Smile - You've Got A Tamron Macro

Now I get to have my fun - I’ve got a Tamron macro lens and I’m not afraid to use it! I’ve also got a new model car and a fresh pot of coffee. The people who seek macro lenses for their Nikon and Canon bodies are well served by their respective manufacturers. There is no denying that in each case there is a range of macro lenses and one standout lens that the shooter can purchase to go to for superb results. The standout macro lenses have focal lengths that hover around the 90-105mm mark - and for a good reason. You can get good distortion correction there and a useful stand-off distance from the subject - even when you are cranking the lens to a true 1:1 ratio. The performances and weights of these premium lenses are reflected in the prices, which are also weighty. There has always been another alternative - the Tamron 90mm macro lens. It has in the past had a much lighter mount but an extremely good optical performance. Many people who didn't want to pay the major maker’s prices opted for the Tamron version. Now they have a new one that rivals the best. And it has joined the heavyweights. If you are using it for other purposes you can let the lens search out to infinity while focusing, but if you intend to stay close, you can reduce the amount of time needed to do this by restricting the range. It will allow even closer focusing. Good thinking. I tried it on a 1:18th Buick. There is more detail here at a more comfortable working distance than I get with my normal macro lens. Less depth of field but that is a function of the difference between my normal 35mm local length and the 90mm of the Tamron. It stops down further, though. And gets into the places that the 35mm macro would be locked out of. All the while allowing the illumination to get in there with no shadowing by the lens barrel. Next came a 1:64th car - the Winnebago meth lab from “ Breaking Bad “ made by Greenlight. This may be an unfair test vehicle as it is WAY bigger than comparable 1:64th sedans. To compensate I shot at a shallower angle. All in focus, all sharp. And the last car - a ’58 Ford Fairlane Yellow Cab in 1:160th scale. Note the detail the lens can pick up. Note the scale. Note the size of the fingers back there - that’s why I was always lousy at root canal work on posterior teeth…unless the patient had a jaw that opened like a flip-top pedal bin I could never get my fingers in to do the job. But that is another story - the Tamron SP 90mm f:2.8 Di with the VC mechanism is absolute dynamite in hand-held closeup shooting. I will go so far as to unhesitatingly recommend it for close tabletops. Or flowers, fungi, insects, coins, stamps, specimens, or evidence photos. The major makers can glower at me all they like, but the proof is there on the file.