Tamron has released details and pricing of its new SP 35mm f/1.4 Di USD wide-angle prime lens - which has been designed to give a premium quality performance with full-frame Canon and Nikon DSLRs.
The lens is being launched to celebrate the 40th birthday of the Tamron SP range - which was first produced in the manual-focus film days of 1979. The SP stands for Superior Performance - and it has been a range of lenses that has been favorite choice of enthusiasts over the intervening decades.
The anniversary 35mm autofocus lens boasts that it is "the embodiment of all the optical technology and manufacturing knowhow Tamron has developed to date. The 35mm F1.4’s (Model F045) unprecedented high-resolution image quality and beautiful, appealing background bokeh let photographers capture any scene down to the finest details."
Specification
The lens is constructed of 14 elements in 10 groups, including four LD (Low Dispersion) and three GM (Glass Molded Aspherical) lens elements. These claim to ensure that chromatic aberrations are eliminated, and that the lens offers high resolution performance right to the edges of the frame, even at the wide f/1.4 maximum aperture. The diaphragm uses nine circular shaped aperture blades.
The lens weighs in at around 810g, and has a maximum diameter of 80.9mm. The minimum focus is 0.3m (offering a maximum magnification of 1:5). There is a 72mm filter ring to the front
The autofocus uses Tamron's Ultrasonic Silent Drive (USD) for high speed and quiet operation. A new Dynamic Rolling-cam mechanism that has been newly developed specifically for this lens, which minimises the drive load placed on the focus lens component. The lens also offers Full-Time Manual Focus override system so photographers can make fine adjustments to the focus, even when using AF .
The lens has seals that provide rain and moisture resistance - and it is compatible with Tamron's TAP-in Console, that allows users to upgrade firmware and fine tune autofocus from their own computer.
Price and availability
The Nikon F-mount version of the lens is expected to go on sale at the end of June, with the Canon EF-mount version appearing in shops by the end of July. Both lenses with have a suggested retail price of £929.99 - the US price has yet to be announced.
The 35mm f/1.4 SP was one of three lenses that Tamron first announced at CP+ back in February. Of these, full details of the Tamron 35-150mm f/2.8-4 Di VC OSD have already been revealed. Full specifications and pricing of the third lens, the Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 Di III RXD for Sony full-frame mirrorless cameras, have yet to be released.
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