TAMRON SP 35MM F/1.4 DI USD
A Tamron f/1.4 prime has been a long time coming, but billed as the ‘best Tamron lens of all time’, it’s well worth the wait
UNTIL RECENTLY, TAMRON’S FASTEST DI PRIME LENSES FOR DIGITAL CAMERAS HAD A MODEST APERTURE RATING OF F/1.8. THAT CHANGED LAST YEAR WITH THE LAUNCH OF THIS 35MM F/1.4. WE’VE SEEN SOME EXCELLENT TAMRON LENSES IN THE PAST, ESPECIALLY THE LATEST ROUND OF G2 (GENERATION 2) MODELS, BUT THIS ONE CLAIMS TO BE THE BEST YET. IT WAS DESIGNED AS A SHOWCASE ITEM TO CELEBRATE 40 YEARS OF TAMRON SP (SUPER PERFORMANCE) LENSES.
MEASURING 81X105MM, THE TAMRON IS ALMOST IDENTICAL IN SIZE TO THE CANON ON TEST, AND LARGER THAN THE NIKON AND SIGMA. IT’S ALSO THE HEAVIEST IN THE GROUP, WEIGHING 815G OR 805G FOR THE CANON AND NIKON MOUNT EDITIONS RESPECTIVELY. BUILD QUALITY AND HANDLING ARE EXCELLENT, FEATURING A FULL SET OF WEATHER SEALS, PLUS A
NEWLY DEVELOPED FLUORINE-BASED COATING TO REPEL MOISTURE AND GREASE FROM THE FRONT ELEMENT.
WITH 14, THE TAMRON HAS THE SAME NUMBER OF ELEMENTS AS THE CANON LENS. THESE INCLUDE THREE MOULDED GLASS ASPHERICAL ELEMENTS AND FOUR LC (LOW DISPERSION) ELEMENTS. THE EXOTIC COATINGS INCLUDE NANO-STRUCTURE BBAR G2 (BROAD-BAND ANTI-REFLECTION GENERATION 2) FOR ENHANCED LIGHT TRANSMISSION AND REDUCED GHOSTING AND FLARE. DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY FOR THIS LENS, THE RINGTYPE ULTRASONIC AUTOFOCUS SYSTEM UTILISES A DR (DYNAMIC ROLLING-CAM) MECHANISM FOR OPTIMUM SPEED AND ACCURACY. AN OPTIONAL USB DOCKING STATION (TAP-IN CONSOLE) IS AVAILABLE FOR FINETUNING AND APPLYING FIRMWARE UPDATES.
SHARPNESS IS EXCELLENT AND INCREDIBLY CONSISTENT ACROSS THE ENTIRE IMAGE FRAME AND THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE APERTURE RANGE. DISTORTION AND AXIAL AS WELL AS LATERAL CHROMATIC ABERRATIONS ARE NEGLIGIBLE, WHILE RESISTANCE TO GHOSTING AND FLARE IS VERY GOOD INDEED. IT’S A SPECTACULAR LENS.