I’m excited to show you the new Tamron 16-30mm G2 lens. It just came out and we got our hands on it. Super excited to talk about it and show you the features that it has. Excellent upgrade from their first generation. This is a major step forward in so many different ways.
As far as video, customization, it’s got a button on the side that the first version did not. That was the 17-28mm. It also has a port so you can be able to plug it in to be able to update things. But it’s just that new ergonomically, so easy to use kind of form factor.It still sticks with the 67mm thread mount on the front, which I love. This is a great addition to the trinity because it’s a little wider and a little longer. 
Which really works with the 28-75mm and the 70-180mm. It really gives us a second generation and finishes that trinity which is something that Tamron’s needed to do for a long time. 
So we’re here in Bryce Canyon, we’re going to go out, we’re going to shoot with it. Going to look at some images and just see how it performs. So let’s get out and take some images and see what we got.
So I’m shooting on the new 16-30mm Tamron lens.It’s a f/2.8 lens. It’s just a beautiful lens for this kind of an area because I’m down in tight. I can do really wide shots. If I can do up to 30mm. 
It gives me a nice vista. A beautiful lens for this kind of situation. This is our G2 lens. So here’s some of the images. We’re just going to keep shooting and see how this lens does.
So this is a complete redesign of this lens. The old lens, the 17-28mm, that smooth barrel, it didn’t have the ports. Didn’t have a button. This moves into the second generation that matches with the other second generations that Tamron’s been doing. 
We’ve got the button to be able to program. So we can be able to program to do several different things. I usually set that to be able to do autofocus or manual focus. It’s also got the design that I love and that is it’s got this little dent in the middle here which allows me to tell what’s my focus ring. I then have a space and then it’s my zoom ring on the back. And that makes this comfortable for me to use. 
If I have gloves on or if I’m shooting at night I don’t have to think about it. I know exactly where those different rings are located. 
Love the port on the side which really makes it so if you’re doing video, you want to be able to program any kind of focus moves. Which I’ve done a lot. That port is critical because it allows you to update the firmware on the lens. It allows you to use Tamron’s utility which gives you a lot of different features. So this becomes a true second generation. It matches the other second generation lenses that Tamron’s been making and is a major upgrade for this lens and one that we’ve been needing for quite a while.
This lens is really good for a lot of applications. It’s great for landscape to get those broad views. It’s really wonderful for that. It’s f/2.8 so it’s fast if you want to work in low light situations. I shoot architecture interiors and exteriors. This is a perfect lens for that. 
This is the lens I would use all of the time because it gives me that broad view of the building. I can get up a little higher to kind of correct some of the perspective rather than low. But it also gives me interior shots. I can shoot interiors with it which makes it perfect for that kind of an application. It’s great for astrophotography if you’re outside shooting stars. It’s just going to give you that broad view of the sky.
So it is part of the trinity. It’s the lens that people go to for that wide application. It’s great for environmental portraits because you can see the person in their environment. You see all the place that they live in or where they work at or those kinds of things. 
So it’s a great environmental portrait kind of look. Unlike the 70-180mm which is about getting rid of the background. This wide lens is about keeping the background, showing the world what the person lives in. So it’s great for portraits. 
Overall there’s so many applications, just general photography. Down here we’re walking in these Hoodoos and it’s tight space. We want to have broad views so we can see the things around us. So it’s perfect for that. So we’re just going to keep shooting away.
So Tamron makes all of their lenses with moisture resistant construction so they’re made to be outside. So you don’t have to be concerned. So that’s really a nice feature in this entire line.
So it’s always a good idea to know the close focusing distance of a lens because that just unlocks some of the capabilities if you want to get in closer on things, whether it has macro capabilities. 
This is not a macro lens but at 16mm you can get up to 7.5 inches. So if I take a shot of this here at that distance and at 16mm, what it does is it it’s going to, it’s wider and it’s going to give you more background. But at 30mm I can go to 11.8 inches. 
So I’m not as close and also the background is going to be more cropped in on the background. So at 16mm things are a little more round. You see more of the background. At 30mm things are a little flatter and the background is pulled closer to you. 
So take a look at those two images with this log here and just see how those compare. It’s an interesting thing to look at. But it changes the perspective completely. So not a macro lens but it does allow you to get pretty close so you can show things like flowers, you know, a lot of different things if you’re shooting a wedding or what have you. It definitely allows you get in close enough to make this really valuable as a closer kind of close focusing lens.
So this is a really easy lens to travel with. It’s very short. 
It’s about 4 inches, so easy to put in a bag or carry in a backpack. It’s about 15.5 ounces, so just under a pound. 
So very lightweight, compact, 67 millimeter. Just a great travel lens because of the size and weight.
So the optical performance of this lens is really superb. I’m shooting on an a7R V which is a 50 plus megapixel camera. 
And it’s got to resolve. I’m shooting straight at the sun. It doesn’t flare. I’m getting great sharpness from corner to corner. It’s not vignetting in the corner. 
The chromatic aberrations, I’m not seeing chromatic aberration. I’m just getting a really clean optical performance which is so nice in a wide lens like this. Sometimes wide lenses will have problems but this one’s very sharp, it resolves extremely well. 
I’m excited to be able to shoot some architecture with it because it’s going to be perfect for that. It’s great out here, beautiful lens. So I’m shooting a lot on these blue skies and it’s not vignetting in the corners at all. That’s wonderful to see.
The VXD autofocus on this lens is fast, it’s quiet, it works flawlessly. I’ve been very pleased with this VXD system through all the lenses that Tamron makes. 
And it’s really worked extremely well. If I’m shooting animals, if I’m shooting a person walking, we’ve done a lot of tests where people are walking for focus and it just, it stays with them, does a great job. 
Works seamlessly with Sony. Really impressive. 
They also make this lens mount for Nikon Z-mount, which is excellent as well. So you’re starting to get that trinity in the Z-mount which is a great addition there. We’re going to see a lot more of that in the future and the RF mount eventually I would think. So pretty excited about seeing all those in the future. But right now Nikon Z and a Sony.
So let’s wrap this up. This really fills out the wide end of the trinity in a G2 lens. We now have a G2 lens in each of the trinity made by Tamron for Sony and also for Nikon. So what’s great about that is that they are customizable. They give you that new form factor that’s so easy to use. 67mm so you can put all your filters across the entire trinity. 
I just think this really fills up and puts together that final set of lenses. Those three lenses make a great set of lenses to be able to carry with you to use. And as a set of lenses I will always have with me. Also the ability to adapt the button on the side and use the app makes them so you can use them for video as well as stills. 
Which is super helpful. Combine that with super-fast autofocus and great weather sealing you have now three lenses that are professional level. This lens especially is great for architecture, landscape and astrophotography. 
That wide lens, it’s just an excellent addition to the trinity in a G2 lens. Super excited to have it. So you keep those cameras rollin’ and keep on clickin’!
