excellent zoom range.
close focus is awesome.
really sharp.
lots of fun if you just need one lens for travel, etc.

could use a full f-stop off the max aperture on both ends of the zoom range. kinda slow.

I really like this lens! If it had a faster max aperture throughout the zoom range, it would be incredible! Highly recommended.

Customer Service

not needed

Similar Products Used:

several

Good range,
Good build,
Sharp,
Includes Hood and a nice case(although its always on the camera),
Zoom lock,
Price

variable aperture,
Not to hot wide open,
Some little plastic ring broke off inside the lens, but so far has not effected performance

This is a very handy lens, I leave it on my F100 unless I'm indoors or w/o a tripod. When used with a tripod in low light its slow speed is not a problem. Velvia and E100 slides have been excellent. Much better than Nikon 24-120 IMHO(better price too).Its just an excellent all purpose zoom.

Customer Service

Not yet used

Similar Products Used:

Nikon 24-120
Nikon 24-85 2.8-4

Extremely sharp
Build quality
Good zoom range
Zoom lock
Did I mention sharp ?

None that I can think of

I've had a 70-300 Tamron lens fro 6 years and I was quite happy with it. then I've bought this lens for the portraits I do. I can't recall why did I decide to buy this lens (message from god ?...) but I'm happy to report that this lens is wonderful. up until now, I got sharp (very sharp !), contrasty, saturated pictures.
I know that some of you wish that the lens will be a bit faster but from what I read I understand that this will result in substential increase in weight and size to the lens (and hence the lens will be pricy and not suited for the "Advanced amatuer").
Overall I'm VERY pleased with the lens and I'll be more then happy to leave it 100% of the time on my 7e.

Customer Service

I have had some trouble with customer service in Israel since I've
bought the lens in USA (Through B&H) and I had a defect in the lens as
soon as I tryed it for the first time. appearantely, there is some problem with some "Inner ring" that falls off the lens (someone else in
here wrote about it too, I think). anyway, as I gather, the lens' Warrenty is
INTERNATIONAL but Tamron's dealer in israel insisted that I somehow damaged the lens - "it is a fraction" he said, and "it looks as if
someone hit it with a hammer or something like that".
From now on I started a Ping-Pong game between myself and B&H, and Tamron Japan. eventually, I returned it to the USA and received IMMEDIATELY
another lens, but I was left with a (VERY) bad taste in my mouth. like, what ? am I a liar ? this is no way to treat a (other then that) very happy customer.

Similar Products Used:

Sigma 70-210
Nikon 35-70 3.5-5.6
Tamron 70-300

Great zoom range. Balances well on my A2. Quiet.

None

Wow! The Colors pop out at you! Coupled with Portra 160VC the pictures are amazing! This lens will rarely leave my camera's mount.

Customer Service

I've had no experience with Customer Service and don't anticipate any.

Similar Products Used:

Sigma 17-35
Canon 28-105

Sharpeness, high contrast, good colour balance & saturation, build quality, value for money.

Need care in using flower-shape lens hood in the wide-angle end with flash - it may cause obstruction to flash illumination at the lower centre part of the photo.

This Tamron is a gem. My version is 290D (the mimited edition 50th Anniversary edition). It is very well made. Although it is still engineering plastic, it does not feel flimsy.
The optical performance is beyond reproach in its class. The sharpness is comparable to prime lens in smaller apertures. This lens can be used wide open with very satisfactory results.
Just take note of the vignetting problem that flower-shape hood may cause in flash shots in wide andgle.

Customer Service

Not used.

Similar Products Used:

Nikon 35-70 f3.3-4.5, 35-70 f2.8, 35-105 f3.5-4.5, Tamron 28-80 f3.5-4.2, Zuiko 35-70, Tokina 28-70 f2.6

Sharp
Excellent zoom range
Very little distortion
Autofocus is just as fast as Canon USM

Could be faster, but that would make it a lot bulkier too.

For the Canon mount I really think this is just the best lens around if you are looking for a zoom in this range. It has excellent optics and is definitely sharper than the Canon 28-105 which I used for the last few years. It also as a wider range than the Canon 28-135. The extra 4mm at the short end really makes a world of difference in my opinion.
I am very very pleased with the optical and built quality of this lens and am forever cured from that "third party lens is of lesser quality disease".
The lens feels very solid and I expect to use it for many years to come. Very highly recommended, it is worth every dollar.

Customer Service

Not needed yet.

Similar Products Used:

Canon EF 28-105
Canon EF 50 1.4

Amazing Sharpness approaching prime lenses
Excellent Contrast
Fast Focusing
Excellent Handling
Very Cool Lens Pouch

May hunt a little at 135mm with low contrast subjects
Slightly Noisy Autofocus Motor

This lens will make you look foward to photographing everything in site. The amount of sharpness and contrast produced is amazing considering the price paid after $25 rebate from Tamron and 4% rebate via ebates.com. This lens is sharp throughout its entire zoom range. The lens is very sharp even wide open. It actually rivals the sharpness of my 50mm prime and 24mm primes from Canon. Pictures are slightly warm...which I like. Flare and distortion is about right and well controlled. The lens hood feels a little flimsy and difficult to put on backwards while not in use. The leather like pouch and the special edition lens cap are nice touches. All the previous reviews here have been true regarding the lens' awesome optical qualities. Like everyone else, I wish this could have been a f/2.8-4.0 but that would have made the lens much heavier and bulkier and perhaps many times more expensive. The extra 4mm at the wide end helped me to choose this over Canon's 28-135 IS lens. This lens worked wonders on a recent trip I took to Canada and I will keep it on my camera body for anything short of extreme critical work.

Customer Service

Never Needed

Similar Products Used:

Canon EF 28-80
Tamron 28-300