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Lens review

Tamron 90 mm f/2.8 Di III Macro VXD

16 January 2025
Maciej Latałło

8. Vignetting

First let's check the vignetting performance on the smaller APS-C/DX sensor – appropriate thumbnails can be found below.

Z7, APS-C/DX, f/2.8 Z7, APS-C/DX, f/4.0
Tamron 90 mm f/2.8 Di III Macro VXD - Vignetting Tamron 90 mm f/2.8 Di III Macro VXD - Vignetting


At the maximum relative aperture vignetting is slight but noticeable, reaching 22% (−0.70 EV). Fortunately by f/4.0 and f/5.6 this aberration decreases to a completely imperceptible level of, respectively, 5% (−0.15 EV) and 1% (−0.03 EV).


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After passing to the bigger full frame sensor vignetting is far more bothersome and photos below prove that much.

Z7, FF, f/2.8 Z7, FF, f/4.0
Tamron 90 mm f/2.8 Di III Macro VXD - Vignetting Tamron 90 mm f/2.8 Di III Macro VXD - Vignetting
Z7, FF, f/5.6 Z7, FF, f/8.0
Tamron 90 mm f/2.8 Di III Macro VXD - Vignetting Tamron 90 mm f/2.8 Di III Macro VXD - Vignetting


The loss of light in frame corners at the maximum relative aperture reaches 54% (−2.24 EV). That's a lot – the rival Sigma showed a result of just 36%, and in the case of the smaller Sony it was 53%. The difference between the Tamron and the Sony seems to be negligible but if you examine the distribution of isophotes you find out that brightness loss in case of the Tamron starts far faster than in case of the Sony. Of course you should add that the Sony had it more difficult in this category because its construction features movable parts involved in the optical image stabilization system.

Fortunately the vignetting of the tested Tamron can be corrected by stopping down quite efficiently. By f/4.0 it reaches 31% (-1.08 EV), by f/5.6 it decreases to 15% (-0.46 EV), and by f/8.0 it becomes completely imperceptible, with a result of just 2% (-0.06 EV).

Nikon Z7, JPEG, 90 mm, f/2.8
Tamron 90 mm f/2.8 Di III Macro VXD - Vignetting