A Review of the Tamron 28-200mm f/2.8-5.6 Di III RXD Lens

Tamron has become well known for their ability to create lenses that strike intelligent balances between portability, image quality, performance, capabilities, and most importantly, price. The 28-200mm f/2.8-5.6 Di III RXD offers an all-in-one solution that covers almost every focal length most photographers need in an impressively small and affordable package. How does it perform in the real world? This excellent video review takes a look. 

Coming to you from Christopher Frost, this great video review takes a look at the Tamron 28-200mm f/2.8-5.6 Di III RXD lens. At just $649, the 28-200mm f/2.8-5.6 is quite affordable, especially by superzoom standards, but it offers impressive performance and notable image quality. Of course, with such a huge range of focal lengths, you should not expect to get the absolutely best-quality images like you might with a prime or a less extreme zoom lens design, but compared to its superzoom peers, the Tamron performs very admirably, and when it comes to situations like walking around on a family trip or the like, it is hard to beat the convenience of a lens like this. Check out the video above for Frost's full thoughts on the lens. 

Alex Cooke's picture

Alex Cooke is a Cleveland-based portrait, events, and landscape photographer. He holds an M.S. in Applied Mathematics and a doctorate in Music Composition. He is also an avid equestrian.

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2 Comments

This lens is on my Wishlist as the single carry around kit to cover all scenarios.

I just spent a little time with this lens and for me, it's not a keeper. I've been almost exclusively a prime shooter for years, but I figured this would be a good carry around lens for getting snapshots of the kids while out and about. As expected, the broad focal range and good close focusing mean that I can usually get the shot.

However, whether it's me getting lazy by zooming or the relatively small aperture compared to what I usually shoot, but my compositions are uninteresting and I have yet to produce anything of which I'd be proud. And while I thought f2.8 at the wide end would work indoors, at the shutter speeds I need to freeze kids in motion (and they're constantly in motion) I'm pushing into uncomfortably high ISOs.

Basically, I'm getting decent snapshots, but I can get decent snapshots with my phone.