Recording...
ok, I have to choose one lens, which one would it be?
without a doubt, this one
you know that I have only one rule when it comes to buying new camera gear
and it's that it must fit in my camera bag
otherwise, I will have to make choices every time I go out
but in the case of this lens, not only it hasn't taken any extra space in my camera bag
but it's actually made it lighter
because it's replaced a couple of other lenses that I used to bring with me all the time
I guess that's why it's called a super zoom
this is my beloved Tamron 28--200mm
a lens I love so much, that it's lived on my camera since I bought it 6 months ago
First things first
this is not a review
and I wasn't paid to make this video
I wish
actually, I reached out to Tamron a few weeks ago
because they released another super zoom lens for APS-C cameras that I was interested in
to see if they would lend me a copy to try for a few days
and yeah, they never got back to me
also, I don't want you to feel that you have to buy
this lens or any piece of equipment that I own just because I have it
but I really wanted to share my thoughts on this lens
a lens I had a lot of doubts about before getting it
but it's quickly become one of my favorite lenses ever
you see, camera gear matters, but getting out matters much more
I could have the best camera and the best lens
in the world but if I'm gonna leave them sitting on the shelf
well, they're not gonna make any good images by themselves
and talking about sitting on a shelf
the 28-200mm has mostly replaced these two lenses that I used to
have in my camera bag pretty much all the time
they are Tamron lenses, as well
the 28-75mm and the 70-180mm
both of them are f/2.8
and they are better in almost every way to the 28-200mm
so, why would I rather use the worse lens?
well, the reason is obvious and it's all about size and weight
this one feels really tiny and really light compared to these two
and I can feel that my camera bag is much lighter
and my back can feel it too
you see, sometimes it's easy to forget how important it is to go light
if your camera gear is hurting your back, or you can't go as far as you wanted to
or if you make it but you are so tired from the effort that
you have no energy left to think, to see images
then your camera gear is doing you a disservice
so even though the 28-200mm might not be as good as the other two zoom lenses I have
or as fast
it is more than good enough for what I want it for
it is pretty light and compact for the range that it offers
and it's also quite affordable for a full frame lens
and you know that I really like that, because...
I tend to break my cameras
oh geez
so if I have to replace them... the cheaper, the better
it also pairs really well with the a7rii, it's a 42 megapixel sensor
so you could crop quite a bit without losing a lot of resolution
in APS-C mode, on this camera, you would get a 300mm equivalent at 18 megapixels
which is pretty good
but of course, it's not a perfect lens and it comes with some compromises
it does have vignetting at wide apertures
but the same could be said about other Tamron zoom lenses
and it's fixable in post for the most part anyway
the 28-200mm is a variable aperture lens
which means that the more you zoom out, the slower it becomes
it is an f/5.6 at 200mm which makes it two stops slower than the 70-180,
which is a fixed 2.8 for the whole range
but probably, the biggest downside to this lens is the lack of stabilization
and that could be a problem when we are shooting at around 200mm
most cameras nowadays have stabilization built-in in the sensor, or IBIS
my a7rii has it, but still
it would have been nice to have some kind of stabilization on the lens as well
but this is, in my opinion, a compromise, not a deal breaker
if this lens had stabilization, it would've been bigger and more expensive
so, I like it as it is
anyway, I never had a super zoom lens like this one before
and now, I can't imagine being without it
I absolutely love this lens
it's made my life much simpler, this is pretty much the only lens I have to worry about
if I have this one, I know I'll be fine
that being said, I like to complement it with a
couple of fast prime lenses on my daily walks here around town
I have a video where I talk about the gear that I bring on those walks, I'm gonna link it up there
so yeah, not a perfect lens, but I feel like I could do
most of my photography with this lens alone
that's why I choose it as my desert island lens, I guess
what about you?
I'd like to know which lens would be your one lens if you could only choose one
please share with all of us in the comments down below
so maybe we can have a conversation about our favorite lenses
that's all for today, I hope you enjoyed the video
thank you so much for watching and see you in the next one!