Richard Wong compared the Tamron 70-180mm f/2.8 vs Sony 70-200 f/2.8 and f/4 and was impressed with the Tamron. Below is a summay of the above video:
- 70-200mm f/2.8 better for low light and shallow depth of field
- 70-200 f/4 is much smaller so you are likely to take it with you
- Tamron 70-180mm tries to be the best of both worlds
- The 70-180mm is a very compact and light lens
- It is about half the weight of the Sony 70-200mm f/2.8 and it is even lighter than the f/4 by 30g
- The Tamron 70-180mm is very well priced at half the price of the Sony 70-200mm f/2.8
- The Tamron is smaller than both of the Sony lenses
- Tamron is more plastic than the Sonys
- Tamron’s zoom lock is sturdy
- The Sony lenses have a few extra features like a tripod collar, OIS, focus limiter, switches, and some extra programable buttons
- Tamron extends when you change the focal length, but the Sony’s do not
- Sony has a stronger build quality, but the Tamron is so much cheaper than most should not care
- The Tamron 70-180mm has very fast AF, but not as fast as the Sony
- The Tamron tracks very well
- At f/8 the Tamron can look out of focus when taking a picture, but it is in focus
- Works well with the Techart adapter on Nikon Cameras
- There is a noticeable difference between 200mm and 180mm that you can just make up for with cropping if necessary
- The Tamron is sharp wide open at 70mm f/2.8 wide open with slightly better contrast than the Sony
- The Sony is slightly sharper at the corners at f/2.8, but at f/4 the Tamron is a little sharper
- Tamron has the sharpest corners at f/5.6
- The f/4 doesn’t compete
- Max focal length 180mm vs 200mm at f/2.8 the Tamron is very similar to the Sony in the center but Tamron is much sharper in the corners
- Max focal length 180mm vs 200mm at f/4 in the corners the Tamron is much sharper than the Sony still
- Tamron at 180mm is even sharper than the Sony in the corners when the Tamron is at f/2.8 and the Sony f/4
- Sony can’t compete with the Tamron at long focal lengths regardless of aperture
- Distortion at 70mm both the Sony and Tamron have distortion with the Sony having more
- Distortion at 135mm the Tamon has some distortion, but the Sony has none
- At the Maximum focal length, all 3 lenses have some pincushion distortion with the Tamron having slightly more
- Tamron has some vignetting at 70mm f/2.8 which goes away at f/4
- The Tamron has the best vignetting performance of the 3 lenses at 70mm
- The Sony 70-200mm f/4 has the worst vignetting at 70mm and 200mm
- Tamron at 180mm has some vignetting wide open but it goes away completely by f/5.6
- Sony 70-200mm f/2.8 has similar vignetting to the Tamron at 180mm f/2.8
- All 3 have ok bokeh
- Tamron has the best flare and ghosting performance but all 3 are good
- Tamron has the best Chromatic aberration control but all 3 are good
- Tamron 70-180mm f/2.8 and Sony 70-200mm f/4 have minimal focus breathing, but the Sony 70-200mm f/2.8 has a lot
- Tamron isn’t just good for the price, but it is just as good as the Sony 70-200mm f/2.8 if not better even if it is a little plastic
- When comparing the Tamron 70-180mm f/2.8 to the Sony 70-200mm f/4 you should pick the Tamron hands down
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Tamron 70-180mm f/2.8 Di III RXD FE: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama
Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 Di III RXD FE:B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama
Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 Di III RXD FE: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama
Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8: B&H Photo/Amazon/Adorama
Sony FE 70-200mm f/4 G OSS: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama
