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We Tested the Tamron 35-150mm f2-2.8 on the Nikon Z9

Chris Gampat
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09/18/2023
4 Mins read
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We said before that the new Tamron 35-150mm f2-2.8 was going to be one of the best lenses, if not the best, for the Nikon Z mount system. Tamron sent us one to update our review. And what we found is quite impressive. If you’re a Nikon Z mount shooter, we think that this is the single zoom lens that every photographer must have. It’s so incredibly versatile, you’d be kicking yourself later for not having it.

Here are the updates that came to our review. Read the whole thing right here if you wish:

The Big Picture

When you first hold the Tamron 35-150mm f2-2.8 Di III VXD, you realize it’s the most solid lens they’ve made for mirrorless cameras so far. It focuses incredibly fast and offers innovations that other lenses don’t. This is a perfect lens for anyone who shoots portraits, events, landscapes, photojournalism, etc. If you’re a working photographer shooting with Sony, this is arguably the only lens you need.

Tamron absolutely deserves the Editor’s Choice award. The Tamron 35-150mm f2-2.8 Di III VXD is just an obvious choice here all around. The autofocus is fantastic, and that’s thanks to the fact that Sony owns part of Tamron. The image quality is unique enough while still also being more than satisfactory. There’s solid weather sealing, and Tamron even did the brave thing of putting a USB port on the lens. It feels good in the hands. It’s built solidly. It starts at f2 and ends at f2.8. But most importantly, it’s actually got a bunch of useful focal lengths. I can go from shooting a party or event to doing headshots with a single lens. I’ll get the best performance from it if I use a flash, and the exposure will be just as consistent. And honestly, I expect more professional photographers and passionate photographers to do just that. (TTL flash will win the day here; throw your L.E.D. lights away because they won’t do you justice.)

Most importantly, this single lens is almost convincing me to sell my Sony lenses. I own the Tamron 70-300mm and the 17-28mm f2.8. The Tamron 35-150mm f2-2.8 Di III VXD would give me everything I need. But of course, it comes at an extra cost of weight. However, the innovation here can indeed justify that. 

The Tamron 35-150mm f2-2.8 Di III VXD wins our Editor’s Choice award and five out of five stars. Want one? They cost $1,899, and you can grab one over at Amazon. Specifically, be sure to check the Tamron store for them or this link.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

In 2023, Tamron brought this lens to the Nikon Z camera system. And this makes it out to be one of the best lenses you can get for that system so far.

Pros

  • Beautiful image quality
  • Works with Sony’s autofocus algorithms on the Sony a1
  • Weather sealing
  • One of Tamron’s most solidly built lenses to date
  • Integrated USB port
  • Lightweight for what this is; a very innovative lens
  • Feels great in the hands
  • F2 aperture to start is nice!
  • Works very well on older Sony cameras if you’re using the appropriate autofocusing type
  • Can do pretty well in continuous autofocus
  • I adore that this isn’t one of Tamron’s sharpest lenses because it means that I don’t have to spend a ton of time retouching every pore
  • $1,899 isn’t too bad of a price
  • Just as fast as many of Nikon’s own lenses when using it on Nikon bodies

Cons

  • Slower to focus on moving subjects with the a7r III, but not by much. It’s noticeable if you’re a seasoned and trained reviewer. Make sure you’re using the appropriate focusing type.
  • A tad heavy
  • Someone is bound to complain about the lack of image stabilization. But I’d argue to hold the damn lens correctly in the first place and control their breathing.

Ease of Use Update September 2023

In September 2023, the Tamron 35-150mm f2-2.8 came to the Nikon Z mount camera system. It’s an exceptional lens, and we previously stated that it would be the best one for the camera system. Indeed, it really seems to be the case. This lens has customizable buttons on it, but we didn’t even really need to do any of that with Nikon’s higher end cameras. In fact, shooting with this lens was straightforward. It nailed focus each and every time in different lighting conditions.

For what it’s worth, we used this lens with both exposure previews on and off. No matter what, it just nailed it. It’s quite impressive.

Update September 2023

Previous Tamron lenses on Nikon cameras didn’t have the motors that are being used in the 35-150mm. With that said, the autofocus here is snappy, accurate, reliable, precise, and makes photography a super simple experience. We used it on the Nikon z9 at both a tattoo convention and a Renaissance fair. The system works simply as it should and we love it for doing just that.

Below is an entire gallery of images shot with the Nikon z9 and the new Tamron 35-150mm f2-f2.8 on it. We also used the Profoto B10!

autofocus ease of use nikon nikon z9 tamron tamron 35-150mm tamron 35-150mm f2-f2.8
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Chris Gampat is the Editor in Chief, Founder, and Publisher of the Phoblographer. He provides oversight to all of the daily tasks, including editorial, administrative, and advertising work. Chris's editorial work includes not only editing and scheduling articles but also writing them himself. He's the author of various product guides, educational pieces, product reviews, and interviews with photographers. He's fascinated by how photographers create, considering the fact that he's legally blind./ HIGHLIGHTS: Chris used to work in Men's lifestyle and tech. He's a veteran technology writer, editor, and reviewer with more than 15 years experience. He's also a Photographer that has had his share of bylines and viral projects like "Secret Order of the Slice." PAST BYLINES: Gear Patrol, PC Mag, Geek.com, Digital Photo Pro, Resource Magazine, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Finance, IGN, PDN, and others. EXPERIENCE: Chris Gampat began working in tech and art journalism both in 2008. He started at PCMag, Magnum Photos, and Geek.com. He founded the Phoblographer in 2009 after working at places like PDN and Photography Bay. He left his day job as the Social Media Content Developer at B&H Photo in the early 2010s. Since then, he's evolved as a publisher using AI ethically, coming up with ethical ways to bring in affiliate income, and preaching the word of diversity in the photo industry. His background and work has spread to non-profits like American Photographic Arts where he's done work to get photographers various benefits. His skills are in SEO, app development, content planning, ethics management, photography, Wordpress, and other things. EDUCATION: Chris graduated Magna Cum Laude from Adelphi University with a degree in Communications in Journalism in 2009. Since then, he's learned and adapted to various things in the fields of social media, SEO, app development, e-commerce development, HTML, etc. FAVORITE SUBJECT TO PHOTOGRAPH: Chris enjoys creating conceptual work that makes people stare at his photos. But he doesn't get to do much of this because of the high demand of photography content. / BEST PHOTOGRAPHY TIP: Don't do it in post-production when you can do it in-camera.