DavidNJ's reviews
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Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di II VC LD Aspherical IF SP AF
10 out of 10 points and recommendedSharp, Fantasitc Image, Fast Accurate Auto Focus, Great VCFocus Ring Moves and Can Be Damaged By Moving When Engaged, Only 45° Focus Ring TravelUnbelievably good. Fast accurate autofocus leads to stunningly sharp pictures with good color rendition. Not that noisy in spite of no USM/HSM.
reviewed November 5th, 2009 (purchased for $625)
VC story. Doing some tests on soda cans on my desk. Handheld, 50mm, about 2'. Could read the text handheld at 1.3 seconds. Not 1/13, but 1.3. Unreal.
Build quality seems good. Zoom and focus are smooth. VC is silent, focus is not silent but not that noisy and very quick. In spite of only being 45°, manual focus seems usable.
When shooting video on a the newer crop sensor cameras (mine is a Canon 7D), you need a fast lens because you can't go faster than 1/30 of a second. This is probably the best overall choice. Comfortably the best choice.
Note, it is not as light as my Nikon manual focus primes. They are also faster and may also have a better image, however this Tamron is as close or maybe better.
This lens is much better than I expected and just excellent overall. -
Nikon 50mm f/1.2 AIS Nikkor
9 out of 10 points and recommendedSharp wide open, good color rendition, 9-blade apertureManualI use this lens and the AI version (7-blade aperture but 180° of focus rotation) on a Canon 7D. The lens can be used wide open without noticeable sacrifice in image quality on the crop sensor camera. Color rendition is good. It isn't too bulky. Shares 52mm filter ring with other Nikon AIS lenses. On the 7D it is equivalent to 80mm, and makes a good portrait lens. It is one of my favorite lenses and I use it frequently.
reviewed March 13th, 2011 (purchased for $360) -
Nikon 35mm f/1.4 AIS Nikkor
8 out of 10 points and recommendedSharp imageFair color renditionIt is a sharp lens but a bit behind the other Nikons in color rendition. Well made and fast. However in practice I end up using the 50/1.2, 28/2, and 24/2 more than this one.
reviewed March 13th, 2011 (purchased for $500)
Note that it is still in production