Tamron 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 Di III VC Lens Silver

This lens addresses the biggest need for most amateur photographers; you want a lightweight camera system you can take anywhere, hiking, family outings, events, etc, but you don't want to keep changing lenses. This is a great, sharp lens and a good compromise over the art quality of the higher end lenses. Face it, you're not going to find an all in one that doesn't have a bit of distortion, even in the $2K+ range. But the reality is that you're also not going to capture the candid shots and opportunities if your system is so bulky, you only bring it out on special occasions. That's why this is a great compromise. It is lightweight. It is comfortable around the neck, and you can easily carry it with you all day. The auto-focus is a bit slower than the Sony lenses, ... MoreThis lens addresses the biggest need for most amateur photographers; you want a lightweight camera system you can take anywhere, hiking, family outings, events, etc, but you don't want to keep changing lenses. This is a great, sharp lens and a good compromise over the art quality of the higher end lenses. Face it, you're not going to find an all in one that doesn't have a bit of distortion, even in the $2K+ range. But the reality is that you're also not going to capture the candid shots and opportunities if your system is so bulky, you only bring it out on special occasions. That's why this is a great compromise. It is lightweight. It is comfortable around the neck, and you can easily carry it with you all day. The auto-focus is a bit slower than the Sony lenses, which is the only downside. The zoom is manual, but it is smooth. Slight barrel effect at wide angle, but you can fix that in Lightroom or other programs if it is an issue. You might miss some shots with the slower auto focus, but I've been very surprised and happy with the results. And again, I get a lot more good shots with this lens than I would ever get toting and switching lenses. Certainly there is a place for those as well, but for the price and convenience, this is really a must.

I just received the Canon EOS M5 with the 15-45 lens. That just didn’t have enough ‘reach’ for my taste. Looked at the options from Canon, either the 18-150 or the 55-200. I didn’t want to carry two lenses all of the time so the 55-200 was out, and the Tamron 18-200 price was the same as the Canon 18-150, but had more reach, so gave it a whirl. Other than the usual EOS M trouble with getting focus lock, I have found the Tamron lens to be all I was looking for. Thus far, in the short time I have had it, the pictures, when properly focused look pretty good regardless of the zoom level. Understand, this is not the same as the larger EOS lenses, but quite good for a much more compact package. I see no reason to ‘short change yourself’ and limit yourself to only the ... MoreI just received the Canon EOS M5 with the 15-45 lens. That just didn’t have enough ‘reach’ for my taste. Looked at the options from Canon, either the 18-150 or the 55-200. I didn’t want to carry two lenses all of the time so the 55-200 was out, and the Tamron 18-200 price was the same as the Canon 18-150, but had more reach, so gave it a whirl. Other than the usual EOS M trouble with getting focus lock, I have found the Tamron lens to be all I was looking for. Thus far, in the short time I have had it, the pictures, when properly focused look pretty good regardless of the zoom level. Understand, this is not the same as the larger EOS lenses, but quite good for a much more compact package. I see no reason to ‘short change yourself’ and limit yourself to only the Canon offerings.

I use this product as a sort of catch all lens. I normally shoot prime lenses, but, sometimes need a zoom for practical reasons. Rather than try to guess between the two 18-55 and 55-210 lenses, I wanted one that covered that same basic range. I shoot any subject with this lens.So far, it's a good size. It handles fine. I have no problems using it for hours at a time. The only minor quibbles are that the manual focus ring may be a little more sensitive than I'd like (though with practice I no longer bump it on accident, sending myself into DMF manual focus mode) and the motors are a bit noisier than the regular kit lens.Optically it's as good or better than any other super zoom I've used. It's almost identical to the Sony E 18-200 in most respects with slightly ... MoreI use this product as a sort of catch all lens. I normally shoot prime lenses, but, sometimes need a zoom for practical reasons. Rather than try to guess between the two 18-55 and 55-210 lenses, I wanted one that covered that same basic range. I shoot any subject with this lens.So far, it's a good size. It handles fine. I have no problems using it for hours at a time. The only minor quibbles are that the manual focus ring may be a little more sensitive than I'd like (though with practice I no longer bump it on accident, sending myself into DMF manual focus mode) and the motors are a bit noisier than the regular kit lens.Optically it's as good or better than any other super zoom I've used. It's almost identical to the Sony E 18-200 in most respects with slightly better aberration control.The vibration control seems very effective, almost as if the lens was stuck in mid air.I have nothing particularly bad to say but will point out that this is obviously a super zoom lens and behaves like one. That means you're getting optical quality compromises in order to achieve a small and flexible package. It's heavier than most lenses and you'll need to expect that to impact handling. That said, if you ever used any super zoom from Nikon or even other Tamron lenses, then you can understand what to expect and having the right expectations will leave you satisfied with this lens.