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Review: Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 Di III RXD (Sony E-Mount)

Posted on June 19, 2018July 24, 2018 by Jordan Steele

Contents

  • 1Construction and Handling
  • 2Autofocus
  • 3Image Quality
  • 4Conclusion
  • 5Image Samples

Conclusion

Pros

  • Compact and lightweight for the aperture and focal range
  • Weathersealed against dust and moisture
  • Very good image sharpness starting from f/2.8
  • Good control of longitudinal chromatic aberration
  • Excellent color and contrast
  • Close focus ability adds to versatility
  • Very affordable

Cons

  • Bokeh is mediocre
  • Barrel distortion at the wide end and pincushion at the long end
  • Some lateral chromatic aberration
  • High spherical aberration at very close focus when shot wide open with longer focal lengths
  • Lens materials do not feel premium
  • Some hiccups with autofocus with standard camera settings Edit: Tamron has released a firmware update that has fixed autofocus issues.

The Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 is a fast standard zoom that is an excellent value for money. It’s rather sharp, and produces very pleasing images with a good overall image rendering. Bokeh can get a bit chunky at times, and there’s some distortion that you’ll have to correct, but when taken as a whole, the optical performance of the lens is quite good. Considering the reasonable $799 price tag, and the very high price of its competition, the bang for the buck is the best among all the standard zooms for the full-frame E mount.

In addition to the good optical quality and affordable price, the Tamron succeeds most due to its compact nature. In comparison with the Sony 24-70mm f/2.8 GM, the Tamron 28-75mm is so much lighter and easier to handle as a walk-around lens that it would be hard for me to entertain the GM even if their cost was similar. While improvements could be made, it’s a very solid effort from Tamron, and will fit the bill for a wide range of Sony shooters.  I started out a bit wary of the lens, but have grown more and more fond of it the more I’ve used it.  I’ve found it to be a very versatile lens with very good image quality, and it’s earned a permanent spot in my bag.

Image Samples

Click on an image to enlarge

Hayden Falls – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 75mm, f/16, 1sec, ISO 100
Legos – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 75mm, f/2.8, 1/125s, ISO 5000
Statehouse Reflection – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 28mm, f/8, 1/40s, ISO 100
Statue – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 38mm, f/2.8, 1/2000s, ISO 100
Columbus Below Rich Street – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 28mm, f/11, 1/100s, ISO 100
Memphis Belle – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 57mm, f/5, 1/30s, ISO 2000
Glass and Stone – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 75mm, f/11, 1/100s, ISO 100
Portrait – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 75mm, f/2.8, 1/320s, ISO 100

 

Clifton Mill – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 29mm, f/11, 1/5s, ISO 100
Statehouse Marble – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 31mm, f/8, 1/20s, ISO 1250
Torah – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 32mm, f/2.8, 1/60s, ISO 100
Toad – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 75mm, f/2.8, 1/160s, ISO 100
Flowers in the City – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 40mm, f/8, 1/160s, ISO 100
Wing Light – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 75mm, f/4, 1/40s, ISO 800
Hayden Falls – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 28mm, f/14, 1/4s, ISO 100
Sundial – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 28mm, f/2.8, 1/1000s, ISO 100
Statehouse – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 28mm, f/11, 1/200s, ISO 100
Columbus – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 35mm, f/11, 1/25s, ISO 100
McKinley – Sony A7 III with Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 @ 28mm, f/10, 1/160s, ISO 100
If you enjoyed this review, check out my other reviews in the Review Index
Pages: 1 2 3

7 thoughts on “Review: Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 Di III RXD (Sony E-Mount)”

  1. Pingback: New Tamron 28-75mm FE reviews by Jordan Steele, Max Yuryev and Patrick Murphy-Racey - sonyalpharumors sonyalpharumors
  2. Bjoern says:
    June 25, 2018 at 12:37 pm

    Great review.

    I love your leather wrist. Where is it from?

    Best,
    Bjoern

    Reply
    1. Jordan Steele says:
      June 25, 2018 at 12:43 pm

      Thanks! The wrist strap is from Gordy’s Camera Straps: https://www.gordyscamerastraps.com – This is my third one from them (the others are several years old and still in great shape…I have a black one with silver thread on my Fuji X-T20, and the other, a black strap with orange thread on my A7 II. This one is dark brown with green, as you can see)

      Reply
  3. Bjoern says:
    June 26, 2018 at 1:12 am

    Many thanks, Jordan!

    Reply
  4. Bobby says:
    June 27, 2018 at 3:05 am

    Thanks for the review Jordan.
    Howdoes it perform compared to the Sony 28mm f/2?

    Reply
  5. Dominique says:
    July 4, 2018 at 3:23 am

    I have a GAS question. Sorry…
    I want to change my camera system (Olympus with 12-40mm and 45mmf1.8).
    I hesitate between the Fujifilm X-H1 & 16-55mmf2.8 and Sony A7III & Tamron 28-75mmf2.8 for kid’s portrait, street photography and trips.

    I like the ergonomic and EVF of Fuji, and Eye AF, battery life of Sony.
    As you notice the bad bokeh on Tamron, I hesitate more.
    Have you some advice ?
    Thank you in advance.

    Reply
  6. Pingback: ???? 28-75mm F/2.8 Di III RXD ??????????? | ?????????????

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