The following chart presents a comparison between basic parameters of full frame mirrorless lenses which focal lengths amount to 24-25 mm and aperture fastness ranges from f/2.0 to f/2.8.
The Samyang is a real midget in this group. The Leica is hardly bigger but it weighs noticeably more. The Samyang and the Leica are also optically the simplest, contrary to the Tamron and both Zeiss devices, which consist of as many as 10 elements. Of course the minimum focusing distance of the Tamron sticks out at once - it's a result of employing the 1:2 reproduction ratio and a quite decent substitute of macro mode.
In the following photo the Tamron 24 mm f/2.8 Di III OSD M 1:2 is positioned between the Voigtlander Apo-Lanthar 2/65 and the Sigma A 35 mm f/1.4 DG HSM.
Please Support Us
If you enjoy our reviews and articles, and you want us to continue our work please, support our website by donating through PayPal. The funds are going to be used for paying our editorial team, renting servers, and equipping our testing studio; only that way we will be able to continue providing you interesting content for free.
When you take the Tamron 2.8/24 out of its box for the first time its low weigh is what turns your attention immediately. Physical dimensions of the lens suggest that you might deal with something heavier. Still, it doesn't mean plastic parts are everywhere. The tested lens starts with a metal mount which surrounds an immobile rear element. The part of the casing around that element is black, and very well matted, with a 24×17 mm window, alarmingly small, taking into account the size of detector this lens is supposed to cooperate with.
The proper barrel is covered by black plastics; first you see a smooth ring which doesn't move with a silver stripe and a mark making an alignment with a camera easier. The ring increases its diameter very quickly and already on the enlargened part you find an inscription with the name and parameters of the lens and information that it was designed in Japan but produced in Vietnam.
A manual focus ring, 18 mm wide, completely covered by ribbing, is next. It doesn't feature any distance or depth of field scale. The ring is a focus-by-wire construction, it moves smoothly and is well damped. Even if you turn it quickly running through the whole scale needs an angle of almost 180 degrees and when you turn it slowly its focus throw might even reach 650 degrees. Both values allow you very precise settings but you have to remember that the distance range is really huge – after all the lens focuses already from 12 cm.
Behind the manual focus ring you see a small part of the casing which turns smoothly into a hood mount; a petal-type hood which fits it you get with the lens in the box as a part of the accessory kit.
The convex front element is 28 mm in diameter and it moves when you focus. The element is positioned less than 0.5 cm below the edge of the barrel with the focus set at its minimum value; when you go toward infinity it hides less than 2 cm deep. The element is surrounded by black casing and a non-rotating filter thread, 67 mm in diameter.
When it comes to optical construction you deal here with 10 elements positioned in 9 groups. Among them you can find three low dispersion LD glass elements and an aspherical one. Inside you can also find an aperture with seven diaphragm blades which can be closed down up to a value of f/22.
Buyers get in the box: both caps, and a petal-type hood, mentioned before.
