Tamron 70-210mm f/4 Di VC USD Review

Tamron 70-210mm f/4 Di VC USD Performance

Looking at sharpness first, at 70mm centrally the lens is excellent from f/4 all the way through to f/16. It is still very good at f/22 and it is only at f/32 that it softens. The edges are very good at f/4, excellent from f/5.6 to f/11, very good at f/16 and f/22 and again soft at f/32. Performance on full frame is already very even and on APS-C would be virtually identical right across the frame.

At 100mm the picture centrally is exactly the same – excellent from f/4 to f/16, very good at f/22 and soft at f/32. Again, the edges perform well, being very good at f/4 and f/5.6, excellent at f/8 and f/11, very good at f/16 and f/22 and softening at f/32.

At 135mm, the centre is again excellent from f/4 to f/16, very good at f/22 and soft at f/32. The edges are very good from f/4 to f/8, excellent at f/11, very good at f/16 and f/22 and soft at f/32.

210mm can so easily be a lost cause but here the Tamron continues to excel, and any drop in the actual figures is very slight indeed. Centrally, sharpness is excellent from f/4 to f/16, very good at f/22 and soft at f/32. The edges are very good from f/4 to f/16, good at f/22 and soft at f/32.

In terms of sharpness, this means that the lens is fully usable for high quality work throughout the range, and can be used with absolute confidence at all but the smallest aperture of f/32. An excellent performance throughout.

CA (Chromatic Aberration) is very well corrected, with consistently low figures at all focal lengths, centre and edge.

Distortion is also very well controlled. It measures -1.22% barrel at 70mm and thereafter moves to pincushion; +0.32% at 100mm, +1.06% at 135mm and +1.59% at 210mm. This is a very good, consistent result and distortion is unlikely to be a problem. In any event, we can always turn to software or in-camera solutions for further correction.

Flare is not a problem either and throughout the review period almost impossible to find in any of the shots, no matter how demanding.

Bokeh is delightfully smooth and this makes the lens ideal for portraiture, flower studies and any situation where the main subject will be enhanced by a smoothly gradated out of focus background.

Finally, the VC system claims to offer 4 stops advantage. Testing indicates that 5 stops is entirely possible, with a high degree of sharpness retained. Although this will do nothing to address moving subjects, it does enhance the usefulness of the lens in low light with more static subject matter.

Value For Money

The Tamron 70-210mm f/4 Di VC USD lens is priced at £699. For such a high quality optic that really does seem, even in isolation, a very fair price. Competitive lenses might include:

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L IS USM, £1209
Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L USM, £589
Nikon AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/4 G ED VR, £1269
Sony FE 70-200mm f/4 G OSS, £1149

There are also plenty of f/2.8 lenses, but generally this can almost double the price.

For more options have a look at the Top 12 Best Tamron lenses, Top 25 Best Telephoto zoom lenses.

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