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Tamron SP 10-24 Di II Hands-on Review
January 1, 2009 | Gadgets & Reviews | 16,351 views
Tamron 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5 Di II
I had a chance to borrow a Tamron 10-24mm lens from a friend. I base my observations through my first hand experience on using this lens, this is not an intensive review but my own personal review of this lens. I have intentionally used it for a few hours of actual shooting for this review and since this is an ultra-wide lens, this should be good for landscapes which I wasn’t disappointed with the Tamron 10-24mm’s performance.
Tamron 10-24 on Nikon D40
This new Tamron lens covers the broadest zoom range under the ultra-wide class, from 10mm wide to 24mm. This lets you enjoy a field of view wide enough to cramp in a scene when doing landscapes and wide-angle photography as well as near normal at the zoom end. The equivalent focal length for the 35mm format is about 16-38mm.
Tamron engineered this lens to have a minimum focus distance of 9.4″ or 0.24m. It gives you freedom to produce photos with a distinct ultra-wide perspective at the 10mm wide end.
Exterior design is solid and feels good to the hands. Its black matte finish on the lens barrel also gives the Tamron 10-24 its refined and sleek appearance. It also feels even and smooth when twisting the zoom ring.
Tamron 10-24 / Canon EF 10-22
Compared to the Canon EF 10-22mm, the Tamron 10-24mm is shorter when at the wide end and almost the same length when zoomed. The only thing I don’t like with it is that the Tamron 10-24mm Di extends the lens barrel when you zoom. This could sometimes suck dust and dirt into the lens and personally I don’t like moving parts. As for the Canon users, the zoom direction twists the opposite as compared to Canon lenses, which you may need to get used to. This feature does not affect Nikon users as the zoom twist direction is the same with Nikorr lenses.
Tamron 10-24
Tamron 10-24
As for the real world use, I have tried shooting landscapes and it handles flare pretty well. Chromatic aberration is also controlled. Straight from the camera images are contrastry and sharp enough.
Some conclusions:
Cons:
Sharpness is not really what I am expecting but is good enough. The Tamron 10-24mm is not designed for fullframe, only for APS-C sensors. As for the price, it’s still a bit costly at around Php 23K+
Pros:
This lens is a good alternative for an ultra-wide, especially if you are a Nikon user in which Nikkor ultra-wides are insanely expensive. For an ultra-wide, chromatic aberration and lens flare is almost non-existent. The Tamron 10-24mm Di II is a capable lens for those who like to shoot landscapes or needing an alternative 3rd party ultra-wide lens.
Below are some samples straight from the camera, only resized for web:
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Specs:
| Focal Length | 10-24mm |
| Angle of View | 108° 44’ – 60° 20’ (APS-C size equivalent) |
| Max / Minimum Aperture | f3.5-4.5 / f22 |
| Lens Construction | 12 elements in 9 groups |
| Diaphragm Blade | 7 blades |
| Filter Diameter | 77mm |
| Minimum Focus Distance | 9.4” (0.24m) (Over the entire zoom range) |
| Maximum Mag. Ratio | 1:5.1 (at f=24mm) |
| Dimensions | 3.3 in. x 3.4 in. (83.2mm x 86.5mm) |
| Weight | 370g (13.1 oz) |
| Hood | Flower-shaped lens hood |
| Available Mount | Canon, Nikon, Pentax, Sony |
The lens also comes with a glare-reducing flower-shaped lens hood. Using lens hood provides a shade against light rays that enter from the rectangular frame outside the image field that may produce glare and ghosting and can reduce the lens’ contrast.
Tamron 10-24
Tamron 10-24
My thanks to Dino Kintanar for letting me borrow his Nikon D40 and his Tamron 10-24mm Di II
Update Jan 2, 2009: Additional landscape photos taken with the Tamron 10-24mm here
Update Jan 8, 2009: As requested, I have uploaded high resolution samples taken with a Nikon D40 body. Click the thumbnails below
Update Feb. 5, 2009: Uploaded more samples with exif
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Update June 1, 2009 : Tamron has announced that the availability of Tamron 10-24mm wide-angle zoom for Sony and Pentax mounts. The company says that the lens, will be available in Japan beginning June 12th.
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Comments (19)
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bariles
Emily
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lito
Lantaw
[...] are SFI, Tambler when I tested the Tamron 10-24mm lens. Here’s my previous post on my review of the Tamron SP 10-24mm Di II. Nikon D40 Tamron SP 10-24mm Di [...]
Reviews for this lens are very scarce. Thanks for putting this up! Any chance of letting us view full size images?
@Fuzzphoto – You’re welcome. I have included some high resolution samples in my update
That’s great! I appreciate it. And thanks for the quick reply!
hi!
“As for the price, it’s still a bit costly at around Php 23K+”
san po binebenta ng 23k sa pinas? thank you =)
-bet
@bet – There are lots of photography stores at Hidalgo St. in Quiapo, Manila. Try Avenue Photo Supply 733-2761, 733-5474, 734-3307
Very nice review, to the point. ;)
Waiting for this lens.
Thanks again.
You’re welcome :) thanks for viewing
How about distortion control? how does it compare with the others? TIA
@em0rej – as for my experience in testing it, a very slight barrel distortion over the horizon on the landscape shots, but very minimal. I personally wouldn’t mind about it much.
How would you reckon this lense would work shooting in low-light settings (concert, theatre, etc.)?
Thanks for an honest review! Much appreciated!
It should do fine in concerts and theatre since in these situations lighting are usually enough. At apertures of 3.5-4.5, just set your ISO to 800 or 1600, you can achieve enough shutter speed to shoot handheld. And since it’s has a short focal length, shooting even at 1/15 is ok. 1/125 can freeze motion.
Meron na ba nito na Canon mount sa manila?
try to inquire sa mga shops sa hidalgo, quiapo. I would recommend Avenue Photo
I rarely met persons having the same family name. I have a Tamron lens but only 70-300mm. I am looking for this lens here in Cebu.
Nonoy
thanks for dropping by :)
I am not a fan of ultra-wides, that is why I did not buy a Nikon branded ultra-wide, too expensive for something I would not use that much, but I do a bit of wedding photos for friends and my Nikon 16-85 lens maybe used most of the time but I thought I might as well buy something that is a little wider for this sort of occasion, so I bought this cheapo Tamron 10-24, It does a fine job, just keep the apertures 2 stops down at 10mm and it will deliver, also lens flare is very rare.
nice review sir Leonard, I’m currently eyeing for this lens and hardly can’t choose betwen this lens and sigma 10-20
Better get the tamron 10-24, not only that it’s sharper than the sigma, you’ll have a 2mm advantage on the long end, and also a better build