Tamron Has a Shiny New 150-600mm Lens in the Works, Will be Its Longest Zoom Yet

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Here’s a little gear porn to keep your G.A.S. revving this Thursday. Japanese lens manufacturer Tamron has officially announced that it is working on a 150-600mm f/5-6.3 ultra-telephoto zoom lens that will replace the company’s current 200-500mm lens and become the longest focal length zoom in its lineup.

The main reason this lens is making headlines is the focal length, and even though Tamron has announced neither a release date nor price, many are hoping for a cheaper third party alternative that features this sort of reach without compromising too badly on quality.

To that effect, Tamron promises that this baby’s “20 elements in 13 group… cutting-edge eBAND Coating and three LD (Low Dispersion) glass elements” will deliver “superior imaging performance, while the latest built-in VC (Vibration Compensation) system broadens users’ horizons in achieving sharper handheld photographs.”

The 200-500mm lens the new 600mm will replace
The 200-500mm lens the new 600mm will replace

The lens also features Tamron’s Ultrasonic Silent Drive (USD) motor and what they’re calling “a sophisticated and stylish new external finish,” that will hopefully mean discerning SLR users won’t be embarrassed to be seen toting it around.

The lens will come in Canon, Nikon and Sony mounts, and is meant to be used with both full-frame and APS-C cameras. Of course, if you stick it onto an APS-C body, you’re getting even more range out of it: approximately 233-930mm.

As we said before, Tamron isn’t letting slip when this lens will actually come out or how much it will cost when it does (the 200-500mm retails for $2,000 but usually sells for around one grand), and we’ll have to see how it performs optically before we can recommend it to anybody, but what do you think? Any of you guys or gals excited to see this lens make it to market?

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