Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II Review

Dustin Abbott

August 6th, 2018

The rumors began swirling that Canon was soon going to release a new version of one of its “bread-and-butter” focal lengths. The rumors said the f/2.8 version, or was it the f/4 version? It turns out that it was both, with Canon announcing both a Mark III version of its venerable EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS (one of the most commonly used lenses in the world by professionals) and a Mark II of the smaller-but-equally excellent f/4 lens. That lens, the Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II USM, is the subject of our review here today. The f/4L II (as we’ll refer to it for brevity’s sake), is not as widely used as the bigger, more expensive f/2.8 version, but for many people it hits the sweet spot for their needs.

A 70-200mm f/2.8 lens is perhaps the most indispensable tool out there if you are an event, portrait, or wedding shooter, but there are some misconceptions. People value that larger f/2.8 aperture for a couple of reasons. The first is the light gathering potential, which is exactly double that of a lens with a maximum aperture of f/4. So, for example, in an event like a basketball game, an f/2.8 lens would allow a shutter speed of, say, 1/400^th of a second (fast enough to stop most action), while an f/4 lens would only allow a 1/200^th of a second shutter speed (which would introduce some motion blur). The only way to counteract this is by increasing your ISO to compensate, but there are, obviously, practical limits to this before your image quality is reduced by high noise, poorer dynamic range, and somewhat washed out colors.

The second reason that people value the larger maximum aperture of f/2.8 is because of the more shallow depth of field it creates, which gives that amazing “cut-out” look where your subject is completely isolated from the background, which will often become a soft blur of colors if the subject is some distance from the background. It’s a great look that gives a professional quality that cannot be matched by someone’s phone, point-and-shoot, or even a kit lens. If your subject is 10 feet from the camera, and you are shooting at the telephoto end (200mm) and f/2.8, the depth of field (area in focus) will only be 1.5” (4cm), which means that the background will be beautifully blurred.

These things are definitely true (and I use such a lens often for my own work), but I mentioned misconceptions for a reason. If someone is shooting in a well-lit setting, an f/2.8 lens may not be necessary at all. Modern cameras have also made huge strides in their performance at higher ISO settings, resulting in far less penalty for cranking the ISO up to accommodate an f/4 rather than f/2.8 lens. Furthermore, the telephoto nature of this focal length means that subject isolation is still excellent with the f/4 lens. Using my same scenario from before, the depth of field with this f/4 lens is still only 2.19”/6cm, which is really not dramatically different in real world settings. Look at the image of the bird above – that depth of field is pretty shallow, and that image was taken from closer to 20 feet away. In fact, you will have to learn to stop a lens like this down if you want to get more features of a persons face in focus, or, if you have a few people in a group, to make sure that all of their faces are in focus.

My point is that many people who think they need an f/2.8 lens at this focal length might be surprised to find that an excellent f/4 lens like this might actually suit their purposes better. The advantages of the f/4 lens are in size and weight. The new f/4L II weighs in at 1.72lb (780g) compared to the 3.26lb (1480g) of the new f/2.8L III (which is actually 10g lighter than the previous generation lens.) That means the f/4 lens is roughly 53% the weight. The difference in length isn’t as significant, as both are internally zooming lenses (nothing extends during zooming). The f/4L II is 6.93” (176mm) compared to 7.83” (199mm), though it is also slimmer (3.15” vs 3.5” or 80mm vs 89mm). For someone accustomed to an f/2.8 lens (like myself), I’m always pleasantly surprised by how “small and light” the f/4 lenses are, though that will obviously be less true for someone coming from, say, a Canon 55-250mm APS-C zoom. There are a few other areas where these lenses distinguish themselves which we will explore in this review.

So is the Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II the lens for you? Read on to find out!

Prefer to watch your reviews? Check out my thorough video review here:

Canon 70-200mm f/4L II Build and Handling

Watch this video to get an in-depth look at the build and design of the f/4L II.

The f/4L II has received some significant improvements to what was already an excellent build. The lens now has more thorough weather sealing throughout and now includes premium fluorine coatings on both external elements. The fluorine helps resist scratching, but also has the added benefit of repelling water and oils, meaning that fingerprints don’t stick as much and that the lens will be easier to clean. I feel more confident in not using a protection filter personally when the lens has received these coatings. The barrel is mostly metals, and the rubber on the zoom rings feels premium. The build is now very close to that of the f/2.8 zooms, which is to say very, very good.

Many people will prefer the position of the zoom and manual focus rings over that of the Tamron. There doesn’t seem to be fixed standard for the order of these rings, as the Tamron is opposite…but so are lenses from Canon (the 70-300L comes to mind). Most people seem to be more familiar with the zoom ring closer to camera as opposed to towards the front of the lens. The zoom and focus rings are nice and wide and well-ribbed. I like the ergonomic feel of the rings themselves. One area that I really like about the design is the flaring out of the zoom ring, a rather unique touch.

Many lenses have a flare in the barrel at some point to accommodate larger internal elements, but typically that flare happens in the barrel materials and not in the ring itself. I feel like this design has some practical value, too, as it gives some tactile feedback as to what ring the hand is on when your eye is pressed against the viewfinder.

I strongly prefer the feel of the manual focus ring’s ribs on the f/4L II over those of the Tamron lens, and the MF ring is wider and easier to find, too. But there is a certain ergonomic logic to Tamron’s approach, too, as while I really like the wider and more deeply ribbed rings on the Canon, I also encountered an issue that I didn’t with the Tamron. The position of the zoom ring is that it occupies the natural place where my hand rests to support the lens. I’ve found on a number of shots where I was looking to have the full 200mm of focal length engaged that I actually have 190mm or 196mm due to a slight rotation of that ring simply by having my hand there to support the lens. There isn’t really another place to put one’s hand because the rings are so wide.

One of the updates to the Mark II version of this lens slightly more robust physical controls. The previous version had the focus limiter (which the Tamron lacks) as well as a mode switch for the IS (which the Tamron also lacks), but the f/4L II adds one more mode position to the 4^th switch on the barrel. There are now three different selectable modes for the IS (Image Stabilization) system. The first mode is the standard mode, which seeks to balance stabilizing the viewfinder and the captured image. The second mode is for panning, and it will stabilize only the vertical axis so that you can follow movement without interruption. You can also drag the shutter a bit (shoot at a low shutter speed), and, with practice, can produce sharp moving subjects while blurring the background. The third mode is the new one for this lens, and it seems to function like Tamron’s “Capture Priority” mode, which foregoes stabilization of the viewfinder and focuses on providing the best possible stabilization of the actual image capture. It allows you to have very natural movement when following action while still having the benefit of IS when you click the shutter.

The best IS mode for you will depend on your shooting preferences and also the situation you find yourself in. The IS system is improved in general, with it now rated at 5 stops (which seems to be the top of the industry standard right now). Beyond that, however, it is much quieter and smoother in operation, lacking the loud, buzzy quality of the previous generation lens. You can hear a slight noise when it begins operation, but after that you have to put your ear next to the barrel to hearing any of the faint whirring that goes on while the IS system does its thing. It is quiet enough that it shouldn’t be detectable in any but the quietest of conditions and shouldn’t negatively impact audio capture while shooting video.

The focus limiter has two options: full (no limiting) or 3m to Infinity. This is useful when you are in situations where you won’t be focusing closer than that as it will improve both focus speed (a good portion of the focus range is eliminated) and will also avoid a large focus “rack” (the AF runs through the whole focus range) when focus is missed. This has an additional benefit with the new f/4L II because the minimum focus has been reduced by 20cm on the new lens over the old lens. It can focus down to 3.28’ (1m) rather than 3.94’ (1.2m), which helps improve the maximum reproduction ratio to 1:3.7 (0.27x) rather than 1:5 (0.21x). This is very, very useful, though the Tamron’s 0.32x magnification is better still due to both being able to focus more closely and having ten extra millimeters in focal length.

Both of these improvements are incremental but add up to a more complete lens.

Canon has changed the shade of paint on it’s “white” lenses over the past couple of years, and the f/4L II receives that newer shade. It’s a little brighter and whiter looking compared to slightly yellow tinted older shade, and is arguably more attractive.

I’ve noted in times past that Canon’s L series lenses hold up very well over extended use. I’ve often used them for several years, and, when going to sell them, had buyers remark that they still looked new. Canon does a great job with the finish on these lenses. The included lens hood has a flocked exterior finish, which, while not quite as sleek as some of the smooth satin finishes of competing lenses, is much more resistant to fingerprints and, more importantly, marks and scratches from everyday use.

Also included is a lens pouch that will be instantly familiar to anyone who has purchased other Canon L series lenses in the past. It has some padding at the bottom, but little real protection value elsewhere. If you want a case with some real protection value, I would recommend purchasing this lens case. The f/2.8 variants all come with a more premium padded case, and, frankly, at the price of this lens, such a case should be included with the f/4L II. What also isn’t included with the f/4L II is the tripod collar/foot (though, again, the f/2.8 versions do include this). The reality is that many people won’t miss a tripod collar on a lens with a moderate weight and size like this lens, but, if you are one of those who do value having a tripod collar (you do a lot of tripod or monopod work, for example), then know that it will come at an additional cost.

And it isn’t cheap. The current price for the AII Tripod Mount Ring is $164.95. I recently reviewed the Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC lens, and, while it also doesn’t include the tripod collar, the A034TM is less expensive ($139), and, more importantly is ARCA compatible. Something ARCA-Swiss compatible means that it is designed in such a way that it can mounted right on most tripods and tightened down without needing to use a quick release plate. I personally really value this feature, as it saves valuable time during the transitions where I’m often in a hurry to get a shot. Why Canon does not make it’s tripod feet ARCA-compatible is beyond me.

The aperture blade count has increased by one to nine, which better enables the lens to have a more rounded aperture iris when the lens is stopped down and can result in smoother bokeh at smaller apertures. The front filter size has increased from 67mm to 72mm, which isn’t a big deal on the filter end but will [hopefully] result in a little less vignette. The optical formula is the same in terms of element count (20 elements in 15 groups), but the change in the front element size is proof that the optical formula is changed.

I’m a fan of the look and handling of this lens. I’ve detailed some negatives, yes, but the sum total is a lens that I’ve really enjoyed using. It feels exceptionally well built and operates as it should.

Canon 70-200 f/4L II Autofocus

This leads us to one of the key areas of improvement for the f/4L II. In many ways the autofocus system in the original f/4L IS lens was very good (though some have reported an issue of the focus system failing in a specific way). I’ve owned two copies of the lens personally, however, and never had any issues with the focus system. I think that part of Canon’s logic in updating their primary zoom lenses is to address the changing nature of autofocus…and the changes yet to come. When the first f/4L IS lens was released, video AF was simply not on anyone’s radar. People weren’t really using DSLRs for video…but that has changed in a big way.

What has also changed is the advent of Canon’s DPAF (Contrast AF) focus technology in Live View, which radically changed the way that Live View could be used. DPAF technology has proliferated over essentially Canon’s whole lineup at this point, and in many ways focus is as fast with DPAF as it is with Phase Detect (viewfinder) autofocus. But the nature of Contrast AF is different, and when using it for Video Servo AF (continuous autofocus) the priorities are different. Video Servo AF values smoothness and quietness over speed, and I have often found that older USM lenses really don’t do very well when used in this fashion. The focus motors are surprisingly loud (surprising because they aren’t loud when used for stills), tend to hunt for focus constantly, and just aren’t smooth in operation. The bottom line is that they aren’t tuned well for this kind of application.

While the focus system in the new Canon zooms is still a USM-style focus motor, it has now been tuned to work better in the new hybrid-environment of modern DSLRs. It is very fast when used in Live View for autofocus in stills, with autofocus in Live View roughly as fast as when using the viewfinder.

When shooting video, the behavior of the focus motor is vastly improved. It transitions smoothly and confidently, and the noise when changing focus is much quieter than older USM focus motors (though still not as quiet as STM or Nano-USM). I did detect a little focus noise when shooting video and recording audio in-camera, but it wasn’t pronounced. The focus precision was good, and there wasn’t any pulsing or hunting.

This hybrid behavior is important too for the nature of mirrorless focus systems. I personally suspect that part of Canon’s motivation in releasing new versions of its key lenses is to better place them for use in a future full frame mirrorless camera. I’m hoping that the timing of these releases is an indicator than Canon will leverage the EF mount in some way with their full frame mirrorless.

In the meantime, I can report that the f/4L II works well with the EF adapter on the Canon EOS M5 camera (including for video Servo AF). I let a colleague use the lens on her M5 while shooting a children’s camp together. She reported that every now and then focus during video would get stuck, but touching a new focus point on the screen would get things moving again.

I also used the lens via the Sigma MC-11 on the Sony a7R3 and found that, for the most part, I was quiet happy with the performance. In most settings focus was quick and accurate…even when tracking some boys running through an obstacle course. Every now and then the focus would get stuck and wouldn’t focus (as per usual), and this seemed more likely to happen when trying to focus at distances under 8 feet. I had to revert to manual focus a few times when trying to focus on a child’s face from 4-6 feet away. Most of the time, however, focus was excellent, and I actually really enjoyed the flexibility afforded by hitting the C1 button on my a7R3 (which I have programmed to APS-C mode) and having the advantage of the different framing options afforded by Sony’s 1.5x crop factor. The 18MP of APS-C mode is sufficient for the event work I was doing at the time, and, since I was delivering JPEGs in the form a slide show every evening of the summer camp I was shooting, this saved me doing any cropping in post. The focus on the a7R3/MC-11 combination was typically quick and quiet, and was always accurate. Here’s some images captured with the combination:

I love the fact that Tamron and Sigma provide the ability to fine-tune focus through their Tap-In/USB Dock accessories, and, particularly with Tamron, I’ve been able to really refine focus and get very accurate results (my 45mm f/1.8 VC, 85mm f/1.8 VC, and 70-200mm f/2.8 G2 lenses all give me pretty much the best focus results I’ve ever gotten from a third party lens…and also pretty much as good of focus results as any lens). Still, I have to say that it is refreshing to pull the Canon lens out of the box and just start shooting with it. I have felt that my focus accuracy was good enough that I haven’t felt the need to calibrate the lens further (though if I were to own the lens I would certainly do so). My point is that focus accuracy out of the box has been very good with the f/4L II.

There can be some pulsing in AF Servo mode in some situations. Ironically it is actually worse with a single AF point chosen, and I’ve gotten the best performance using a small group of points supporting a center point on my Canon 5D Mark IV. This seems to occur most often when trying to focus on a close subject with a busier background. I didn’t encounter it often, but did encounter it on several occasions during my review period. For the most part, however, I had no problems keeping up with action using the lens:

The lens played nicely with the Canon Extender 1.4x III well, too, with very little change in autofocus behavior with the extender attached on my Canon 5D Mark IV body.

In short, other than a few minor hiccups, autofocus performance was excellent from the Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II USM. I vastly preferred the autofocus performance to that of the Tamron 70-210 VC (in Phase Detect – the lenses were roughly similar in Contrast AF), and if I were personally choosing between the lenses, I think I would save up the extra money and purchase the Canon lens.

There is one more consideration because of price, however. The Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 G2 lens is actually the same MSRP as the f/4L II (and includes the tripod collar in the box!). It’s autofocus is much more competitive with the f/4L II, as is its feature set. But what about optical performance? Stay tuned to find out!

Canon 70-200 f/4L II Image Quality

A lot of the talk centering around these two new 70-200 lenses has been about their image quality improvements (or lack thereof). I’ve heard some apologists using the counterarguments that these lenses were near “perfect” optically already, though one could question if that were the case why there was any need to release new versions of the lenses. I personally think that Canon had other reasons for updating these lenses (some of which I’ve already detailed) than optical performance, though I do think there is more optical improvement in f/4 lens than the f/2.8 (which reportedly is mostly changes in coatings). The f/4 lens does have an updated optical formula, and, while it shares the same number of elements and groups (20 elements in 15 groups – which is pretty close to being the same as Nikon, Tamron, and Sony’s own 70-200mm f/4 lenses), it has a new front element size, which shows that the optical formula (at least when it comes to that front element) has been tweaked.

Still, expect the image quality improvements to be incremental, and there is truth to the statement that Canon was starting with an exceptional lens already – a lens that some considered to be Canon’s best lens covering this focal length. Let’s take a look at the image quality in detail.

Resolution

I’ve used two optical benchmarks for comparison purposes here. They are two third party lenses – Tamron’s 70-210mm f/4 VC (the most recent lens release covering this focal length) and their SP 70-200mm f/2.8 VC G2 lens (a fantastic lens that shares the price point with the f/4L II). I would recommend that you watch this video segment to see the detailed analysis of how all of these lenses compare:

At 70mm I observed that both the Canon and the Tamron 70-210mm exhibited minor amounts of barrel distortion and vignette. Somewhat surprising to me was the fact that the Tamron showed slightly better light transmission despite the growth in the front element of the f/4L II. It’s not significant, but I estimate the Tamron had about a one-third stop advantage in light transmission through 135mm, where the lenses seemed to equalize. Here’s a look at the full image at 70mm:

The Canon exhibited slightly better contrast levels (though not by much) along with a slightly better edge/corner performance. When stopped down to f/5.6 the results remained roughly similar, though the differences are even harder to spot.

At 100mm there is little to distinguish the two lenses. The Canon has a hair more contrast and its sharpness extends further into the extreme corners by a percentage point or two. Stopped down even to f/5.6 there isn’t enough difference between the lenses to be measurable in real usage.

At 135mm the Canon suffers from a little more vignette than the Tamron. The sharpness and contrast is more similar than different in the center and across most of the frame. The extreme corners favor the Canon. When stopped down there is little distinguish the two lenses.

To this point, you might be tempted to ask why someone would choose the Canon and its higher price tag over the Tamron, but at least part of the reason becomes clearer at the telephoto end, where the Canon opens up a decided advantage.

At 200mm (210mm for the Tamron) the Canon is clearly sharper across the frame wide open, with higher resolution and contrast. When stopped down the gap, if anything, widens. The Tamron doesn’t really improve a lot stopped down, while the Canon moves to nothing short of exceptional levels.

This is arguably the most important point in the focal range, and the f/4L II nails it. This latter point is important, too, as it is the focal length that will be most utilized if you want to extend the reach of the lens by adding an extender. I used Canon’s 1.4x Extender III to good effect, reaching 280mm of reach (at f/5.6). I thought I detected a mild amount of image softening, but resolution still looked very good as you can see from these samples.

I would call the Canon 70-200mm f/4L IS II a more useful lens than the Tamron in this regard.

As mentioned previously, the competition is much stiffer if you put the lens up against Tamron’s f/2.8 G2 lens. The G2 is generally as good at f/2.8 as the Canon is at f/4, which means that it slightly betters the f/4L II when stopped down to equal apertures (and with less vignette to boot). The chief advantage the Canon has is that the G2 lens suffers from “focus breathing”, meaning that it doesn’t reach its full focal length at close distances (it only becomes a true 200mm at 30+ feet). There are definitely other reasons why someone might prefer a f/4 lens (size and weight), but if price is the main concern, the G2 is a worthy choice.

Rendering

It has become my habit to break image quality down into two categories. The first is resolution, which includes sharpness, contrast, and longitudinal chromatic aberrations (which impact contrast). The second category is rendering, which covers things like bokeh, color rendition, lateral chromatic aberrations, flare resistance, and the general “feel” of the images produced by a particular lens.

The f/4L II is a strong performer in the rendering department. The images produced by the lens are generally excellent. The low chromatic aberrations produce a lot of punch to images, and I feel like the lens really shines in its color rendition. Here’s a few standout images that demonstrate what I’m talking about.

The bokeh from the lens in most situations is very nice. There is a bit of geometric distortion of bokeh highlights along the edges of the frame (cat-eye or lemon shapes), which is very common. In general the combination of sharpness on the focal plane and softness in the defocused areas is really excellent.

The lens is somewhat susceptible to flare, with a significant amount of veiling (loss of contrast) with the sun right in the frame. Ghosting isn’t particularly bad, however, with only a few small blobs of color extending into the frame.

I’m a big fan of the quality of images you can get with this lens, and it really delivers in the image quality department.

Here’s a few more sample images, and you can see more in the Image Gallery here.

Conclusion

Some have questioned whether this lens is a worthy upgrade, if enough has changed. If you are looking for a revolutionary improvement over the previous generation lens (perhaps considering updating), that might be a hard choice, but there is no doubt that this is a significantly improved lens on a number of levels. The build is improved, the autofocus is improved, and the image quality is improved. There is no single thing that jumps out at you, but the sum total of the improvements add up to what I believe is the best f/4 lens that covers this focal length. The price tag is at the high end of the spectrum, but so is the performance of the lens. There are solid alternatives to this lens, but if you want the best 70-200mm f/4 lens, the Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II is the one to get.

Pros:

Improvements on an already great build
Good ergonomics and handling
Improved image stabilizer
Additional IS mode
Smoother, quieter autofocus and IS systems
Better functionality in DPAF and Video Servo AF
Very strong 200mm performance
Works well with 1.4x extender and quite well with adapters
Excellent contrast, color, and very low CA

Cons:

Prone to some veiling when bright lights are in the frame
Incremental improvements only
Price tag is at the top of the segment

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Keywords: Canon 70-200 f4 ii, 70-200, f/4L, IS II, USM Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II, Canon 70-200 Review, Canon 70-200 f4 is ii, Canon, f4 is, f4 IS ii, Canon 70-200 f4 is ii review, Dustin Abbott, Photography, Sample Images, Video Test, Real World, Tamron 70-210 VC, Tamron 70-210, Comparison, Test, AF

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Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II Image Gallery

Dustin Abbott

July 14th, 2018

Canon is in the process of releasing new versions of both the f/2.8 and f/4 versions of their extremely popular 70-200mm zooms. Both of these lenses are extremely useful, and for those that don’t need the greater light gathering potential of the f/2.8 lens, the new Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM II lens will offer an enticing combination of a pro-grade build, great optics and performance, and a weight that is only about 60% of the “big brother”. This is particularly nice if you need to travel light and/or want a telephoto lens for landscape use. As I still have the Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC on hand, I’ll do some comparing and contrasting to the newest competitor. My early impressions of the new Canon 70-200L II are very positive, but stay tuned for more detailed coverage. In the meantime, you can check out images of the lens along with images from it.

Images of the Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II

Images Taken with the Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II

With a Canon 1.4x III Extender

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Keywords: Canon 70-200 f4 ii, 70-200, f/4L, IS II, USM Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II, Canon 70-200 Review, Canon 70-200 f4 is ii, Canon, f4 is, f4 IS ii, Canon 70-200 f4 is ii review, Dustin Abbott, Photography, Sample Images, Video Test, Real World, Tamron 70-210 VC, Tamron 70-210, Comparison, Test, AF

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Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC USD Review (A034)

Dustin Abbott

June 21st, 2018

See the autofocus section for some fresh observations from October 2018 after firmware update 2.0.

In the past two years the “third party” lensmakers have really been taking it to the “first party” lensmakers (Canon and Nikon). Both Tamron and Sigma had a renaissance around six-seven years ago where they shifted from making lenses noted more for their price (and price-to-performance ratio) than any particular standout quality of the lenses themselves to producing lenses that were competitive both in quality and price. Sigma has gained particular notoriety for their ART series prime lenses, while Tamron has been most acclaimed for their excellent zoom lenses (though their SP prime series is also very good). Their most recent offering, the Tamron 70-210mm f/4 Di VC USD, takes aim at a lens category previously not challenged by the third parties – the 70-200mm/80-210mm zoom with a moderately wide maximum aperture of f/4. The 70-210 VC jumps into a market where the first parties have good but aging options, which allows Tamron to be the first to bring modern lens technologies to the category.

An f/4 lens at this focal length bridges the gap between less expensive variable aperture zoom options (like the common 70-300mm f/4-5.6[6.3] variants) and the larger, more expensive f/2.8 options (like Tamron’s own excellent 70-200mm f/2.8 VC G2 lens). There are a number of people that want the more premium optical performance and constant aperture of an f/4 lens, but don’t want to deal the size, weight, and expense of an f/2.8 lens. For many shooters a lens like this 70-210mm f/4 lens will hit the sweet spot. Not too big, not too expensive, optically excellent, and feature rich.

The comparison that I’m most familiar with is the Canon 70-200mm f/4L IS, a lens I owned for several years before moving to a f/2.8 lens. When compared to the Canon, the Tamron sports several feature advantages, including:

An extra 10mm in focal length.
A much closer minimum focus distance (3.12’/95cm vs 3.94’/1.2m) and resulting much higher magnification level (0.32x vs 0.21x)
Much quieter image stabilization system
9 rounded aperture blades vs 8 rounded blades
Price that is $300-400 lower (in the US market)
6 years vs 1-year warranty.

On paper this sounds pretty compelling, but we are here to determine how the lens performance. Stay tuned to discover my test results.

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Build, Handling, and Design

Tamron has made a number of crucial advances in their lens design on their more premium lenses, and the benefit is that those technologies have trickled down to some of their less expensive options. Tamron’s premium designation is their SP (Super/Superior Performance) line, which spawned a new design language on the SP prime lenses and then on a G2 versions of several of their key zoom lenses (24-70mm f/2.8, 70-20 f/2.8, and 150-600mm f/5-6.3). Since that new look debuted, I’ve reviewed the 10-24mm VC, the 100-400 VC, and now this 70-210mm VC lens. These lenses inherit the basic look of the more premium lenses along with a number of their features (weather sealing, Tap-In compatibility, improved focus, improved build and design). The materials are not quite as premium (some engineered plastics are mixed in with metal alloys), but the look of the lenses is very nice. This video breaks down the build and design of the A034 in detail:

The 70-210 VC occupies a slightly more premium position than these other lenses I’ve mentioned due to having a constant aperture, though the price point is identical to the 100-400 VC (an excellent lens that I reviewed here:). The physical design of the 70-210 VC most strongly resembles that lens in look and materials. It is a long, fairly slender lens with a very common 67mm front filter thread that is shared with a number of other Tamron lenses. The 70-210 VC is identical to the Canon 70-200 f/4L IS in diameter (2.99”/76mm) though just a hair longer at 6.9” (175mm) vs 6.77” (172mm). The physical difference is not enough to be meaningful, though it is worth noting that the Tamron does have that extra 10mm of focal length. Both lenses are internally zooming and focusing, so that length is a constant.

The Tamron is also the heavier lens by a small margin. It weighs in at 1.89 lb (859g), compared to 1.68 lb (760g) for the Canon. This is enough to be noticeable, though probably not in a meaningful way. The bright side, perhaps, is that the heft of the lens might provide some reassurance of the quality of the build.

Tamron has been working at delivering quality levels of weather sealing on lenses across their product line, and the 70-210 VC is no different. It has sealing at the lens mount, switches, and rings along with an expensive fluorine coating on the front element that resists not only moisture but also things like fingerprints. This helps the front element to be easier to clean and also looks pretty cool when reflecting light.

Tamron employs a consistent design language in their lenses from the past few years. It is sleek and modern, with an satin anodized finish. I really like the look of the lenses and the feel of the switches. The action of the zoom ring is flawless; it moves easily and quickly with no sticking points or rough feel. It has the typical ribbed finish that is easy to grip and use. The zoom ring is closer to the front of the lens, while the manual focus lens will be closer to the camera. There is a distance window in between them.

The manual focus ring is lower profile, with very shallow ribbing. I prefer the look and feel of the zoom ring from an ergonomic perspective, though the focus ring moves smoothly. It just feels, well, cheaper to my touch. It should be noted that Tamron chooses to have its zoom and focus rings move in the “Nikon” direction rather than the Canon direction. Thus the movement of these rings will feel familiar to Nikon shooters but might feel backwards to Canon shooters.

I’ve noted with several of the consumer grade lenses with Tamron’s new design language that the finish tends to be a little more “matte” on the engineered plastic surfaces than on Tamron’s premium lenses with metal barrels. It’s a very minor thing visually, but I have noted that the finish is more likely to pick up little scuffs than on the metal barreled lenses. The look is sleeker than Canon’s flocked finishes, but I do think that the flocked approach is more resistant to marking and fingerprints.

Up front there is a very commonly-sized 67mm filter thread, which is shared across a number of Tamron’s newest lenses (including all the SP primes and the new 100-400 VC lens). There are nine rounded aperture blades that help keep a circular shape even when stopping the lens down to smaller apertures like f/5.6 or f/8.

There are two switches on the side of the barrel, a AF/MF switch (the lens does allow full time manual override of focus) and a VC (Vibration Compensation) ON/OFF switch. There isn’t an option to select different modes for the VC, though it should be noted that you can program in differing behavior for the VC through the optional Tap In Console accessory. I often elect to employ the “Capture Priority” mode (Mode 3), which does little to stabilize the viewfinder (allowing you to naturally track action) but gives the most effective stabilization to the actual images. If you have shaky hands, however, you may prefer a mode that prioritizes locking down the viewfinder image. Tamron’s VC on this lens is rated at 4 stops. I don’t find it to be the absolute best of Tamron’s systems that I’ve used, but it is effective.

Unlike the more expensive f/2.8 70-200 variants, the 70-210 VC (like the Canon f/4 lens) doesn’t come with a tripod collar. The A034TM is available as a separate accessory at a cost of $129 USD. The advantage of the Tamron collar (compared to the Canon) is that the Tamron collar is Arca-Swiss compatible, meaning that you can easily mount it on most tripods without any need for a quick release plate. It saves time and adds to the flexibility of the lens. If you aren’t a tripod shooter, however, the lens is easily light enough to be handheld for most shooters and isn’t heavy enough to really stress a camera even if mounted on a tripod. You will know if you are a person who needs a tripod collar or not.

One of the great strengths of the 70-210 VC is its ability to focus down very closely (under 1 meter – 3.12 feet). This allows the lens to have a near-macro like performance with a magnification of 0.32x (1:3.1 reproduction ratio). This easily bests the Canon’s 0.21x. I personally value lenses with good magnification figures as it adds to the versatility to the lens and the kind of shots you can take with it.

This highlights a key advantage over the more expensive G2 lens. Though it shares the minimum focus distance, it suffers from something often called “focus breathing”. When a lens focus breathes it means that the lens sacrifices some of its focal length at close distances in order to focus closer. The G2 lens behaves more like a 150mm lens rather than 200mm at very close focus distances, which limits its magnification to a rather poor 0.16x. As a result, the less expensive f/4 lens has a near double magnification figure, which vastly extends its usefulness in this kind of situation. The poor magnification of the G2 lens (which I own) is my least favorite aspect of the lens. At the other end of the spectrum is the 70-210 VC, which boasts a class-leading performance here.

One final thing worth noting is that the 70-210 VC is compatible with Tamron’s new TCs (teleconverters), which can add to the reach of the lens. The 1.4x teleconverter, for example, will make the lens behave like a 98-294mm f/5.6 lens, which is also a very useful focal range.

All told this is a lens that offers a lot of value for money. Other than a few minor niggles I feel that it provides a build and feature set that easily match or exceed the more expensive first party lenses.

Tamron 70-210 VC Autofocus

I have (for the most part) had good success with lenses equipped with Tamron’s USD (Ultrasonic Drive) focus motors. They are typically a ring-type autofocus motor with good speed (though rarely at the level of the best Canon USM motors), and, more importantly, good focus accuracy (though typically at the cost of some time invested in calibration). As for the Tamron 70-210 VC, however, I was left less than impressed.

First of all, it should be noted that AF system seems to be trying to straddle two worlds. The nature of photography has changed, and technologies like Canon’s DPAF have made the use of Live View (Contrast AF) far more common. A lot of people are now adapting lenses to Sony bodies, and, while Sony mirrorless bodies do have Phase Detect autofocus (like traditional viewfinder AF on DSLRs) in addition to contrast AF, the focus behavior to me in general seems more like Contrast AF. It quickly became apparent to me that the 70-210 VC sacrifices a bit of speed in Phase Detect AF (traditional viewfinder focus) to allow better behavior in Live View or when adapting the lens. I found focus speed pretty similar either way in Single Shot AF mode. In some ways it is hard to fault Tamron’s logic, but at the same time there was a notable difference between the focus speed of the 70-210mm VC and that of, say, the Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 G2 lens.

If all I had shot was Single Shot AF, I think I would have been reasonably satisfied. I used the lens some on the new Sony a73 via the Sigma MC-11 adapter and got beautifully focused results and fairly good focus speed for casual shooting. After some calibration I also found that I had good focus results on both my Canon 5D Mark IV and Canon 80D bodies. Focus speed wasn’t lighting quick, but acceptably fast, though I did have issues with occasional focus racks where the lens moved towards defocus before actually seeking focus lock. These seemed to happen when going from a close/medium focus distance subject to an infinity subject. The lens would first defocus before moving to the further focus point, robbing a crucial split second or two.

But when I switched to AF Servo mode (for tracking action), I was really disappointed. The lens was very, very slow to initially acquire focus, leaving me looking at a lot of blurriness in the viewfinder before the AF motor began to lock in focus. In some cases the defocus I just described above would occur, but the lens would give up after the defocus and not continue on towards infinity. I would have to depress the focus button again to “encourage” the lens to continue focusing. For casual action, like this softball shots, I got fairly good results once I achieved initial lock, as these photos show.

But when I tried to track faster action and had my track team son running hard towards the camera, I was very disappointed. I had to make sure to lock focus before he started moving, but even then found that the burst rate from the 5D Mark IV seems inconsistent because the lens wasn’t always signaling focus. I would estimate I dropped about 5 frames over a 5 second burst, and that was setting everything up for optimal performance. On top of that, there were only about 50% that were well focused, with a disappointing amount in each series that were completely unacceptably misfocused. The lens simply didn’t consistently keep up with the action consistently.

This was a far cry from my experience with the recent Tamron 100-400mm VC lens, which had surprisingly excellent autofocus for such an affordable lens. I’m left a little puzzled, as I see no reason why this lens should behave significantly poorer than that one…but it does.

It is my hope to evaluate a second copy to see if this was specific to my copy. It also seems possible that a firmware update could smooth out some autofocus glitches.

Ironically, however, all these problems go away if/when I switch to Contrast AF (Live View). The lens focused quickly (without the hesitation) and had no issues with defocusing. It’s as if the lens is better tuned for Contrast AF than it is for Phase Detect. In fact, if it focused as well in PDAF as it does in Live View, we wouldn’t be having this conversation. Instead I would be telling you what a great focusing lens it was.

Update: in late September 2018, Tamron released firmware 2.0 for the A034. I spent some time with an updated copy and looked specifically for the issues I originally saw. I was delighted to discover that essentially all of them have now been fixed. There is still a brief hesitation before final lock at times, but it happens in a split second and won’t affect focus in most situations. AF Servo focus works infinitely better, without any of the initial hesitation at finding focus or reluctance during tracking. It’s great to see Tamron stand by their product and work to improve it.

Tamron 70-210 VC Image Quality

The advantage of a lens like this is its ability to produce images with a much more professional “sparkle” than most consumer zooms. That’s certainly the case here. One area that is worth mentioning here before we proceed is the excellent magnification from the lens. As compared to the Canon 70-200mm f/4L IS, it has a much closer minimum focus distance (3.12’/95cm vs 3.94’/1.2m) and resulting much higher magnification level (0.32x vs 0.21x). This is incredibly useful, in that you very few situations where you end up too close to your subject and cannot focus, not to mention the fact that you can get near macro results (almost 1:3 life size) with a fabulous working distance of over three feet. I personally highly value lenses with high magnification figures because it really adds to the versatility of the lens and what you are able to shoot with it if you are out with the lens. My frequent hikes in the Canadian woods with a lens like this allow me to go from shooting traditional telephoto subjects to landscapes to macro-like shots.

This is one of the major assets of the lens in terms of image quality, but it is not the only one.

The last Canon EF mount lens I reviewed (the Sigma 14-24mm f/2.8 ART) was the first third party lens I’ve reviewed to have support from Canon’s in body Lens Aberration Correction. I quickly checked this lens in hope that Canon had relaxed its policy for all third-party lenses, but unfortunately that wasn’t the case. It seems Sigma must have a unique partnership in place with Canon.

Resolution and Contrast

I prefer to not asses sharpness in a vacuum; I would rather have some kind of benchmark to compare to. Relying on memory can be a fickle thing, as conditions and equipment changes. For this comparison I elected to use the excellent Tamron SP 70-200mm f/2.8 G2 lens (mostly because I own it and have it on hand). I will preface my findings by saying that the G2 lens (rightly) wins most all of these comparisons. And it should: it costs 62% more, is larger and heavier, and at most focal lengths save 200mm outperformed the mighty Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II in my comparisons. My point is that I am using a very high benchmark for the optical performance for this lens.

The best way to visualize what I’m sharing here is by watching the following video segment where I interactively compare/contrast these two lenses:

To sum up those findings, however:

At 70mm there are a few general observations. With both lenses wide open (f/4 and f/2.8, respectively), the G2 lens shows slightly heavier vignette. You will also note that when looking at a pixel level, the right image (G2) will look smaller than the left image (70-210 VC). The reason for this is that the G2 lens is very prone towards focus breathing (where it behaves as a shorter focal length at close focus distances) while the 70-210 G2 doesn’t at all. One final general observation (for all focal lengths) is that the 70-210 VC tends to deliver a slightly cooler image when compared to the more neutral G2 lens.

At 70mm the G2 lens is sharper both in the center and edge of the frame with both lenses wide open.

Both lenses show a nice even sharpness profile right out to the edges, though the G2 is slightly stronger in the extreme corners.

Stopping the G2 down to f/4 to match the 70-210 VC only increases that advantage in sharpness and contrast, though when both lenses are stopped down to f/5.6 the gap closes.

Both lenses are delivering an excellent performance for something like landscapes at this point, as you can see from the image below from the 70-210 VC.

Moving on to 100mm shows a very similar performance. The G2 lens is sharper wide open, though not by a large margin. It shows slightly better contrast as well. When stopped down there is little to distinguish the two lenses, as the third image shows.

At 135mm the difference between the two lenses wide open is close enough to be essentially non-existent for field use, though I would slightly favor the G2’s micro-contrast of the fine details at a pixel level. I found this to be a high point for the G2’s sharpness when I reviewed it, so that tells me that the 70-210 VC is also extremely sharp at this focal length. The lens is sharp from corner to corner. Stopping down reduces vignette but makes little change to sharpness or contrast. The lens is near perfect already.

At 210mm there is a somewhat unique vignette. Its unique in that it essentially covers almost all of the image frame. It isn’t particularly severe in any one spot, but it is severe the in the degree of coverage, which almost results in a slightly lower light transmission. Take a look at how the correction in Lightroom, though mild in scope, increases light transmission across the frame.

When comparing to the G2 lens the difference in framing is striking. Yes, the 70-210mm VC has 10mm of additional focal length, but at the test distance (about 15 feet) the difference is far greater. I would guess the difference to be somewhere around 40mm in difference. It is in part due to the lack of focus breathing on the part of the 70-210 VC that it has such a high magnification level (it essentially doubles that of the G2 lens at minimum focus). You will note that the size of the brick sections is much larger on the left (70-210 VC) side.

That’s where the advantage for the 70-210 VC ends, however, as the G2 is noticeably sharper in both the center and edge and delivers better microcontrast on the fine details. Stopping the G2 lens down to f/4 only increases that gap. Stopping both lenses down to f/5.6 highlights the fact that the G2 has gained even more sharpness and contrast while the 70-210 VC has remained largely the same.

In an absolute sense, the sharpness is actually quite good in field use, but in this comparison it is outclassed by the superior resolution from the G2 lens. Check out some of these “worst case scenario” examples.

As you can see, the lens is actually quite good even at its weakest focal distance, but there is some drop-off from the rest of the focal range.

Chromatic Aberration, Distortion, Color, Bokeh, and Flare

I observed few chromatic aberrations in field use, which results in nice, crisp images with high levels of contrast. I got a number of fantastic shots with the lens that I thought looked great right out of the camera. Here’s a crop from an image that would be highly susceptible to CA, but there is little to see:

There is some mild barrel distortion (bulging out from the center) at 70mm, but I never really saw much pincushion distortion (pinching in towards the middle) later in the telephoto range (pincushion is the more typical telephoto distortion). I don’t anticipate that distortion will be a factor for most users.

Flare resistance is a mixed bag. The lens doesn’t exhibit a lot of ghosting artifacts (color blobs of color – typically green and orange), but it does veil quite heavily (loses contrast). Whether this is a blessing or a curse will depend on your subject, as there are artistic applications for veiling like in the photo below:

At the same time, while veiling does have some artistic applications, it is in fact an optical defect. It is just one that can have some usefulness. Here’s a look at how the lens reacts as I progressively move the sun into the frame. In the final example you can see a bit of ghosting on the right side of the frame, but that was the worst example that I saw during my review period.

The bokeh quality for the lens is, for the most part, quite nice. It produces nicely smooth defocused regions and can provide real separation from the background at most focus distances. I did note a little bit of mirror-box clipping in some shots, but overall I give this lens a very positive grade for the bokeh quality.

I consider color rendition to be a real strength for the lens. I found that the images were nicely saturated and had a beautiful feel to them. Here’s a few standouts.

All in all, the optical shortcomings of the lens are few and fairly easily managed. Check out more real-world images in the Lens Image Gallery.

Tamron 70-210 VC APS-C Results

I also tested the lens some on my Canon EOS 80D body, where behaves like a 112-336mm lens. Certainly APS-C shooters will enjoy that extra reach for birding and wildlife. There are pros and cons to making that switch. The most notable plus is that the vignette is essentially completely removed due to that portion of the image circle being eliminated by the smaller sensor. You can see that in this comparison:

Don’t read too much into the more “contrasty” APS-C result, as this is a JPEG vs the RAW file on full frame and, as a result, has more contrast dialed in. But the 24MP APS-C sensor on the 80D is also a very demanding one, with a pixel density similar to a 50 MP+ full frame sensor. As a result, most lenses look a little softer on APS-C.

What I’m finding is that the center and edge sharpness are nearly identical, as the weakest portion of the frame (extreme edges) have been “clipped”. Resolution as a whole is a little softer but very even. The G2 looks a little sharper in my comparisons (as before) and its contrast holds up better. When stopped down, the advantage for the G2 lens increases even more. There’s no question that it is the sharper lens in an absolute sense.

I’ve chosen the most critical focal length (210mm) for this comparison, though you can see a more thorough comparison in the video review.

Real world photos look good when viewed globally, with excellent color, contrast, and sharpness, though at a pixel level you can see the slightly reduced microcontrast levels when compared to similar full frame results (not unusual). This lens will be a significant upgrade optically over consumer grade zooms, however, due to having smoother bokeh and nicer color rendition (along with much lower levels of chromatic aberrations).

Here’s a few real-world samples.

There’s no reason to avoid this lens if you are an APS-C shooter, as its size and performance are a good match. If you want absolute sharpness (and don’t mind size, weight, price, and some focus breathing), the G2 lens is obviously an upgrade in terms of resolution.

Conclusion

There’s a lot to like about Tamron’s most recent lens, from the build to the excellent magnification to the excellent price. The Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC provides a nice alternative to existing options, yet Canon may have upstaged Tamron with the recent announcement of the EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II, a heavily updated and improved lens. Still, for those on a budget, the reality that the new Canon will cost 50% more than the Tamron might still be a compelling factor. At the same time, however, I cannot deliver complete approbation of the A034, as I felt that in some areas it underperformed my expectations. It is a sharp lens, but is clearly outclassed by the larger Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 G2 lens. I found the autofocus a little slower than expected (the recent Tamron 100-400mm f/4.5-6.3 VC was much faster) and also found the autofocus a little more prone to hunting in some situations. There aren’t many other reviews out there, but none of the other reviewers have noted the focus hunting issues that I experienced, so I suspect it was specific to my review copy. My supplier was unfortunately unable to get me a second copy of the lens during my review period. If you are on a budget, this is an excellent choice…particularly if you are a Nikon shooter. If you a Canon shooter, have a slightly larger budget, and aren’t in a rush, you might want to wait and see what the new Canon 70-200 f/4L IS II has to offer as faster, more refined autofocus is almost certainly a given.

As an addendum (October 2018): Tamron has updated the 70-210 VC with firmware 2.0 which solves the issues I saw with autofocus. It is improved all around. I’ve also now reviewed the Canon 70-200mm f/4L IS II, and, while I feel that the Canon is the best lens in the class at this focal length, it is also more than 60% more expensive. If you are on a budget, I feel like the 70-210mm f/4 VC is a solid alternative, providing most of the performance at a significantly reduced price.

Pros:

Nice build quality complete with weather sealing
Mechanical operation is very good
Very nice color rendition and global contrast
Bokeh quality good in most situations
Excellent CA control
Very quiet autofocus
Excellent maximum magnfication
Compatibility with Tap In Console and Tamron Teleconverters
Very competitive price
Excellent warranty

Cons:

A little flare prone
Softer at 210mm
Autofocus quirks such as tendency to rack focus when going from close to infinity subjects
AF Servo performance uneven

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Keywords: Tamron 70-210mm f/4, Tamron 70-210 VC, Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC USD, Tamron 70-210mm Review, Tamron 70-210 Review, 70-210mm, VC, USD, Tamron, withmytamron, Dustin Abbott, Lens, Review, Comparison, Autofocus, Resolution, Sharpness, Canon 5D Mark IV, Sony a7R3, Sony a73, Sigma MC-11, Canon 80D, APS-C, Full Frame, Sample Images, Tamron 70-210mm f/4 Di VC USD, Video Test

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Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC USD Image Gallery

Dustin Abbott

May 7th, 2018

A focal range not recently tackled by third party lenses is covered by Tamron’s newest lens – the Tamron 70-210mm f/4 Di VC USD. A maximum aperture of f/4 at this focal length allows photographers to get high quality results with still shallow depth of field, but at a considerably lower size, weight, and price than the f/2.8 versions of this focal length. Tamron has even managed to squeeze an extra 10mm into their design on the long end (210 vs 200mm) while also giving some advantages over the first party options like the aging but still excellent Canon 70-200mm f/4L IS (higher magnification, better warranty, and much lower price). If this lens shapes up to perform optically (it does) and in its autofocus, then undoubtedly this will be a great seller for Tamron. My full review is in progress, but in the meantime feel free to check out my images taken of the lens, with the lens (on native Canon EF mount), and even via adapter on Sony bodies.

Images of the Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC USD

Images taken with the Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC USD (Canon 5D Mark IV)

Images taken with the Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC USD on APS-C (Canon 80D)

Images taken with the Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC USD on Sony (a7R3 + a73)

Image Results with Firmware Update 2.0

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Keywords: Tamron 70-210mm f/4, Tamron 70-210 VC, Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC USD, Tamron 70-210mm Review, Tamron 70-210 Review, 70-210mm, VC, USD, Tamron, withmytamron, Dustin Abbott, Lens, Review, Comparison, Autofocus, Resolution, Sharpness, Canon 5D Mark IV, Sony a7R3, Sony a73, Sigma MC-11, Canon 80D, APS-C, Full Frame, Sample Images, Tamron 70-210mm f/4 Di VC USD, Video Test

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Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II Review

Dustin Abbott

August 6th, 2018

Canon 70-200mm f/4L II Build and Handling

Canon 70-200 f/4L II Autofocus

Canon 70-200 f/4L II Image Quality

Resolution

Rendering

Conclusion

Pros:

Cons:

Related Articles at DustinAbbott.net

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II Image Gallery

Dustin Abbott

July 14th, 2018

Images of the Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II

Images Taken with the Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II

With a Canon 1.4x III Extender

Related Articles at DustinAbbott.net

Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC USD Review (A034)

Dustin Abbott

June 21st, 2018

Build, Handling, and Design

Tamron 70-210 VC Autofocus

Tamron 70-210 VC Image Quality

Resolution and Contrast

Chromatic Aberration, Distortion, Color, Bokeh, and Flare

Tamron 70-210 VC APS-C Results

Conclusion

Pros:

Cons:

Related Articles at DustinAbbott.net

Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC USD Image Gallery

Dustin Abbott

May 7th, 2018

Images of the Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC USD

Images taken with the Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC USD (Canon 5D Mark IV)

Images taken with the Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC USD on APS-C (Canon 80D)

Images taken with the Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC USD on Sony (a7R3 + a73)

Image Results with Firmware Update 2.0

Related Articles at DustinAbbott.net

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