[Review] Tamron 24-70mm 2.8 VC VS Canon 24-70mm

I’ve been waiting a long time for a 24-70mm full frame lens with stabilization. Tamron was the first to create this lens and we got our hands on a Canon version. In this review we compare the Tamron 24-70mm 2.8 VC to Canon’s 24-70mm 2.8. Which is the better lens? The answer to that question is a little more complicated than you might expect.

As expected the Tamron’s “VC” (vibration compensation) is fantastic. It may actually be the best stabilization I’ve ever seen in a lens. If you like hand-holding your camera at lower shutter speeds or shooting video handheld like us, lens stabilization is a must.

When we compared the optics to Canon’s 24-70mm (version 1) we got some interesting results. Throughout the whole zoom range the Tamron had serious vignetting issues at 2.8. At F4 and above vignetting was no longer an issue.

24mm [Review] Tamron 24 70mm 2.8 VC VS Canon 24 70mm

In the center of the frame Canon’s lens was always slightly sharper and at 24mm the edges were significantly sharper than Tamron’s.

24 28 center [Review] Tamron 24 70mm 2.8 VC VS Canon 24 70mm

24 56 coner [Review] Tamron 24 70mm 2.8 VC VS Canon 24 70mm

As we zoomed in the Tamron outperformed the Canon on the edges. At 2.8 the Tamron still struggled with vignetting but was still significantly sharper.

70 corner [Review] Tamron 24 70mm 2.8 VC VS Canon 24 70mm

We were left not having a clear winner. The Canon did perform much better around 24mm but the Tamron was better towards 70mm (if you don’t consider the vignette at 2.8) and it comes with stabilization. Only you can decide what lens is right for you. Check out the sample images and download the high res test files and make the decision for yourself.

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http://twitter.com/hyland_foto Mike Hylandsson
Nice review!
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1403962574 Levy Moroshan
Great review. I used to use the Tamron 17-50mm 2.8 for a few years. Was always super happy with it. Even for stills actually. Not sold on the 24-70mm from Tamron yet, but do with my Canon 24-70mm had image stabilization. :)
http://www.rlmorris.com Lee Morris
Did you have the 17-50 or 17-55? I have both and I found the 17-55 2.8 (without VC) was plenty sharp but not the 17-50mm VC version.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1403962574 Levy Moroshan
Had the 17-50mm 2.8 without VC. I was shooting the Canon 7D at the time and the results were pretty good. Funny thing was that when I bought my first Canon 24-70mm L 2.8, the images weren’t as sharp as the Tamron. I went and exchanged the Canon lens and the next one I got was amazing. A read a bit ago that just like camera’s, the lens’ have specific tolerances to each camera company. That’s what I think happened with the first 24-70mm L I bought. And like you say yourself, I wouldn’t mind the vignetting since my lighting setups usually do that anyways. :)
http://www.patrickhallphotography.com Patrick Hall
I have the very first Tamron 17-50 2.8 without VC and it’s as good as the Nikkor 17-55 2.8. I still have it so my assistant can use it.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000680586075 Nshung Nbung
Everybody favorite picture.. a brick wall! hahahaha. laughed my ass off!
davidagogo
I just got mine in the other day and I love it… It may not be as sharp as Canon’s (and the auto focus is noticeably slower but not “slow”) but it also costs 1k less =). However I will say that I’m using it on a 7D so I’m not having the same vignetting problems as the full frame sensor people. I’ll probably love it less when I make the move to full frame =/.
http://profiles.google.com/garyblakemeister Gary Norbraten
Really let down by the Vignetting. What a damn shame. Remove the IS and give me better IQ.
David_Keller
“as a wedding photographer i’m not too worried about vignetting. if anything i add vignettes after the fact.”
ha! love this quote.. i do too man. nothing wrong with that– for wedding-type stuff it looks great. i don’t care what anyone says.
this looks like a good video lens. i might buy it. thanks for the review
http://profile.yahoo.com/H3N2AAX42CFI5VF26MKMDYYKOE Nicholas
I’m definitely sold on this Tamron lens. It seems plenty sharp based on the comparisons and the vignetting is no big deal, especially in portraits. The VC more than compensates for this. What a great time in optics these days. This is one of those lenses that, 5-10 years ago, it was merely a what-if dream. Now here it is!
http://profile.yahoo.com/34XOHMP45OBAU52DOFNEJAZ3WQ Norman S.
I really wish you had done this with the newer version of the Canon lens. Comparing new technology to old leaves a lot of loop holes in the review.
http://www.rlmorris.com Lee Morris
is that lens even out yet?
Tim Yang
The 24-70mm II is not even out yet. at least for consumers. Although, Lee you do have the best access for getting this lens and reviewing it when it does come out.
http://twitter.com/kenkyee Ken Yee
It shouldn’t have that much vignetting w/ that big 82mm front element :-P
It matches what ephotozone said about it…2.5 stops of vignetting at the edges.
Can you guys take some photos of highlight bokeh? On the ephotozine article, there was pretty obvious onion bokeh that’s similar to the crappy bokeh on the Sigma 24-70 HSM…
http://www.facebook.com/VanityForcePhotography Mike Jimenez
Not out yet…
http://www.facebook.com/VanityForcePhotography Mike Jimenez
Thank you, Lee. Informative, as always.
http://www.facebook.com/kadlubkiewicz Michael Kadlubkiewicz
Hmm, I had different, although also somewhat inconclusive results.
Shot handheld using as good a technique as I could muster, with a 5DIII at ISO 3200, at 70mm; with the first lens at 1/50, 1/25, and 1/15, then the same with the other lens.
http://mkfotos.com/albums/CvsT/
The 70mm on the Tamron appears a little shorter (this image might reflect me being a tiny bit closer with the Canon, but there’s still a difference). I’m curious if either is a true 24-70mm, and if the Tamron is a little wider on the wide end. Anyways, this is a bad/worst-case scenario (1/15s) type shot at a reception, but not unusual for wedding photogs to run across.
http://mkfotos.com/albums/CvsT/CvsT.jpg
On a tripod, shooting the back yard at ISO 100, 24mm: 2.8, 4, 6.3, and 9, then the same for 70mm; then switching lenses and repeating.
http://mkfotos.com/albums/CvsT2/
More testing to follow, but I’m pleased overall. L-like quality with VC? Hell yeah.
http://profiles.google.com/mi1stormilst Garrett Graham
I owned the 17-50 non VC and I think for the price it was fine, but really thought IQ was better on just about every other lens I own. I eventually sold it, but my 70-200 non VC takes beautiful pics!!!
http://www.patrickhallphotography.com Patrick Hall
if you don’t need IS then just buy the new canon or Nikon 24-70…
http://www.patrickhallphotography.com Patrick Hall
we need to compare current technology with future technology in order to be legit
http://www.patrickhallphotography.com Patrick Hall
yes Mike, we did notice a little change in focal length between the two. I can’t remember which one was wider and which one was longer but 24 and 70 on both is not the exact same….that seems pretty picky though to some degree. Sharpness and Vignetting seem to be the most important criteria…then maybe fringing and distortion for the super geeky folks :)
http://www.facebook.com/people/Ian-Marasigan/100000143180843 Ian Marasigan
Is it me or the tamron has some Distortion when in 24mm??
http://www.facebook.com/GhislainLeduc Ghislain Leduc
not sure why you guys compared it with a Canon, you never use this lens anyway… You shoo with 24-70mm Nikkor, is it because there was no comparation to the tamron and it would have made this lens look bad ? why did you leave the 24-70mm Nikkor lens out of this test ? I don’t get it… sorry…
http://www.patrickhallphotography.com Patrick Hall
The Nikon version is not currently available. Otherwise, yes we would have tested the Nikkor against it
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=605374304 Jon McGuffin
This is why I’m such a fan of Lee, Patrick and this site in general.
Who really needs a review to be anymore than what this just laid out in just a few short minutes. Here’s the lens, here’s what it costs, here is what it competes against. Here is where it’s better, here is where it’s worse. Decide if it’s a good fit for the money for you and move on…. period.. Who needs MTF charts, countless analysis, etc.
Thank you Lee & Patrick for always being up fair but at the same time not affraid to pull out and take a punch at a product if it deserves it. I can always trust you guys will tell it like it is and keeping it real (over used phrase but hey, it fits)
Great review and though I own the 24-70 for Nikon. If I ever need that focal length to shoot video, I know what lens I’m going to buy.
Thanks as always…..
PS: What did you use to record the video for this review? Video quality appeared exceptionaly high to me. D4?
http://twitter.com/DnNPhotography DnN Photography
I love brick wall shots!
http://www.facebook.com/GhislainLeduc Ghislain Leduc
Pat, the Canon 24-70mm doesn’t has any VC (IS for Canon) in it just like the Nikkor no?
I must be very confused today because I know both of you have the Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 without VR just like the Canon so I don’t understand why it couldn’t be added in the test… :) :)
http://www.facebook.com/GhislainLeduc Ghislain Leduc
I must be very confused then because if you tested it against a non IS (VC) Canon version, I don’t understand why the Nikkor couldn’t be added in the test, both of you have it lol
http://twitter.com/thamarcmg Thamar
Nice!! Thank you!
http://twitter.com/Jononi Jaafar Benabdallah
@Ghislain : because you can’t compare lenses on different cameras. The 5d mark III and the D800 have different sensors (in terms of resolution and technology) and they also differ in their signal processing algorithms. You still have to wait for a nikon mount Tamron 24-70 VC (not yet out) to do a fair comparison with the Nikon 24-70.
http://www.facebook.com/GhislainLeduc Ghislain Leduc
yeah brain freeze… I get it, they didn’t receive the Tamron for Nikon yet… which makes perfect sense… DOH…. :)
http://www.facebook.com/people/Fernando-Garcia/705346784 Fernando Garcia
Thanks for the review. Great Job Lee!!!!
http://www.patrickhallphotography.com Patrick Hall
Tamron hasn’t sent us the Nikon version yet. I’ve heard people saying the 5D Mark III is soft to begin with and since we are familiar with the D800 I’d love to do the test on that camera. I’m sure we will do something with it as soon as we are sent one
perceptionalreality
I always use brick or heavily textured carpet (I have a piece I hang from my backdrop supports in my studio) to test lenses. Carpet is almost infinitely detailed. Brick doesn’t have quite as much detail, but it’s much more accessible with numerous types available in every town, and they’re already a vertical orientation and lay flat without help (unlike my carpet which requires weights or bungee cords to keep flat for my test).
phcphcphcphc
Nice review. Thanks.
Sorry to drift OT here, but I’m strugling to get audio quality like yours.
How did you record the audio for this clip?
I always have a lot of noise even when using a good external mic to the Canon 5Dmk2.
Did you record this in camera or on an external device?
If in camera, what are you setting? Auto level? Manual…at what level?
sirWild3
Doesn’t the 5d mark iii correct for vignetting with Canon lenses automatically? I’m only asking because I was comparing the hi-res crops over at the-digital-picture.com and over there the Tamron seemingly has better control of vignetting. Just wondering if this could affect the outcome of the review a little.
Aaron Fox
Not really. If you look at the price points the MKI Canon and the Tamron are the same. The MKII is over 2,000…not even the same market almost. So people are wondering…do I get a MKI version L or the top Tamron? I think its a nice 3 tier price scale. eBay MKI, Tamron, MKII $900, $1300 and $2,something.
whereisaki
I agree about the benefits of stabilization, even if you’re not doing video. But based on what I see here, comparison with the Nikon 24-70 is going to make you wonder if you can’t live without stabilization, after all. And I’m a Canon user.
http://www.learningdslrvideo.com Dugdale
If anyone is interested, I also
compared the Tamron VC to the Canon after I saw Lee’s video. I also
reviewed the Sigma as well for good measure.
learningdslrvideo.com/canon-vs-tamron-sigma-24-70mm/
Thanks again to Lee for letting me know about the Tamron lens!
Jon Dishler
I just received my copy of the Nikon version, seems fairly similar to the Nikon 24-70 but a little wider with more barrel distortion at 28 and slightly more vignetting. Very sharp with and without VC. It definitely helps video stability. Stills at 1/20 are way sharper with VC.
My question/issue is that I noticed that when zoomed to 70 with the barrel extended, if you look at the end that attaches to the camera, a lot of circuitry is exposed around the optics. Could any dust, debris, etc. fall out of this area and into the sensor of my new D4 during heavy use? All my Nikon lenses are sealed where they attach to the camera.
Jeff
Patrick – Awesome.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=572025459 Oliver El Helou
Hi Lee, I totally agree, I own both, I could not resist the slow hand-held capabilities of the VC version and the sharpness of the Non VC version, although it sounds like it’s auditioning for the next Transformers character, the sharpness is unrivalled, I have even broken even with Canon’s 16-35 f/2.8. However I can send you a sample I have taken with it.
Really worth/
Another thing to ad that people really tend to forget, many times lenses differ in performance even brand new, I have had ”lucky copies” of lenses that are supposed to SUCK REAL BAD!
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1501602179 Ryan Tower
I owned the VC 17-50 Tamron and liked it alot for video and photo’s. I used it on my 7D. I since sold my 7D and 17-50 VC. I am now getting the new FF 6D when it comes out. This new VC 24-70 looks awesome! THANK YOU!!
kaja12
yep
kaja12
the 6D…? i pitty you….
http://twitter.com/Too_Creative Lorenzo P
Great Review Lee keep em coming!!
PMagi
I just got the Tamron 24-70 VC because it
sounded very interesting for video filming and wrote a quick review vs. my Canon 24-70, with special regard to bokeh testing, if anyone is
interested!
I included example pictures of Tamron’s highlight bokeh with image stabilizer and without image stabilizer compared to the one of the Canon lens.
http://www.fotograf-stockholm.nu/tamron-24-70-vc-vs-canon-24-70-for-stills-and-video-filming-image-stabilization-and-bokeh-test/
Mahmoud Marie
your recommendation please Tamron or Canon?
Darci
This is the kind of review I’ve been searching for. Back to back samples! Thank you for the review, I found it very helpful!

[Review] Tamron 24-70mm 2.8 VC VS Canon 24-70mm

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