The sharpness of the Tamron 17-28mm f2.8 Di III RXD on the Sony a7r IV is very impressive.
Photographers looking for more affordable options to Sony’s current lineup of zoom lenses may want to consider the fast aperture Tamron 17-28mm f2.8 Di III RXD. This lens, along with the 28-75mm f2.8, are options for photographers who don’t want to break the bank or make the full jump into the G Master lineup of glass. During a recent Sony excursion, we took the Tamron 17-28mm f2.8 Di III RXD mounted on the Sony a7r IV around for some tests. The shoot with the model was done with our own lighting and we turned off the lights that Sony had set up.
So far, we’re very impressed with the Tamron 17-28mm f2.8 Di III RXD. It focuses quickly on the new Sony camera as well as on the Sony a7r III I currently own. I doubt photographers reaching for this type of glass will care for fast focusing though: the depth of field is so deep anyway. But for those who dislike like the idea of molasses dripping, they’re in for a treat with much faster-flowing sap.
On top of that, the Tamron 17-28mm f2.8 Di III RXD focuses silently. We haven’t tried it for video yet, but we can confirm that both face and eye detection work in the still shooting modes. We highly doubt anyone will want to do fashion with this lens but it could surely be fun to try. However, as a workhorse wide-angle lens, the Tamron 17-28mm f2.8 Di III RXD has proven to be very effective in our testing so far. We’ve still got a lot to do though, so be sure to stick around for future tests and our full review. In the meantime, check out our sample gallery below.