Tamron SP 150-600mm F/5-6.3 Di VC USD G2 for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

The item had to be returned but Pixel Connection went above and beyond to expedite the refund and get me a new lens that works great.

I dropped my Sigma 150-600 Contemporary lens while on a birding vacation when my camera strap broke. When searching for a replacement, theTamron SP 150-600mm F/5-6.3 Di VC USD G2 (I'll just call it the G2 from here on) jumped out as the best choice in this class.The original Tamron 150-600 and the Sigma Contemporary are similar and I loved my Sigma. Looking at the alternatives, the Sigma Sport version is both heavier and more robust, but is also double the price of the contemporary. The Sigma 60-600 is compelling for its range, but it is 50% heavier, too and also expensive.The Tamron G2 is the "Goldilocks" lens in this group because it is only a couple of ounces heavier than the original Tamron and Sigma lenses but offers dust and water sealing they don't. It's also compatible with Tamron's Tap-In console that allows you to tune the lens in useful ways. Sigma's lenses are also compatible with their dock, and Sigma's does offer some different features, but the ability to tune the Tamron at 18 different focal length/focus distances is most compelling.I bought a Tamron G2 from this Amazon listing. There were several sellers at the time on this listing, all offering the lens for the exact same price. So I chose the one closest to me geographically as I was still on vacation birding and wanted it as fast as possible.After using it for a few days, I noticed that the autofocus was very inconsistent. Hey, it happens. I did try to tune the lens with Reikan FoCal once I returned home from the trip, but the issues seemed to be with the autofocus itself. I wrote Tamron and asked for suggestions. The reply I got was surprising. Nowhere in the Amazon listing was anything mentioned about the lens being an import/gray market lens. But, sure enough, Tamron informed me that the lens I bought was an import/gray market lens and would, therefore, not be covered under warranty and would not be repairable by them.I liked the lens, especially the aforementioned sealing and tuneability, the Arca-Swiss compatible tripod mount, and, especially, the flex lock on the zoom. After starting the return to Amazon, I wrote the other sellers for this listing, all still offering the lens at the same price, and found that it is a mix of authorized and unauthorized sellers selling either Gray market/Import lenses OR US versions. There is no point in mentioning the sellers by name as they could have changed by the time you read this, but if you are considering this lens or any other, suggest emailing the seller ahead of purchasing to ensure that you are getting a US market product. If you do order one, the thing to look for is the Tamron hologram on the top of the box. If it's missing, you have likely purchased a gray market lens. Doesn't mean it won't work, but Tamron-USA won't touch it if you need it serviced.Aside from the issues noted, the G2 is an excellent lens. The features it offers over the original Sigma and Tamron 150-600's are well worth the extra money while it offers most of what the Sigma Sport does at a much lower price.

Great sharp lens with reach.

Overall, I was really happy to have this lens when visiting Alaska. It is nice to have the ability to see things really far away. The only real major down side, as you can imagine, is the size of the lens. Put simply, I have my full camera kit with a large selection of lenses, and then there is this beast, both take about the same amount of effort to lug around. You need to really plan on using this lens to bother carrying it around, it is not the type of lens you are going to have on you just in case you might need it.

I've been using this for bird photography off-and-on since August 2021. Mostly with a Nikon D850. (Other lenses used: Nikon 200-500; Sigma 150-600; Nikon 500 f5.6 PF.) At first I was concerned about the sharpness, but now, having gotten used to it, I like it a lot as relating to color, sharpness, and overall image quality, with a couple caveats.Weight, ease of use, features, etc. are normal/good for a lens of this range/price. Not lightweight, but works just fine for carrying in the field and using handheld over extended periods of time. Capable of taking very sharp pictures at 600mm. Just be careful re. your focus mode, and pay attention in the view finder to verify that where you want to focus is actually in focus.My one concern is that the autofocus of this lens is not as fast as some of the Nikon lenses. With nature photography, the field of view can be complex - different levels of tree branches at different depths, birds in the close foreground or far background, etc. Going from one extreme to another, + camera focus hunting, can take longer than ideal = missed shots. (Comparatively, the Nikon 500mm PF/f5.6 is noticeably faster.) That being said, I still like using this lens because when things are in focus, it seems as or slightly more consistently sharp, plus the extra 100mm reach.(To be clear, for straightforward subjects, this lens focuses very quickly. What seems to be the less than ideal timing is when the camera is focus hunting, or you need to go from one extreme to the other, or focus on very long distance objects against the sky, like flying birds.)