Tamron Auto Focus 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 Di LD Macro Zoom Lens with Built In Motor for Nikon Digital SLR (Model A17NII)

I should start off by saying, I am a beginner photographer using a Nixon D3200. I've only used one other lens in my life, the one it came with, which is why I figured I better get a better one for distance shots. I'm not looking to be a professional, I really just enjoy the outdoors and want to be able to take pictures of birds & wildlife. I mostly bought this lens to use for photographing birds.I was really deterred by the price and nervous about the lack of image stabilization, being that I'm not very steady handed. I decided to give it a shot anyways.I am completely in awe. This lens perfectly fits my needs. I'm able to take pictures of birds in just about any lighting and weather, whether they are moving or not. The auto focus was a must for me and it works beautifully. It seems sturdy and durable and is very easy to use. I'm able to get beautiful close up shots of birds in nearby trees! Im not at all steady handed and all of my pictures have been without the use of a tripod, just by hand. Even if I'm fully focused in, I can still take good pictures without a tripod or propping my elbows on something, so that didn't turn out to be an issue for me at all. I've only had photographs with doubled tree branches in about 10 photos, out of about 200 since I got this lens. And really the photograph still came out really nice (it's actually below)- the branches were blurred in the background so you really couldn't even tell.Also, with about 3 out of about 200 pictures I have taken, I've seen a slight purple or green edge on the bird or tree branch. It's a rarity though.I'm really impressed. It's also much lighter than I expected it to be, so I'll be able to take it hiking no problem- and we go on long trails, hiking for up to 10 hours a day!I'm really impressed and I highly recommend this lens, especially for bird and wildlife enthusiasts. I do hope to one day get a lens that reaches further, but for now and with my current budget, this is perfect! You'll be able to get really good close up photos, some as close as even showing the details of their feathers, of birds in nearby trees. I can also get some pretty amazing long range photos with this as well.Totally worth it!The photos below were taken with this lens, with only minimal editing to the coloration and contrast of the photo. These birds were about 30-40 feet away in a nearby tree! They probably would have come out even better had I have used the hood that it comes with, but I keep forgetting to put it on.

I bought this lens because I got a new camera which required an autofocus feature on the lens instead of the camera body and I got tired of all the zoom pictures I'd taken using manual focus coming out blurry.I am very happy with this lens. It focuses well and I don't really think it makes all that much noise, just a small "vrrrt" as the mechanism works. I think it gives very nice, crisp images and the macro setting works just fine. It may not be as close as some people would like for macro photography, but it isn't a "macro" lens specifically so I think it is a nice feature for a standard zoom lens.The one con I have with this is that sometimes it's hard to tell the lens what to zoom on. For example, if there's something in the background that you're trying to bring into focus, it might focus on something in the foreground first (I had a bit of that problem with the cattail picture I posted) and you have to move the camera around or play with the settings a little bit to get it just right. However, I've had that issue with other zoom lenses before, so I think that is more of a learning curve of zoom lenses in general than just this particular one.I am a more serious amateur photographer. I would like to be able to sell photos eventually, so I probably take them with a bit more care than other people, but I certainly don't have the budget for a super high end fancy lens. I think that for the price, this lens can't be beat if you are trying to up your game so to speak in the realm of digital photography.

If you've been searching for a telephoto lens, chances are you probably haven't come across many that are this cheap. I have an older Nikon camera (D40x) that was compatible with this lens and decided to give it a try. I am very new into photography and this was my first telephoto lens purchase, beforehand I'd just been using the stock Nikon 50mm lens that came with the camera body. This lens works fantastic for the price you pay. The image quality is outstanding and as much as people complain about the auto focus on this model, it works well enough. The downsides to this lens are that the auto-focus is a tad slow, but once you become familiar with the lens unless the photos you are taking require a quick auto-focus (example, birds in flight). My biggest issue with the lens is that it creates these purple/blue sheen or spot on some of the images. This can be extremely frustrating when you capture the perfect image but it is filled with this color. I'm not sure why it does this, since I am still so new into photography, but it can be managed in Photoshop quiet easily so in the end it doesn't necessarily impact your shots (some situations however, it can). Other than that, there are some soft spots that appear on some images which can be rather annoying. Overall, I think for the price you are paying this is an excellent lens. I've been using it for a few months now and find more joy using it than frustration.

Works great for our photography business. Has excellent clarity and the weight helps with stability. Lighting and colors are not compromised with the affordable price.

Got this as a gift for my wife. It fits on her Nikon D3300. The package includes a Lens hood and 2 caps for each end of the lens. This is a great lens for a casual photographer who isn't looking to spend a lot of money to take good pictures. Overall the pictures taken are crisp and sharp. Zooming into 300 or using Marco usually requires a tripod or high ISO. We are by no means professionals, but we have noticed that the motor is louder than the stock lens that came with the camera and the auto-focus can be a little slow. We do typically do some post-processing on our photos with Lightroom which likely corrects some of the problems that comes with a lens in this price range.It would be easy to find more faults in this lens as others have pointed out, but at this price point you simply cant beat it.