And four! The Tamron optics fleet in Nikon Z 24×36 mm mount is now enriched with a fourth… major reference. If the first zooms — 150-500, 35-150, 70-300 — were welcome additions to a rather closed ecosystem, Tamron is today adapting one of its most important bestsellers: its 28-75mm f/2.8 Di III VXD G2 (stamped Model A063 internally).
The success of this zoom in its Sony FE version (tested in 2021) is due to several factors: its price, its weight, its general quality and its focusing distances. Tested by us three years ago in the Sony version, the Tamron offers very good image quality. But what it sacrifices in focal length (we start at 28 mm, not 24 mm) or in absolute quality – we note a little distortion at the end of zoom and vignetting – it recovers in lightness (540 g) , in brightness and minimum focusing distances (from 18 cm at wide-angle to 38 cm at 75 mm).
The other advantage of this lens is its low price: at the time of f/2.8 zooms around €2,500, the first version of the 28-75mm G2 was launched for less than €1,000 in a Sony mount. Which has made it, with the 24-70 mm from Sigma, the optic of choice for smaller budgets.
This launch should not only delight owners of Nikon Z bodies, who were limited to f/4 zooms, but also Nikon itself. A major player in the world of SLRs, the manufacturer is lagging behind Canon and Sony in the world of full-frame hybrids, which is partly due to the weakness of its alternative optics ecosystem. We are therefore only waiting for Sigma to reinforce the attractiveness of the brand’s cases with the yellow and black logo.
The Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 Di III VXD G2 will be available from April 18 for €999.