Is Tamron About to Change Photography Forever With Its Revolutionary New Lens?

With more sophisticated cameras, a zoom lens is becoming an essential instrument for travel photographers. At one point, such a telephoto would weigh heavier, costing some photographers major discomfort in their backs. Today, however, everything is changing. A little extra reach in your focal length can sometimes be the only thing you need to capture a stunning sunset or a bird perched on a treetop without needing to crop the image. Various camera makers are trying to achieve the best, but the one company that has been excelling at zoom lenses is Tamron. Now, it seems they want to surpass themselves with a new lens, which could be the answer to many travel photographers’ prayers.

Tamron to Reportedly Work on a 20-400mm Lens

According to Photo Rumors and Digicame-Info, Tamron is working on a 20-400mm f4.7-7.1 VC VXD that will likely launch at the year’s end. The sources say it will weigh about 1 kg and have image quality similar to Tamron’s new 28-300mm lens. Other than that, no other features have been revealed.

The author notes that we must take this with a pinch of salt, as no other lens manufacturer has been able to achieve this yet. Usually, a zoom lens has focal lengths such as 18-300, 28-400, or 50-400, but 20mm as the widest focal length seems like a dream. However, Photo Rumors remind us that Tamron achieved this feat for APS-C DSLRs with the 18-400mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC HLD. It was the world’s first ultra-telephoto all-in-one zoom lens, weighing just 24.9oz. Even cheaper was the price, which was $649.

In that regard, a 20mm should be achievable. However, I am unsure how powerful it will be for a full-frame camera. The first major issue is the aperture, which is quite slow. This means that the lens wouldn’t make much sense if you were shooting in dimly lit places or if you would heavily rely on your tripod. However, a 20-400mm is quite ideal for avid mountain bikers and hikers, bird photographers, and those who also shoot adventurous sports.

Tamron’s Performance in the Past

Although we did not have the opportunity to test the 18-400mm f3.5-6.3, we did manage to get our hands on 50-400mm f4.5-6.3 Di III. While the image quality was sharp, we noted a few things. For instance, the lens struggled with autofocus at longer ranges. “At 400mm, it will still capture tack-sharp wildlife, but subjects moving quickly towards the lens are a struggle. The long end of this lens is best for subjects that aren’t heading straight toward the camera,” we noted. Similarly, our review of the 18-300mm f3.5-6.3 Di III found the image quality better than that of a kit lens, thanks to the blurred-out background. However, we also remarked that it is unsuitable for ports, architecture, or portraits.

Considering the image quality of previous zoom lenses was good, the chances of Tamron’s rumored 20-400mm coming at par are high. However, the question of how effective it will be at 400mm with autofocus is still up in the air. In addition, while there is a demand, the chances of the first iteration heavily suppressing flare like the 50-400mm f4.5-6.3 are also possible. Tamron lenses are weather-sealed, and they also come at a reasonable price, so I guess we can look away from a few missing characteristics.

Whether we get a Tamron 20-400mm remains to be seen. However, if Tamron achieves this, they will prove their commitment to photographers’ varying needs.