Not to quibble too much, but f2.8 to f3.5 is 2/3 of a stop.
I like my 80-200/2.8 a lot. The speed means a bright, clear, easy to
focus image in the viewfinder. My unscientific results seem in agreement
with Gary's tests, really first rate performance. They seem to go for
between about $300-500 on eBay, partly depending on
conditoin/accessories, but part apparently at random. If you do look for
one, make sure it has the tripod mount. They are indspensible with this
lens, but are detachable, so not every one for sale has one. This is the
same mount that fits several Tamron lenses and is no longer available
new. It's the one a listee was looking for a few days ago.
Less critical, but still very desirable, is the big, solid, metal
bayonet-mount hood.
It can also be used with Tamron's SP 1.4x and 2x teleconverters to make
it a 112-280/f4 and 160-400/f5.6, respectively. These are converters
that attach to the back of the lens instead of the Adaptall2 adapter,
then the adapter attaches to the teleconverter. They are made
specifically to match the Tamron SP lenses. If looking for a 2x, the
later Model 01F is recommended with more lenses than the 200F. There is
only 1 1.4x model, the 140F.
Like Mike V.'s, mine does have zoom creep.
Moose
Roger D. Key wrote:
It is very easy to switch mounts; you just need a Tamron Adaptall-2 OLympus
adapter, the one that says 'OL' on the mount instead of 'for Olympus OM'
('OL' version is essential for OM-3/4, unless you modify the older version
with epoxy).
They sell reasonably often on *Bay, can be expensive though.
The 85-210 Tamron is notorious for lack of sharpness; look instead for the
70-210/3.5 SP (see results in Gary's tests); the 70-210/3.5 SP (model 19AH)
was in Tamon's model lineup from 1983 up to 2000/2001, so some are newer
than others. I expect that you can still find it new in USA. This model is
only a little slower than the 80-200 (1/2 stop).
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