Tamron Announcement: SP 150-600mm F/5-6.3 VC USD

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<strong>Tamron announces the development of a revolutionary new 150-600mm Ultra-Telephoto Zoom Lens for full-frame and APS-C format DSLR cameras</strong></p>

<p><strong></strong>November 7, 2013, Saitama, Japan – Tamron Co., Ltd. (President & CEO: Morio Ono), a leading manufacturer of precision optics, has announced the development of an innovative ultra-telephoto zoom lens with a focal length range of 150mm to 600mm for full-frame and APS-C format DSLR cameras. The lens sample will be on display in showcase at the Tamron booth at the Salon de la Photo 2013 which will be held from November 7 to 11 in Paris, France.</p>
<p>Tamron’s previously announced 200-500mm (Model A08), still currently available, is a popular, compact, easy-to-use ultra-telephoto zoom lens, but customers have shown great interest in having a lens that provide an even greater focal length range.</p>
<p>This all-new ultra-telephoto zoom lens features VC ( Vibration Compensation)*² image stabilization, speedy, precise USD ( Ultrasonic Silent Drive)*³, state-of-the-art eBAND (Extended Bandwidth & Angular-Dependency) Coating*1, which significantly reduces the unwanted light reflections that cause flare and ghosting, and, in addition a sophisticated and stylish new external finish.</p>
<p>Its 4x ultra-telephoto zoom capabilities, with a focal length range from 150mm to 600mm, enhance the creative potential of telephoto photography, a captivating feature for all photographers, particularly nature, wildlife, and sports shooters.</p>
<p>SP 150-600mm F/5-6.3 Di VC USD (Model A011)</p>
<p><!--more--></p>
<p><strong>Product Highlights</strong></p>
<p>4x ultra-telephoto zoom lens with a focal length range of 150mm to 600mm</p>
<p>The focal length range of this lens was extended by 50mm on the wide-angle side and 100mm on the telephoto side compared to the existing model (Model A08), making it possible to take even more striking photographs of birds, wildlife, sports, and other distant subjects. Mounted on APS-C DSLR cameras, it has a stunning equivalent focal length range of 233mm to 930mm, almost to 1000mm.</p>
<p>World class image quality</p>
<p>Employing 20 elements in 13 groups and boasting an advanced optical design, it delivers a superior balance of resolution and contrast for sharp, clear images. The front group contains three LD ( Low Dispersion) glass elements (two in the first group, one in the third) for enhanced optical correction effectiveness, enabling the lens to thoroughly compensate for on-axis aberrations at the telephoto end. The lens also adopts eBAND Coating*¹, developed from state-of-the-art coating technologies, and conventional BBAR(Broad-Band Anti-Reflection) Coating to greatly suppress ghosting and flare even when shooting under adverse lighting conditions.</p>
<p>Achieves a 600mm focal length in a compact easy-to-handle package</p>
<p>Ingenious optical design features minimize the movement of lens groups within the lens when zooming. This reduces the amount of barrel extension needed to cover the complete focusing range, making the entire lens more compact.</p>
<p>Beautiful background blur effects</p>
<p>Adopting a 9 blade circular diaphragm enables users to create beautiful background blur effects (bokeh), which provide even greater potential for creative expression. This circular diaphragm retains a nearly circular shape even at two stops down from its maximum aperture.</p>
<p>VC ( Vibration Compensation)*² mechanism creates greater opportunities for sharper handheld photography.</p>
<p>Tamron’s proprietary VC ( Vibration Compensation) image stabilization system uses a three-coil system, delivering significantly sharper images and creating greater opportunities for handheld ultra-telephoto photography.</p>
<p>Comfortable autofocus</p>
<p>Tamron’s new SP 150-600mm F/5-6.3 Di VC USD features a USD ( Ultrasonic Silent Drive) ultrasonic motor drive*³ for swift and accurate AF response, it delivers high torque, very fast response times, and very low noise. The full-time manual focus mechanism allows users to make fine manual focus adjustments at any time even when AF is engaged.</p>
<p>New elegant, high-class external finish</p>
<p>Tamron has upgraded the cosmetic design and finish of this lens to create a more sophisticated, high-end look in keeping with the demands of discerning full-frame DSLR users.</p>
<p>Employing a sophisticated linear pattern rubber grip on the zoom and focus rings and an attractive and stylish tungsten silver name-brand ring, this newly designed model accentuates its visceral presence with understated elegance and class.</p>
<p>Easy-to-use tripod mount</p>
<p>The tripod mount has been completely redesigned to provide superior stability, durability, ease of use, and portability.</p>
<p>Comes with “SILKYPIX Developer Studio for Tamron”, RAW image development processing software for Tamron’s SP lenses</p>
<p>The SILKYPIX Developer Studio software can develop high-quality images from RAW data, incorporating adjustments that can express the personal style and taste of the photographer. These include white balance, color, sharpness, and the tonal curves recorded by digital cameras.</p>
<p>The SILKYPIX Developer Studio for Tamron provides a range of functions, in addition to the basic adjustment capabilities, such as correcting aberrations (chromatic aberrations of magnification, distortion, peripheral light fall-off), based on the optical data. Used in tandem with Tamron’s SP series lenses – renowned for their high-depiction capability – this advanced technology efficiently produces images that meet photographers’ most exacting demands.</p>
<p><strong> </strong></p>
 

Maximilian

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As I stated before in the rumors thread:

Here is Tamrons official development announcement:
http://www.tamron.com/en/news/2013/1107.html

You can also find specs there.

Pretty impressing IMHO is the weight of only 1951g (68.8 oz).
I hope, the mechanical construction will not suffer too much from this.

Let's wait for the official release and the first pictures and reviews.
 
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Lee Jay said:
600mm, huh? I wonder how close it will get to that in real life.

Lee Jay

That is a good point. My guess will be about 570mm. I'm interested in seeing the price on this baby. I don't do a lot of super tele distance shooting, so if this can be had for a reasonable ($2000 dollar) range, I might go for it. Fortunately for me, I'll probably get a chance to use and review it from Tamron before I have to make a decision.
 
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Lee Jay said:
600mm, huh? I wonder how close it will get to that in real life.

Lee Jay

The patent says 582 at f/6.45. So no closer than that ;)

Also this pic shows that it does have a focus limiter switch. Top switch says "Full" and then two more settings.
 

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arbitrage said:
Lee Jay said:
600mm, huh? I wonder how close it will get to that in real life.

Lee Jay

The patent says 582 at f/6.45. So no closer than that ;)

Also this pic shows that it does have a focus limiter switch. Top switch says "Full" and then two more settings.

I saw that on another thread from the patent. 582 isn't terrible, to be honest. I would expect a Canon zoom to be about 590, so this I can live with.
 
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Don Haines

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TWI by Dustin Abbott said:
arbitrage said:
Lee Jay said:
600mm, huh? I wonder how close it will get to that in real life.

Lee Jay

The patent says 582 at f/6.45. So no closer than that ;)

Also this pic shows that it does have a focus limiter switch. Top switch says "Full" and then two more settings.

I saw that on another thread from the patent. 582 isn't terrible, to be honest. I would expect a Canon zoom to be about 590, so this I can live with.
600mm at F6.3 gives a 95mm front element, the filter has to be larger than the element and more real estate is needed for IS so the specs have to be fudged a bit.....

582mm at F6.45 gives a 90.2mm front element... since they are using a 95 mm filter, this is a reasonable number...

For me, the big question is how well autofocus will work, particularly since most Canon's have an F5.6 AF limit.....
 
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Don Haines said:
For me, the big question is how well autofocus will work, particularly since most Canon's have an F5.6 AF limit.....

All of the 3rd party f/6.3 'spoof' the camera into thinking they're at f/5.6, so AF works fine. Well, I guess I should say Af works as well as possible, given that most 3rd party lenses aren't known for having good AF performance.

For me, the optics are the big question. I know 'world class image quality' is going to fall short of my Canon 600/4L IS II, but how far short? If the IQ is decent (Tamron did a good job with the 24-70/2.8 VC), the AF doesn't suck, and the lens is priced decently, this will be a big benefit to many telephoto shooters.
 
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TrabimanUK

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neuroanatomist said:
Don Haines said:
For me, the big question is how well autofocus will work, particularly since most Canon's have an F5.6 AF limit.....

For me, the optics are the big question. I know 'world class image quality' is going to fall short of my Canon 600/4L IS II, but how far short? If the IQ is decent (Tamron did a good job with the 24-70/2.8 VC), the AF doesn't suck, and the lens is priced decently, this will be a big benefit to many telephoto shooters.

I agree. If the optics are "good enough", I might be tempted to forsake a canon 100-400 for the extra reach and put up with the loss of a third of a stop in poor light and jack up the ISO if needed. Circa 200mm extra on safari could prove very useful.

Interesting, especially if they have done a good job.
 
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Since I could never, ever afford a 500 or 600 prime, this would be great for me if the optics were sharp enough. But I am very dubious that a lens with that long of a zoom range could be very sharp. What I would really like to see is for Sigma to produce a new version of their discontinued 500 f/7.2 lens. Although I never used one, it was very inexpensive and I am sure they could make it very sharp as a fixed lens. With the excellent high ISO of today's cameras and the inherently shallow depth of field at 500mm, not all of us need an f/4. (Plus the size is much more manageable).
 
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Don Haines

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neuroanatomist said:
Don Haines said:
For me, the big question is how well autofocus will work, particularly since most Canon's have an F5.6 AF limit.....

All of the 3rd party f/6.3 'spoof' the camera into thinking they're at f/5.6, so AF works fine. Well, I guess I should say Af works as well as possible, given that most 3rd party lenses aren't known for having good AF performance.

For me, the optics are the big question. I know 'world class image quality' is going to fall short of my Canon 600/4L IS II, but how far short? If the IQ is decent (Tamron did a good job with the 24-70/2.8 VC), the AF doesn't suck, and the lens is priced decently, this will be a big benefit to many telephoto shooters.

I am expecting the optics to pale in comparison to Canon's more recent lenses, particularly the prime lenses.

Given the same vintage, primes beat zooms... you don't have to design for a range of focal length, you optimize for just one length.... and a lack of moving parts to zoom the lens means lighter and (hopefully) more robust.. I would love to see a Canon 400F5.6 for those who want reach and quality at an affordable price and still have a portable lens.

My experience with "longer yet affordable lenses" is:
Sigma 50-500... the worst of a bad breed
Tamron 200-500... almost as bad
Sigma 150-500.... better, but still not sharp
Canon 100-400... better, but lots of copy variation.
Sigma 120-400... best of the zooms, but BARELY ahead of the very outdated Canon 100-400
Canon 400F5.6... beats them all, but it is a 20 year old design with no IS

and interestingly enough, the 70-200 with teleconverter outresolves the works of them.....

All that said, Tamron might surprise me. Anyone remember thier 90mm macro lens from the adapt-all mount system? That was a classic lens that could compete with the best of them... perhaps they can do that again, but I doubt it, particularly on a big lens with no flourite elements...
 
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neuroanatomist said:
For me, the optics are the big question. I know 'world class image quality' is going to fall short of my Canon 600/4L IS II, but how far short? If the IQ is decent (Tamron did a good job with the 24-70/2.8 VC), the AF doesn't suck, and the lens is priced decently, this will be a big benefit to many telephoto shooters.

Isn't that the big question... Will this be Sigma 150-500mm territory, or something better -and if so: how much money?

There also seems to be a problem with third party lenses autofocusing on Canon bodies in particular, the otherwise very good value for money Tamron 70-300mm VC USD gets the thumbs down from Brian Carnathan (http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Tamron-70-300mm-f-4-5.6-Di-VC-Lens-Review.aspx - for those that haven't already read it). I had their 70-200mm f/2.9 Di (not the new VC USD lens), until I traded it in for the Canon 70-200 f/2.8L (non-IS). I am still convinced that the Tamron was slightly sharper wide open across most of the focal length range, when the shot was in focus!

The lens doesn't look like it's aimed at the Canikon 200-400mm f/4 league, so I'm assuming it's another xxx-400mm f/4.5-5.6 lens dressed up as 600mm at the long end. In that case, it'll be a pretty steep downhill curve after 400mm to keep the size/weight reasonable. I think I'd rather wait and see what the EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM successor will look like, assuming Canon are planning to release it some time in the next decade! :mad:
 
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I'm sure that we will have a ton of reviewers who base their review on a development announcement. Why a Development Announcement? Its likely that they have wind of some competiting products and want potential buyers to wait for a year or more.

As far as focal length, almost all lenses fall short of the rounded off focal length number (no one rounds down, only up). That 95mm filter diameter may be a sign that some corners were cut, it should be over 100mm for a 600mm f/6.3. I'll wait for actual test reviews to see if it is a issue.
 
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Apr 24, 2012
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Don Haines said:
neuroanatomist said:
Don Haines said:
For me, the big question is how well autofocus will work, particularly since most Canon's have an F5.6 AF limit.....

All of the 3rd party f/6.3 'spoof' the camera into thinking they're at f/5.6, so AF works fine. Well, I guess I should say Af works as well as possible, given that most 3rd party lenses aren't known for having good AF performance.

For me, the optics are the big question. I know 'world class image quality' is going to fall short of my Canon 600/4L IS II, but how far short? If the IQ is decent (Tamron did a good job with the 24-70/2.8 VC), the AF doesn't suck, and the lens is priced decently, this will be a big benefit to many telephoto shooters.

I am expecting the optics to pale in comparison to Canon's more recent lenses, particularly the prime lenses.

Given the same vintage, primes beat zooms... you don't have to design for a range of focal length, you optimize for just one length.... and a lack of moving parts to zoom the lens means lighter and (hopefully) more robust.. I would love to see a Canon 400F5.6 for those who want reach and quality at an affordable price and still have a portable lens.

My experience with "longer yet affordable lenses" is:
Sigma 50-500... the worst of a bad breed
Tamron 200-500... almost as bad
Sigma 150-500.... better, but still not sharp
Canon 100-400... better, but lots of copy variation.
Sigma 120-400... best of the zooms, but BARELY ahead of the very outdated Canon 100-400
Canon 400F5.6... beats them all, but it is a 20 year old design with no IS

and interestingly enough, the 70-200 with teleconverter outresolves the works of them.....

All that said, Tamron might surprise me. Anyone remember thier 90mm macro lens from the adapt-all mount system? That was a classic lens that could compete with the best of them... perhaps they can do that again, but I doubt it, particularly on a big lens with no flourite elements...

Your experiences are way out of the choir, since the Bigma is widely considered the best of Sigma affordable telezooms, with the 120-400 being the worst (and not by chance the cheapest). The recent Tamron 70-200/2.8 VC USD also got good reviews.

It's obvious that this lens will not compete with 600mm primes costing 4 or 5 times as much, although I'm sure the web will be full of Captain Obvious who will lament their indignated dissatisfaction about that. If performance is solid and the price doesn't go too far north of 2000 (which is twice the price of the current version), this lens will open up a world of possibilities to many people.

It's likely aimed at competing with brandname 100-400's and will likely trade some IQ with the longer range and lower price.
 
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