Tamron AF 28-75mm f/2.8 OR EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM

Tamron AF 28-75mm f/2.8 SP XR ZL Di LD Aspherical (IF)

V.

EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM


Which is the best bang for your buck? Which is truly the most useful for Run-N-Gun and Documentary work?
 
Choose the Canon 24-105 f4L IS.
For video, it will do well, and when actually using the camera for its intended purposes, photography - the Canon should serve you better.
According to the comparison provided at TDP lens reviews, LINK (Canon on left/Tamron on right, change the settings and roll your cursor over the results to see the Tamron's charts)
I believe the Canon remains noticeably sharper, mostly at the corners through all apertures.
Another place to check for reviews is SLRgear.com, I particularly like their interactive blur index graphs. In addition to that, there are user reviews.


I have found in my experiences and in observing the experiences of others that it's rare to get a good copy of a third party lens, particularly when used for professional applications. It's a gamble that rarely pays off. I've bought two Tamrons, one did okay, the other was a waste of money for what I was expecting. Now, I'm only using Canon lenses on my MkII, no regrets. However, I don't own any IS lenses, but I plan to pick the 24-105 pretty soon. I wasn't really sure if IS would be worth it, but I recently saw a before/after take that showed how well IS can help in some situations when not locked down.
If you do decide on the Tamron, you'll have the comfort of knowing it's covered by a 5 year warranty, so if the camera appears off in some way, you can send it in for recalibration. However, there are no guarantees it will come back any better. I've heard horror stories of lenses coming back worse.
 
I've been using the Tamron AF 28-75mm for about two years now and it has been great. The narrow depth of focus you can generate at 2.8 is really good and the images have been pretty sharp. However the zoom range is more limited which might make the Tamron more of a choice for a sit down interview rather than an outdoor run 'n gun choice.
 
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