Review Tamron SP AF Aspherical XR Di LD [IF] 28-75mm 1: 2.8 Macro A09 (Model A09N & Model A09N II)

According provided by Tamron SP AF Aspherical XR Di LD [IF] 28-75mm 1: 2.8 Macro A09 (Model A09N for Nikon) many thanks Melnikov Alexey. And also for provided by Aspherical LD ​​XR DI SP Tamron AF 28-75mm f / 2.8 [IF] Macro A09 (Model A09NII for Nikon) for comparison with the model A09N Many thanks to Igor.

Tamron SP AF Aspherical XR Di LD [IF] 28-75mm 1: 2.8 Macro A09 is an inexpensive, versatile fast lens for full-frame cameras, often used as a replacement for native expensive class 24 (28) -70 / 2.8 lenses, such as Nikon N AF-S Nikkor 24-70mm 1: 2.8G ED NanoCrystalCoat SWM IF Aspherical or Canon Zoom Lens EF 24-70mm 1: 2.8 L USM.

The lens barrel has his full name on the barrel: 'Tamron SP AF Aspherical XR Di LD [IF] 28-75mm 1: 2.8 Macro A09', while the box contains a clarification that says 'Model A09N'. The letter 'N' in the model name refers to the version of the lens for Nikon cameras.

Please note that the Tamron A09 lens was also available for other systems:

• Canon - Model A09E
• Pentax - Model A09P
• Sony - Model A09S
• Nikon - Model A09N (such as in this review) or A09NII

For Sony cameras, there is another original copy of the lens - Sony 2.8 / 28-75 SAM (SAL2875) with the same optical design as the Tamron A09. And also, with the same optical design, there is Konica Minolta AF ZOOM 28-75mm 1: 2.8 (32) D.

Key Features of Tamron SP AF Aspherical XR Di LD [IF] 28-75mm 1: 2.8 Macro A09 (A09N version for Nikon cameras)

Review Instance Name	Tamron SP AF Aspherical XR Di LD [IF] 28-75mm 1: 2.8 Macro A09 525011 Made in Japan (on the box: “Tamron SP AF28-75mm F / 2.8 XR Di LD Aspherical (IF) Macro Model: A09N Filter Size: Ø 67mm for Nikon D compatible ”)
Basic properties	SP (Super Performance) - the high performance found in Tamron's professional lens line AF (Auto Focus) - support for auto focus aspherical - aspherical elements in the optical scheme XR (Extra Refractive Index) - elements with a high refractive index with which you can make compact lenses DI (Digitally Integrated) - Designed for use on full-frame DSLR cameras LD (Low Dispersion) - special low dispersion elements. [IF] (Internal Focus) - internal focus Macro - the possibility of macro photography LOCK - 28mm zoom ring lock
Front Filter Diameter	67 mm
Focal length	28-75 mm EGF for Nikon DX cameras is 42-112.5 mm
Zoom ratio	2.68 X (often rounded to three)
Designed by	for full-format digital cameras
Number of aperture blades	7 rounded petals that form a fairly even hole
Tags	focusing distance in meters and feet, focal lengths for 28, 35, 50, 75 mm, hood attachment mark. Values ​​on the aperture ring: 2.8, 4, 5.6, 8, 11, 16, 22, 32.
Diaphragm	from F / 2.8 over the entire range of focal lengths to F / 32. The lens has an aperture ring (Non-G - lens type for Nikon cameras)
MDF	0.33 m, maximum magnification ratio 1: 3.9
The weight	510 g
Optical design	16 elements in 14 groups of which 4 aspherical (Aspherical, marked in pink), 3 special low dispersion elements (LD, marked in green) and 2 elements with a high refractive index (XR, marked in blue). Clickable ImageThe optical design is the same as Sony 2.8 /28-75 SAM
Lens hood	Tamron DA09Japan
Manufacturer country	MADE IN Japan
Period	From October 2003 to 2008, later replaced by A09N II
Price	View on E-katalog View on Magazilla View on Nadavi View on M. Video View on Ozone

The lens was first introduced in October 2002, and it was only begun to be sold in the summer of 2003. At one time, the lens was announced as the lightest and most compact fast standard zoom lens in the world.

Assembly

Despite the fact that the lens is positioned as SP (Super Performance), the build quality is better. The new Tamron A09 lenses feature lightweight play on the retractable body frame. Over time, the backlash becomes stronger, the backlash of the zoom ring and the focus ring appears. Holding the lens in my hands it seems that it is about to crumble. Also, over time, the rubber bands of the zoom ring swell and exfoliate. Parts of the lens can sometimes creak. Build quality is similar to Tamron 17-50mm F / 2.8 XR Di II LD Aspherical (IF). But unlike 17-50, the 28-75mm version lasts a very long time, and the picture quality does not suffer from the shakiness of the case.

The focus and zoom rings are rubberized. Tamron A09 has metal bayonet mount. The retractable trunk of the lens consists of one section.

There is a mark on the case for quick installation of the hood. The lens uses a plastic lens Tamron DA09, which is fixed in special grooves located near the front lens of the lens. The hood can be installed in the opposite direction for transportation. In this position, access to the zoom and focus ring is practically not lost.

The lens comes in a small cardboard box with a characteristic Tamron coloring.

'LOCK' button

Frame (trunk) at Tamron A09 spontaneously changes its size under its own weight (perhaps this begins only with time). For example, when the camera is tilted down, the trunk of the lens spontaneously lengthens (focal length increases). To prevent such an unpleasant nuance, the lens lock button 'LOCK' (the so-called 'lock') is present on the lens body, which tightly locks focal length at a value of 28 mm.

To fix the trunk of the lens, you must first set the 28 mm focal length.

The lens is inconvenient to 'remove from the lock' before shooting, since the button is in a very inconvenient place.

Also, note that while changing the focal length, the rear lens moves in the middle of the lens body like a pump - it draws in and pushes out air. This behavior of the rear lens is called 'effect' of a vacuum cleaner, which can increase the amount of dust that accumulates in the camera.

Diaphragm

The aperture blades were apparently economized, since the Tamron A09 uses a 7-bladder aperture. On covered diaphragms, the formed hole is rather round, but still the faces of the 7-gon square can be easily traced.

A maximum relative aperture of 1: 2.8 is available over the entire range of focal lengths. Aperture closes to F / 32.

Focusing

The focus ring rotates only 45 degrees, which makes manual focusing quite difficult. During auto focus the ring rotates and cannot be touched.

Auto focus fast, internal type... Auto focus is quite noisy. The lens has a scale with a focusing distance scale in meters and feet. The closest focusing distance is 33cm and the maximum zoom ratio is 1: 3.9, which is quite good. The inscription 'Macro' on the lens is more for show, since the 'real' macro lens cannot shoot.

Compatibility and Features

It's important: auto focus with this lens is available only when using him on cameras with built-in motor focusing.

Exact list Nikon DSLR cameras with a built-in focus motor, on which this lens will focus automatically:

• D1, D1h, D1x, D2x, D2xs, D2h, D2hs
• D3, D3x, D3s, D4, D4s, D5, D6
• Df
• D50, D70, D70s, D80, D90
• D7000, D7100, D7200,D7500
• D100, D200, D300, D300s,D500
• D600, D610, D750, D780
• D700, D800,D800E, D810, D810a, D850
• Fujifilm FinePix S1 Pro, S2 Pro, S3 ProS3 Pro UVIR, S5 ProIS Pro
• Kodak DCS PRO 14n, DCS Pro SLR/n

Exact list Nikon DSLR cameras without a built-in focus motor, on which this lens will not focus automatically:

• D40, D40x, D60
• D3000, D3100, D3200, D3300, D3400, D3500
• D5000, D5100, D5200, D5300, D5500, D5600
• all digital mirrorless cameras Nikon ZDX, Nikon ZFX with Nikon FTZ/FTZ II adapter

Only auto focus and sound confirmation of focus will not work with these cameras, all other important functions, such as automatic exposure metering and automatic iris control, will work well.

You will find a lot of useful information on the types of cameras and lenses Nikon here.

There is no focus mode switch on the lens itself; to put the lens in manual focus mode, you must put the camera in manual focus mode using the switch located near the camera mount.

The lens has a manual aperture ring. To be able to control the value aperture from camera or for automatic installation aperture on modern central control valves, you need to turn the control ring to the F / 32 value, after which it is fixed with a special button, which is located to the left of the marks aperture. To release the fixation of the diaphragm ring, press the latch button. If this is not done, then on a number of cameras, the display will display an error - 'fEE' (ring is not installed aperture) Some cameras having diaphragm rheostatallow you to control the aperture using the ring aperturebut only in metering modes exposure 'M' and 'A'. You can read more about this issue in the section on Non-G Lenses. Ring aperture rotates with clicks, the values ​​F / 2.8, 4, 5.6, 8, 11, 16, 22, 32 are plotted on it. It is impossible to establish an intermediate value between pairs of numbers using the aperture ring. Intermediate values ​​can only be set using the camera menu.

EGF lens for Nikon DX cameras is 42-112.5mm. I don’t see much point in using Tamron A09 on cropped Nikon cameras. Who is looking for a similar inexpensive lens for cropped cameras, I advise you to look away Tamron 17-50mm F / 2.8 XR Di II LD Aspherical (IF).

Versions A09N and A09N II

There are two versions of the Tamron A09 lens for Nikon cameras: Tamron SP AF Aspherical XR Di LD [IF] 28-75mm 1: 2.8 Macro A09 (Model A09N) and Aspherical LD ​​XR DI SP Tamron AF 28-75mm f / 2.8 [IF] Macro A09 (Model A09N II).

Below are the main differences between them:

1. Version A09N was released from 2003 to 2008. Version A09N II is available from 2008 to the present day.
2. The A09N II version has a built-in micro-focus motor, which allows the lens to be used with any Nikon camera, even entry-level amateur cameras. In fact, for Nikon cameras, the A09N II version is 'AF-S' alike. Unfortunately, the name does not show the presence of a focusing motor.
3. Different names. Tamron is generally very fond of long names for their lenses. If you look closely, the A09N version in its name has the following sequence of 'titles': “Tamron SP AF Aspherical XR Di LD [IF] 28-75mm 1: 2.8 Macro”. The A09N II version has a different name, with rearranged 'titles' and a different aperture designation: “Aspherical LD ​​XR DI SP Tamron AF 28-75mm f / 2.8 [IF] Macro”.
4. The auto focus speed of the A09N II is slightly lower than the previous version. Especially the difference in focusing speed is felt on TOP cameras that have fast and powerful built-in focus motor.
5. The A09N II has an 'AF / MF' focus mode switch located on the lens barrel. The A09N version does not have such a switch.
6. A09N II removed the aperture control ring.
7. Other changes and improvements to the lenses are possible, but exact additional information is not available.

I could check the operation of the focus motor of the A09N II model on a non-motorized camera Nikon D40where the A09N II lens performed wonderfully. Below are examples of photos from the A09N II:

Important: There are two sub-versions of A09N with different enlightenment. The first sub-versions have enlightenment, which makes the picture yellowish in JVI and seriously biases white balance in the yellow line (bottle glass). The review shows a subversion of A09N with updated enlightenment. Updated A09N enlightenment shimmers with green, yellow and purple colors (see photo below). Subversion A09N with old enlightenment shimmers in green, red and purple (no yellow). Be careful not to fall for the version of A09N with the old enlightenment.

Image quality

In the center, the lens is sharp across the entire range of focal lengths and even at F / 2.8. True, on F / 2.8 I would like better lens performance. If you cover the aperture to F / 4.0, then the claims for sharpness in the center of the frame disappear altogether. Unfortunately, the sharpness at the corners and edges of the frame on a full-format camera is much better. Also, the lens suffers from severe vignetting at open apertures, especially at 28 mm focal length.

Needless to say, distortion is indispensable here, however, it has a uniform appearance and is easily corrected by the editor. Chromatic aberrations pretty well fixed and rarely seen in the frame. Tamron A09 has a good contrast and behaves well in backlight. In addition, the lens has at least some of its own more or less nice design. In general, Tamron A09 does not create anything revolutionary for the money, but at the same time, image quality should be sufficient for most tasks.

I used this lens in a huge number of full-fledged shootings as one single universal solution with cameras Nikon D700, D610, D90 and S5 Pro:

All photos were shot using protective filter Marumi Made in Japan DHG Super Lens Protect 67mm.

You can watch the lens during real shooting on my website using the links 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12.

Price

Prices for the Tamron 28-75mm F / 2.8 XR Di LD Aspherical (IF) lens in popular online stores can look at this link.

Comments on this post do not require registration. Anyone can leave a comment. Many different photographic equipment can be found on AliExpress.

Professional fast wagon

Choosing a good high-speed universal lens is one of the most important for a large number of photographers. I pay a lot of attention to this issue, because I prepared this list of all full-frame universal (standard range of focal lengths) fast autofocus lenses:

Canon

Bayonet EF:

1. Canon Zoom Lens EF 28-70 mm 1: 2.8 L USM
2. Canon Zoom Lens EF 24-70 mm 1: 2.8 L USM
3. Canon Zoom Lens EF 24-70 mm 1: 2.8 L II USM

Bayonet R:

1. Canon Lens RF 28-70 mm F2 L USM, since September 2018
2. Canon Lens RF 24-70 mm F2.8L IS USMsince August 2019

Nikon

Bayonet F:

1. Nikon AF Nikkor 35-70 mm 1: 2.8 (MKI)
2. Nikon AF Nikkor 35-70 mm 1: 2.8D (MKII)
3. Nikon AF-S Nikkor 28-70 mm 1: 2.8D ED SWM (two body color options)
4. Nikon AF-S Nikkor 24-70 mm 1: 2.8GN ED Nano Crystal Coat SWM IF Asphericalsince December 2007
5. Nikon AF-S Nikkor 24-70 mm 1: 2.8EN ED Nano Crystal Coat SWM IF Aspherical VR

Bayonet Z:

1. Nikon Nikkor Z 24-70 mm 1: 2.8 S
2. Nikon Nikkor Z 28-75 mm 1:2.8 (the scheme is similar to Tamron a036, animation)

Tokina (for different mounts)

1. Tokina AT-XAF 28-70 mm 1: 2.8 (Tokina AT-X 270 AF)
2. Tokina AT-X PROAF 28-70 mm 1: 2.6-2.8 (or 1: 2.8, Tokina AT-X 270 AF PRO)
3. Tokina AT-X PROAF 28-70 mm 1: 2.6-2.8 (or 1: 2.8, Tokina AT-X 270 AF PRO II)
4. Tokina AT-X PRO 28-80 mm 1: 2.8 Aspherica (Tokina AT-X 280 AF PRO)
5. Tokina AT-X PRO SV 28-70 mm 1: 2.8 (Tokina AT-X 287 AF PRO SV)
6. Tokina sd 24-70 F2.8 (IF) FX AT-X PRO Aspherical

Sigma (for different mounts, in chronological order)

1. Sigma 28-70mm 1: 2.8 Zoom, from May 1992 (Vivitar 28-70 / 2.8 VMC was made on its basis)
   
2. Sigma 28-70mm 1: 2.8 Zoom EX Ashperical [+ -D], from the end 1998
3. Sigma 28-70mm 1: 2.8 Zoom EX Aspherical DF [+ -D]since February 2001
4. Sigma 24-70mm 1: 2.8 Zoom EX DG Aspherical [+ -D], [DF version], since February 2001
5. Sigma 24-60mm 1: 2.8 Zoom EX DG [+ -D], from May 2004
6. Sigma 24-70mm 1: 2.8 Zoom EX DG Macro [+ -D], From september 2004
7. Sigma 28-70mm 1: 2.8 Zoom EX DG [+ -D], From september 2004
8. Sigma 24-70mm 1: 2.8 EX DG HSM, From september 2008
9. Sigma 24-70mm 1:2.8 DG HSM OS A (ART), from February 2017, Nikon F, Canon EF, Sigma SA
   
10. Sigma 24-70mm 1: 2.8 DG DN A (ART)since November 2019, Sony E, Leica L, the layout is similar to Leica Vario-Elmarit-SL 2.8 / 24-70mm, animation
    
11. Sigma 28-70mm 1: 2.8 DG DN C (Contemporary)since February 2021, Sony E, Leica L

Tamron (for different mounts)

1. Tamron SP AF 35-105 mm 1: 2.8 Aspherical Model 65D
2. Tamron SP AF Aspherical LD ​​[IF] 28-105 mm 1: 2.8 Model 176D
3. Tamron SP AF Aspherical LD ​​[IF] 28-105 mm 1: 2.8 Model 276D
4. Tamron SP AF Aspherical XR Di LD [IF] 28-75 mm 1: 2.8 Macro Model A09 (Model A09N & Model A09N II) (scheme like Konica Minolta AF Zoom 28-75mm 1: 2.8 (32) D и  Sony 2.8 / 28-75 SAM)
5. Tamron SP 24-70 mm F / 2.8 DI VC USD Model A007
6. Tamron SP 24-70 mm F / 2.8 Di VC USD G2 Model A032
7. Tamron 28-75 mm F / 2.8 Di III RXD Model A036, (15/12), only for Sony E / FE, the scheme is similar to Nikon Nikkor Z 28-75 mm 1:2.8, animation
8. Tamron 28-75 mm F / 2.8 Di III VXD G2 Model A063, (17/15), only for Sony E / FE, Fall 2021
9. Tamron 35-150 mm F / 2-2.8 Di III VXD Model A058, Sony E / FE only, Fall 2021

Sony

Sony / Minolta A mount:

1. Konica Minolta AF Zoom 28-75 mm 1: 2.8 (32) D (scheme like Tamron 28-75 / 2.8)
2. Minolta AF Zoom 28-70 mm 1: 2.8 (32) G
3. Sony 2.8 /28-75 SAM (scheme like Tamron 28-75 / 2.8)
4. Sony Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 2,8 /24-70 ZA SSM T *
5. Sony Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 2,8 /24-70 ZA SSM II T* (circuit from the previous lens)

Sony E-mount:

1. Sony FE 2.8 /24-50 G (G, SEL2450G)
2. Sony FE 2.8 /24-70 GM (G, SEL2470GM)
3. Sony FE 2.8 /24-70 GM II (G, SEL2470GM2)

Pentax (K)

1. Pentax SMC FA 28-70 mm f / 2.8
2. Pentax HD Pentax-D FA 24-70 mm f / 2.8ED SDM WR

Angénieux

1. Angenieux zoom F.28-70 1: 2.6 AF (for Nikon F, Minolta / Sony A, Canon EF)

Vivitar

1. Vivitar Series 1 28-70mm 1: 2.8 VMC AUTO FOCUS ZOOM, different mounts, presumably a copy Sigma 28-70mm 1: 2.8 Zoom

Panasonic

1. Panasonic Lumix S PRO 1: 2.8 /24-70 mm, from August 2019, Leica L

Leica

1. Leica Vario-Elmarit-SL 1: 2.8 / 24-70mm f / 2.8 ASPH., from May 2021, the optical design repeats Sigma 24-70mm 1: 2.8 DG DN Art (animation)

Samyang

1. Samyang AF 24-70 / 2.8 FE, aka Rokinon AF 24-70 / 2.8 FE, from October 2021, only for Sony E / FE
2. Samyang AF 35-150/2-2.8FE, from April April 2023, only for Sony E/FE

Results

In terms of price and quality, the Tamron A09 (versions A09N, A09N II) is a good universal fast lens for full-frame cameras. On APS-C cameras does not allow the full use of a wide angle. The Tamron A09 is one of the cheapest and best alternatives for professional 24-70 / 2.8 and 28-70 / 2.8. Recently, I recommend Tamron A09 to everyone as balanced decision for full-length cameras.

Material prepared Arkady Shapoval. Training/Consultations | Youtube | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Telegram