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Tamron SP 35mm F1.8 Di VC USD F012N (Nikon)
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Tamron SP 35mm F1.8 Di VC USD F012N (Nikon)
£576.85 £374.95
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Additional information
| Product code | ACE-43979 |
|---|---|
| Barcode | 4960371005898 |
| Brand | Tamron |
| Colour | Standard |
| Model | Tamron SP 35mm F1.8 Di VC USD F012N (Nikon) |
Donald –
Bought this lens as a replacement for my Sigma 35mm f1.4 Art lens. The Sigma was an excellent lens but the new Tamron offered two features that were important to me that were lacking on the Sigma 1Vibration Control, as I get older this feature becomes more important. 2Better sealing, the Tamron includes a rubber gasket on the lens mount. An additional advantage is the compactness and the lighter weight of the Tamron compared to the Sigma which was quite heavy. Cosmetically both lenses have a modern appearance. Autofocus on the Tamron perhaps is a little slower then the Sigma, but is definitely more accurate more often. The color rendition and sharpness on the Tamron is very close to what the Sigma achieved.
Darrell –
I read several reviews saying they had some focusing issues with this lens but I recently bought the 85mm 1.8 VR and was very pleased with it after similar reviews. I LOVE this lens, the sharpness and color are very good. The AF has give me zero problems. I have used it with DX and FX and both worked great. The D500 paired up very well with it. A great grandkids lens.
Timothy –
At 399 this lens was a steal. Got it within a week and I put it on my Nikon D750 And the results were nothing less than amazing. Build quality is top notch, quiet focusing, quick focus lock, great photo quality. This lens really matches well with the 750. Absolutely thrilled with the purchase and worth every penny. Oh, and as always the ordering the purchase and delivery we are first rate from BandH
OSCAR –
Absolutely stunning lens I think Im a Tamron convert. I shoot family photos, weddings and quinceaeras and lugging the 2470 and 70200 gets tiresome. I bought this 35mm to try out their primes and Im loving it. Tack sharp, helpful VC and amazing image quality. Ill be buying the 85mm later this year
WJFmarketing –
35mm is my favorite walking around lens. Tamron has really made a gem of a lens here. Very sharp corner to corner, however it does suffer with chromatic aberration, but this can be easily removed in post. Very nice build, metal body and very nice focus ring. The VC really does its job, giving me at least 3 stops.
J.R. –
Traded quite a few old lenses for this one, and have no regrets. Stellar image quality, fantastic construction, weather sealing, great bokeh how Tamron did all this at this price point is beyond me. Having handled a number of 35s in my day, I would probably pick this one 9 times out 10, even if money was no issue, purely because of the VC. No other 35mm has it, and its amazing. As someone that likes shooting buildingsarchitecturestreet scenes at night, being able to handhold 18 and still get razor sharp photos is a godsend. Its also great for video the focus scale is small, but well thought out. Yes, the Sigma Art is sharper, but thats about it. Color is meh, bokeh is ugly. The Nikon 1.8 DX is great… for DX. The FX is also great, but not sealed, and has no VR, so why bother The Nikon 1.4… well, that one I think has the best overall IQ of the lot, and certainly the best bokeh. But are you willing to spend for that marginally better bokeh 9 times out of 10, Im not.
EQ photog –
Ive had a Canon 35mm f2 IS for quite a while and was a bit hesitant to flip it for this. The weather sealing was one of the big advantages, so I made the switch and Im very glad I did. Just general shooting was very on par with Canon, IS is manageable at least 3 stops comfortably. It was low light I wanted to push it. Im attaching a shot only lit by the 4 watt dome light in the 1982 car. Focus did hunt, as pretty much anything in that low light would but it managed to squeeze of a few shots. Switching to manual delivered shots Im very pleased with. Looking forward to some wet weather portraits to see how it handles the elements. A bit weighted, but nicely balanced. Manual focus is smoother than a 4 star NY Cheesecake. Creamy Never a big fan of Tamron, but they definitely swayed me this time.
Roger –
I am really glad I pushed the button and purchased this lens. I have other Tamron lens and never been an issue with any of them. My main concern was the focal length. Once I took the lens out in the field I really loved it. Image quality is really good, having an aperture of 1.8 is great in low light. I use it for portraits, and street photography. When I pack my camera bag with my chosen lens, this Tamron always makes the cut.
Williame –
This lens works great. I use it on a Nikon D810. Shot pics at a Civil War reenactment, and the shots of the people are beautiful. When having to shoot inside tents, the f1.8 with VC worked as needed. As a bonus, I bought the lens while it is on sale 200 off Makes for a good walkaround lens.
Pedro –
I bought this lens around a a month and a half ago and i have to say that so far havent found a way to work around the problem of the imprecise AF. I do have the Tamron lens calibrator but the problem seems to be more in the fact that the AF seems to focus in aleatory places even in a sequence of photos with the same exact environment conditions and camera settings.That leads me to the conclusion that the problem is beyond a calibration issue, and maybe a lens defect. Unfortunately BH tells me i cannot send the lens back because ive passed the 30 day period and so i have to try my luck with tamron itself. I worked with tamron before and always had a good working experience so when i considered the pricequality with other lenses like canon and sigma i was confident i was making a good purchase. If i didnt needed the AF so much for 90 of my work it wouldnt bother me so much since i do like the color representation, macros and IS. At this point i feel like i shouldve spend a bit more money in a safer bet..
q00q –
Im using the Tamron 35mm on my Nikon D800e but compared the sharpness to the Canon 35mm f1.4 L mark I on a Sony A7r body. At f2 for both, the Tamron was better. At f2.8, theyre very similar. I decided to live without f1.4 because this aperture is impractical when photographing couples at events or weddings. The image stabilization is more useful.
Jason –
This lens does it all, with amazing clarity and sharpness. If you are looking for a 50mm lens, look no further. This 45mm lens will do it all.Astrophotography tracked, portraits, landscapes, video, day light or low light, VR.Im using this lens on an APSC Nikon D3400 so I cant comment on its full frame performance. Regardless, it is the best lens in my bag.
Brenton –
Ive been using this lens for about two weeks now and it has performed wonderfully. Previously, I was using the Canon 50mm f1.4. So Ill compare the two.The Tamron focuses slower, but not all that slow. Ive found that the Tamron achieves better and more consistent focus accuracy than the Canon. The Canon achieved focus lock faster but often with poor results.The Tamron has Vibration Control, which is nice considering the Canon does not.Chromatic Abbreviations are better controlled with the Canon 50mm. The tamron has noticeably more CA wide open but is easily fixed in post.Edge to edge sharpness goes to the Tamron. Wide open the Tamron images are very nice.The one difference that really makes the Tamron shine is its minimum focus distance. At 11.6 inches you are able to produce images with crisp detail and macro like results. The Canon can not do that at all.Overall for me, the tamron gives my images a feel and a bit of magic that I never felt in the Canon 50mm f1.4. The images pop and come alive when using the Tamron. The Canon is a great lens but it wont be in my bag any longer.
James –
When I attached this lens to my MII I found a problem. The lens had a double circle projected onto the sensior. I did some research and found out that the 35mm, 45mm, and the 85mm had a problem when mounted on the 6D MII. I also found a work around to being able to use the lens. Tamron stated that you have to go into the menu and find Lens Aberration Correction. Once in turn off all of the items and power donw the camera. With the 45mm lens attached power up and you should be ready to go. You can now use all of the program modes. But for some reason Auto mode doesnt have a fix. So Auto mode doesnt work.Now the good news. The lens is built like a tank, no plastic, and its weather sealed. A little heavy over the Canon 35mm, but the Canon is made of plastic and not weather sealed. AF works good and so does IS or what Tamron calls VC. If your a Canon 6D MII owner and can get by without using Auto mode this is one heck of a buy.
Aaron –
Love this lens using this with a Canon 6D, it has a way of making things and people look like a silky dream. Super Sharp, Lovely Colors no distortion and a very nice focal length to work with as a walk around. Like everyone says slow focus but worth it. Solid Construction and aesthetically very pleasing IMO. Ive owned the Canon 85 F1.2 II and i find with the VC on this lens that i can handhold shots that i definitely wouldnt be able to get with the 1.2. The VC works very well on my copy. would highly recommend.
Maxwell Filmworks –
I thought this lens was a dream come true for video purposes. Vibration Control on a prime lens that is very close to the standard 50mm. It sounds too good to be true. IT IS The auto focus will not work with Canons new dual pixel CMOS Af abilities on their DSLRs and C100 cameras. I love this feature and it kills me that it does not work. BUT HERE IS THE BIG KICKER My lens will periodically jump or vibrate in the middle of the shot. Sometimes during the front of the clip sometimes right in the middle and sometimes multiple times. This is terrible bc I cant use the lens for the reasons i bought it. I sent the lens in to Tamron for repair but they responded, NOT GUARANTEED TO PERFORM ON VIDEO CAMERAS, ONLY DSLR. That is awful. Be very careful with any lens you buy from Tamron if you want to use for any type of video use.
Zaripics.com –
Ive been looking for a 50mm range lens for my D810 and wanted to get the most for my money. This lens is an amazing buy The quality and sharpness is just beautiful. Love the colors and the fact that it doubles as a macro. Yes there is a little of CA but nothing that Lightroom cant handle. Dont hesitate to hit the buy button. So glad I did
Richard –
I have had this lens for about 9 months, taken several hundred photos, on a Canon 6D II. I shoot RAW and postprocess in Lightroom, usually. The lens is wellmade and slightly bulky and heavy, probably because it is mostly, if not entirely, made of metal. I shoot often in liveview mode, focusing from the LCD screen, and often of subjects at close range with the camera on a tripod. It is also a good niftyfifty, walkabout, lens.For me, this is an fun lens to use. It has been criticized for being slow to focus, but I dont find it that slow…the focusthrow is almost 180 degrees, and if I manually set the focus at infinity and then autofocus through the viewfinder on a subject close to the lens, it takes less than a second to reach sharp focus. Focus noise is minimal but perceptible.The lens is very sharp at all apertures, from edge to edge although I rarely shoot at below f2.8. Chromatic aberration seems well controlled, and distortion is almost nonexistent.Twice, shooting in live view, I got an error code, lens connection lost…which I fixed by shutting off camera and turning back on. I have not had that problem shooting with Canon lenses.So, taken as a whole, and considering the very attractive pricing that Tamron has had for this lens for awhile, this is a sweet lens.
Joseph –
Review samples of this lens suggested that it might be a design capable of good performance for night work, meaning at f2.8 or faster. Sadly the one copy I examined is not nearly capable of meeting this bar. Apart from the issue of having one corner softer than the rest a common decentering issue which occurs with great frequency with most brands of lenses, the sample I examined was distinctly less sharp in a circular region roughly 20 of the way from the corners toward the center. Ive only ever seen this in one other lens, an old Mamiya 645 design, also of 45mm focal length. This all but assures that no copies of this lens will work well at 2.8 where image detail matters.This design is probably just fine if youre working at 5.6 and smaller or f8 and smaller. At the larger apertures, including at 2.8, there is also very strong purple fringing, even dead center, something Ive never seen before on axis. This too is grounds of rejection for large aperture use.Lastly, the builtin IS, when used on a Metabones IV EOS to Sony E adapter on an A7r II, is unbelievably slow to settle down, taking roughly 20 seconds to stop moving the image after reaiming the camera on a tripod. This means that exposures would very often be ruined in the event that the lens own IS were not disabled, where other IS systems are very often harmless when enabled in tripod mount situations, though still best left off.Note that the Tamron 1530mm f2.8 zoom has been gaining favor as a night sky lens, though from what Ive seen it would be a marginal call for quality wide open, as one would expect. Its a fine lens though. Achieving great image quality at 2.8 or even 2.0 is a very tall order. Sharp to the corners and no more than moderate falloff being the main issues for night sky work at least.
CLAYTON –
Amazing lens. Great in low light and focus is fast. Portraits are beautiful.
Michael –
I bought this for use on my Canon 5D4 to take low light portraits, especially using window light.It works really well for that. If anything its a bit sharper than you want for portraits.The stabilization works well.The autofocus is slow, but accurate. No problem for portrait work. I added a little MFA to dial it in perfectly for my 5D4. Thats something you need to check with all large aperture lenses, in my opinion. If you cant or wont do that, this might not be a good lens for you.Theoretically, this would be a good portrait lens on an APSC camera, but many of the lower end models dont have MFA microfocus adjustment so you would want to stick with the high end models.
tom –
I have to say this is quickly becoming my favorite lens. Quality all the way I also got the Tamron tap in console and fine tuned the auto focus to my Canon eos r full frame mirrorless. Focal is fast and accurate. Feels and shoots like a 2,000 lens. BH price of 399 is a steal I highly recommend it.
HansOlof –
The fast Tamron SP 45 is a great companion with my Canon C500 mk2. Sharp, renders color in a nice warm way, great contrast and of course the very useful VC stabilisation. AF speed more than enough for video, have not used it on a still camera. Together with the built in stabilisation in my C500 mk2 makes it great handheld combo.
Brian –
Do you ever ponder which prime to select from your collection a newer, manyelement super sharp one or a vintage fewerelement artful manual focus lensIf so, you will likely agree that this lens is the best of both worlds.I sold my Sigma Art 50mm, bought this and had enough left over for a vintage 20mm.Beautiful color, great microcontrast, fast focus without searching even in low light, great vibration reduction let it spin up for a fraction of a second, very sharp, costs much less than competitors, light weight, great bokeh and able to focus so close to almost be considered a microWhats not to like
Nicholas –
I had a Sigma 35mm Art a while back and after using this lens for a couple weeks now, I consider the Tamron very neatly just as good while being less The Sig does have slightly prettier bokeh and f1.4 but the Tammy offers vibration reduction and weather sealing. With that in mind, I would honestly say you get a bit more for the money with the Tamron.
George –
While not known for its fast autofocus, I did expect better performance on the Canon EOS R with the adapter. Sadly, i Had to return it. Lens was otherwise very sharp and if used for the right purpose it would be a wonderful purchase. For a toddler who never stops moving though, this is not the best option for if you have a Canon EOS R or RP
NIGEL –
Bought this lens for a wedding and used it straight of the box with no issues. Worked as manufacturer said it would.
Anonymous –
For now, I still didnt use the product professionally, but the pictures I got in my recent trip to NY proves that this lens is extremely sharp, even in the wider apertures, being f5.6 the best one almost no noticeable improvement above this aperture. The wide angle is really easy to focus. I gotta say that I wont probably use this lens as much as Id like in events like weddings and so, but this is a pretty fun lens.
gbiz6 –
Solid build quality, quiet autofocus. The few sample images I took are pretty sharp with only minimal CA in areas of extreme contrast. Focus ring is smooth and the image stabilization is pretty nice when shooting video. I feel like it would be a better value in the 300 range, but not a bad lens at the 400 I paid. Im happy with the purchase.
Mango –
I am in love with this lens Before purchasing Tamron 35mm F1.8, I rented NIKON 35mm F1.4, which is way more expensive than this Tamron 35mm F1.8. But I prefer Tamron 35mm than NIKON 35mm F14. I am using it for mostly wedding with my NIKON D800. Bokeh is beautiful and creamy. I can also close up for the ring shot. At F1.8, the image is still sharp. This is an excellent lens for this price.
Anonymous –
Before I write this review Id like to note dont expect this lens to be perfect. If you expect perfection, youll be spending quite a lot more then what Tamron is asking. So lets get into it First off, Id like to say that Tamron has done a fine job on this lens. Ever since I got it, it really hasnt come off my 6D. The focal length is perfect. When it comes to IQ, the lens is quite good. It is very sharp wide open, and has pretty much no vignetting. If you are worried about sharpness, I wouldnt be at all it performs great in that category. The Bokeh it produces is very nice. It is very smooth, and looks great. Having such a close MFD is very helpful It obviously isnt a 11 macro lens, but it can get pretty close, making it very useful for everyday photography. When it comes to AF performance its decent. As long as you dont expect it to be super fast, itll do fine. Ive been using it for almost a month now, in a wide variety of circumstances, and for the most part it focuses pretty fast. The only issue it has sometimes is in a dark situation when I was trying to take pics of my Black Labrador in a pretty dark room it was having trouble locking focus but that is a rare exception. Ive been shooting our church events with it recently, and Ive absolutely loved using it the AF is easily fast enough. When it comes to VC I love it. Im able to get perfectly sharp images at 140th, and I can go lower as long as I keep my hands relatively steady. It is a huge, huge help for shooting, especially in low light conditions. When it comes to Chromatic Aberrations, Ive seen people make a big stink about it but to be honest, it really isnt that bad. Only in extreme situations will you get some green or purple fringing but in normal everyday shooting, I really dont notice any. When it comes to build quality, Tamron nailed it. The Human Touch design they implemented feels fantastic in the hand, the finish is great, and the focus ring is quite smooth and has a pretty good throw. The Weather sealing is great, and the rubber gasket at the bottom is very helpful. Here are the Pros and Cons listed out Pros Excellent Build Quality Weather Sealing Very nice Focus Ring Excellent IQ Very little Vignetting Close MFD very useful Very Sharp wide open Smooth, great looking Bokeh Decently fast AF Excellent VC Very Reasonable Price Cons Chromatic Aberrations noticeable in extreme situations AF can be a little slow in extreme situations sometimes not all the time though All in all, I think the lens easily deserves 5 stars. What Tamron has done for the money is incredible you get a lot for what you are paying for. The Cons are minor, and can easily be worked around. If you are thinking about getting this lens, I would go for it. I am using this lens all the time now for events, everyday photography, and more stuff to come. Tamron, great job. I love this lens. Hope this review helps you in your decision. Have a great day
Quinton –
With Tamrons new SP series you will a huge bang for a small buck. I love this lens and would buy it twice. What stands out most to me is its sharpness, build quality, and aesthetics. This 35mm performs superbly in every scenario I put it through. Also the vibration compensation makes this lens best for me among other primes. The only con I have is the autofocus speed, especially in low light. It is slightly slower than its competitors, sigma and canon, but not not a deal breaker for me. Its an acceptable trade off. Also, the vibration reduction
Roger –
Ive tried a number of 50mm or near 50mm lenses including Sigma, Canon and now this Tamron and by far the best of the bunch is this Tamron 45mm lens. I was not impressed by the lackluster poor autofocus issues of the Sigma Art. Art is nothing more than a term developed by their marketing department to hype the lens. The Canon 1.4 which I owned for a number of years suffered from a poorly designed focusing mechanism that required repair twice. Dont set it down on its front youll break the weak mechanism Then comes this Tamron. Its true its not a 1.4 but the difference between 1.4 and 1.8 is so miniscule that you have to pixel peep to see the difference. The sharpness far blows away the old Canon 1.4, and it corner to corner sharpness YES its better than the Sigma Art lens. It has vibration compensation and weather sealing pluses that none of the other brands have even bothered with. For the price point alone this beats the ancient Canon 1.4 which struggles to be sharp wide open and the inconsistent AF issues that plague the Sigma. I dont regret this purchase at all I dont think you would either if you give the lens a fair test.
Rich the Photographer –
This is what I would call the best bang for your buck in 35mm. I have used the Sigma Art 35mm, and it is so sharp, this Tamron is not far behind at all. The Sigma is heavier, longer, more expensive, and does not have vibration reduction. The Tamron is lightweight, and the build quality is on par with Sigma Art series lenses, and I honestly feel it is better. The focus ring is more smooth than the Sigma, and the housing is less prone to scratches and fading than the Sigma. Now if only Tamron can be more consistent with their build style, seems like every type of lens looks different. I love the way the new 35, 45, and 85 look and feel, great job Tamron What sold me on this lens above the other features was the close focus. You can shoot an entire event or wedding with this lens and get close up detail shots, even the wedding rings. Granted you will not get the compression of a 105 macro but its a great alternative. Overall, I am very happy with this lens. It focuses quick and accurately, the images are pretty sharp wide open. I did not have any issues focusing in dark lighting on my D750. I did not have to fine tune my lens, it was spot on out of the box. There is very minimal chromatic aberration wide open, not bad at all, easy fit.
Anonymous –
Maybe the best bang for your buck lens out there right now, especially if you also use your DSLR for video. The lens is sharp right from f1.8 and the VC is extremely effective at canceling out camera shake from handholding. Out of focus rendering is very pleasing with all but the brightest lights in the background. Build quality is exceptional with its all metal body and weather sealing. Focus ring is smooth and well dampened with quite a long throw good for video work. Auto focus is snappy when focusing on objects more than a foot away. Focus can be a bit slow and can hunt a little when focusing from close objects to distant ones. Focusing in low light is OK but will vary based on your camera ability to focus in low light. It can be a bit chunky for owners of smaller APSC cameras but on larger Crop Sensor and Full Frame cameras it balances nicely. Overall this lens has been a pleasure to use. Image quality is top notch with good color and and contrast and very sharp images. Not industry leading image quality but pretty darn close. Especially when you factor in the price tag. This is definitely a lens you should consider.
Amjad –
The same disclaimer, I wanted to love this lens especially after ordering it all the way from Iraq via DHL. The lens is sharp, has nice colors and micro contrast and the build quality is top notch, in addition, has very good macro performance and when it nails focus correctly the images are lovely. However, the autofocus inconsistency makes it unusable even for an enthusiast like me. Its not back focus or front focus only its a mixture of both which cant be fixed by autofocus fine tuning on my D750. By the time it reached me and Ive done my testing the return period was done so I am stuck with the lens at the moment.
Paul –
Although I was very happy with my Canon 35mm f2 IS, I was impressed by the reviews and tests of this Tamron especially from Dustin Abbott on YouTube and so I decided to buy it. I may not shoot wide open all the time, but I want the OPTION to do so…and this lens is actually SHARP at 1.8 HOWEVER….it was NOT accurate out of the box. I needed to do some microadjustments on my 6D for it to focus accurately at my chosen focus point and now I am thrilled to have this lens in my toolbox. I love it. The color rendering is very nice, the bokeh is beautiful and Im very glad I made this purchase.
Gabriel –
In terms of upper tier lenses, this is a compromise worth considering. Imaging is good, make that very good, without being breathtaking, however. As with all higher end glass, using the included hood does make a difference. Though significant and noticeable, especially at widest open apertures, chromatic aberration should be an addressable issue in todays world of correcting software, but there goes the fifth rating star. Who knows, maybe better chromatic aberration would have come at the expense of twice the weight, twice the width, twice the price, or a different mix thereof. Anyway, this is this lens main issue. Image stabilization seems reasonably effective, hard to assess the actual number of stops improvement. And no competitors to measure it up against, so far.
sam –
I really love this lens, at first I was little hesitant about buying this over the Nikon 50mm, but all the reviews are true about this lens. It is super sharp, nice contrast. Some people say the focusing is slow but I have not experienced that. Overall I am very happy with my purchase.
Niki –
Id been wanting a wider lens for awhile and decided that a 35mm would fit a long great with my other lenses. I could have went with a Canon or with the ever popular Sigma ART but then I started doing some reviews on the Tamron. Though there was not a whole lot of reviews, I loved what I was reading and I loved the price tag. So I ordered it on a whim one day and I am glad that I did. It is perfect for indoor shooting, such as lifestyle sessions and newborns, as well as shooting outdoors. It is tact sharp and fast and I have had no issues whatsoever. I highly recommend Tamron lenses, you cant beat the quality or the price points.
mikeburnsphoto –
So first let me just say I absolutely love this lens. I compared this with the Canon 35mm f2 IS and I was leaning more toward the canon because this was still so new and I was hesitant. The store I bought from gave me 30 days to exchange the Tamron for the Canon so I figured why not give it a shot. 3 weeks later I still have this and Im not getting rid of it. This lenses performance completely blew me away. Image quality is excellent, build quality is solid, very nice creamy bokeh, and photos are tack sharp especially at f1.8. The VC performs very well and Ive been able to get clear shots as low as 16th second. If there is any negatives to this lens, it would be the chromatic aberrations are pretty noticeable, however not a big deal to me since I correct this easily in Lightroom. Tamron really did it with this lens. I love looking at the images this lens produces. I mainly use this for automotive shoots, street photography, and some wider portraits. It is a heavy lens but not too heavy like the Sigma 35mm art lens. Definitely recommending this lens, its well worth the price. As crazy as it may sound, using this lens has really made me more excited to get out and shoot more.
bunejug101 –
The build quality is superb and the handling of this lens is quite good on my 5DM3. The lens does focus a bit slower than the near instantaneous focus of the fastest Canon zooms my 2470mm f4L comes to mind, but it is acceptable. Images are nicely sharp at f1.8 corner to corner with good contrast, and tacksharp with excellent contrast at f2.8 and above. Vibration Control seems to work well, too. The only real issue I have is with purple and green fringing on high contrast areas at wide apertures. This is easily fixed with post production software, but would definitely be noticeable otherwise. For the money, this lens is an incredible value. Its ability to produce great IQ wide open, coupled with image stabilization, puts this lens in a class of its own in the 50mm range.
h1974 –
This lens is amazing Its very sharp, it gives a really Blurry background with nice soft bokeh and Im really happy with it However it has some minor chromatic aberration that can be fixed with post processing.
peterb2001 –
Good value and good image quality, reasonable quick focus and always accurate. Image stabilisation is effective. Only issue with the lens and it is quite minor is that it seems soft at very close focus distances.
chiu –
well build. use it with my nikon 810 . well balance, very sharp. love the stabilizer. I could hand held down to 18 of a second with 85 sharpness. focus speed not as fast as nikon 50mm 1.8. if you need stabilizer and sharpness this is the len. Feature I dont have to mention you just read on line.
Thomas –
Super impressed with this lens. Bought it to replace my 50mm 1.4 from canon and Im very happy about it.The good1. The VC works. Having IS or VC is awesome for me because I shoot a lot of wedding receptions in poorly lit venues. This helps me keep my iso down and get more keepers at the 4060th second range.2. Close focusing. You almost dont need a macro with this lens. Its gets closer than my 24105 f4L, my 70200 2.8, let alone any normal lenses Ive tried.3. Flare resistance is amazing. Brightly backlit subjects with direct sun still retain tons of contrast with very little flare. Very little. Incredible in tough lighting.4. Sharp edge to edge wide open. Enough said.5. Comes with a nice lens hood.The bad1. Focuses a little slowly. Not enough to matter generally, but it has a long focus throw. Its great for video and manual focus override, just a little slow for action. I can still keep up with little kids running around, but focusing from near to far is not super snappy. Keeping a moving subject in focus has not been a problem, though, so its a moot point for me.Thats it
Krishna –
Got the lens today and very happy with BH delivery. Have been playing around with this whole day and testing it to extremes, i should admit i am very pleasantly surprised by its performance. I had seen a lot of reviews on this lens both good and bad and knew its problem areas, but i have not seen such prounced purple or menta in bright highlights so far. Close focus ability is a killer and tack sharp wide open becomes extremely sharp at F2. I wanted a 35 mm which was as wide as 1.4, which could focus very close and has image stablization. While there are no 1.4 lenses with stablization and close focussing ability, this Tamron 35mm F1.8 VC lens is the best one satisfying my needs. Out of focus areas wide open are still creamy and nice, may not be as good as the F 1.4. I would rate this lens at 4.5 5 as the only problem i have noticed so far is a bit of focus hunting wide open at macro end.
Sherwin L. –
The main two reasons I purchased this lens is for photography and cinematography. In videos, its a fast prime with vibration compensation. Perfect for run and gun handheld shooting. It can also be a great prime lens for portraits and environment. This is going to be used on my Canon 1DXII which is a heavy camera. Having a light lens will be good for it. This has a great build, light and has weatherproofing. Perfect on the go lens. Negatives visible chromatic aberration and not the sharpest lens wide open at 1.8. But its good enough for the price.
Brian –
I returned my first 45mm because of a black ring that was visible at f 1.8 up to f 2.8. Received a replacement lens and the same thing happened. Contacted Tamron and found that the serial number on my lens was not updated to work properly with a Canon 5D Mark IV. There is a list of serial numbers on the Tamron that have the firmware update. Sending my lens to Tamron for the update and will review the lens when I get it back.
Don –
Out of the box this lens is not compatible with the 5dm4 when using lens correction. I did not know this going into the purchase which is why I am writing the review. It is possible that there is a firmware upgrade from Tamron that would make this work, but from what I have read its best to buy the Tamron tapin console another 50 in order to keep your Tamron lens up to date. Honestly, I am not really that committed to this lens to do that.As far as the lens itself, I was not really that happy with some test images as the lens at 1.8 is way to soft to shoot at. IMO, you wouldnt want to ever shoot lower than 2.0. Once you get to 2.8 it is super sharp. The chromatic aberration wasnt enough to bother me. Its there, but for normal use of this lens its negligible, if you are printing prints you might want to do a quick post process to get rid of it, but for internet use you wont notice it.In the end, this lens is okay, decent images at 2.8 and above, it isnt as heavy or as large as you might think not like the Sigma 35mm, I like that it is weather sealed, but I returned it due to the compatibility issue.
Khoa –
Simply of the best 35mm f1.8 in the market for build and image quality, functions and price by Tamron. The look and feel of the product is professional from the smooth focus ring to the subtle weather sealing. With a wide aperture of f1.8, VC image stabilization and fulltime manual focus capable, this lens really gives the user the best bang for their buck You can really achieve great depthoffield images and fantastic nearly shakefree video with this Tamron 35mm. The only downside that Ive run into with this USD lens is that the AF is a bit jittery and slow, but I feel as if I should be shooting manual anyways. Its good to come back into the photovideo industry to be able to grab such a professional and powerful lens, that will last me from APSC to fullframe.
Thomas –
The lens is sturdy and well made. Manual focus is smooth. Exceptional sharp images. But painfully slow auto focus. Good lens for the single shot. Unusable on the move. VC is outstanding, good auto focus would be a logical addition. 45mm is a perfect focal length.
Russell –
I purchased this lens after several reviews of this lens. It replaced my Canon 50mm STM lens because of the reviews it did not have VC. I am pleased with the focus which is fairly fast. The images are sharp am very satisfied. Build quality if excellent. While this is still a new lens to me, I am not disappointed. I highly recommend this lens.
Anonymous –
Great lens I really like the way Tamron lenses render photos. I had to adjust the AF finetune a little bit but not much, and It doesnt seem to have any consistency issues. Everything works well, its nice and light and very sharp. But most importantly I really love the way it renders photos, there is a visceral feeling that comes with it that I love, Sigmas Art lenses have a similar feeling, just in a different way. Either way, takes great sharp photos.
Christopher –
This lens is absolutely amazing. Very sharp wide open at f1.8. The images you get closed down to about f2.8 are fantastic It is absolutely insane value for this price. Give this lens a serious look if you are wanting budget general purpose nifty fifty portrait lens.
Isaac –
So Great. Wonderful clarity. Wonderful low light capability. Great near macro capibility. Great vibration control. Enough said. Great lens.
Ernest –
I bought this lens, Hoping it will be the last purchase for my gear list. The copy I was sent was faulty. The Focus system is inconsistent. One minute it locks focus and next minute its searching for focus forever. It is really not a lens to rely on. I was told I was sent a bad copy so I returned it and I am hoping for a refund as I stay in Nigeria and cant afford to gamble any more.When It locks focus its incredibly sharp and wonderful but thats not consistent.
Andrew –
Clear, fast and sharp, this lens works great with both my D810 and my D500. Tamron continues to make quality lens at reasonable price. The photos Ive taken are great. I recommend both this Tamron lens and B H. The lens came very quickly and in great condition, as always excellent service from BH.
Terry –
Used it taking pictures of my granddaughter on a swing. Kinda slow to catch focus. But when it did it was very sharp. Noticeably slower than my Canon 85 1.8.
Dick –
I have very high hopes for this lens. My gripe with Tamron is that right out of the box, I had to mail it back to Tamron for a firmware update for my Canon 5D iv. I was looking for a large aperature lens with image stabilization. This lens is one of, if not the only, that fills both those needs. With the 200 instant rebate from Tamron, it made the purchase of this lens a no brainer. Going to Italy this fall, hope to get some evening shots and inside dark church shots. I think this lens should fill those needs.
Laz –
Have been shooting with this for just over 2 weeks now. The optics IMO are near flawless. Color rendition is very nice, not overstated like Sigma Art, not as neutral as Nikon 35mm 1.8G. The VC is pretty slick. Yes, you can hear the motor movement, so it might not be the most suitable if you are shooting video, using the internal camera mic. I tried it with a mini shotgun mic on the hotshoe, and I didnt notice any VC motor noise at all. This lens is a great walkaround prime, but I found it particularly stellar for portraiture because of how freakin sharp it is Especially if you are using a crop sensor camera, Nikon D3k, D5k, D7k series, and the new D500 when it arrives. Bokeh is very smooth, better than the Nikon equivalent, IMO. The field of view is comparable to a 50mm on an FX body. It doesnt feel like the most durable lens when you first take it out of the box, but Ive left it on the camera body, bouncing around in my bag without issue. I even shot one morning when temps were below freezing and it performed flawlessly. I must note that I found the focus speed not as fast as the Nikon 35 1.8G. I wouldnt use this for capturing any action. That said, I was able to capture dogs frolicking at the park and it nailed focus on about 65 of the shots. Thats a challenge with ANY lens.
russtell704 –
Great lens I and using this on a crop sensor canon 50d giving me an angle of view of 72 . This lens is super sharp from wide open and just gets better stopping down, razer sharp at 5.6..and its way sharper than my canon 70200mm l lens . I would very much recommend this lens.
davpegg –
When using this Tamron 35mm lens for the last two weeks or so, I have to say its one of the best prime lenses there is on the market. On our Canon 5D Mark II fullframe, the picture is unbelievably sharp with fantastic color rendition right out of the box. On our Canon 5DSR 50mp, there are some small issues with focusing and getting a clear picture however, putting it on manual focus gives us incredibly sharp images never thought possible. We are big proponents of Canon L lenses, as we shoot semiprofessionally weddings and such however, we have changed our minds after purchasing this lens. The lens is wellbuilt, has image stabilization, is all metal, and really feels like a 600 lens should feel. Theres nothing cheesy feeling about this lens. It screams quality. The focus ring is firm and precise, much more so than any Canon lens weve ever used in the past, and when you can get several inches from your subject, its almost like having a macro lens and a portrait lens all in one. The 35mm focal length is just about the best you can get for about 99 of the shooting youll ever encounter. A few days ago, we shot Christmas lights handheld at night with the image stabilization and it was crystal clear, which is something you would not be able to do with the Sigma Art Lens, which has no image stabilization and costs more. I would recommend this lens to anyone whos looking for a reasonablypriced prime lens and wants the absolute best they can get out of their fullframe camera. Last word buy this lens, as well as the little TAP to make any adjustments you need to your focus. You wont be disappointed
Alex –
I bought this leans because I needed a wider aperture for shooting night city landscapes and I only had the kit lens on my Nikon D750 F4.0 and I dont like nor want to carry a tripod around with me. This lens performed admirably. They are sharper than my Nikon 24120mm F4.0 lens and give extra stops for handheld low light situations. And its the ONLY F1.8 lens in the market with image stabilization, which I admit is the reason I chose it in the first place, but so glad I did. If Nikon offered its 35mmf1.8 with image stabilization maybe I would have bought it instead. With the extra stops you get from this lens stabiliztion, its hard to beat it. The quality is there too, check pro review at dxomark.
Farmer Hank –
Ive been using this for a week now, and Im more impressed the longer I use it. Wide open, it is four times as fast as my 18300 zoom. The Vibration Control works well. Almost every shot taken at 110 second is sharp, but most Ive taken at 16 second have a bit of blur on very close examination. At f1.8 the edges are pretty good. By f2.2 the image quality is excellent from corner to corner noticeably better than my zoom is at any aperture. I was expecting the faster shutter speeds and steadiness from the VC. I am a bit surprised by how obvious the improvements in sharpness and contrast are. There is some CA especially in the corners wide open, but Lightroom seems to fix this with a single mouse click. The fast aperture keeps the viewfinder bright. Focus seems to be instantaneous, and both the focus motor and the VC are quiet. In summation, Its a great walk around lens. Great indoors where flash isnt allowed. Good at night in the city. The 35mm focal length works well with the DX sized sensor in my D7200 giving a very useful and natural field of view. Its twice the weight and 3 times the price of Nikons DX 35mm f1.8, but for me the VC makes the lens much more usable in low light. I usually buy Nikon lenses, but Ive been impressed by my Tamron 90mm f2.8 VC Macro for a couple years now, and this one seems to be another keeper.
Mary –
Have had it less than a month I use this with my Sony Alpha 99 and it gets me crisp and clear images. Bought it used with a high rating there wasnt a scratch or mark on it. When I dont want to carry my 2875mm f2.8 or when I want to get closer than 1.08 ft. to .66 ft. then this is the lens I use. I do landscapes as well as streettype and longexposure photos so it serves many purposes. Theres an AFMF switch on the lens which I find helpful. Ill come back and add an image when I get the chance.
Quinton –
At first I was skeptical about buying a 45mm being that I already own a 35mm. I felt that the focal lengths were too close to each other to have both lenses. However, Im glad I made this purchase because theres a huge difference. I didnt think this lens would work as a portrait lens but its one of the best Ive ever had.
Thomas –
I was very excited about the Tamron SP 35mm f1.8 Di VC USD Lens for Canon. Bought it new and it arrived just before Christmas. It squealed and squeaked when focusing towards infinity so I decided to return it. But I did keep the lens over Christmas to test the optics and operation so that I would know whether to exchange the lens or get a refund and buy the Canon 35mm f2 IS. RAW image quality of the Tamron is nothing short of amazing Extremely clear, almost no vignetting, almost no distortion, minimal coma apparent when shooting stars, and an incredible maximum magnification factor making it almost a macro lens. Excellent build quality as well Im assuming that my copy had a squeaking lens seal but I didnt want to risk it. The only optical issues were purple fringing on sharply contrasted objects in bright light and a bit of onioning of the bokeh circles which also resulted in not the most flattering bokeh overall. But the Tamron lens and Canon 6D Mark II do not play well together. Tamron has a warning on their website to turn off the lens aberration settings on the Canon 6DmkII before mounting the newest SP 35mm45mm85mm lenses on that camera. I did not know this before I mounted the lens on my camera and tried to use it. THIS WARNING SHOULD BE IN WRITTEN IN RED ON THE OUTSIDE OF EVERY TAMRON SP 35mm, 45mm and 85mm BOX So, what happens If you go straight to Live View without turning off internal aberration correction, your 6DmkII will lock up and youll have to remove the internal battery to reset the camera. If you keep Llive View off and just use the viewfinder, then the camera will not lock up but the JPG files will be corrupted with dark rings, sharp black circles and bright halos. However, the RAW files will be just fine. Turn off aberration correction and both the JPGs and RAW files will be fine. Photoshop lens correction works just fine for photos taken with the new Tamron SP lenses. I did have another firmware related issue with the TamronCanon 6DmkII combination this time with ISO setting communication in Live View. When using the camera in Live View and changing from a closeup photo of a flower to a sunny landscape photo with the aperature fixed Av mode, the 6Dmk II suddenly went to ISO 40,000 and locked at that ISO resulting in whitedout photos. Again, resetting the camera fixed the problem. I also had some issues with focus repeatability not being to great stay positioned, change focus, and allow lens to come back to original focus and with slow focusing and hunting when center focus point wasnt selected. Note that I also mounted this lens on my 7D and it performed FLAWLESSLY So, if you have a 6DmkII, change lenses a lot and dont want to have to remember to turn lens correction off and on and willing to risk the result if you forget then Id suggest that you dont buy this lens yet. If you shoot RAW all the time and keep the lens on the camera and can be a bit patient with focusing, then absolutely get this lens. It is awesome. By the way, I asked for a refund and bought the Canon 35mm f2 instead. Optically, the Canon isnt even close in quality to the Tamron Canon vignetting is the worst Ive ever seen, focus is soft wide open and coma is much worse. However, the internal aberration correction fixes the vignetting in the JPGs not in RAW, the lens is wickedly fast to focus, and you cant get lens flare or purple fringing no matter how hard you try. Made me realize that Canon is a photo imaging system and not just lenses mounted on Canon cameras. Ill give a bit on the optics to get a reliable and repeatable photographic system. The best would be if Canon would source their 35mm lens from Tamron and fix the firmware compatibility that combo would be AWESOME
mickmutante –
This is my first noncanon lens, I was very skeptical for 3rd party lenses. I was searching for a 50mm Canon lens but i did not like the quality of the Canon 50mm f1.8 and the autofocus ring problmes of the Canon 50mm f1.4, and the Canon 50mm f1.2 was out of budget… So i went with the Tamron 45mm f1.8. The lens is very sharp even when is used at f1.8. For me the autofocus is a bit slow. I bought it with the TAPin console and did some microadjustment. As for chromatic aberration, it has some purpl and green fringing but it can be corrected in post production easily. The VC works really good. I did a lot of reasearch before buying the lens, and i found Dustin Abbott youtube channel with a really good review.
Searsie –
Kept this lens for a week trying to like it. Felt I had to return it for one reason autofocus wasnt consistent enough for me. Every 3 to 4 shots was drastically out of focus. When this lens nails focus it is stellar Sharp wide open, Vibration Control, great build, weather sealing everything going for it except I felt I had almost to treat it like a manual focus lens.
James –
I like to do street photography in downtown Charleston, on King Street, in the evenings, I find this lens to be to be the only one I need for my photography there. With a 1.8 and 35mm on a Canon 7D MkII, it is the perfect lens for low light photography. Its size makes it unobtrusive and easy to maneuver the narrow sidewalks. I could not be happier with this lens.
David V. –
This lens has beautiful image quality for the price. Its been on sale for months and looks like that might just be the new price. Pictures are sharp and bokeh is nice and smooth. Colors and contrast are great. VC works well for stills and video, but sometimes jumps when panning. Focus is not the fastest but is usually accurate. Ive been using it primarily on a Canon 70D crop sensor and cannot stop it from noisily microadjusting during video. Its something to keep in mind before you buy this lens any sound from on or near the camera is unusable because it is full of clicks.Also, there is a significant jump in image quality from f1.8 to 2.0 on a crop sensor. If youre shooting an apsc camera, plan on rarely using 1.8.
Russell –
Theres a lot to like about this lens. The slightly wider than a 50mm lens is great. The close focus is wonderful and the build quality is outstanding. The hood locks into place perfectly, the newly designed rear cap and the front cap are first rate. The 67mm filter size matches other lenses I already own. Focus issues let me down. I returned the first copy as it wouldnt focus to infinity without massive correction using Tamrons tapin console. This second copy wasnt perfect, but I was able to bring it into specifications. The final images are sharper than my trusty 50mm AFD 1.4 stopped down to f1.8. The focus corrections were a disappointment. My recently purchased 90mm macro VC is perfect at any distance. The auto focus on this lens is a little slow, but meets my needs perfectly. Its a real goto lens for walk around photography. The VC on both lenses is a real benefit and works as it should.
Nogueira –
When I first got the lens I was dealing with banding from f 1.4 to 2.8. I sent the lens to Tamron for a firmware update. Tamron sent me a UPS prepaid shipping label and within a week I had the lens back with no more banding issues. I love the lens. Very sharp. It is going to be a go to lens for me.
Nickolas S. –
I have used this lens for a couple of years now for everything from sports to portraiture, weddings, and as a walkaround lens, 100 stills. It is built well and is VERY sharp. I use it on my 7D mkii and I find it to be very versatile on a crop sensor camera. It may not be as perfect as Canon L glass but no third party lens really ever is. However, for the price, it is unbeatable
Cary –
This is a first rate lens. It has pro build quality with a metal lens barrel and weather sealing including a weather seal at the lens mount. Its autofocus is extremely consistent. It has vibration compensation. That makes it a great lens for street photography and model photography when you cant use a tripod.
Corey –
Im very pleased with the Tamron SP 35mm F1.8. I use it on my Nikon D500 Nikon D810 and Ive had very good results. Ive heard some people report that the focus is slow on this lens however, I dont seem to have any issues with focusing with this lens. The lens is very well built and has great bokeh. I love the fact that this lens can also be used as a macro lens and has the big focus ring on the front. I rent the Nikon 35mm lens and I must say that the Tamron SP 35mm out performed it at half the price. If you are looking for a 35mm lens I do recommend this lens. This lens is a welcome addition to my camera bag.
ZHAN –
I have been wanting a fast 35mm lens to pair with my 6D for general purpose photography. After extensive research I chose Tamron over Sigma and Canon all are excellent lenses, and I am happy with my decision.I picked Tamron over Sigma because of its price, weight and image stabilization. With VC, I am able to get clear photos consistently at 110 second handheld. Between Canon 35mm f2 IS and Tamron its a tossup. I kept going back and forth between these two. At the end, Tamrons better build quality ergonomics, weather sealing and impressive 0.4X magnification won me over.Image quality from Tamron is very good wide open, at f2 its on par with or even slightly sharper than Canon I would say. Pictures tend to have a slightly warmer color cast than Canon which I actually like. AF accuracy was my biggest worry, but as soon as I received the lens and started shooting my concern went away. Although AF speed is not as lightning fast as my other Canon L lenses or 85mm f1.8, it is very confident and pretty much spoton almost all the time. I havent tried microadjustment yet. Based on what Ive seen it will need very little tweaking, if at all.The only negative I have is chromatic aberration control. Purple fringing is noticeable under extreme situations. But again I dont shoot shiny chrome or tree branches against overexposed sky all the time, plus this is quite fixable in post so its not big issue to me.Overall this is a fantastic lens for the price. I am very happy with my purchase. Good job Tamron
Jim –
This is a fantastic lens and Im 100 happy with it, so much so that I also ordered the 85mm 1.8 to pair it with. I was a bit hesitant at first buying a third party lens for my Canon Cameras but this 45mm is pin sharp at 1.8 and has a pretty snappy and accurate auto focus, it works great. Great lens for close up macro type of images too. Ive been getting great images with it and have no regrets with my purchase…..its actually more than I was expecting in build quality and image quality for a Tamron lens at this price
Larry –
This is my second Tamron lens and first prime Tamron. My copy turned out very good. Little or no distortion or aberration, very precise sharpness. I like the feel of the fstop ring. Good build quality and should last a life time.Ive got Zeiss, Canon, Fuji and Nikkor lens and this Tamron is in the same class as the premium glass primes.Ive bought a lot of gear from BH over the years and no complaints at all. Im now trying some gear from Adorama and I highly recommend them as well.Buy your gear from reputable vendors and be assured you can exchange or get a refund if the performance of the product is not what you expected.Would have given this a 5 star, but I dont rate a 5 star until Ive used the lens for a year or two, get some large prints, and do a detailed comparison.You will not be disappointed with this lens
BRANDON –
I got this little guy for video work because it was one of the better prime I could find with IS VC whatever… but I was shocked by its performance The lens is tack sharp from corner to corner once you stop down to around 2.8 even at 1.8 its a really good performer and the bokeh is really pleasing. When they say it focuses close the mean, I was focusing on things that were basically inside the lens hood… Its not a true 11 macro but its close. The VC performed okay I guess, its cool to have but by todays standards its middle of the road, about 2 stops.The only bad thing I can say about the lens is around build quality… in this aspect, its a Tamron. Compared to my Sigma Art lenses or Canon L glass its a little plastic fantastic and the focus ring isnt really smooth barely weighteddampened at all… Its usable but I wouldnt feel confident doing focus pulls with it. It is weather sealed though so from a pure get er done standpoint I like it.In the end, this lens is a great performer but a bit utilitarian. It does the job and it does it very well but it makess some compromises when it comes to the feel.Best value for your in the 35mm focal range IMO.
Brandon –
Absolutely pin sharp and outstanding build quality. As others have said, the autofocus is not particularly zippy from one end to the other, but its not meant to be. Bokeh and color saturation are wonderful. I tried Nikons 50mm f1.8G before this lens and sent it back, for what its worth. Not that the 50mm isnt a great lens for the money, but you get what you pay for too. For me, the VC, weather sealing, and build quality more than justified the price difference. Completely recommend this to anyone looking for an outstanding normal lens, whether or not youre considering something firstparty.
iliya –
This is based on my own copy, so perhaps doesnt apply in general However, this is my second copy, had to return the first one due to extremely unreliable focusing.Its very good wide open but then has a range of fstops from about 2 to 5.6 where it wont focus, the keeper rate is very low. Also, focusing with peripheral AF points is pretty poor, best to stick with the central point. So despite some strengths of being generally wide and sharp there are significant compromises in performance.
Todd –
Anyone claiming this lens is not sharp, needs to calibrate it, hone their skills, or send it in for inspection. With this lens I am not even tempted by the Tamron 35mm or really any other 35mm auto lens. Not only is it razor sharp with great bokeh, it focuses extremely close. Previously I was on a micro four thirds system using a 17.5mm Nokton which is similar in its ability to close focus at just a couple of inches, so this led me to this lens. I also have the 85mm tamron 1.8 and had the 2470 Nikkor F4 S. This lens is easily as sharp as that 2470 which much more pleasing color rendition and highlight roll off. Only caveat for me is that though I have had no issues with moisture, dust seems to find its way into this lens way too easily for a weather sealed lens. Though I had my Nokton cleaned twice, it was over a period of 6 years. I have had this lens 9 months, and dust became unacceptable to me after 6 months. It just came back from cleaning, and though its performance is restored, I did notice about half a dozen extremely fine black spots in the lens. Invisible to the naked eye, but visible with a loupe. It almost looks like carbon lens pen dust.. Tamron has come leaps and bounds with this generation of lenses, but needs to figure out proper dust proofing, and quality control in the clean rooms I suspect. I also bought a 90mm 2.8 G2 macro which I returned because off the straight out of the box it had white styro looking pieces inside the lens, which I have heard others complain about. This became lengthier than I expected.. but to sum up, if you buy it new get it cleaned often while still under warranty. Tamron charges 100 for cleaning seems high, no, but as for image quality… Top notch. Attached is a photo, but obviously BandH will not show proper detail, or anywhere near.. wish BandH would get serious about letting people post high quality images so we can make better choices.
ctgkac14 –
Tamron SP 35mm is rated by DxOMark at 14 of all tested lenses. The center frame sharpness, however, is better than in 5 rated Tamron SP 85mm according to the test shots by The Digital Picture. I use it on both D810 and D5200 with best results.
TDL –
I use this for fashion photography, and have done 1 job and 2 tests so far with this lens. It has performed exceptionally well…better than I had expected in fact. Lets just get it out the way its ridiculously sharp…even more so than the 135L I used to use previous sharpest lens for me AF speed isnt super fast, but its not terribly slow either. Id put it on par with the 50mm 1.8G. The good news is its very accurate and consistent. Ive yet to have it hunt regardless of the lighting situation on a D610. The Bad CA is there, but not as bad as some are making it out to be unless you shoot charts for a living, its not that big a deal. AF could be faster, but if youre using it for portraits or subjects that are hopped up on caffeine it should be fine. Not only do I recommend this, I look forward to the next primes they release and based on this experience I will certainly buy one without hesitation
Lee –
I bought this lens because Im a nut for the normal range of lenses. The standard old 50mm remains my most used focal length despite the number of other focal lengths I own. I was also pushed over the edge in buying it because it was selling for 200 off here at BH and the lens has stabilization, a useful feature. Im using the Tamron 45mm on Nikon D610, D700, D800 and D810 bodies. I am impressed.First off, Im a long time photographer. At one time I was a PJ but Ive long since retired and now I just enjoy shooting for myself. The vast majority of my photos are BW and Im in love with gray tones. The Tamron knocked me out with its ability to render those gray tones. Its just beautiful. The detail it produces is stunning. Many of my photos are abstractions and the Tamron can bring out textures with incredible detail. Overall, its better in most areas than by Nikkor 50mm f1.8G and Nikkor 50mm f1.4D lenses. It doesnt have the look of my oldest Nikon 50mm lenses from the 60s and 70s but the Tamron does have a unique look all its own that I do treasure.Ive always avoided offbrand lenses in the past. But this lens has changed my mind about that. Since using the 45mm, Ive also bought the Tamron SP 35mm f1.8 lens as well. Another excellent lens I treasure for its great rendition of grays.
GRACE –
I would definitely recommend this lens. It takes sharp and high quality photos. It has a sturdy construction while remaining light weight. For the price, it really cant be beat.
Cyke –
I do not usually do a review but this lens deserves one. My other option was the Sigma 35mm f1.4 Art but chose this one due to VC and MFD. The image quality is excellent even wide open. This is the best value at by far. I used this to take group photos, portraits, extreme closeups almost macro and 35mm is wide enough for landscape and night photography. Almost handheld all of the time except for long exposures. Purple fringing indeed showed up during one situation and was easily corrected in LR. This lens is staying on my D750 90 of the time.
STEPHANIE –
I was super excited to test out the capabilities of this lens after my purchase at the imaging USA expo in Atlanta, and I was NOT DISAPPOINTED AT ALL ITS MY NEW FAVORITE LENS The image stabilization is TOP NOTCH and the semimacro capacity it an added bonus The detail captured with this lens is insane and I will DEFINITELY be purchasing Tamron lenses in the future
John –
So I was looking for something a little wider than my Nikon nikkor 50 f1.4G, which is a lens I really like. I do a lot of street portraiture, so I like a lens that has great depth of field, good contrast and bokeh, but can also stop down and get great detail. I picked up the Tamron 35 f1.8 for the wider perspective and Vibration Control, and Im not disappointed. Ive used it on the street, and in the studio for shooting portraits and it is ultra sharp, contrasty, great AF and easy to work with. Its going to be on my D800 90 of the time, Im betting. Looking forward to more street shooting with it
Mike –
This lens is well built and sharp as can be even at f1.8. It handles well and the AF accuracy is quite good though not super quick but that didnt bother me. It is noticeably sharper wide open than my Nikon primes including the 20mm 1.8g, 28mm 1.8g, 50mm 1.8g and even my 85mm 1.8g. I so wanted to keep this lens but ended up returning it. Reason the CA was just awful and I just couldnt get it to correct properly in Lightroom. Other problem…the Bokeh was very busy onion rings and noticeable in the out of focus areas even without zooming in. It was much worse than my 50 and 85 Nikkor. I almost sucked it up and kept the lens, but for my intended use it just wouldnt work.I have two other Tamron lenses including the new 1735 and 2470 G2 and they are both excellent though the 2470 Bokeh is a bit busy too so its not that I am stuck on Nikon. If the two issues mentioned are not a concern for you, you will be very pleased with this lens.
Tyler –
I picked this lens up to complement my setup for wedding photography. Particularly, I was interested in the wideaperture and lightness of this lens. I picked the f1.8 over the f1.4 for the lens stabilization which is critical for the handheld video I occasionally do on hybrid shoots for a much more indepth review for weddings, check out Taylor Jacksons review on YouTube. The build quality is wonderful and feels as good as my much more expensive Canon L glass. The size is wonderful for a small kit setup. The only downsize I have found is that the chromatic aberration wideopen can be a bit high with a bright background but that hasnt caused any real world issue while shooting.
Ken –
In the past my personal experiences with Tamron lenses had been much less than positive. I had just returned a product that had cost the same as the SP45s price and figured why not just take a chance and exchange it for an SP45. FIRST before going any further, this SP45 and the SP35 I subsequently purchased Can not, in any way, be viewed as relatives of the cheap mediocre Tamron products of my previous experiences. SECOND, I currently own or have owned the Sigma Art 24mm, 35mm and 50mm lenes. used on FX as well as DX sensor bodies . I have a great appreciation for their surgical type of Sharpness.They have a wonderful build and a great service organization to back them up.They are high quality and beautiful instruments. They out perform these SP Tamrons in the area of chromatic aberrations and provide a very clinically sharp files. In my experience they are significantly behind the SP 35mm and 45mm Tamrons in auto focus accuracy and consistency. THIRDLY, Oh Sharpness, what of it I mean in the description of a knife or razor it is a concrete demonstrable physical thing. In a photographic optic it is more a concept. Is it test chart MTF resolving, the nature of contrast rendered, edge effect, the rendition of color depth and value steps. or some brew of all of the above Oh my eyes are rolling in my head in Circles of confusion. PUT SIMPLY, while I respect and appreciate The knife like Sharpness of the Sigmas, however as an artist I prefer the delicious more fully rounded combination of the above components rendered in files produced by the Tamron Sp lenses. They have a very hard to come by beautiful Look. I have been at this for longer than I would care to admit and IMHO these are special glass that usually comes at a much much higher price. You could not go wrong. Also, love the solid build and the focus accuracy and consistency. Just beautiful instruments, a joy to use. YES they are Sharp.
Michael –
I read another review here about getting a dark ring around photos. I, too, got photos with a dark ring when the shot was over exposed. I contacted Tamron about it. When you disable the lens aberration correction enabled functions in the menu settings, the lens works excellent.lens aberration correctionlens aberration correctionlens aberration correction
Ellen –
This lens is very sharp and a my new favorite until I gave it actual All day field use. I have the Canon 6dii and the settings freeze including autofocus and not just in live view. It is also not Tap in console ready. I spoke with Tamron before buying the lens and was told the only update necessary would be to make it Tap in ready but I was ok if I am not using the newest cameras. I am very frustrated that a new lens bring sold is not camera ready. I am sure I will be very happy with this lens once updated but now I need to pay shipping insurance etc.to send this to Tamron for the update for use. Why is this lens being sold. When you buy something new you expect it to work out of the box.
Timothy –
This lens has a classic film look, with subtle color rendering and smooth transitions from focused to unfocused areas. It reminds me of the 35mm f2 of the Konica Hexar, except that its not fixed to a quirky camera, has an extra third of a stop in speed, and has image stabilization that really works and permits handheld shooting at slow shutter speeds. Its also very well built.The cons Being very well built, its heavy, though it does balance well on my D610. It has onion ring bokeh, which you will have to Google, if youre into out of focus highlights. And its expensive compared to the Nikon equivalents, but they dont offer image stabilization.
Donald –
I bought this lens as a replacement for my Sigma 50mm f1.4 Art lens. The major reasons for the change was the vibration compensation, the improved weather sealing and the lighter more compact size of the Tamron. The Sigma was a fine lens but was heavy, large and lacked VC. Optically the Tamron matches up well with the Sigma. Auto focus is accurate, no in camera adjustment was required. Colors are accurate with good contrast. Close focusing ability of the lens is outstanding. Tamron is producing some fine modern lenses as is Sigma.
David –
It was the VC that sold me on this lens. Wide open at 18 or 14 and getting sharp images is unreal. This lens is ,really, all you need for 75 of your shooting , 1 lens for family portraits , switch to DX and its a great senior portrait lens. Balances perfectly on the D850 tooBetween the Tamron 35mm for environmental portraits and this 45mm, Im happy as a clam for less than a grand
LESTER –
Its a great lens to do nice intimate portaits of couples. As a nikon shooter I wasnt a fan of both the 50 f1.4 or f1.8 due to haze and loss of contrast for portraiture using this lens brings much needed colors and vibrancy to the images. One thing though is to always make time to check your images shot as it does have issues focusing at times.
James –
I attached the lens to my 6D MII and found that I was looking at two circles in the view finder. I checked to make sure I had a lens that works on my FF MII and it was the right lens. I then did some research and found a item listed by Tamron about the MII and the 35,, 45mm, and the 85mm. It stated the you will need to go into the cameras menu and bring up lens aberration correction. Open and turn off all items listed. Turn the camera off and then back on and the lens works with all program modes. But it will not work with Auto mode. Over all the lens is well built and takes some sharp pictures. If you can get away from not have Auto mode to use then this is a good lens. But I returned the lens. i figured that all modes should work for the price of the lens.
MIHAIL –
Ive had this lens for about 1.5 years. It is my most often used lens with my Nikon D750. The 35 mm focal length on a full frame camera gives me a wide enough field of view for landscape and general photography, but with a 1.8 maximum aperture I can still do portraits with a shallow depth of field. This lens is very sharp on my camera. Autofocus is accurate and required no microadjustment for me. Also the combination of f1.8 and vibration reduction mean that I can often do handheld night shots without having to carry along a tripod. Another welcome bonus is the close focusing distance which works great for flower shots. The only downside I can think of is that it is not a particularly light lens it is, for example, heavier than 2485 zoom, but the image quality more than makes up for it. Overall, this is a very versatile lens and I recommend it.
Shahrokh –
I recently purchased this lens for Nikon D750. It is sharp wide open. While It is not a cheap lens, combination of having a wide aperture, weather resistance, amazing close focusing distance, Vibration Control, and beautiful star burst make it a GREAT lens.
DAVID –
Beautiful lens Heavy, feels good in the hand. Smooth auto focus. Sharp. You wont be disappointed. Great quality and functionality from Tamron
William –
I wrote another review of this but couldnt figure out how to change it. This lens is great except if you shoot with back light there is horrible green fringing, and lightroom cant fix it. Really disappointing, my sigma 24105 doesnt do this and its a zoom.
WOLFGANG –
It took me an hour to get the lens calibrated with the tapin console. Well worth the effort. The lens is now super sharp and I just love the bokeh at f1.8. It is larger and heavier than my Nikon 50mm f1.8, but It the picture quality is better and the VC allows me to take hand held pictures at slow shutter speeds.
Ronald –
I have had this lens for a while and I love it. Images are very sharp and vibrant. Although, in extreme contrast situations, where a very bright part of an image meets a very dark part, the chromatic aberration can get quite distracting but nothing Lightroom cant fix. Overall a very great lens.
Fernando –
I have the Tamron 85 1.8 and is one of the best lens I own, I love it. Bought the 45 expecting the same and got disappointed. First of all if you are using the lens correction setting on your 5D markIV you will have a very defined circle on your image, took me a long time to figure out that. I almost send the lens back. Other then that is a ok lens.
262.5 –
Love this lens. It is quickly becoming my everyday lens and I never thought I would say this about a prime. It is Sharp, has beautiful rendering and color. The close focusing is a wonderful feature as well.
Robin –
This is a super performer at 45mm. I love this focal length as well as 28mm on APSC. The combination of VC and f1.8 is way better than f1.4 for low light. In fact, you only get 1 more step from f1.8 to f1.2, while VC gives you extra 3 steps. Its hard to imagine that I could shoot with ISO100 or 200 of my Nikon df in some situations before I got this lens. Also f1.8 usually offer a better chance of accurate focusing. Optically this one as good as Sigma Art. The CA is noticable in some cases, but not a big deal for Lightroom. Auto focus is really accurate more accurate than Sigma with minnor noise and average speed a little bit slower than Sigma.
Anonymous –
Before I start, let me say that I have NOT put this through the gauntlet of tests I normally put my lenses through. Im a wedding photographer, so until I see how this does at a wedding, I cant give it 5 stars. Having said that, I have very high expectations for this beautiful lens. So far Ive been impressed with the sharpness, contrast, and closerange focus ability. The VC is going to be extremely useful for things like prep before a wedding when the lighting situation isnt always ideal. Check out my YouTube review for more detailed info by searching Tamron 35 1.8 Practical Wedding Photography.
here3893 –
Theres no shortage of reviews for this sleeper lens, and theyre all pretty much on the money. It really is super sharp straight from f1.8, even through the corners. Its also very good at reducing flares against bright lights. The copy I received didnt have any problems with autofocus as some reviewers have experienced as far as I know, the early copies had issues, but the later copies work just fine. Inlens image stabilization is about average for this day and age, which is still good enough for this focal length. Its focusing ring handles averagely as well. This lens is very upfront about its weaknesses. Its a rather bulky lens indeed. And it doesnt take a keen eye to notice its strong chromatic aberration. I think its a small price to pay, as eliminating aberration in post is far easier than increasing details and reducing camera shake.
Daniel –
I decided to buy one of these, and I am very, very pleased with this lens Simply perfect in a large number of situations. The build quality is definitely professional, and feels oh so perfect in hand. Its beautifully balanced with my 5D Mark III. Color rendering is wonderful, you can get really rich photos. Sharpness is really good at f1.8, but does get very sharp at f2, and it is sharp from edge to edge. The bokeh, and maybe more importantly, the transition from infocus to outoffocus is smooth and fantastic The AF is not super fast, but is accurate, which I think is more important. Close focusing is also unique to this lens, giving it the ability to get pseudomacro shots. When you add Vibration Compensation and weather sealing to this package, this really is a home run multipurpose lens
DR. SALEEM –
I purchased this lens with high expectations but unfortunately i had to return it the very first day. Thanks to the excellent customer care service of BH which understood my problem and immediately stared the return process without any fuss. The lens gives quite soft images right from f 1.8 to f 4.5 . after that the images are sharp. Well that range defeats the very basic purpose of this lens. Now waiting for my refund which i hope will get soon….
Andrey T –
The lens is very sharp indeed throughout the entire aperture range. At f1.8 corners are a bit soft but improve dramatically starting from f2.8. There is slight a bit of CA in highcontrast scenes, which is not a dealbreaker at all. Phase AF is pretty good and consistent under natural light even in lowlight situations. Here it definitely beats the Sigma Art 50 1.4 I used to own hands down. The latter had major issues locking down the focus even outside in perfectly lit scenes. The reason I gave it four stars is that under artificial light my keeper rate is around 2 which is sad The only way to slightly improve it is to switch from AFS to AFC mode with center focus point. So most of the time, when under artificial light, I shoot in LiveView mode which works fine AF speed aside. VC is also a very nice addition. Although it doesnt seem to add more that 1.52 stops handheld at best, it does work and you can see it in real situations. Way to go, Tamron P.S. Body Nikon D600 C 1.02 L 1.006
Anthony –
Well built. Very good optics, even wide open. Good bokeh. A versatile lens that is easily sharp enough on my D800 to crop to get a narrower field of view when wanted, and with an impressive minimum focus distance. A pouch would have been nice, and some autofocus finetune was needed, but overall I have nothing to complain about and would give it four and a half stars if that were possible thus only four stars from me. I would say its an Aminus lens, which is better than any of the Nikkors that cover the same angle of view.
RICK –
I can not believe how much I enjoy shooting with this lens. The build quality is superb. The weight is perfectly matched on a D800 or 610. Sharpness is outstanding all the way open at 1.8. Image stabilization is very very useful and silent no onoff clutch and spinning noise. Focus is very quick and accurate. Bokeh is very pleasing. 35mm on a full frame is as close to perfect as an all around prime as you can get, especially with the close focusing ability this lens offers.
Lyndon –
I gambled and got this Tamron 45mm lens for my Nikon full framed D850 WRONG The lens is well made except for the auto focus issue, it would manual focus though I am sending it back and plan on getting the Sigma 24105 mm art lens I have a Tamron 18400 and it works great, it is too bad this 45mm did not
Ryan –
I was considering this lens and the Canon 1.4 50mm. I chose this lens based on experiences with other Tamron lenses and it does not disappoint. VC is great. Have not experienced issues with autofocus except in very low light and close distances even with off center AF points. Very pleased with build, operation, and image quality. Shooting on 5D Mk III
Conny –
Sharp lens and good autofocus. Much better than Sigmas 35 1.4 ART. Sigma has big problems with her autofocus which is not Tamron has.If you want a 35 mm lens without any problems then you should undoubtedly buy Tamrons version
Joseph –
I use a Cannon T3i and am a beginner. Ive been taking pictures with the T3i for about 5 years off and on. I thought it was time to move up from the standard kit lenses and thought Id try my first prime lenses. I have been amazed at the quality of pictures I am now taking. The Tamron 35mm has allowed me to take very sharp images. Now with the F1.8 I can get in close and am able to take great focused shots with the background blurred.
John –
This lens is great. I read lots of complaints about autofocus issues, but once I received my copy I updated the firmware via Tamrons tapin console and I have not had any problems. The tapin console is one reason I love the newer Tamron lenses. Its so easy to update firmware to work with newer cameras and get the most out of your lens investment. I wish Canon would make one for their own products.The Good Sharpness, image quality, bokeh, fast 1.8 aperture, autofocus, build quality, filter size, image stabilization, Tapin console compatibility, costvalue. BH had a great sale and included UV filter for free. I also like the 45mm focal length as opposed to 50mm. It isnt much different, but for some reason it just feel like the perfect focal length for general use.The Bad Some chromatic aberration purple fringing in rare cases of very sharp contrast between light to dark areas. This can easily be resolved in post, but is worth mentioning.Summary I highly recommend this lens. There are some better niftyfifties out there, but for me this is the best overall value and balance of quality to price. The Vibration Compensation and build quality makes it much better than the 125 Canon version in my opinion. I used the canon version for a long time and would often end up with out of focus or blurred shots that I didnt notice were off until looking at them full screen on my computer. This just doesnt happen with the Tamron lens. The superior autofocus and IS make a huge difference.
Ellen –
I wanted a wide angle prime for a full frame camera. It had to be sharp, have a fast aperature, vibration control was important and weather sealed since I shoot outdoors in the Pacific Northwest.. I couldnt afford the Canon L lens and I decided on the Tamron 35 1.8. I read it was sharper and enabled closer focus than the 1.4 version. I was initially concerned it wasnt wide enough but I so happy I bought this lens. It has become my most used lens and the perfect focal length.
MS –
Id compare the build quality to a merge between Canon and Zeiss. While it feels much better than Canons standard lens plasticky feel, it is not quite close to the legendary Zeiss build. The longest focus ring throw somewhat is what separates it from Canons and brings it closer to Zeiss world. Sharpness of this lens is on par with my Canon f1.4 50mm using LIfeView focus. Ive compared a number of 50mm lenses and none of them came better than Canon, which is rather surprising. However, I couldnt get consistent image quality from Tamron using viewfinder autofocus, even after micro adjustment. Even more troubling discovery was that when VC was on it caused further degradation of image quality. Considering these rather discouraging limitations and also other factors this lens is not the smallest one and a fairly steep price tag I decided to return it.
Tom –
Great, sharp, not too heavy, loving it. Obviously it is not as lightsensitive as the Sigma f1.4, but it is significantly lighter, cheaper, and spots image stabilization. I rented both through LensRentals and decided to get the Tamron over the Sigma due to weight and there is only very minor difference in Sharpness to the Sigma. It is very much recommended.
MARLON –
The first event i did with this lens was nothing short of amazing. I was pleasantly surprised with how much brighter and sharper this lens was wide open,than my 2.8 lenses which made shooting at the dimly lit venues a breeze. The only thing that bothered me was that it focuses slightly slower than my canon lenses. No regrets, i was sold with the image quality alone
Aaron –
Most lenses are compromises this is no exception. That being said, this lens exceeded my expectations. I think the image quality is on par with the Canon 50mm 1.8 STM. I took it out to do snow photos and wide open I got some really bad purple fringing when shooting wide open. It was fixable in post, but it did happen. That is my only gripe IQ wise.I got this specifically for video work, because of the stabilization. Its not like gimbals stabilization, but it works well enough to get rid of my coffee jitters.Ergonomics is where this excels. This lens is heavy, which helps with stabilization if you are strong enough to hold it long enough to get the shot. The way it balances in my hand with my 80d, the focus ring is right on my fingertips, and the AFMF switch is right where my thumb can reach it easily without thinking. Another upside is the manual focus override which is fast and responsive just turn the ring while in AF mode and make micro adjustments.It functions well with the 80d. AF is fast, close focus is great. I have heard it called a must have lens. For my needs it is great.
Ken D –
This Lens ticks all the boxers for me, a very highly specified prime lens that delivers results far beyond that of the O.E.M. in my case a Nikon. Images are delivered with just the right amount of presence and edge to edge sharpness with no sign of any chromatic aberrations from F1.8 and up. This is truly a top class performer which I would recommend to any user. Slightly on the heavy side for a 35mm, but I am not complaining as it is a quality piece of glass.
Rob –
So Ive been looking for the perfect 35 for Canon and this seemed like it for a little while. Contrast is far better than the Canon 35 IS f2, its lighter than the L 1.4s and the sigma, it has stabilization that does help, and it focuses fast enough. My issue was that with a 5d III, I only had reliable auto focus with the center points three vertical columns in the middle and the points on the left, but on the outer points on the right side of the focus spread. It missed nearly half the time with any subject locked with a point on the right side of the viewfinder. I have no idea if it was a defect with the lens, a bad copy, or something that could have been tuned by Tamron and corrected, but it was so darn infuriating. The optics on this lens are unbelievable. It doesnt make everything look red or orange like Canon lenses and its razor sharp at f2.2 or higher. What a shame that my unit didnt focus reliably.
SWMINNFLYER –
I just received this lens a few days ago. Over all its built like a tank but not to heavy. I bought this lens to use on my Canon 6D MII. I found out from Tamron there was a problem when mounted on the 6D MII. The lens would not work with lens aberration correction on. Thru the menu bottom I had to go to the setting and turn off all of the correction. Once down the lens works great in any program mode, other then Auto mode. Being I never use Auto mode this wasnt a reason to return the lens. Looking at the cost of the lens and its build quality it was a great buy.
Eric –
I love my 50mm 1.4G, but always felt that it was a little too long for the shots I wanted I always found myself wishing for a lens just a tad wider. I had been eyeing a 35mm for a while and finally took the plunge when I saw this new Tamron announced. The strong, sharp performance, vibration reduction the close focusing distance and 1.8 aperture make this lens extremely versatile. Its not the lightest lens out there it actually is about twice as heavy and larger than the 50 1.4G, but its small and light enough that you wont think twice of throwing it in your bag for an extra lens especially if your go to general lens is a 24120 or other slower lens. Im going to appreciate having a fast, wideish prime for low lightshallow DOF shots. And like I said, that close focus distance adds the versatility that convinced me to purchase this one over the Nikon. 4 stars just because it could have better fringing control easy to fix in post though Highly recommend
Ty –
I picked up this lens on April 13th at 1pm and started shooting a short film that evening and for one of my shots, I had two actors sit on a bench in front of a window in my friends loft on 67th Street and Central Park West capturing the NYC skyline which blew me away. The bokeh from the various lights, the 1.8 did magic, and the focal length is perfect. Oh and how can I forget, the minimum focus is less than a foot. Make Canon and Sigmas 50mm look childish without IS as well. I have a canon 50mm. Back to the previous shot, that shot was on a tripod. Practicing with the lens handheld worked great. I believe the person giving it a bad review may have an issue with Tamron because all I shoot is video and I have the Tamron 70200 G2, 2470G2, 1530, and now the 45. I also have Canon lenses and a Rokinon Cine. The Tamron lens are amazing. Now, in regards to jumping or something happening with the lens as someone described, if you have the nonnative lens on VC while on a tripod and you are panning then you can get that stutter. You do not need to use VC when it is on a tripod. Why would you have it on a tripod with vc on click the vc switch to off. I have not experienced it with this lens but it have happened to one of my other lenses and said to myself, why in the world do I have on VC while on a tripod panning This 45mm is amazing
Randal –
The high quality, vibration reduction, and competitive pricing has me moving more and more to Tamron over Nikon lenses. The build quality is quite solid and the 45mm is a nice place to be between 35mm and a 50mm. If you are interested in using the Tamron TapIn Console to perform firmware updates on the lens, youll need to know that some serial numbers probably the early production line will require you to send the lens to Tamrons US Hq for them to do the first firmware update. If this is important to you, and you are picking the lens up at a store, then perhaps you can check the serial number before you buy it…and get one that doesnt require that mailing.
Aleksander –
I read a lot of reviews that this lens was more than worth it, and Im honestly still blown away. Its incredibly sharp, has surprisingly good color rendition, and the VC makes it incredibly versatile for both stills and video. Could not be happier
guyzer09 –
So, initially I had the EF 50 1.8 stm and 40 2.8 stm. Although they were both very close in focal lengths I loved both for what they were capable of. The 50 for portraits and low light because of its large aperture and the 40 for street photography as you get a nice wider field of view. Then I found this gem. Never knew it existed. Its right in between with a large aperture for low light shooting. And to add to it Image stabilization The photos render beautifully, bokeh is creamy and beautiful. Its sharp wide open and weather sealed You cant go wrong especially for the price You wont be disappointed by this lens. Sure its not as fast as Canons USM but its no slouch either. The AF is quiet and reliable.
Justin –
Im disappointed in the auto focus performance of this lens using on a Nikon D750. It will not lock on focus easily, even in good light. Right before locking focus it will perform micro nearfar adjustments. For landscapes, this doesnt matter. For candid portraits and street photography my uses, it means the difference between getting my target in focus or not. I have no complaints with the VC and the optics are outstanding attached example shows outstanding optics and sharpness. Unfortunately I will be returning this lens because of the extremely poor AF performance.
KELBY –
Fantastic lens, for the price. Some issues with auto focus on my Z5. Make sure you update the firmware to avoid issues.
Thomas F. –
Great lens, mine came sharp wide open right out of the box. The image stablization works well and the glass produces excellent images. I have tested on the Nikon D810 and D750 and have not been disappointed. Tamron has really stepped it up.
Randolph –
i had lot of doubt about this lens before buying it and i saw lot of video also after i brought it. all my doubts are cleared.this lens perfectly fit for my NIkon D7200. its just amazing and extreme sharp but the focusing is very slow very very slow. if you want to shoot some moving object choose another, this is not for moving object photography. but in still pictures its fantastic and the VC its works really well. over all its amazing only focusing it little bit terrible but you can adjust it manually at anytime. and theres no vignetting i feel in my pics.
Anonymous –
I purchased this lens because I really like the 35mm shooting distance. I had read very good things about the lens and couldnt wait to get it. I am very happy with this purchase, it is considerably more affordable than the alternative and workds astoundingly well. It is sharp, clean, and has an incredibly short focal distance that I love. It is a bit hefty but well worth the money. I would buy it again and would recommend it.
Nancy –
Like some other reviewers, I find this lens to autofocus more slowly than what Ive experienced with other lenses for example, Canons 100mm f2.8. However, I didnt buy this lens for shooting fastmoving subjects, so this isnt really an issue for me as Ill be using it mainly for travel, still life, and sleeping pets. I also noticed that some shots taken with this lens tend to be overexposed more often than the same shots taken with a Canon lens on a 5D IV another nonissue for me as long as I remember to chimp a first shot and adjust my settings if needed. Im happy to have a wellbuilt, weather sealed, image stabilized 1.8 prime lens that gives me pleasing results at a fair price.
drfa –
Lens is extremely sharp and had very close minimal focus yielding great macro shots. Only downside is some chromatic aberration, but easily correctable in Lightroom.
Andy –
I take portraits for a living and have never felt the need for a 35mm lens, but I bought this lens for fun, walking around on vacations and stuff. The AF is a little bit slow but my copy is perfectly accurate thank goodness. That seems to be a common complaint, it doesnt hunt or hesitate much. There is some pretty bad purple fringing at times but other than that this thing is really great to walk around with. The colors are very vibrant, sometimes a little too vibrant easy to fix in post, its just worth noting, and the out of focus areas are nice looking, not too harsh or jittery. The VC is very convenient for hand held video and the focus ring is smooth. Minimum focus distance is pretty remarkable, as well. If I needed a 35mm for work Id spend a lot more to get a little more performance, but for fun this thing has been worth every penny.
Anonymous –
Sharpness on a 5DS is great with this lens. You need this as a walk around ready to go snap shot of a lens or because you demand great quality. I originally received a bad copy with Err 01 to the camera, but the replacement has been perfect. I wish it were a pinch lighter with less chromatic aberration… thats it
Sevan –
This wonderful Tamron 35mm 1.8 and the Sigma 35mm 1.4 art are two lenses I use often for events and I tend to usually grab the Tamron a bit more often due to the fact that it has VC and the overall rendering of the images that I get out of it.But what I love the most about the Tamron 35 1.8 is the insane close focus you can achieve with it. It really allows you for some creative macro like pictures. I cant do that with the Sigma 35 1.4 art. Each lens has its own character the sigma 35 for when I want pure sharpness and when I shoot at nights and the tamron 35 when I need to use slower shutter speed for events, need stabilization and weather sealing. Its really hard to beat for the price.
Karola –
I think that the new Tamron lenses this one and possibly the 35mm dont get enough credit. I really like this lens, it is super sharp and pretty much replaces a 50mm lens. Ok, it is a tad wider but not very much. But its also almost a macro lens because of its close minimum focal distance And it has vibration reduction, so I dont mind that it is only f 1.8. It is fairly light and small and really useful for a lot of applications, pretty much like a 50mm lens. It gives great bokeh. The only drawback that I could notice was that sometimes, in very low light, it has a hard time focusing. But it was only in really really low light , and a lot of other lenses have trouble in these conditions as well, so I would not hold it it against it. All in all, I can wholeheartedly recommend this lens.
Ty –
I love this lens. When I purchased it it was on sale and I believe it still is 200 less than the old regular price. At 400, a well made lens, great glass, Vibration Control, 1.8, it is pretty much a steal. I love great prices for great product. Smooth focal ring, nice bokeh, milky background, and VC, what else do you need 45mm may seem like an odd length because we are so used to the 50mm and 35mm, but 45mm is closest to range of how our eyes see things. I believe the actual number is 43.something. I have been contemplating on getting another one just as a back up or for two camera shots.
Katherine –
Great lens for the money and cannot go wrong. It better than thought it would be image quality wise, it is outstanding. Autofocus is accurate but not quick, so I found it a bit hit and miss when trying to get an image of my very reluctant 2 year daughter. Build quality is excellent.
vwahby –
I own ten Nikon lenses and love putting this Tamron on my camera Fantastic fit, finish, feel, and performance. Very happy.
AL –
I wanted a 35mm for weddings, newborn sessions, etc. I debated between the 35mm Sigma Art 1.4 and the Tamron. The Sigma had great reviews too but I wanted image stabilization. I used the lens during a recent trip and received great reviews on all the photos. I also have the Tamron 90SP macro and love it. Tamron has really stepped up. Well done
raymond –
If you are on the fence about this or the Sigma Art all I can say is I sent back the Sigma Art and kept this lens. The Sigmas focus was so out of whack it made me nervous. I dont care about the Sigma USB dock, a lens should not be that far off ever. This Sigma does not appear to be much better than the Nikon 35 1.8G, but Im hoping the VC will make it more useable. Gave it four stars for now. Appears pretty sharp at F2. Close focus is nice.
Tim –
Im a serious photo hobbyist. I dont have the big bucks to buy the expensive gear I dream of owning. So I am careful about what I do buy so that I get the best value for what I can afford. The Tamron SP 45 is a great value and welcomed addition to my gear. I mainly do landscape photography but have done some portraits with it and was very pleased with the quality of photos it produced. It is solidly built so I expect it to last a long time. This lens has become my go to lens.
Raymond –
Reviewing the Dxo Lab tests, three options were left on the table Tamron, Sigma and Nikon all 35mm lenses for 2436 sensor frames. There tests suggested it was doing all fine for Nikon Fx cameras. Priced in between the Nikon and the Sigma, the overall rating was almost the same of the Sigma, and much better than the Nikon very small chromatic aberration in comparison. It delivers.
Jeff –
When I jumped back into full frame with a mirrorless body, I picked this lens as my normal focal length because I had used it a few years ago on a Nikon body, it has optical image stabilization and the rebate made the price very attractive. After using it a while, I rented the Sigma 50mm 1.4 Art to compare. I found both lenses very close in image quality. I give a very slight nod to the Sigma for bokeh rendering and I could find no chromatic aberration from it. The Tamron has very slight CA that is easily correctable in Lightroom. Given that the Tamron is less expensive and noticeably lighter and smaller than the Sigma, Im pleased with my choice of this lens. For Canon mirrorless owners, this lens works fine with the firmware update.
Shaun –
We purchased 3 sets of these lenses 35mm, 45mm, and 85mm. Non of them work on RED cameras to start with. When using with a EF to Sony mount adapter the aperture can not be controlled and the VC function is disabled. The autofocus motor engages but will continually hunt or set and stay on infinity focus. It also has trouble on the C200, 5DmKii, and EVA 1. It has to be powered on and then disconnected and reconnected while the camera is powered to control Aperture and VC is again disabled. Optical quality is average. Quite a bit of green fringing wide open. Focus motor is noise and sluggish. The weather sealing on the back of the lens started to detached after only several uses.
MATT –
Great lens, great price. Very sharp, some chromatic ab, some vignetting, but the speed and sharpness far out weight those issues.Focus motor is quiet, its not a fast focusing lens, but its a prime after all. Build quality and weather sealing are excellent.Close focus distance and vibration control are nice bonuses
Anonymous –
I had been looking for a normal prime lens for my crop body Canon 70D, as the nifty fifty view angle was equal to an 80mm. I decided that a 35 was perfect, resulting in a 56mm field of view. I wanted a lens I could use close up and at normal distance in low light, hand held. When I saw the professional reviews of the new Tamron SP 35mm f1.8 VC USD I preordered it right away. I am very impressed with the quality of this lens The build quality is great and it has all the features I wanted Fulltime manual focus override, f1.8 maximum aperture, and the VC was a definite plus. One of the big advantages of this lens is that its minimum focusing distance is 7.9 inches from the sensor, much closer than any other 35 prime, and the results are spectacular I have a Canon 100mm 2.8L macro lens, and the Tamron holds its own against the Canon. Not a 11 ratio, but a 12.5 is really good. I was able to take stunning flower closeups that look as good as the true macro lens. The bokeh is very nicely soft with round highlights. Normal distance pictures are very sharp, even wide open, and the VC is amazing. I have taken handheld shots at 13 second and still get sharp details. Build quality is very good with a metal body and included petal lens hood. It also has weather sealing where the lens meets the camera body. The focusing ring is smooth and travels about 180 degrees through the focal range, allowing for precise manual focusing. Im a very happy camper
rhiggco –
There are other more expensive 35mm lenses in the market but this fit my needs perfectly. I wanted a street photography lens and something I can shoot video with. This land was a great deal given its vibration compensation and sharp quality.
Albert Silver –
I have had this lens for over four months now and shot well over 10 thousand images with it in every occasion imaginable, from near macro nature shots, to event photography in bad light even martial arts, and more. This has been Tamrons first challenge to the topquality primes market and what a brilliant entry. IQ, VC, Macro, Weather sealing It is sharp from corner to corner even wide open at f1.8 with excellent contrast and detail. The VC works brilliantly and I have even managed to obtain sharp shots at 12 a second handheld, which opens up plenty of creative options. The near macro close focusing allows all those super detail shots without needing a dedicated macro lens, allowing the lens to literally get within less then three inches 7cm from the tip of the lens to the subject I have included an image of a spider included showing literally how close one can get. Finally, the weather sealing is brilliant and has made it comfortable shooting in environments such as near the ocean. Excellent AF importantly, the AF has never let me down. Granted the D750 I shoot this with has a powerful AF system that can shoot at 3EV, but the lens was never lacking. I tested this in fast action see the martial arts pic in horrible lighting, in all manner of conditions and it has never shown issues. The AF is snappy and confident. Conclusion This Tamron 35 f1.8 is not only my no.1 goto lens, but after being so impressed with it, the Tamron 85 they just came out with at the writing of this review, supposedly as sharp as the Zeiss according to CameraLabs among others is next on my list. One note I would recommend getting a nice filter for it. Not only does it help protect the front end from scratches or other, but a curious thing I have noticed over the years is that the lenses I kept a filter on never accumulated dust in them. my copy was bought at BH
Rosemary –
I much prefer not to use 3rd party lenses but after being disappointed with both my Canon 50mm 1.8 and then 1.4, I ended up selling them both. I took a chance with this Tamron 45mm lens because it had image stabilization I need for very low light photography. Yes, the AF is a bit slower than the Canons, but the Tamron knocks the Canon prime nifty fifty lenses out of the park producing consistent tack sharp images The lens is solid built but not heavy. I use the Tamron 45mm F1.8 on my Canon 6D Mk2 with great results. Very impressed Thank you, Tamron
Veloguy –
Came close to purchasing the Sigma 50 Art instead, but the lower cost and stabliization of the Tamron won out. So far no regrets. Very sharp wide open, great bokeh, beautifully built at least as good as my Sigma 35 Art, excellent close focus, and weather sealing to boot. Per reviews, AF is a little slow at least compared to my L glass, but not a big deal. Would have given it 4 12 stars if I could.
cas7155021 –
This lens produces really excellent output with my D5. In practice it is on a par with the Sigma Art 50mm which I also own. The combination of VC and f1.8 gives Phenomenal low light performance. If you can afford it you wont be dissapointed. Build quality up there with the very best
Bob –
Why 5 stars because if it was anything less I would have sent it back, Lens is a joy to use. I use it on D4, D819, DF and D750. Focus is fast accurate. Close up capability put it into a almost macro category. Bokeh is good, all my other lenses are Nikon f2.8s and f1.4s and this lens holds it own giving me the shot and detail I want.
Artistic –
I recently purchased the 50mm Sigma Art lens just to find that it was very heavy and focused really slow under lowlight conditions. I exchanged it for Tamrons 45mm and right out of the box I knew it was better. Not only did it weigh less, but it was more balanced. I looked for similar situations of lowlight and found that it focused amazingly fast. However this is just my first impression with my initial testing, but I am confident that it will exceed my original expectations.Bottom line, yes I would recommend this lens.
Seth –
Bought for my photographer wife for her Nikon D850. Takes outstanding shots. Weight is great. The 1.4 lens is too heavy for her to hold for hours so chose this. Better pictures than equivalent Nikon. Give it a shot
Anonymous –
I had been eyeing the 35 2 from Canon for a while and then this little gem came out. I will be using this with a Canon 5DC and 70D. I had a chance to take it out this morning and shoot in the overcast WI sky. I doubt this lens will come off my 70D for a good long while now. Its the perfect focal length at 56 mm for me. Speaking of focus, it focuses quickly and accurately. Not entirely silent, but perfect for video work, especially if you arent using on camera microphone. This is a chubby, beefy little lens. The build quality is great and I love that it comes with a lens cap. Solid build and stylish finish. Im very happy with this lens for the past 12 hours. My old goto lens for my 70D was the 24mm pancake, which I love. But as I mentioned before. I like this focal length a lot better. No regrets and looking forward to falling in love with this
John B –
I bought the Tamron SP 35mm f1.8 Di VC about a month ago. I was considering this lens, the Nikon 35mm AFS f1.4 ED and the Sigma 35mm f1.4 HSM A. DXOmark rated both the Sigma and the Tamron above the much more expensive Nikon lens, and also the Zeiss. I read reviews for months, and looked at the images others had taken with all the lenses. Although I was originally a Nikon lens purist, the results as well as the price could not compete, so I chose a third party lens over Nikon. I like the weight of the Tamron, and the solid feel. The manual focus is tight, you know it isnt going to wander. That is important to me because I shoot a lot of landscapes.I shot several test shots indoors, under a mixture of incandescent and fluorescent, WB set on cloudy on my D750, and the color and detail were excellent. Also, hand held shots at speeds under 150 were still very crisp. This is a definite improvement over my old Nikkor 35mm f2 D lens, and I have taken some great shots with that tiny little lens. I would recommend this lens without any hesitation.
Mary Fran –
I take school photos for a private school and have wanted for a long time a good portrait lens. Since going digital, I have only worked with a zoom lens. This fixed lens is turning out to be FANTASTIC for portraits. There is such a difference between what I get with this lens and similar ones I have taken with my zoom set on 45mm. Sharp photos with nicely blurred backgrounds. Wish I had bought long ago. It is worth every penny.
mks5 –
The summary is this lens is good, but you have better options, and heres why.If youre comparing this to the Sigma Art 35mm 1.4, which Ive demoed, its a different beast. The Sigma is sharper, more expensive, and much heavier. The weight of the Sigma is why I didnt go with that. If weight isnt a concern for you then the Sigma really is amazing optically, although in practice I didnt find I liked my images any better from the Sigma over the Canon f2 IS, as long as I refrained from pixel peeping deep into the corners.Ive never used the new Canon 35mm f1.4 ii, but Id love to try it. I know for me though the weight would be a dealbreaker.Everything from here down is comparing this Tamron to the Canon 35mm f2.0 IS, which I see as this Tamrons closest competitor.If youre one of those people that mainly cares about optics and image quality, I consider them the same. The Canon has more vignetting only matters on full frame, but the Tamron has more chromatic aberrations. They are about equally as sharp. Both have great bokeh character, although I like the Canons slightly better. I also like the Canons contrasty character a little better. These last two are definitely subjective and personal opinion though.The autofocus on this is good enough for how I use this lens. I had no problems with focus accuracy on a Canon 6d, and I did no calibration. Speed is a little worse than the Canon, but I dont generally use the 35mm focal length for fast moving subjects, but if you do, this may be a consideration. It felt a little less confident focusing in low light too. The main issue with the focusing is it has a really long throw so when it cant grab focus on the first try it takes longer than most of my lenses to focus to one extreme and then come back, which is a little annoying. Overall though focus issues wouldnt keep my from buying this lens.The IS is about the same on both 2 stops, definitely not the best Ive seen, but useful nonetheless.The Canon doesnt come with a lens hood. I personally rarely use a lens hood modern coatings have made them almost obsolete for preventing flare, although they still have some value for protecting your lens, but if you use one just buy it aftermarket. The Canon one is a ripoff but hoods arent exactly rocket science and any brand will do.The main selling point of this lens is the build quality. Its well built but I would say its the same as the Canon because the superficial metal casing on the outside and the weather sealing are negated by the fact that it does not internally focus. This is somewhat hidden but the front element moves in and out as you focus. The front element is recessed back so the length of the lens doesnt change, but it still moves and to me that is a weak point compared to the Canon, which completely internally focuses.Final selling points for the Canon are that its lighter while maintaining good ergonomics, and its generally cheaper new essentially always on sale, and much more available usedrefurbished, which further helps the price difference.Utimately I sent this back and am sticking with the Canon 35mm f2.0 IS
Tom –
I wanted so much to love this lens. Its close focus distance and Vibration Compensation would be great for quick detail photos such as wedding rings, flowers, wedding invitation, etc. and still have a normal f1.8 prime for shallow DOF portraits, or general environmental portraits, etc. For me it seemed like the perfect alternative to carrying a 50mm f1.4 and a macro lens or using extension tubes with my 50mm which is not great.I used the 45mm f1.8 on my two Nikon D810 bodies. The problems I had happened with both cameras.Ill begin by saying this lens needed 6 AF microadjustment on both cameras. Fine. I can live with microadjustment. But even with adjustment, the AF was inconsistent the lenscamera combo would say it was in focus, but it was not. I couldnt RELY on this lens the way I can rely on the Nikon 2470mm f2.8 or 24mm f1.8 and thats just not acceptable.And then there was the focus hunting. Four times in the space of two weeks this lens freaked out and for no apparent reason just hunted for focus from infinity to minimum distance, even with a well lit contrasty subject. I had to turn off the camera, remove the lens, replace the lens, and turn the camera back on. In my 25 years as a photographer Ive never experienced a lens doing that. Again, not acceptable.PROClose focus not micro, but close enough.Fast aperture.Sharp even wide open and in the corners when correct focus is achieved.Vibration Compensation VC for both stills and video.Pleasing bokeh.Excellent build quality and feel.CONAF sucks, even in moderate light hotel room.AF sometimes hunts for apparently no reason even on well lit subjects.Chromatic aberrations.Not a reliable tool for a job.Twice the size and weight of a Nikon 50mm f1.4.AF is slow, but the focus throw is a bit long. I could live with the slowish AF speed if it was consistently accurateI ended up returning this lens to BH for a full refund.I own the Tamron 70200 f2.8 G2 and I love that lens, so Im sadly disappointed that the Tamron 45mm f1.8 did not live up to my expectations based on my 10 month experience with the 70200mm G2.
Arnab D. –
My search for best 50mm ends here and I never thought I am going to love 45mm length so much. This lens is too sharp that sometime I even forget to fix LR sharpness. I can now shoot wide open and its still sharp. VC is just awesome, I can shoot 110115 sec and still get sharp image. Well there are some amount of CA but even Nikon has it. Auto focus is bit slow, might not be good for action shot. My review is based on D750 body and I am sure this is going to be my most used lens.
Eric Jon –
I would highly recommend this lens to just about everyone. I. The 8 minimum focusing distance lets you get right up in the details for some awesome macro photographs. Perfect for wedding photographers it makes for some breathtaking shots of the rings, flowers, etc. II. I cant say enough about the design build of this lens. Tamron really stepped their game up with this lens.
HUGH –
The build quality is absolutely phenomenalentirely metal body. It came in perfect condition as advertised and performs fantastically. The crisp f1.8 fast aperture complements its perfectly quiet, accurate focusing. There are really only two downsides Ive found with this lens1 There is some noticeable color fringing both purple and green, though this isnt too hard to remove in postprocessing2 The focusing isnt crazy fast. Its precision came at the cost of its speed. In my opiniona worthy tradeoff.
Ralph –
I have used this lens nonstop since purchasing it from Adorama a few weeks ago. It has become my goto lens for portraiture of all times from weddings, family, engagements. This lens provide absolute quality in the build, the images, and all around performance.I highly recommend this lens for photogs who are in a tight budget and definitely at the same level as the Sigma art series.
Cheuk Fang Rich –
Just got it from BH for 2 days, very happy. Good images from this lens, VR seems to work nice. Its quite sharp right out of the box, but I finetuned it to 5, or 6, seems to be better. I have the Tamron Tapin console but you can always do it in you camera, if you have this feature. Here are 2 photos no sharpening added in postproduction. The evening picture was shot at ISO 12800, on a D850. Will do some more testing.
viktas –
I just got my copy for my D7200 to get a 52.5mm f1.8 equivilant field of view. Construction is great with light weight feel and nice focusing ring. Hood and caps supplied are on par with price and solid. Glass is exceptional with sharpness after f2.0, 1.8 is a tad bit soft compared to Sigma art. Cleariy and contrast delivered throught this lens is amazing. Even though I shot most of my test shots outside I didnt see any chromatic abberations. But Im positive they are there. Love the Bokeh Super clean. I didnt need VC but its there in case making a nice touch. Close focusing makes a huge difference, and AF on my D7200 is spot on, no adjustment needed. I prefer this light weight body design to the art collection. I once had a art lens slip out of my hands because of weight and smooth finish. I will be doing a shoot this weekend at night and shooting wide for my next test shots. Throw of focusing ring is good about 180 degres for video work. AF motor is nice and quite if this is your thing. And if I dont write any thing else the Bokeh is amazing, as good as Canon L. Images are shot about f8 at 100 iso and hand held edited in Light room 6 to bring out shadows.
creo2001 –
I bought this to replace the nikkor 50mm 1.8 and this lens is head and shoulders above the nikon offering. Sharp, close focus, quiet focus motor and VC. There is some CA on high contrast areas wide open but easily mitigated in post. Excellent lens.
westmillstudio –
The lens is of Pro build quality and finished off with weather sealing. Image quality is superb. Really sharp even wide open. Focus is fast and accurate. The close focus ability is fantastic… almost functions as a macro lens. The VR of course is another major boon. The only downside is that it does produce some both purple and green fringing, which of course can be corrected via photoshop ect. The bokeh is fantastic for a wide lens too. All in all… to my mind… this is currently the best 35mm lens in existence today, despite it being an F1.8 rather than the more normal F1.4 of other Pro lenses. Another major plus for this lens is that it does not suffer from focus shift Very Highly Recommended
Nathan –
Havent extensively used this yet, but purchased it for an upcoming trip as I already have the 45mm which I love, but wanted something a tad wider. The Christmas pictures I took of the family turned out great and I would recommend this lens. Will find out in a week or so how this works on vacation.
Tim –
I went looking for a prime normal lens for my Canon 5D IV and was disappointed with the Canon line if 50mm choices. I already owned the Canon 50mm f1.8 STM but wanted IS for low light situations. The Canon f1.4 doesnt have it and has a bit of a reputation for having a delicate and inconsistent focus mechanics. The 1.2 was well out of my price range. Looking between the Sigma Art f1.4 and the Tamron 45, Tamron won out on price and having IS over 500 saved and lack of IS on the Sigma made it an easy choice. Plus I already owned several other Tamron lenses.The lens is very sharp. I AFMA all of my lenses with Reikan FoCal when I first get them. This is the only lens Ive ever tested that needed no adjustment at any of the TapIn console ranges. Its like it was factory calibrated for my camera. Also, it scores a 99.9 or 99.8 on focus consistency testing every time. Build quality is superb.It also has a very short close focus distance less than a foot.I use mine for events like parties and conventions, often in lowlight. Its an easy lens to carry on a 5D sized body. Focus is a touch slower than some of my other lenses but accurate even in low light situations. It doesnt tend to hunt or overshoot focus.Very happy with another great Tamron lens.
Mathew –
I have only had this lens for about a month, and I already love it. It has a great focal length of 35mm. The vibration compensation works great. It is a sharp lens, and at closest focus it has a magnification factor of 0.4. A Ziess macro lens has a magnification factor of 0.5. The build is excellent and the lens is weather sealed. I fondly call this lens, My Perfect Lens. Most lenses have a flaw of some kind.
Jeremy –
Its not best lens I have used but its a good quality started lens. I got this for my daughter who is a sophomore in high school and is part of the school newspaper and year book. Its a good option to learn on. Its basic enough that its not overwhelming.
MCOUPIN –
Sold my 5D iii for a D810 this Christmas Still have my 6D and this is my first Nikon mount lens. I am very impressed with the IQ offered at the price point. I felt that the IS would be helpful for everyday shooting with a 36MP sensor and is has been great so far. Focus speed and accuracy are not stellar but hey, my most used lens the last year was my Sigma 50 Art so…….. no real difference. Hats off to both Sigma and Tamron, keep it up
Dave –
I focus manually often and all of my other lenses are Nikkor, so Ill have to get used to the backwards focus direction counterclockwise to infinity. I think in the back of my mind I remembered this about Tamron. This could be a problem, but lets see how adaptable my old brain is.Super nice build though, and AF is spot on out of the box. All the Nikkors need some degree of correction before theyre awesome. Maybe I just got lucky. AF is virtually silent, though not extremely quick I cant even hear the VC kick on, as I can with the Nikkor VR zooms no click or faint humm. Its working great.It is nicely sharp wide open. I rarely shoot apertures smaller than f3.5 or so this is a plus. It also focuses super close for a normal lens. Not quite borderline macro, but maybe borderline borderline.Some online reviews demonstrate the designs spherochromatism as an issue, but it honestly isnt as bad as some other lenses I like and use. Yes, some greenmagenta fringes will happen. It might be slightly worse than other lenses in this general focal range 35mm60mm, say, but just slightly. The Nikkor Zeiss 85s are worse. The Pentax 77 is worse. Its a minor issue we work around when shooting wide. Pixel peeping is probably bad for the soul anyway.Ill be grip taping over the branding because all my stuff is blacked out, but until I do its a beautiful lens to look at. Nice job, Tamron, even if it is a little derivative of the SigmaZeiss aesthetic.The backward manual focus is irksome, but everything else is great. I dont think I can come back and edit this just know that Im leaning toward 5 stars at this point.
Sonja –
I was nervous at first about ordering this lens as there were some negative reviews . I took a chance and when it arrived , I attached the lens to my Nikon D 750 Camera and it works amazing .. This lens is multipurpose . And i have captured some amazing macro images, portraits and mother nature shots … It has been on my camera since May 15th 2019 . The short time I have owned it I can find no real complaints as of yet … BH team were helpful and fast delivery … Thank You
Srinivas –
The build quality of the lens is excellent and on par with the Sony Zeiss 40mm 1.4. Sharpness is very good even at f1.8 and is uniform across the frame, unlike the Sigma 35mm 1.4 Art which is sharper in the center. Autofocus is also very silent and accurate, another area where this lens is better than the Sigma. Bokeh however, is decent with a hint of onion ring in some of the highlights in night shots. This is not a major issue in daylight shots. Overall the lens is better than the Sigma due to its better autofocus, excellent sharpness, smaller size, decent bokeh and exceptional build quality.
Anonymous –
You cannot have VC turned on while on a tripod. Someone also claimed a rumor that you cannot have VC on 1200160th. I like to take photos off of bridges with a tripod at night, or sunset. You need ISVC in order to take a 2sec or more shot in addition to the tripod. It is just fine with a canon 24mm is. I can do a 30s shot. You cant do that with this one. Great otherwise. 110th handheld easy. Perfect for a sunset panorama on APSC.
THEODORE A. –
This lens is a great all around lens. Excellent price. Considered the canon 35 1.8 but couldnt justify the price difference. Sharp and fast
Jeremy –
This lens is absolutely incredible. I did extensive research on this lens, Nikon 35mm 1.8, and Sigma 35mm 1.4. It was a hard choice because each lens has its own unique something to bring to the table. The Nikon being all around good in almost everything, the Sigma being having the best bokeh and sharpest images, and then the Tamron having VC and being weather sealed. After using this lens the Tamon is sharper than the Sigma in my opinion and the bokeh is fantastic. The Tamron nails focus 99 of the time, is crystal clear and sharp, renders colors perfectly, and is very light. If youre considering a 35mm lens do yourself a favor and grab this lens. Oh, and dont forget this lens can focus as close as 20cms making it extremely diverse in usage.
david –
I already consider my SLRs to be dinosaurs useful only for very intentional photographic situations. IOW Ill tote a compact live view ILC for casual use or just on a whim, and Id NEVER find such a huge lens acceptable as a prime normal FL of nonremarkable maximum aperture for use on a compact camera.But, as a big lens for big cameras, It does have excellent AF and IS, no readily visible distortion, remarkably even illumination, easy MF and is reasonably resistant to flare. It also did not cost too much Zeiss and Sigma also sell huuuuge exotic normal lenses, even bulkier than this one and at 3X to 5X the price.If you wanna own a normal lens of outstanding imaging ability with full compatibility to your modern AF SLR, it looks like its not gonna be a tidy little compact model But at least the PRICE can be miniaturized
Zoltan –
As I often find the niftyfifty way too long for close portraits, or full body shots due to lack of space, I was on the market for a fast 35mm Fmount prime lens. I love the Sigma 50mm f1.4 Art, and I was hoping that the 35mm version of it would excel on the same scale. For the most, I found that id did, but it was missing focus way too often, especially when I needed to recompose. I ended up returning the Sigma, and after lengthy research and debate, I ended up with the Tamron, gaining about two stops to stabilise my shots, at the expense of 23rd of a stop. Right out of the box, the lens performed admirably, its awesome closeups, and tacksharp images got me addicted instantly. A days shooting of an event will reveal more, how consistent and reliable this unit will be, the introduction was impressive enough though, to gain my confidence, and I wouldnt hesitate to recommend it at this price point. Nikon users who own a Tamron tapin console be aware, that this lens will not work with it, right out of the box. It must be sent in to a nearby Tamron service center for a firmware update. I sent in my copy, and in three business days it was sent back to me with the latest firmware, now usable with the tapin console.
David –
I was initially happy with this purchase until I started putting this lens through the paces. Im using it on a D7200. I started to notice softness in some images. After quite a bit of troubleshooting, I have found that when the VC is turned on, from shutter speeds speeds starting at 1200th down to 160th, the images taken with VC off are sharper than with VC turned on… I also have a Tamron 2470 2.8 VC which I purchased right around the same time and that lens has the same issue over the same shutter speed range. I have tried these lenses on a different D7200 as well as a D810 and the VC issue persists on those cameras as well. I also tried a different copy of the Tamron 2470 2.8 VC and had the same issue with that lens. As of now I cannot recommend this lens nor the 2470 from Tamron. Its too bad because I think both of these lenses produce stunningly sharp images when they work or when you turn the VC off during that shutter speed range listed above.
mav67 –
The lens shoots about as well as you would expect a midtier piece of glass to shoot. It feels a little light and cheap in the hand, but produces a very decent picture. I like the color palette prephotoshop. My problem is the lens wont work with the C300 or C300 mark ii the F stop goes to full open and cant be changed. If shooting stills a good lenses for the money. If you want to shoot video, and not pay for Canon glass, Id go with Rokinon over Tamron.
Robert –
This lens handles superbly and balances perfectly on my 5D MarkII. Exceptionally sharp, vibrant color. Todays field trip in the snow no CA, no flare, without having to use a polarizer.You cant go wrong with this one.I traded an older EF 50mm f1.4 and 24 mm f2.8 for this one and would do it again in a minute after seeing the performance of this Tamron.The Adorama tradein system was fast and fair.Great job, folks.
SON –
Awesome lens It is sharp wide open and beautiful bokeh. Auto focus works well, but a little slow in low light. VC is a big plus. It produced great photos with my d810. Highly recommend.
rwvaughn812 –
Ive tried a number of 50mm and near 50mm lenses in my work from all of the major brands. They all have struggled to produce sharp images wide open or suffer from inconsistent auto focus… until I got my hands on Tamrons new 45mm prime with vibration compensation. Fully wide open at 1.8 the Tamron produces sharp images from corner to corner aided by the inclusion of vibration compensation built into the lens something no other manufacturer even has bothered with on their 50mm offerings. The color saturation is brilliant and crisp. Yes, I love this lens. Its design is much stronger than the weakly built Canon 1.4. If youve owned the Canon 1.4 for any length of time you know how fragile the autofocusing mechanism is. You cant set that lens down on its face without damaging the helicoil… I know its a repair Ive had to have done twice. While this lens is not 1.4 like the Sigma Art lens it does not suffer from the autofocus inconsistency issues that plague the Sigma. Art is nothing more than a word dreamed up by their marketing department to hype a lens that in my opinion can not compare to Tamron. Give the lens an honest try and I think youll come to the same conclusion I have. This is the best of the 50s or near 50mm lenses.
JonathanDexter –
images are sharp at 1.8. if you have shaky hands all you have to do is turn up the shutter speed…BUT WAIT…it was VC vibration reduction and it has worked well for me…even when i mistakingly turned down the shutter dial by mistake. For the price ….you cant beat it….its def a competitor to the Sigma Art Lens but doesnt sacrifice image quality not one bit the bokeh is CREAMY get this lens.
dalvi.bas –
An absolutely beautifully rendering lens. We constructed too. I sold my Nikon 35mm and 50mm to buy this. It is more expensive than both them put together, but if you are looking for a high quality prime lens near the actual human field of view, this it.
Mike930 –
I was really excited to get this lens after reading all the positive reviews. The first day I had it one photo really stood out. I was testing out DOF and shot a small black monument with white lettering at F1.8. In lightroom the white letters were almost completely filled with purple. So much so that it was difficult to correct. I tried it again the next day and found purple fringing even at 5.6. On the positive side the VC worked great and I could get sharp hand held shots at 110. The severe CA was too much and I exchanged it got the Canon 35mm f2 IS. Im much happier with this lens and feel it is superior for the same price. I did read CA was a problem but not to the degree I experienced. Maybe I got a bad lens. All in all pretty disappointing.
Rhi –
Im really enjoying this lens I love the perspective it gives, and how close to the subject I can get, love itI was primarily using my Nikon 50mm 1.8, but found that I wanted slightly wider shots, and the Tamron 35mm is just what I needed, Id definitely recommend this lens