Tamron 90mm Macro

[Tadlost]

Yes the question has been asked a million which lens , I am looking at a Tamron 90mm macro.
with the reviews I have been reading, I'm on the fence as they say it hunts while focusing. Also very noisy. but its a great lens for the dollars.

so is it good or bad or just good value for the $$ or should I be looking at a different make or model.

What do you think ???

[I @ M]

More details please.

What other lens are you comparing it to, Nikon, Canon, Pentax other 3rd party etc.

What will be your primary use for the lens?

In low light / contrast on the focus point situations it can sometimes hunt for focus, but so do may other lenses. I don't think it is much worse than many in that regard.
If you are using it primarily for macro work I would advise that you focus it manually at 1:1 anyway and move the camera and tripod to obtain focus.

If it starts hunting for focus when auto focussing it will be noisier than a lens with usm / afs etc. but I don't consider the noise extreme.

I use one a lot, mostly as a portrait lens and quite often in 'darkish' studio settings and 99% of the time using the centre focus point in AF and recomposing. I would estimate that it might "miss" focus and start hunting about once in every 200 shots and the noise hasn't scared any subjects away ---- yet.

Great bang for your buck , but like I said, what are you comparing it to for which camera.

[Bluesun]

I saw a review a while back and the Tamron took the prize for sharpness and was qouted that it might be too sharp as it would show up all the facial defects when used for portraits. Can't afford one yet but prob the one I'll be using. If you intend to use it as a "macro" only then the sharper the better I guess.

[Kym]

The alternate is Sigma 105mm - they both rate very well. The Tammy is a bit lower cost.
Either of these is on my wish list.

[DJT]

I've had mine for a few years & do not have a bad word to say about it.
The noise is no different from any other screw drive lens.
99.9% of macro is manual focus, so hunting isn't an issue there.
Even though it is fine for portrait work, I have been told that generally macro lenses are usually too contrasty for portrait photography even though so many people recommend them, it is probably the focal length that makes them ideal. I can't tell the difference so it doesn't bother me
I wouldn't not buy one due to the negatives you have read. If you've got $1000 + buy the xxx brand, if you haven't got that kind of coin buy the Tamron

[Nanny]

I have the Tammy 90mm and find it to be a good lens
and price wise it is good too.

[Tikira]

We have the Tamron 90 and find it a good lens. Yes it does hunt on auto a bit for Macro work, but as mentioned earlier this is not an issue when manually focusing. I have used it for a bit of family portrait work and also find it a fine lens, I would recommend it due to its value for money and dual use.

Wayne

[Tadlost]

Sorry I should of said in the original post the camera body is a Nikon D90.

the reason for the macro lens is mechanical bits and peaces Etc. also the wife likes flower shots.
but buy the sound of it it's not a bad lens and would be a good addition to my kit.

Thanks for ll the helpful reply's
Tad.

[old dog]

probably the best value for money out there. I`d recommend mine all the time.

[AmPhot]

Count me as another happy user of the Tammy 90mm. I never use auto focus for macro work so have never experienced the hunting issue. Nice and sharp and for the price produces good quality results. Can't recommend it enough.

[judybee]

I have a Tamron 90mm for my D90 and for macro I always use manual focus, so the 'hunting' is no problem. I have also recently used it to do portraits at a course I am doing and I am using it on auto there and I have very sharp focus on the eyes and didn't notice any 'hunting' in that instance.
Two thumps up from me.

[Geoff]

The version I've used was indeed noisy and hunts more than the Sigma macro (150mm) I purchased - but as many have said manual focus is often the way (usually even) for macro.

I do believe the image quality off the Tamron is hard to beat at the price.

[yogestee]

I'm on my second Tamron 90mm Macro.. My first was the f/2.5 version when I was shooting film.. When I changed to digital in 1999 I didn't need to look any further..

I've had the "digital" version for around six years now..

Bloody great lens.. It's also a very good portrait lens, it matches my Canon EF135mm f/2L for sharpness...

First pic Tamron 90mm - Second pic Canon 135L..