Sample Images

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Make Canon Model Canon EOS 5D Mark II ISO Speed 400 Focal Length 500.0mm Aperture: f/7.1 Exposure 1/800s	Make Canon Model Canon EOS 5D Mark II ISO Speed 400 Focal Length 250.0mm Aperture: f/7.1 Exposure 1/160s
Make Canon Model Canon EOS 5D Mark II ISO Speed 400 Focal Length 600.0mm Aperture: f/6.3 Exposure 1/500s	Make Canon Model Canon EOS 5D Mark II ISO Speed 400 Focal Length 256.0mm Aperture: f/5.6 Exposure 1/1000s
Make Canon Model Canon EOS 5D Mark II ISO Speed 400 Focal Length 600.0mm Aperture: f/6.3 Exposure 1/500s	Make Canon Model Canon EOS 5D Mark II ISO Speed 800 Focal Length 300.0mm Aperture: f/5.6 Exposure 1/400s
Make Canon Model Canon EOS 5D Mark II ISO Speed 800 Focal Length 309.0mm Aperture: f/5.6 Exposure 1/250s	Make Canon Model Canon EOS 5D Mark II ISO Speed 800 Focal Length 450.0mm Aperture: f/6.3 Exposure 1/200s
Make Canon Model Canon EOS 5D Mark II ISO Speed 800 Focal Length 329.0mm Aperture: f/5.6 Exposure 1/800s	Make Canon Model Canon EOS 5D Mark II ISO Speed 400 Focal Length 600.0mm Aperture: f/6.3 Exposure 1/250s
Make Canon Model Canon EOS 5D Mark II ISO Speed 400 Focal Length 552.0mm Aperture: f/7.1 Exposure 1/320s	Make Canon Model Canon EOS 5D Mark II ISO Speed 400 Focal Length 600.0mm Aperture: f/6.3 Exposure 1/160s
Make Canon Model Canon EOS 5D Mark II ISO Speed 200 Focal Length 309.0mm Aperture: f/6.3 Exposure 1/250s	Make Canon Model Canon EOS 5D Mark II ISO Speed 200 Focal Length 428.0mm Aperture: f/6.3 Exposure 1/800s
Make Canon Model Canon EOS 5D Mark II ISO Speed 800 Focal Length 273.0mm Aperture: f/6.3 Exposure 1/200s

Verdict

However, regardless of what the Tamron marketing would like to make you think, it also means that this is a budget lens with corresponding compromises. The most obvious one is the slow speed although from a real-world perspective, that's probably of lesser concern for most. A bit more unfortunate is the fact that the quality isn't really great at 600mm. You should stop down to f/8 to make the most of it but so then the results aren't tack sharp. Given the typical target application (wildlife), the rather soft borders/corners are probably not overly important. As usual, the quality is much better in the low to mid-range. Besides the higher resolution, there's also a slight kick in contrast compared to the 600mm setting. Lateral CAs are generally well controlled, although they can be visible in the upper range. The vignetting is moderate which is typical for such long tele lenses. The quality of the bokeh is decent for a tele lens, although not comparable to the best lenses, of course. Bokeh fringing is not an issue due to the relatively small max. aperture.

The build quality is on a surprisingly high level for such an affordable lens. Tamron used some plastic components but only where it didn't hurt the structural integrity of the lens. Tamron's USD AF offers both high speed as well as low noise emissions.
Let's be realistic - most users will probably never carry a tripod so an image stabilizer is a must-have in this lens class. Tamron's VC is pretty good till about 500mm but it struggles to keep a steady image beyond. Both Sigma, as well as Canon, have an edge here.

Thus in the grand scope of things, the Tamron SP 150-600mm f/5-6.3 Di VC USDis a great super-tele zoom lens relative to its price tag. However, if you require outstanding image quality at 600mm, you still have to look elsewhere.

Optical Quality:	not provided at this stage
Mechanical Quality:
Price/Performance:
	What does this mean ?