Tamron AF70-300mm f/4-5.6 LD 1:2 Macro for Pentax (Silver)

Rating:
Summary: Great optics for money.Incredible warranty.Solid quality.
Review: I purchased Tamron AF 70-300mm LD lens for Canon over a month ago. The first roll of film was a bit of disappointing. I liked colors but some pictures lacked sharpness (fuzzy). After that I purchased introduction photography book published by Kodak and read it. Gained knowledge was invalueable. I used tripod and Kodak Gold 200 color print film. Pictures were developed on 5x7 photographs at York Photo Labs. All pictures of second roll turned out very nice and sharp (especially considering 200 film on 5x7 pictures). I even made picture of caterpillar in macro mode at 300 mm and f/8 and this turned out very nice as well. All pictures (including ones taken at focal length of 300 mm) turned out very nice. Ultra telephoto lens is demanding but wide-angle lens is forgiving. You have to consider it when you use telephoto lens. You need solid technique; otherwise, you might be disappointed if you take handheld pictures with lower shutter speeds. It is pretty hard to make sharp pictures even at 1/250 shutter speed and 200mm. Tripod works well though. The larger focal length the harder it gets. I would not feel comfortable with anything slower than 1/250s. Some people mentioned that f/8 gives better results. That is true pretty much for any lens. But at this aperture you need tripod when using ISO 100 films unless you are in sun. If you can't use tripod but you want to use this lens then you might use faster films (IS0 200 or ISO 400) to reduce camera shake. Build quality is good and great warranty gives you peace of mind. Customer service is quick too (don't worry my lens is not broken but I had some technical questions to Tamron). This lens is also sold as Nikon AF 70-300mm ED and users seem to enjoy it as well (even though they pay 100$ more). Focusing is kind of slow, especially in low-light conditions and at larger focal lengths (i.e. 300 mm). You can't blame lens for it because camera does focusing. At this low amount of light and narrow angle (7 degrees - camera gets not much lights through lens). It is not Tamron but nature of telephoto lens. This is why camera haunts in low-light conditions. Lens comes with lens hood (lens shade) so you don't have to buy one for this lens. Overall, I am very pleased with pictures and expect even better pictures on ISO 100 films and 4x6 prints. Use tripod as much as possible. Also cable release is recommended to reduce camera shake. Great lens for the money. Period.