Tamron 28-75mm F2.8 Di III VXD G2 Hands-on Review: A compact, affordable and impressive zoom lens for Sony E-mount cameras
posted Friday, January 28, 2022 at 4:14 PM EDT
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Tamron 28-75mm F2.8 Di III VXD G2 Hands-on Review
It's been a Tamron week here at Imaging Resource. On Wednesday, we published our hands-on review of the Tamron 35-150mm F2-2.8 Di III VXD lens. Now, we're back with another full-frame zoom lens for Sony E-mount cameras, the much-anticipated Tamron 28-75mm F2.8 Di III VXD G2, which is an updated version of the existing Tamron 28-75mm F2.8 Di III RXD lens.
The new VXD G2 version retains the same spirit of the original lens, offering a fast standard zoom lens in a relatively compact, lightweight and affordable package. However, the new version features an improved optical design with additional elements that improve overall image quality, especially corner sharpness. It also includes a new autofocus system that is faster, quiet and more accurate than the original lens's AF system.
During my hands-on time with the G2 version, the lens impressed me with its build quality, lightweight design and imaging performance. Even when shooting wide open, the lens is very sharp throughout much of the full-frame image area. The lens occasionally struggles with some distortion and minor chromatic aberration. Still, the issues are far from bad and don't prevent the lens from being a great zoom capable of capturing high-quality images.
The autofocus proved impressive as well. Not only is the autofocus quick and quiet, as promised, but the lens can also focus close enough to have a 1:2.7 reproduction ratio at the wide end and 1:4.1 at the telephoto end. It's not quite macro territory, but the close-focusing performance adds versatility to an already-versatile optic.
To read my full thoughts on Tamron's impressive new 28-75mm F2.8 Di III VXD G2 lens, click here. To jump straight to our real-world images and test shots, visit the Gallery.