[wulinka]

Hi guys,

It's hard to believe, but for weeks and weeks now I have been debating whether to get the tamron 90mm or the canon 100mm. Everyone has probably read about this a quizzillion times, so I apologise if I bore you, but if someone had some decisive input, it would be hugely appreciated

Besides from obviously shooting macros, I would like to use this lense for portraits as well, also I am aware some of you might say it could be a bit long in some situations.
Price is not a matter here, because in the US they are actually identical in price right now.

from all I gather so far, I think the following:

Tamron:
Sharper - everyone agrees on that, but how much does it matter on 8 mpix if people say in real life they don't see the difference even on projected dias?
Lighter
auto focus more precise
full 180° manual focussing ring
first lense element quite deep in the tube, almost no lense hood necessary

but
some problems with lense flare in extreme light situations
the awkward focus switch
built quality?

and I read a remark about the tamron potentially not being compatible with futur canon models (9000 something?),
has anyone heard about this?

Canon

really obviously I like the
manual focus override and
the internal focussing mechnism

the canon doesn't come with a lense hood, but doesn't seem to need one that badly, because it seems to have no lense flare whatsoever.

some people mentions color tone differences between the two, wich I don't think I am too concerned about.
And then there is the differnce in length, which I personally think is negectable (is that a word?)

I think that's all right now, and it's driving me crazy!!

Any help appreciated. Sorry to bug you guys.
I also am aware that I haven't been around too much with any input, comments, or pictures, the best apology is probably that I am working hard on my portait skills and the results so far are more frustrating that postable, so I will have to get through that.


Cheers,
Uli

[adam]

by awkward focus switch, do you mean the type where you switch from Auto Focus to Manual Focus by pulling/pushing the focusing ring?
I've got that on my 12-24, it's my only lens with that, and I found it quite... interesting

You've probably seen this one I'm guessing:
http://www.photo.net/equipment/canon/can-tam-macro/

[shuttertalk]

Hey good article adam. It seems that the Canon and Tamron are on par in almost all areas with the exception of handling and operation, where the Canon wins out, especially AF and working distance. Kudos to Tamron - they obviously have some fine engineers over there, and should be congratulated for giving Canon a run for their money.

If you're into macros, the additional working distance with Canon will definitely help, and you can't complain about faster, quieter focussing (and one that works at close range).

I've never used these lenses, so take my advice with large chunks of salt. Uli, if they're identical in price, my personal decision would be to definitely get the Canon. At the end of the day, most people get third party lenses because they're usually cheaper. If price is the same, I'd stick with the brand name... you might get better resale value as well if you decide to sell later on...

[Toad]

Well - owning the Tamron, I can tell you - the focus clutch is different than 2 rings - but is not awkward at all once you get used to it. The build quality is also totally acceptable. As far as positives, you didn't mention the extremely lovely bokeh that the Tamron 90 has (a huge plus for portraits).

You would not be dissapointed with this lens - guaranteed. Search the online user feedback at dpreview. You'll see nothing but kudos (not that the Canon isn't a great lens, I'm sure).

[wulinka]

Yep, that was the article I rembered showing the lense flare with the tamron (the candle shot). honestly that was about the only thing that really turned me off about the tamron.
To be quite honest, for the rest of the samples, and on my screen, I can't see a horrible difference between them. If you did a blind test with me, I could not assign them to one of the lenses.

Someone wrote an awsome comparison in here just a short while ago, and again, in numbers the tamron looked sooooo much sharper, I just wonder how much I am really going to see that.

bokeh is a good thing to mention, thanks toad. any thought on how it compares to the canon though?

Anyway, you see how it is, ask 3 people, and get 4 answers :-))
probably I just have to go and GET one, and I'll feel better

uli