise down to a minimum when shooting wildlife.
Pretty much the only downside we found was the lack of a tripod mount. Okay, so it’s not that common to find them on lenses of this spec but the added bulk and chunky weight of this lens makes it great for build-quality purposes, but not that great for mounting onto your tripod! With this forcing us to attach the camera to the tripod we set up to take a shot. Straight after locking the tripod head we were surprised to see the whole unit slowly dropping down, as the weight of this lens was knocking the head off balance, making it useless for longer exposures. And this was with it set at 70mm, so we dread to think how far it would’ve toppled at 300mm. 


Final verdict
The fantastic image quality from this lens places the Tamron high in the 70-300mm field. With such a modest price-tag and a reliably responsive VC mode, it really does have a lot going for it. Our only gripe is the fact that it really needs a tripod ring. We’d recommend it to anyone on the hunt for an entry-level zoom ready for dipping their toes in sports or nature photography.
www.intro2020.co.uk


Key specification
Minimum aperture: f/32
Filter size: 62mm
Focus mechanism: USD
Diaphragm blades: Nine
Minimum focus: 1.5 metres
Lens hood supplied: Yes
Image stabiliser: Yes
Fittings: Nikon, Canon and Sony
Weight: 765g
Size: 142.7x81.5mm