Founded in 1950 by Takeyuki Arai, producing high performance lenses and specialized testing equipment needed by other Japanese manufacturers, Tamron-brand photographic lenses emerged in 1957. Publically traded on the Tokyo Exchange, Tamron is recognized internationally for leadership in the design and manufacture of photographic optics and special optics for industry. Moreover, it is an impressive list of prestigious companies that entrust the optical performance aspects of their brands to Tamron—and with good reason.
Tamron’s dedication to quality combined with ISO 9001 Quality Control certification help make Tamron an ideal partner and make Tamron the world's largest manufacturer of digital and video OEM lenses.
Four manufacturing facilities in Japan are coordinated by a fifth, housing executive management, administration, quality control, finance and product development where over 150 specialists focus on developing advances in optics, electronics, mechanisms, production, measurement and die design.
Success does not come without environmental province and good corporate citizenship. These play a constant part in Tamron business practices, evidenced by an ISO 14001 Environmental Responsibility certification.
Awards and Accolades
Tamron is proud to have received well over fifty prestigious product awards—just since 1992.
Tamron Technology Highlights
Extraordinary lens quality requires the artful balance of a host of uncooperative variables. Achieving this requires special technologies—something in which Tamron excels. A list of Tamron technology highlights would certainly include…
Di and Di II
Digital SLR photography cemented the realization that digital imaging sensors demanded more than film, revealing the shortcomings of many once-lauded lenses. Tamron was among the first to pioneer optical formulas specifically for digital SLRs. Tamron Di (Digitally Integrated) and Di II designations represent engineering aimed expressly at the needs of digital SLR cameras.
VC Vibration Compensation
Tamron’s proprietary image stabilization system combats camera shake—a leading cause of unsharp pictures. While other systems address camera shake in the two planes, Tamron’s tri-axial configuration employs three pairs of driving coils and low-function ball bearings to compensate for camera shake horizontally, vertically and diagonally.
This provides up to a 4-stop advantage in shooting crisp handheld pictures at slower shutter speeds.
Specialized Optical Glass
Tamron utilizes several types of refined optical glass, using each or in combinations to optimize lens performance. Included are XR (Extra Refractive Index), LD (Low Dispersion), XLD (Extra Low Dispersion), HID (High Index Dispersion) and Hybrid Aspherical Elements, the characteristics of which address a range of optical design challenges and contribute to greatly enhanced image quality.
USD Ultrasonic Silent and PZD Piezo Drives
Tamron’s USD Ultrasonic Silent and PZD Piezo Drives are sophisticated mechanisms that provide fast and quiet autofocusing.
Celebrated Performers
Tamron is proud of all of its products, but like most manufacturers takes special pride in a handful of products. Such a list might include…
18-270mm F/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD
Photographers have long sought an All-in-One lens capable of capturing wide angle scope through frame-filling telephoto scenes, with one lens. However, limited zoom ratios, objectionable size and optical performance, kept the ideal All-in-One zoom lens concept out of reach until 2010. Then, Tamron technologies and expertise produced the compact, 15x 18-270mm F/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Simply in a class of its own.
C F/2.8 XR Di-II VC
An SP designation sets this lens apart, both in the Tamron family and in the overall marketplace. The performance advantages of VC, LD glass, Aspherical elements and internal focus are teamed with an artful balance of design considerations that converge to produce a lens whose images exhibit incredible detail, vivid color and negligible distortion.
SP 70-300mm F/4-5.6 Di VC USD
The SP 70-300MM is fast becoming a benchmark for this category and an ideal choice for a two-zoom system—complimenting a wide-to-moderate telephoto zoom perfectly. XLD (Extra Low Dispersion) and LD (Low Dispersion) glass in a 17 element, 12 group formula deliver outstanding sharpness, brilliant color and striking contrast enhanced by tri-axial VC image stabilization.
SP 60mm F/2.0 Di II LD (IF) 1:1 Macro
With exceptional imaging performance stemming from the revered SP 90mm F/2.8 Di Macro, the SP 60mm F/2.0 Di II Macro’s design properties brings the macro performance of the 90mm to APS-C format photographers.
