Tamron 150-600mm G2 How to Use it for Wildlife Photography and Review

[@peterbredahldam]

If you liked this review of the Tamron 150-600mm G2 lens, you might also be interested in my review of the Nikon Z 105mm macro lens, which is fantastic, but there is a single thing that is quite annoying about it: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qKfPmXaJaripY68

[@witved]

Jeg var gået død i valget mellem Tamron og Sigma 150-600mm. Men din video her falder ud til Tamrons fordel, så mange tak for, at du har gjort mit valg nemmere.

[@peterbredahldam]

Det var så lidt. Jeg håber at du bliver glad for den :-)

[@KM-qd4kf]

It’s quite a good lens. There’s no such thing as a perfect lens & a number of reviewers with connections to other brands tend to put it down. Most people would be satisfied with this at its price given the cost of Nikon or Canon. I’m satisfied with it for birds, sport & it shoots people very nicely as well.

[@IrTeRaimonds]

Hello. Got this lens for couple of years. Had to work around a little bit to get the sharpness with tap-in console. Agree with all what you said in video. on 600 mm images are pretty soft, but its better at 500mm. Just need to be sure you got right shutter speed.

[@lennymo9088]

Thanks for the review. I'm looking into this lens & other reviews have really knocked it.

[@peterbredahldam]

Glad it was helpful!

[@RonnyQuest]

I've had this lens for several years now and have been quite happy with it on my Nikon D750. I have used it for shooting both high school sports and wildlife. In regards to your leg knocking the AF switch off I have had the same problem. A small piece of gaffer's or electrical tape will take care of it.

[@atl_mx5]

Just bought this lens used.. i love it so far.

[@MostafijurRahmanNasim]

Great video. Lots of tips were found here. Thanks Man

[@peterbredahldam]

You’re welcome. Thanks for the feedback

[@MathieuBeaulieuAsperger]

Hi, nice video ! Do you disable VR if your shutter speed is 1/2000? Thanks 🙏🏻🙏🏻

[@peterbredahldam]

Thanks, Actually I usually don't. I haven't found it a problem to leave VR on.

[@douglaswetzel3221]

Thanks for your most informative video Peter. I tried the f8 and 500mm settings, and my backyard Red Bellied woodpecker definitely looked sharper. I'll try shooting lower especially for waterfowl. The weight is a bit much for me, but I don't think I need the expense of a 100-400mm lighter lens just yet.

[@peterbredahldam]

You're welcome. I'm happy to hear that you get sharper results with the suggestions I gave in the video 🙂

[@marijngrootjans]

@peterbredahldam What do you mean with f8 if the lens's aperture is f5 minimum to f6.3 maximum?

[@sjmansell]

​@marijngrootjans f/6.3 is the maximum at 600mm. That's how lenses are always described. Also, lower f number means larger aperture. What f/5 to f/6.3 means is at 150mm you can get a max aperture of f/5 but at 600mm it drops to f6.3 (less light)

[@RichardCookphotography]

Great video Peter. Well done👍

[@peterbredahldam]

+Richard Cook Thanks a lot :-)

[@kadara-e6m]

Hei! Great videos! I have a Sigma 70-200mm f2.8 at the moment and I have thought about buying a lens with longer focal length. Would it be wise to change my 200mm to 600mm? Mostly aiming at wildlife photography. Thank You! :)

[@peterbredahldam]

Sorry for the late reply. Normally I would say go for the longer focal length, but you will lose a lot of light going from f2.8 to f6.3 and the Tamron is sharpest at f8, so you might not be able to shoot very early in the morning if that is your thing. But then again if you want the long focal length most lenses in this price range will have aperture similar to the Tamron 150-600mm

[@LennyCooke636]

When I was shooting wild-life, it was very frustrating because the animals would mostly come out at dusk, or dawn to feed. You rarely saw any animals except maybe small birds during mid day. This meant that you had to use a very high ISO. Back then, image stabilized lenses were not as popular as they are today. I was lucky to come home with 10 or less decent quality shots after spending all day out there. To shoot small birds, you need a lens that's at least 600mm because as soon as you get closer than 50 feet from the bird, they would fly away. I use to use a 300mm lens with a 1.5x extension tube, plus the crop sensor on my camera use to give me an additional 1.5x. So with a 300mm lens I was shooting at the equivalent of 675mm and that still was not enough ! Keep in mind that with 600mm lens your shutter speed should be at 1/600 or above to avoid camera shake.

[@peterbredahldam]

Thanks for commenting, Harry. Yes you’re right about needing 1/600 or above for handholding, without image stabilization. I have managed to get some keepers with 1/60 or thereabouts with image stabilization. But higher shutter speed at 600 mm does improve the keeper’s rate significantly.

[@簡昆祥]

Nice video ! If it is with 1,4x TC, can it perform AF smoothly?because it became a f9.

[@peterbredahldam]

Sorry, I haven't tried the lens with a teleconverter.

[@lloydstuartm.d.5625]

I love this lens and used it extensively on safari in Africa. It takes amazing pictures. I have since upgraded my camera to Canon's R5. I just wish Tamron would make this lens with an RF mount. I have an EF-RF adapter but you lose the benefits of the RF mount.

[@peterbredahldam]

Bypassing adapter is always preferable. I also use the lens with an FTZ adapter, when I use it on my Nikon Z6 II. It still works great, and I don’t feel that the lens is significantly slower, but I haven’t tested it thought. It works just be nice to be able to mount it directly. Thanks for commenting :-)

[@ulrichsamosii6058]

I use this lens with the 1.4 converter when tracking the gators and green herons. The lens will do 600mm just back off a little bit.

[@PatrickPoppJohannsen]

Nu har jeg kigget meget på sigmas 150-600mm som en billig lense til når jeg skal til Afrika for jeg hsr ik penge til en mega dyr prime lens men har ik ku finde ud af om der sku være sport eller ders c model men har virkelig ogsp kigget på tamron men jeg har bare været lidt bekymret for om den larmer fks jeg har en billiger tamron 70-200mm og når den skal fokusere så larmer den af h til men er stadig meget usikker på hvad jeg skal vælge til min tur til Afrika hvad vil du anbefale sigmas sport elelr ders c eller tamron g2? Bruger pt Canon 70D

[@peterbredahldam]

Hej Patrick, Jeg kender ikke Sigmas 150-600, men jeg har ikke hørt noget dårligt om den. Men Tamrom 150-600 larmer i hvert fald ikke. Jeg har lige udgivet en video om hvordan du får mere ud af en budget linse. Hvis du har lyst kan du blot se den seneste på min kanal. God tur :-)

[@skylerjade9093]

I have one question: Do you need a UV Filter or can this lens be used without one? Thanks :)

[@peterbredahldam]

I don't have a UV filter for this, or for any other of my lenses. Unless you are shooting in a sand storm, I wouldn't use UV-filters.

[@LB-rj7fj]

This lens vs the beloved sigma contemporary? Is this lens better in your opinion?

[@peterbredahldam]

Sorry, I haven't gotten back to you. I haven't tried the Sigma, so it is difficult to judge. So the specs or your brand preferences will be the judge

[@mohankukreti3816]

What is your opinion when compared with Fujinon 150-600mil, since it cost more

[@peterbredahldam]

Sorry for not answering this one earlier. I have no experience with the Fujinon. But at 600 mm it is F8 as the min. aperture. If you then have to stop it down further, for sharpness, then you lose a lot of light. So I would suggest you try to find out, which aperture is the sharpest at 600mm. Beause that is the aperture you will use the most. And can that work in your typical shooting scenario in terms of available natural light.

[@lonnieclemens8028]

I like having a shoulder strap on a big camera and lens like this. Not a neck strap, but shoulder strap.

[@peterbredahldam]

I also prefer a shoulder strap :-)

[@lonnieclemens8028]

The Nikon 200-500mm lens is extremely sharp at 500mm. If you are doing wildlife photography, you should be in shutter priority mode. That way the camera will determine what your aperture will be. If a photographer is manually adjusting the aperture to F8, there might be a problematic lens being used.

[@peterbredahldam]

I agree that it is far from optimal shooting at f8, and shutter speed priority is a great mode, if the lens is sharp at all apertured, but a lens like the Tamron 150-600 the sweet spot is f8, so that is a constraint you have to deal with. I need the reach 600mm as I often capture water birds that prefer not to close to the shore. At the time I bought this lens it was one of the best options for the price range. Nikon didn't have a 150-600mm or similar lens back then. Today, the are far better alternatives which I hope to explore soon.

[@lonnieclemens8028]

@@peterbredahldam Thank you for sharing this video Peter. It is good to hear from other wildlife photographers.

[@peterbredahldam]

Thanks :-)

[@marieta.s]

I got this lens last year instead of the Nikon 200-500mm just for the extra 100mm, although the Nikon lens must be better than this. I think it’s very good choice for amateurs and for the price. My only issue is its weight because I have problems with my hands and I find it not easy to handhold it for a long time but I resolved the issue by using a monopod. As for flicking the AF switch I have also had this issue too. Maybe it’s too sensitive. Other than that I think it’s a very good lens for what it offers.

[@peterbredahldam]

+Marieta S., thanks for your input. Is the Nikon 200-500 sharper in your opinion.?

[@marieta.s]

@@peterbredahldam honestly I am no expert but this is the impression I have from what I have read online. For sure there is an advantage using a native lens compared to a third party, but those extra 100mm of the tamron is what made me buy it. 😃

[@lesleyh2007]

I have used both the Nikon 200-500 & G2 and image quality is pretty much on par especially at 500mm. Tamron has better VR or VC plus is weather sealed (Nikon isn’t) which not only protects against water but also dust from entering lens inside when you are extending or retracting the lens barrel. Tamron has Arca Swiss lens foot - Nikon no. Tamron slightly lighter. Tamron faster AF definitely. As I said picture quality is very close. I used both quite a bit but chose the Tamron G2 to buy. Just a better lens when you add up all things Tamron G2 has that Nikon doesn’t. If you buy the Nikon you would like it but Tamron is better value. My experience anyway.

[@krayzerr6556]

Can some one help me buying a camera 💔

[@peterbredahldam]

Are you looking for advice on a specific brand or just any type of camera? What will you use it for? And for others to help in finding a camera, your budget might also good knowing, as it is no help for you to get advice that is above $5,000 if you want to spend $500. I use Nikon, but many like Sony and Canon, and they are just as good. :-)

[@markrigg6623]

Usable, but not ideal.