|
Tamron 80-210mm F/3.8-4 Model 103A: This was one of
Tamron's best selling lenses throughout the early to mid 1980s for good reason
— it successfully combined a moderate price with above average optical
performance along with a lightweight package featuring very good ergonomics.
This lens features a completely new optical design compared to the earlier
model 03A lens. Images are very slightly soft in the corners with the aperture
wide open at the 80 and 210 zoom settings, with sharpness across the entire
film plane improving to very good at F/5.6 and smaller apertures at all zoom
settings. While this later model 103A version lost the built-in lens hood, this
lens was nearly a half inch shorter in overall length compared to Tamron's
previous model 03A and had much better optical performance. This lens was
replaced in 1986 with the 70-210 F/3.8-4 model 46A which was only in production
for two years since the market was rapidly transitioning to autofocus camera
systems. Both the model 103A and the similar model 46A with a slightly broader
zoom range feature better than average optical performance, yet the later model
46A featured a plastic zoom/focus barrel with an integral plastic diamond grip
and didn't have depth-of-field scales. Thus the later model 46A both looked and
felt cheap. Overall, the 103A model is the best of the three since it featured
above average optical performance and all-metal construction.
Lens Specifications:
| Lens Model |
103A |
| Focal Length |
80 — 210mm |
| Aperture Range |
f/3.8~4 — 32, AE |
| Angle of View |
30°~11° |
Optical
Construction
(Groups / Elements) |
10 / 13 |
| Min. Focus from Film
Plane |
35.4" (0.9m) |
| Macro Mag. Ratio [w/2X
Converter] |
1:2.8 [1:1.4] |
| Filter Size |
58mm |
| Diameter |
2.5" (64.5mm) |
Length at
[w/Nikon mount] |
5.4" (137.7mm)
[5.6" (142.2mm)] |
| Weight |
22.4 oz. (634g) |
| Lens Hood |
Screw-in type #29FH, optional. |
| Accessory |
Accepts SP 2X tele-converter #01F. |
|
