I've written a lot about Tamron's new SP35mm and SP45mm lenses, starting with a sound byte interview from the first day of the press event. There's a great backstory thanks to a terrific commercial photographer, Erik Valind. It's also a great example of how to launch a new product: bring in an expert and then get everyone involved. 

As part of the launch, starting with the exclusive announcement to a group of journalists on September first, Tamron brought in one of their Image Masters, Erik Valind. Erik not only shared his experiences from shooting with the new SP35mm a few weeks earlier, but he joined us for a day of shooting on the streets of New York. If you know Erik and Stacie Errera from Tamron, neither of them ever do anything halfway! Stacie and her team set up a walking tour of NYC following the trail of the "High Line" and finishing in the meat-packing district. All along the way Erik, along with Jordan Hathaway modeling and hair and makeup artist, Clelia Bergonzoli,  set up opportunities for everybody to shoot with the new lenses.

All along the way, Erik would share a little insight into his style of shooting along with comments about the new lenses. Then the journalists would step in and shoot their own images. It was a great way to not only demonstrate the quality of the lenses, but also get to know Erik better.

Tamron's new SP35mm and SP45mm lenses start shipping on September 29. They've developed some incredible technology with these two new prime lenses, but don't take my word for it. Visit a Tamron dealer and check them out for yourself. The anticipated cost for each lens is $599. Click either lens below to locate a Tamron dealer nearest you.

Many of you have never heard of Dragon Con. Well, it's been going on for close to thirty years and is in Atlanta every Labor Day weekend. My guess for this year is they went over the 70,000 attendee mark. The attendees have a love for gaming, sci-fi, role-playing along with TV, radio and movie entertainment. Then there are attendees like us, who just get a kick out of people-watching. Since at least 5-10 % of the audience come in costume, there's never a dull moment.

I had Tamron's two new lenses with me, the SP35mm and SP45mm, and wanted just to play. Remember, though, I am NOT a working professional photographer. While sometimes I know more than I let on, my business is about helping photographers and businesses with their marketing.  

One aspect of Dragon Con I love is the work people put into their faces.   Contact lenses have gotten especially unique. So, faces became a subject for the week. For these images, I was shooting with a Nikon D610. Not being completely familiar with the camera was a challenge, but the lenses are remarkable. 

Rather than take my word for it, get yourself into a Tamron retailer. 
These new lenses will start shipping on September 29!

Our room was on the 21st floor of the hotel, making it fun to play a little more with each of the lenses. The first image was of the building next door. The second enlarged with my reflection from our balcony. These lenses are incredibly sharp.

by Skip Cohen

On Wednesday I shared some of Erik Valind’s images taken with Tamron's new SP35mm lens, which were part of their launch presentation of two incredible new products.  I had no idea the fun I’d have over the next 24 hours after that.

It started with each journalist being consigned a SP35mm and SP45mm lens, followed by a day and a half to put them through our own tests. While most of you would be completely relaxed and love an assignment like this, you’ve got to remember my profile.

I am NOT a professional photographer. My core business is about marketing, but I’ll match my passion for the craft with anybody.  Although I’m the low-tech poster child for this industry and I’ve never shot with any of the traditional DSLRS like Nikon or Canon, I do understand the key elements of photography.

I was given the two lenses and a Nikon D610, the manual and a quick lesson from my good buddy, Rich Harrington. While I understand the basics of the craft, I had never used the camera before and didn't know the controls. I was up at 5:00 am on Wednesday morning reading the manual. I've seen phone books that were smaller!

Meeting the group at 9:00 am, we headed out for the day walking all over NYC, starting with the High Line, essentially a boardwalk two stories above the streets of the city and winding in and out between NYC's buildings. All along the way the High Line is beautifully landscaped, so playing with close-up images became my subject of choice.
 
The berries on the evergreen were shot almost wide open at f2.8,  with the SP35mm. The second image is simply enlarged another 50% and the third up 100%.

The image below was shot at f13 @ 1/40 ISO 200 with the SP35mm in a flower box along the way.

I did start shooting street scenes later in the day...just haven't had the time yet to start going through those images, so it's one more flower shot I wanted to share. The bottom image is enlarged 60%.

I've got a lot of images playing with these two new products that I'll be sharing in the next few weeks, but you need to check them out for yourself. They'll be available on September 29. So, get yourself into your Tamron dealer and check them out. 

Most of you know my history in the photographic industry. The short version is, I've been involved in photography my entire adult life, or at the very least all the years when I was supposed to act like an adult. I'm a "photo-junkie" and there's no career field in which I could have been happier.

Well, every now and then a very special event comes along.  Yesterday I was honored to be part of a group of journalists to be the first ones to test drive Tamron's two new SP Lenses.

"Tamron, a leading manufacturer of optics for diverse applications, announces the launch of a new series of SP lenses that are optimized to make the most of the superior imaging performance delivered by the latest advancements in digital photography. Sporting a totally revamped external appearance, the new lenses provide the ultimate in functionality and operation. The first two lenses in the series are compatible with full-frame DSLR cameras and offer fast apertures and versatile, fixed focal lengths. The pair consists of the SP 35mm F/1.8 Di VC USD (Model F012) and SP 45mm F/1.8 Di VC USD (Model F013), and both can be used with APS-C format cameras as well."  

As part of yesterday's presentation "Hank" Nagashima, Corporate Vice President, summed up the excitement with one sentence,
                                                     “The doors to a new era of digital imaging are opening."   

There's no question Tamron's two new lenses put them at the forefront of this new era. These two new lenses are outstanding and essentially incorporate just about everything photographers would have on their wish list of features/benefits. Of special significance are fast prime lenses at F/1.8; VC (Vibration Compensation) functionality in both lenses allowing for more freedom with handheld images and MOD (Minimum Object Distance) allowing you to shoot at extremely close ranges.

But, don't take my word for it. These images are by Erik Valind. Erik is a professional photographer and Tamron Image Master. He spent the last three weeks shooting with the new SP35mm F/1.8 and couldn't be more excited. Over and over again he pushed the lens to the limit, even accidentally testing out the challenge of bad weather when he was caught in rain storms in Iceland. Listen to his "First Byte" to fully appreciate what Tamron technology has brought to the party.

Erik talked about this image in his "First Byte" - a landscape, shot wide open!

                                                    You can see more of Erik's work with a trip to his website. 

The SP 35mm and 45mm F1.8 Di VC USD lenses will be on sale September 29 in Canon and Nikon mounts (the Sony mount to be launched at a later date). The approximate price of each will be $599. Click either lens below to find a Tamron dealer near you.

I love these promotional videos Tamron does, because they do such a great job making their point. Just trust me and spend two minutes and watch a collection of one outstanding image after another. The topic is Tamron's 
16-300mm Di II VC PZD Macro lens, the only lens of it's kind in the industry. 

They pull you in right at the start with the four images below, all shot with just one lens! On their product page for this amazing lens is the following statement:

Tamron sets a new standard with a revolutionary new 18.8X zoom lens for APS-C sized digital SLR cameras. This single lens covers 16mm to 300mm and provides macro focusing. It combines our latest advances in optical design - including the deployment of aspherical elements and newly developed glass - with multiple layers of coating to produce clear, sharp images while maintaining compact dimensions. Imagine the creative possibilities embodied in this latest breakthrough from the pioneer in high-power zooms!

Besides being an incredibly versatile lens and representing some of the finest optics in the world, there's a second point to pay attention to. How would you tell your story?

I know it might seem a little farfetched to suggest your skill set could be aligned with a lens, but the theme of this video is versatility. In the same way one lens covered all these different applications from landscape to macro, many of you cover everything from weddings to seniors to families to newborns. And, when shooting a wedding you're shooting macro/closeup work with ring and cake shots to low light receptions, family groupings, portraits as well as photojournalism to more traditional portraiture and posed images.

So, watch the video and pay attention to the story of some remarkable Tamron glass. Click the link to find out more about it. Then, think about how you might tell your story.