Designed to be an all-in-one lens and ideal for travel, this lens covers an impressive range, starting with a 24.8mm equivalent wide-angle view, this means you should not need to buy an additional wide-angle lens, as you would have with a 18-250/270/300mm lens. This also means you are less likely to get dust or dirt on the mirror, sensor and other parts of the inside of your DSLR. The lens also provides 1:29 macro reproduction and a close focusing distance of 39cm at all focal lengths. The sharpness at 16mm and maximum aperture are outstanding, and peak sharpness is attainable at f/1.8. However, it reduces considerably towards 70mm, and some clarity at the edges of the frame is noticeable. Chromatic aberrations are an issue at 300mm and highly visible along the edge of the frame. While its macro performance tends to reduce at 300mm, this lens holds up nicely considering its wide zoom range. While there have been a number of occasions when those edges have appeared during this test, with red and cyan too, those occasions were fewer than I had expected. Some fringing appears in the extremes of the frame when the wider focal lengths are used, but at the longest end of the zoom the fringes become wider and creep their destructive way towards the centre of the image. We know that it is the extremes of a zoom that are used the most, and in one that features such reach that length will be used a great deal. I suspect, then, that fringing will have an impact on a disproportionately high number of images shot with this model. One way to reduce the effects of these fringes is to tidy them into narrow bands by using a small aperture, but we have to be careful that we don’t sacrifice resolution for the sake of a purple edge. The Tamron 16-300mm comes with many mechanical improvements that can benefit all-round photographers. The focusing ring is better positioned and supports a full-time manual override. Its autofocus is a step up, while its VC stabilization is quite useful. Let’s talk about all those letters on the side of the lens that were mentioned earlier and go over their meanings. The “Di-II” designation simply means that the lens is intended for use with digital SLR cameras. The “VC” means that the lens is equipped with a vibration compensation (image stabilizer) feature and the “PZD” indicates the lens has Tamron’s proprietary Piezo Drive autofocus mechanism. Fit and Finish

Bokeh is a word used for the out-of-focus areas of a photograph, and is usually described in qualitative terms, such as smooth / creamy / harsh etc. In the AF 16-300mm F/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD lens, Tamron have employed an iris diaphragm with seven rounded blades, which has resulted in quite nice bokeh in our view. We do realise, however, that bokeh evaluation is subjective, so we've included some 100% crops for your perusal. Focus breathing, which refers to the reduction in focal length at closer focusing distance, appears to be a constant problem that has no fix. While it won’t always affect image quality, it may become problematic when dealing with smaller subjects like birds. Bokeh is creamy and color reproduction quite impressive. The inclusion of three aspherical lens elements helps keep aberration and vignetting at bay. There is discernible softening around the edges at wider apertures. Design The blue column represents readings from the centre of the picture frame at the various apertures and the green is from the edges. Averaging them out gives the red weighted column.

One of the great things I really love about the Tamron 16-300mm is its compact design and size. Even though it has a focal range of 16mm–300 mm, it is incredibly easy to handle and has some great features that its competitors don’t have.To get a good idea of just how compact it is, take a look at this comparison photo below.

Aspherical lens elements– The pros and cons of aspherical lenses is delightfully arguable among photographers. Still, the aspherical lens elements in the Tamron 16-300mm do seem to reduce some distortions. The Tamron AF 16-300mm F/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD is quite light considering the massive 18.8x zoom range on offer, weighing in at 540g. It certainly doesn't feel too weighty in the hand and proved to be well balanced on the Canon EOS 7D that we tested it with. The lens extends by about an extra 8cm when fully zoomed out to 300mm. Images: Coloured fringing in distant subjects extends well into the frame at f/6.3. At f/11 fringing still exists, but it is less obvious in the centre of the frame We give Tamron some credit for providing the lens movement a boost by releasing the Zoom Wide Angle Telephoto 28-200mm in 1992. It was specially designed for 35mm cameras (see our full list of the best 35mm film cameras) and universally regarded as the first high-ratio zoom lens. Since then, interchangeable lenses have been released, with the latest ones offering a whopping 33x zoom range.

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At wider focal lengths, sharpness is excellent in the center, and across the frame at around F5.6-8. As focal length is increased, sharpness reduces, taking more of a hit towards the edges where it's decidedly soft above 200mm. F8 is the overall optimum aperture and will always deliver decent sharpness in the centre, even at 300mm. Chromatic Aberration