Hope someone can help me decide... I'm choosing between these 3 brands. My budget will allow me to buy new Tamron or Sigma, but onlu an older version (used) of Canon. I rented older Canon 24-70mm a couple of times and was blown away with its quality. I have been dreaming about it ever since. I didn't feel like I was missing IS even - the photos were very sharp. I know about vignetting issue on Sigma but never used it before. And Tamron has IS.. very tempting!
Anyone used all 3 and has an input? I'd like to get it for portraiture mostly.
The Canon 24-70mm L, even the original, is in a different league to the Sigma and Tamron. I have nothing against aftermarket lenses, but in this case for me the choice would be very clear, unless you have a very pressing requirement for stabilisation.
Incidentally, this focal length isn't necessarily a common choice for a crop-frame camera like your 70D -- 24mm isn't particularly wide on this, and can result in a great deal of swapping between this and something wider. Have you considered the Canon 17-55mm f/2.8 IS, which is the crop-frame equivalent to the 24-70mm lenses, has outstanding image quality, includes stabilisation, and is cheaper than all but the Sigma?
@nastassia Sort of seconding what Alexis @abirkill says...but there is also the Sigma 17-50mm f2.8 with stabilisation. Very similar to the Canon 17-55mm but it;s cheaper. The Canon is better but if price is something you need to think about. I have the Sigma, and although I am going to hopefully get a prime lens soon, this Sigma lens has been great for me. Might be worth looking at too. If you want full-frame upgrade possibilities later then the 24-70mm may be best but for the crop sensor, it isn't that wide at 24mm. This may not be an issue for you but might be worth remembering. All depends on what you shoot.
I recently bought the Tamron 24-70mm f2.8 recently to pair with my Canon 6D and I am very impressed with it. I haven't actually used either of the others but I did a lot of research "on paper" and each lens has something to offer depending on what you're after. Canons L series is obviously well known for its good all round performance but has a hefty price tag compared to the Tamron and Sigma. What made me opt for the Tamron over the Sigma was the weather sealing and the vibration control that the Sigma doesn't have.
I have found it to be a really decent quality lens. It does suffer a bit of vignetting at the wide end of the zoom range as expected but besides that I can't really fault it and even that is something that is probably to be expected on most standard zoom lenses towards the wide angle end. I would thoroughly recommend the Tamron, but as I said, I haven't actually used the others.
As mentioned by @abirkill though, if you are looking for a lens to pair with a crop sensor body then you are probably better looking for a good ef-s lens. One I can personally recommend is the Sigma EX 17-50mm f2.8 which you can pick up online for about £300 new and offers many of the same qualities you have been looking for in the lenses here.
I have the Tamron, and I'm enjoying it. Also a full-frame user. There is some significant vignetting at f/2.8 and 24mm (which I read about AFTER I made that mistake :) ) but realistically it's not such a practical issue. I shouldn't have been leaving it at f/2.8 (which I'd been using in the forest which was very dark) to shoot a landscape once we got to the lookout … you get my drift. I haven't had this problem again since. I've read that there is also some vignetting at the telephoto end but haven't come across this as a problem yet - have been using it almost daily since November.
I bought this without a great deal of research - the nice folks in the shop told me there was not a great deal of difference between it and the Canon. I've since done SO MUCH more reading and still don't have a reason to feel like I made the wrong decision. http://www.dpreview.com/lensreviews/tamron-24-70mm-2p8-vc-usd/6 is a great, very in-depth review of the Tamron, which makes some comparison to other brands. This website also has reviews of the other lenses you're considering and pretty much any camera or lens you could think of!! Good luck :)
I picked up a original canon 24-70 2.8 second hand for $1000 and used it on my 600d till i could afford to go full frame. I would highly recomend the lens and even if you have to put it off for a few months to save, i think it's highly worth it.
Here's a great video of what to look for when buying a used lens- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vbdN7rSO14
I shoot pretty much exclusively with the Canon 24-70mm and I can't say enough good things about it. Worth the extra dosh. I also used it previously on my cropped sensor camera, and again, lenslove.
I did a lot of research on the various lenses and ended up going the tamron because I thought if i shoot weddings (eventually), it'd be nice to not have to change lenses to shoot video since tamron has vibration control.
Realistically I find that with shooting, it hunts alot more than I like and is a little slow to focus. Its probably a fraction of a second slower to focus, but every so often it just loses it and hunts like crazy. Meaning that on face paced days, I wasnt able to get focus lock and shoot a decent sharp image. I'm finding more images out of focus than canon equivalents but thay may be due to my shooting style.
What does that mean for me? well, end of the day, I'm going to buy a canon 24-70 mk2 and either sell the tamron or leave it as a lens for my 7D
@abirkill
Thanks for your advice! I know that Canon will be a smarter choice but buying used is something I never did. Craigslist is pretty intimidating although I found a few Canons in 1100 -1200 range. I have 17-55 Canon. And while it's nice for whatever landscape photos I ever take it seems pretty lousy for portraits. I prefer my 85 mm prime for that. I think I need a longer lens than 55mm. Thanks again for your comment! I really enjoy your Vancouver photos.
Tweets ahoy!
Join the Group
Pin With Me
Incidentally, this focal length isn't necessarily a common choice for a crop-frame camera like your 70D -- 24mm isn't particularly wide on this, and can result in a great deal of swapping between this and something wider. Have you considered the Canon 17-55mm f/2.8 IS, which is the crop-frame equivalent to the 24-70mm lenses, has outstanding image quality, includes stabilisation, and is cheaper than all but the Sigma?
I have found it to be a really decent quality lens. It does suffer a bit of vignetting at the wide end of the zoom range as expected but besides that I can't really fault it and even that is something that is probably to be expected on most standard zoom lenses towards the wide angle end. I would thoroughly recommend the Tamron, but as I said, I haven't actually used the others.
As mentioned by @abirkill though, if you are looking for a lens to pair with a crop sensor body then you are probably better looking for a good ef-s lens. One I can personally recommend is the Sigma EX 17-50mm f2.8 which you can pick up online for about £300 new and offers many of the same qualities you have been looking for in the lenses here.
I bought this without a great deal of research - the nice folks in the shop told me there was not a great deal of difference between it and the Canon. I've since done SO MUCH more reading and still don't have a reason to feel like I made the wrong decision. http://www.dpreview.com/lensreviews/tamron-24-70mm-2p8-vc-usd/6 is a great, very in-depth review of the Tamron, which makes some comparison to other brands. This website also has reviews of the other lenses you're considering and pretty much any camera or lens you could think of!! Good luck :)
Here's a great video of what to look for when buying a used lens- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vbdN7rSO14
Good luck :-)
Realistically I find that with shooting, it hunts alot more than I like and is a little slow to focus. Its probably a fraction of a second slower to focus, but every so often it just loses it and hunts like crazy. Meaning that on face paced days, I wasnt able to get focus lock and shoot a decent sharp image. I'm finding more images out of focus than canon equivalents but thay may be due to my shooting style.
What does that mean for me? well, end of the day, I'm going to buy a canon 24-70 mk2 and either sell the tamron or leave it as a lens for my 7D
Thanks for your advice! I know that Canon will be a smarter choice but buying used is something I never did. Craigslist is pretty intimidating although I found a few Canons in 1100 -1200 range. I have 17-55 Canon. And while it's nice for whatever landscape photos I ever take it seems pretty lousy for portraits. I prefer my 85 mm prime for that. I think I need a longer lens than 55mm. Thanks again for your comment! I really enjoy your Vancouver photos.
The votes were split between Canon (6) and Tamron (4).
I'm going to look for that elusive honest seller of hardly used Canon in "mint condition" :)
Thanks for a suggestion! I would love to have a macro lens one day and this feature makes the lens you mentioned very tempting!
Your landscape work is outstanding! Nice to see what the lens I am coveting is capable of.