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And here we raise the editorial had above the parapet and start to attract fire. The best zoom indeed!
Before you go over the top, I hasten to add that I meant the best choice of zoom range - and this can be an entirely different thing for many camera systems. I have chosen the Tamron 17-50mm f/4 lens as an example, but you can fit the idea to many others.
This lens is designed to see the world on a APS-C camera in much the same way that a 28 - 75mm lens would on a full-frame ( 24 x 36 ) camera. Someone using a micro 4/3 camera might choose a 14-38mm lens for the same effect.
They may be given the choice by their manufacturer of a maximum aperture of about 3.5 to 4 and it is likely hat the smallest one would be f/16 or f/22…but the differences are really very small. Should an f/2.8 aperture be offered the size, weight, and price would rise considerably, though the out of focus areas might be smoother.
The lenses offered with some sort of image stabilisation would be a comfort for the shaky and busy - particularly if they intended them to capture video footage. And finally, if the optical design permitted the lens to work without actually pushing out a barrel from the front of the mount, the user would be able to mount it all on a video rig much more easily.
We’re looking at roughly 3 to 1 ratio in the zoom - a moderate wide angle to a portrait length. And remarkably this range has not changed a lot in the last 30 years - the period of time when zoom lens technology has matured.
A lot has changed in the interim. I still have a trombone-zoom lens of the ’90’s that works well, and have seen others of later vintage…but I would hesitate to choose such a form of control. I would also hesitate at a zoom lens that put a dial on the side of the barrel with a knob to grasp. It works and it worked, but we are not not used to it.
The jury is still out on zoom buttons that power their way from one end to another.
I appreciate all these moderate lenses for their range - the illustrations were taken on an 18-55 - but I would ask for a closer point of focus for all focal lengths. And the ability to decouple an aperture ring to allow for smooth video transitions would be marvellous.
Text and Image by Richard Stein
