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Tamron AF 18-270mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC LD Aspherical IF Macro Zoom Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras | 
 enlarge | Brand: Tamron
Category: Photography
List Price: $1,333.95
Buy New: $574.99
You Save: $758.96 (57%)
New (14) Used (6) from $484.99
Rating:  98 reviews
Media: Electronics
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Optical Zoom: 15
Maximum Focal Length: 270
Minimum Focal Length: 18
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 3.8 x 3.2 x 3.2
MPN: B003C-700
Model: 18-270mm Canon
UPC: 725211003014
EAN: 0725211003014
ASIN: B001DYE1B6
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | AF 18-270mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC (Vibration Compensation) Tamron zoom lens | | • | Built-in vibration compensation for blur-free photos | | • | Low-dispersion glass and hybrid aspherical glass elements for superior image quality | | • | Optical zoom ratio: 15x (approximately) | | • | Minimum focus distance: 19.3 inches |
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Product Description
With the advent of the latest 15X zoom lens from Tamron, the pioneer of high power zoom lenses, the high power zoom lens has steadily evolved from a 7.1X to a 10.7X to a 13.9X and now to the world's largest zoom ratio of 15X by combining advanced high power zoom design technologies accumulated by Tamron since 1992. The lens covers an angle of view equivalent to that of a 28mm wideangle to a 419mm ultra telephoto with just one lens, letting the user capture once-in-the-lifetime images of panoramic landscape images or close-up pictures of children smiling, without having to get too close to the subject and without having to change lenses.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 98
 Mostly very satisfied (VC is worth it) with some disappointments (dust inside and not good for macros)) August 30, 2010
Matthew F. Garma (Hawaii, USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
My Credibility:
I shot with a Rebel G back in high school, and ,for several years (starting at around the introduction of the DSLR), I spent little time on photography and no time on a SLR. So it's fair to say that I am new to photography (especially digital photography). I purchased this lens in July to go with my T1i. Both this lens and my camera are now with my gf (though I will ask her to borrow the lens and camera sometimes). I've taken a total of about 5.5k pictures with this lens with several videos. My current setup consist of: 7D, 24-105L, 18-55 (Rebel kit lens), 50 1.4, Tamron 10-24. and a 75-300 (USM non-IS from year 2001). I've also taken about 2000 pictures using a 100mm f2.8L IS macro.
The BAD:
--Dust inside!
The first thing I noticed when I opened the box with my 18-270 in it was that there was a piece of dust (that looked like a small grain of glitter) on one of the inner elements. This was a big new-toy joy-killer. My second big disappointment was when I noticed even more dust entering the lens later on. I think I'm being a little lenient on my star rating with this lens as I know many photographers would consider this absolutely unacceptable. Right now I don't think there's enough dust on the inner elements to depreciate image quality, but if more dust has entered through time then eventually there will be a drop in IQ. I have not yet tried to send this lens in for service nor did I try to return it, but I think receiving a "bad copy" the first time merits dropping at least one star. Without this problem I would've given 4 stars. One thing that makes this not seem like such a bad thing to me is that I've heard similar stories with Canon's high-end EF-S lenses, and even a case in which an L lens was letting dust in.
--Macro and semi-macro photos at wide apertures (270mm at 6.3) have a very ugly blur for out-of-focus objects. It reminds me of the effect a drop of water or tears can have one human vision, or maybe even blurriness due to camera shake and slow shutter speed. Macro shots would often look nice on my T1i screen, but unacceptably soft on my computer screen. I think they should delete the word "macro" from the description to prevent anyone from being mislead. My T1i kit lens took better macros. For all other purposes sharpness is good but not great, and I don't think anyone should expect it to be great.
--Cheap feeling zoom ring (too loose or too tight depending on focal length)
This is a minor problem for me. There are many reviews that mention lens creep and difficulty zooming at around 100mm, so I won't mention much here.
--No full time manual focus.
--Focus ring rotation is small/short
--Auto focus is slow (when compared to USM lenses but about the same as the 18-55)
--Could have a better build (I also own a Tamron 10-24 which is slightly better built than the 18-270)
--VC jumps upon startup. This has only been a problem for me when I was shooting 1sec+ exposures on a tripod and I forgot to turn it off (see the "GOOD" part of my review for more)
--Noisy AF and VC. Though this doesn't bother me. The sound of the VC actually sounds pretty cool to me, it's like a robot or something.
--Barrel distortion is slightly stronger than 18-55.
The GOOD:
++Nothing else like it (Incredible zoom range)
++VC is very effective. Tamron's VC seems to work slightly different from Canon's IS. For VC I noticed the image would somewhat jump around in between points of near stillness. IS seems to slow down and smooth-out camera shake overall. If I absolutely had to choose I'd say the VC is better than the IS. Others may not agree and I am reluctant to say this, but some quick tests show that I have taken acceptable handhelds at as slow as 1/4sec @ 270mm. With my 24-105 I will not settle for anything less than 1/10sec at 105mm (some photographers note that they have taken good handheld shots at 1/3sec with the 24-105).
++Very small minimum aperture (f40). there's really very very few occasions when anyone would really need this, but it's something to me.
++Compact
++Comes with hood
++Lens lock allows you to keep the lens at it's shortest length when carrying your camera on your shoulder. The locking switch is in a place where it can be quickly disengaged.
++$80 Rebate. I got my lens from an ebay authorized Tamron dealer for $10 cheaper than amazon (though I recommend amazon because I had some trouble with my order - but that's outside the scope of this review). The point I am making is: After I bought my Tamron 10-24 about a month later I bought I my 18-270 I learned that lenses purchased on ebay don't qualify for the rebate. I sent the rebate forms in at the same time and Tamron gave me the rebate anyway.
++6 year warranty, I plan on sending in my 18-270 for service soon and if I do then I'll try to update this review on how that goes.
Conclusion and additional notes:
Do I recommend this lens? Yes. I think it's a great value lens, especially for people who simply want nice family pictures. I believe that the dust issue is just unfortunate for me, and it doesn't seem like there's many people complaining about this. I really thought I could buy this lens and not have anything else, but this is definitely not true. For many, just this lens might suffice, but not if you're serious about photography or take a lot of macros. Even if you're just a casual family photographer I recommend using an external flash with this lens for indoor photography, shadows from the lens and built in flash will show at wider angles and close distances (backing up is a good cure for this).
 lens creep August 14, 2010
Gerald Connelly (east coast)
4 out of 5 found this review helpful
everybody talking about lens creep on this lens but nobody has said how tamron will tighten the barrel for u at no cost to u except postage to them...they will ship it back...so instead of telling people about the lens creep making people afraid to invest in a dynamic awsum lens for the money...tell people how to fix the small problem ....tamron does this slow creeping so people dont squawk about how hard it is to turn the lens out or in... as im sure people would do as they are on and on about the lens creeping out...there i feel better now i got that off my chest
 Great lens but for one fatal flaw - disappointed! August 10, 2010
Daniel (Los Angeles, CA)
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
I've been shooting for over 10 years and currently use a Canon 50D. I've used Tamron in the past with mixed results. Though this lens is a great leap forward for Tamron as far as image quality, range, and vibration control goes, it has two flaws...on of them fatal in my opinion.
First off, if you're a canon user, the zoom ring is reversed and can be confusing at times. This is not a serious set back but will take some getting used to if you get this lens.
As for the fatal flaw; in the mid zoom range, about 70mm to 130mm, the zoom ring becomes extremely tight. If you zoom out and you're aiming anywhere below level this lens will lock up tight when you try pulling it back in. If you're in the middle of a photo shoot as I was, it can completely pull you out of the moment. At this point you'll need to stop what you're doing, tilt the camera backward and shake the barrel back into the body.
In many other ways I love this lens, but I cannot use it and am returning it. Furthermore, I cannot recommend it until they resolve this issue.
I've come to the conclusion that the greater the zoom range the more the sacrifice in light, color, and overall performance. Ultimately, I went with the Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM UD Wide Angle Zoom Lens and am very happy with it - it's sharp, solidly built, and renders very accurate color.
I hope this review is helpful in your buying decision.
Happy Shopping!
Good general lens for the zoom capabilty, but quality issues hurt it significantly. August 8, 2010
Raoul Yeates (Tobago TT)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Usually in cheaper zoom lenses, the build quality tends to be an issue and this holds true for the Canon 18-270mm. Image wise, the lens is quite sharp, though the images seem slightly darker than say a canon 18-55mm lens, but as typical with these types of lenses there are a few flaws...
First of which obviously is lens creep. There is a locking button, however Tamron wasn't very kind to others as you tended to need fingernails to lock it in place. Another issue was the slow focusing... especially at the higher 6.3 scale. But by far the mose anoying thing was the build quality. From the first day i found (and found out others had the same issue) that pointing straight up or down the lens could not be retracted or extended properly... it would become stiff, however would move. Lens sealing technology also lacksa in this lens... meaning that in a dusty environment expect the lens to be compromised. The build itself looks solid but cannot deal with long term use especially zooming in and out often. Unfortunately I just had mine destroyed as the mechanism fo zoom it in or out had broken away, leaving it to slide in or out as it pleases... when I disassembled it I realised all the connectors were damaged... scratch one tamron lens. other places and people have reported inconsistent lens sharpness among other issues...
All in all if you are looking for a general purpose lens, it is a brilliant one. However with all the issues build wise, it may be better to look elsewere.
Good, but not worth the trouble July 15, 2010
Chadwick Johnson (Iowa)
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Good: Great range. Excellent picture quality. Image Stabilization (or what ever Tamron calls it) works well. The free hood is nice.
Bad: My Canon 250mm lens has more 'zoom' than the 270mm on this lens. Turning the lens to 'zoom' is very hard at times.
Comments: My wife and I were excited about having an all-in-one lens. Upon receiving this lens it is immediately obvious how hard it is to turn at times (for 'zooming'), especially at an upward angle. Several people have complained about it, and some say it gets better. We used the lens for 2 weeks, and it never did get better for us. We also picked up the Canon 18-200, and the 'zoom' is noticeably better on the Tamron lens, but not enough for us to keep it. We are returning this lens.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 98
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