TAMRON SP45mm F1.8 Di VC USD Model F012E

[Zoom] Wide-zoom | Standard-zoom | Tele-zoom | High-zoom  
[Fixed-focal] Wide angle | Standard | Telephoto | Macro

Tamron redefined their legendary SP series lenses with this SP 45mm F/1.8, which works with Canon's full frame EF mount cameras and becomes a short telephoto lens on APS-C cameras. Thanks to the refined optics, it's fully compatible with high pixel density cameras including the one with more than 50 megapixels. The appearance is simple and unique. The operability and functionality have improved. And, the F1.8 speed lets you create big bokeh even though the focal length is slightly wider than standard. And, the 29cm minimum focus distance, which is very close for the focal length, expands shooting opportunity.

( Photography : A.Inden / Text : KIMURAX )

Stopped down by 1 step to include the body of the bug within the depth of field. The lens defined the subject sharply without depending on the defocused petals or the contrast between the colors. The wings are particularly sharp and the bokeh is ample even at this aperture. Having extra room to stop down is always advantageous.

Wide open. The focal plane is very sharp and the texture reproduction bears the viewing at original size. The bokeh of the velcro tapes of the pair of shoes is picturesque and realistic. Some falloff is visible, but I welcome it to better express the atmosphere. And, you can pretty much eliminate it by stopping down by just one step.

It wonderfully reproduced the changing colors of the seats caused by the subtle changes of lighting. The color reproduction is great, too. The definition of the embossed surface is clear and minute.

It beautifully expresses the colors of the lighted floor with reflections of the window and the shadow tone.

The dynamic waterdrops pop put from the defocused foreground and background. The bokeh of the waterdrops in the foreground look like power snow.

This is the world that F1.8 draws. The sharp subject stands out thanks to the natural and soft bokeh. The image stabilizer is a great feature to fully utilize the short minimum focus distance.

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It wonderfully draws the texture of the well-taken-care-of shining board as well as the old tanned skin.

The shallow depth of field can change an ordinary scene to something special. This is the kind of lens that you want to use for everyday shooting.

How about a remote scene? I still included the front bokeh because of tis naturalness. The falloff, by the way, is visible if you look closely. But, it's not the level that we need to worry much about. Why complain about it, when we can get this rendition wide open?

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Stopped down to F5.6. Despite the high contrast of the location, it has a great balance between highlight and shadow. This image proves that the lens can transmit so much luminance information to the camera.

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Before testing, I was interested in the rendition wide open because of the high speed. And, it demonstrated its amazing sharpness wide open particularly at close distance. Yet, because it never becomes edgy even at smaller apertures, the images look natural. The more pixels the camera has, the bigger impact the lens sharpness has on image formation. And, I believe it's important to keep the sharpness within an inch of becoming overly sharp. In this sense, the fine-tuned sharpness of this lens, in addition to the basic sharpness wide open, indicates Tamron's enthusiasm to start the new SP series. This lens is worth trying and it makes me feel excited about the forthcoming SP lenses in the future.

( 29.09.2015 )