Nikon SLR Cameras

Tamron AF 70-300mm F/4-5.6 Di LD Macro?

Shan S
Shan S

I'm going to buy this lens to use with my Nikon D5100 for sports and macro photography.(this lens only coming under my budget)… Please share your views and feedback about this lens like performance in low light, day light, sports foo, zooming foto, macro fotos etc…

Jens
Jens

Low light: It sucks. It's a slow and unstabilized telephoto lens, it won't be capable to sustain sufficient shutter speeds in anything but bright sunlight without a tripod or with extremely high ISO

Day light: It should do ok.

Sports: In daylight ok, indoors or in low light you will struggle to sustain sufficient shutter speeds to freeze the motion.

Zooming: Ok. The Sigma APO counterpart has a better reputation though.

Macro: Mediocre. Just like its Sigma counterpart, the macro in the name is misleading. It is not in any way a true macro lens. It can achieve a reproduction ratio of 1:2 (if i recall correctly), just like its Sigma counterpart. True macro lenses achieve 1:1.
That may not seem much of a difference, but it is. In terms of surface area, a subject at 1:1 will be four times as big as one that was shot at 1:2, because the ratio applies to both the X and the Y axis and thus becomes squared when one wants to calculate the surface area of the subject on the photo.

retiredPhil
retiredPhil

I agree with Jens.

I bought this lens a couple years ago for my Nikon D90. After fighting it for a few months I set it aside and have never touched it again. Money down the drain.

I suggest you look into extension tubes.
http://www.slrphotographyguide.com/camera/lens/extensiontube.shtml