Tokina 50-135 f2.8 or tamron 70-200 f2.8

[raptor117]

hi guys.. please help me decide which is better between the two lens..
Based on reviews both are quite slow in focus but IQ is tip top at par
with canon lenses. I love photography but on a tight budget. Sigma is
my other option because of HSM but IQ is just average and has lots of
issues f/b focus I'm afraid I might get one bad copy. Canon lens is
twice its price.. I will use Tokina 50-135 f2.8 or tamron 70-200 f2.8
for portrait indoors outdoors.. but not sports.. Anyone with these
lenses that can share with their experiences is much appreciated..
thanks guys

[neuroanatomist]

I cannot comment on the quality of either lens. Assuming they've got similar IQ, and based on focal length, if you're using a 1.6x crop body you'll find the 50-135mm range more useful for portraits (especially indoors); on FF the 70-200mm range would be excellent.

[raptor117]

Thanks neuroanatomist for the recommendations.. I'm using Canon 450d 1.6 crop . My first would be 50-135. Thanks again.

[Sheiky]

What lenses do you have now? And what type of portraits do you want to make? 200mm inside is pretty long, but outside it could make a great focal length.

[clemmb]

The Tokina 50-135 f2.8 was intended to be the equivalent of a 70-200 on a crop camera. It works out to be ~80-216. I do not see it on B&H web-site or even on the Tokina web-site. Has this lens been discontinued?


Mark

[Lars]

It is there: http://www.tokinalens.com/products/t...35prodx-a.html (hope this works). In fact, I did not know of this lens before, in Norway, Sigma is the most sold third-party lens brand, but I occasionally see Sigmas for sale with focus problems. I have long been tempted to buy the 50-150 from Sigma, but this lens seems to be a tough competitor.

[neuroanatomist]

The Tokina 50-135 f2.8 was intended to be the equivalent of a 70-200 on a crop camera. It works out to be ~80-216. I do not see it on B&H web-site or even on the Tokina web-site. Has this lens been discontinued?

It's on the Tokina web site. B&H lists only the Nikon mount version, and calls that one discontinued. Amazon has one listingfor the Canon version of the Tokina 50-135mm f/2.8 - but at $800, I'm not sure that's going to be compatible with the OP's budget...


Raptor117 -hopefully I'm not making your choice more complex, but if you're willing to forego the zoom, the CanonEF 85mm f/1.8lens makes an excellent portrait lens. IQ is excellent, focus is very fast. The 85mm focal length is great for tight indoor portraits on a crop body (equivalent to 135mm, the 'classic' head and shoulders portrait length on FF). The wide f/1.8 aperture will give you great OOF blur. Plus, at less than $400 the price is right. If you go that route, you'll probably want to add an ND filter for outdoor portraits - with a 0.9/8x/3-stop ND you'll still be able to use a wide aperture (and since it uses 58mm filters, they don't cost that much).

[Jarhead5811]

I considered the Sigma 50-150mm f/2.8 II EX DC HSM(which would have been a nice complement for myTamron 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di II), Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 Di Macro,Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM II Macroand TokinaAT-X 535 PRO DXAF 50-135mm f/2.8. After tons of reading over the course of two years,it seemed like even longer,I decided I'd get the Canon EF 200mm f/2.8 L II USMinstead. When I got ready to make the purchase my wife pushed me to get a zoom, she doesn't care for primes. So, with her permision, I ended up blowing the budget by getting the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L USM. I'm very happy with it and glad I didn't settle for less. Don't tell my wife but I'd still like to get an IS version one dayalthough now it's very low on my priority list (behind a bunch of other expensive stuff).


If I were in your shoes I'd also consider primes in that range such as the Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM,Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USMor Canon EF 100mm f/2.0 USM. One of these (prob the 85mm f/1.8)will likely be my next lens purchase.


Beingit's portraiture you are interested in keep in mind that lighting will give you much more bang for your buck. For what you'd spend on a Sigma 50-150mm f/2.8 II EX DC HSM,Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 Di Macro,Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM II Macroor TokinaAT-X 535 PRO DXAF 50-135mm f/2.8.you could have a prettydamn good strobist setup.

[raptor117]

Thanks guys for your replies.. Tokina 50-135 is locally available here in the Philippines about $650 brand new. I'm more inclined to zoom lens especially during some occasions where you have the flexibility. But certainly I love to have 85mm prime or 135mm prime. Thanks guys for the inputs

[Sheiky]

What lenses do you already have? I mean if you already have like a 24-70 f2.8 it wouldn't make sense to buy a Tokina 50-135 over a Tamron 70-200...