Tamron SP AF200-500mm F/5-6.3 Di LD (IF) Review by Arthur

Author & Editor

Author: Arthur

Editor: <Please add your name here if you have edit this article>

Photographs and article are copyright of Arthur

Introduction

Bird/Nature Photography is never a cheap hobby; the price tags of long telephoto prime lenses alone already cost a bomb. So as a new newbie with a tight budget constraint, how can he/she enjoy this wonderful hobby? The direct answer is to opt for third parties lenses.

One of this third party lenses is the SP AF200-500mm F/5-6.3 Di LD (IF) offered by Tamron. The lens is well constructed and weighs just 1237g, much lighter than the Sigma 50-500mm. This is a real joy when you need all your stuff and walk for long hours.

Specifications

Tamron SP AF200-500MM F/5-6.3 Di LD (IF) Specifications

Model Number A08

Lens Construction (Groups/Elements) 10/13 (2 LD elements)

Angle of View 12°-5°

Focal Length 200mm to 500mm

Maximum Aperture f5 to f6.3

Diaphragm Blade Number 9

Minimum Aperture f/32

Minimum Focus 2.5m (8.20ft) - entire zoom range

Macro Mag. Ratio 1:5.0 (at 500mm)

Filter Diameter 86mm

Weight 1237g

Diameter x Length 93.5 x 227.0mm (@ 200mm setting, no hood)

Accessories Lens hood, Detachable Filter Effect Control, Carrying case and strap

Mount Canon, Nikon-D, Sony

I have been using the Tamron SP AF200-500mm F/5-6.3 Di LD (IF) for awhile now and would like to share my experiences about the performance of this lens.

Autofocus

Focusing is quick with no ‘hunting’ at any focal length under a variety of daylight conditions. Although not a silent lens, the AF noise is still acceptable. Auto focus is still possible with 1.4x TC offered by Kenko but tend to hunt when lighting conditions is poor.

With proper long lens techniques and lots of practice, one can achieved flight and action shots too.

Dollarbird in flight

Image Quality

All I could say is that the image quality produced by this lens is good. A picture tells a thousand words. Below is a picture taken with the Tamron SP AF200-500mm F/5-6.3 Di LD (IF) @ 500mm focus range:

Common Kingfisher

100% cropped

Conclusion

The Tamron SP AF200-500MM F/5-6.3 Di LD (IF) is a decent long telephoto zoom lens with good performance. The lens is well made, feels sturdy, focus is accurate and the lens hood is deep and effective.

Image quality is not on par with the prime lenses, but that is not even a fair comparison to begin with. At a street price of less than 1/5th of Canon/Nikon 500mm f4 lens and weighs much lighter than the Sigma 50-500mm lens, I would certainly recommend that those who want a fairly inexpensive telephoto zoom should look at this lens.