Tokina AT-X 280 AF PRO 28-80mm F/2.8

Tokina has been one of my old time favorite lenses as far as third party lenses are concerned. This one is no exception. Since this lens has been discontinued for some time now, it wasn’t easy finding a new one. I do not trust used lens from Ebay -- it is hit or miss in my opinion.

This is my second copy. I sold my first copy about a year ago and been looking for another one for some time now. I am not one of those pixel peeping person. I try to test all my equipment in real life situation. I look for Image Quality, Easy of Use, and Built. Tokina exceeds in the built category by far -- all the other third party lenses are left in dust :)

Size: about same as Canon 24-70mm (left to right: Tokina 28-80 F/2.8, Canon 24-70 F/2.8, Canon 24-105 F/4).

Rear element: Canon 24-70mm has much larger rear element (costs twice as much as well).

Fron element: About same. You can also see the difference between Canon UV filter (left) and B+W UV filter (right).

Now, some snapshots from my backyard… (minimum post processing)

Tech Data: http://www.thkphoto.com/products/tokina/afl-04b.html

Conclusion: Worth every penny!!!

Tamron 70-300mm 1:4-5.6 Macro LD Di Sample Shots

In addition to the post below, here are some sample shots taken with the new Tamron 70-300mm. It is taken @ f/8, ISO 200

Some more shots of the lens (it does have the metal mount),

Image quality test will follow next week.

Tamron AF70-300mm F/4-5.6 Macro

Accompanying the 17-50mm lens was this lens, which hopefully will be the last of my lens purchases for a while. I wanted something for standard and wide angle, which the 17-50mm covers; and this 70-300mm provides me with zoom and macro. It's a relatively cheap lens, at around $170, but it had decent reviews. Below is the unboxing:

As with the other Tamron lens, in the box were:

• lens
• manual
• lens hood

This lens is surprisingly light and the build feels light as well. But it's all about how it performs. We shall see.

I went to Laguna Beach today with some friends to take pictures. I ended up shooting over 370 shots, which was easy to do with continuous shooting enabled. When I have some time in the coming week I'll post a few pics.

Tamron SP AF17-50mm F/2.8

My lenses finally arrived this past Saturday from BuyDig. I only got the XTi body so I needed to get a standard lens. At this stage I'm not ready to go all out on lenses so I compromised and got this one, which, though still not very cheap, had decent reviews. Below is the unboxing.

In the box were:

• lens
• manual
• lens hood

I took these shots with a lens that arrived earlier (the "new lens" I refer to at the end of the first post), the Canon EF 50mm F/1.8, which many say gives the most bang for your buck, priced around $70. It has a very shallow depth of field, which gives these pics their look. These were taken in low light because the sun was going down. During sunset my room turns orange/pink, which these pics hint at.

Canon 24-70 f/2.8L Lens

I love unboxing and yesterday, my new Canon 24-70 f/2.8L lens arrived. Not much inside, but I still had great anticipation for the lens. Let me tell you, this is one HONKING BIG GLASS! HEAVY TOO! But the pictures that come out of this lens are simply stunning. I'll post some pictures later. Here are the contents:

• 24-70 f/2.8L Lens
• Lens hood
• Lens bag
• Manual
• Registration Card

If you have to have one lens in your life time, this is it. I'm not much of a zoom fan. I much prefer prime lenses over any zooms, but zooms are very practical and don't have to constantly change lenses. It's a good time to buy now since you still have a week to turn in your double rebate for many Canon lenses.