After a wide-angle lens and a fixed focal length I wanted a lens that can cover a large zoom range. Since I had a lot of shootings lately at street festivals, I did not want to always throw my 35er fixed focal length in front of the people. A few reserves in the longer focal lengths can not hurt. Since I do not deny my living with photography, I wanted a universal lens not spend so much. The Tamron struck me as just right. Unwrapped came a midweight lens with metal bayonet to light. The lens is made of high quality and durable plastic acting. The grip areas are gummed pleasant, a lens hood is attached. The front lens does not rotate and polarizing filters can be used. The bayonet snap noisily, as if rearing an egg timer on my Pentax K200D a. When pressing the shutter button, the focus motor moves noisily towards optimum and prompt moves beyond the target. The engine corrected with some back and forth and comes after a period of a good focal point to a halt. Here is the first crux of the lens. The batteries are more stressed and by 200 to 300 pictures my batteries are leergenudelt. The prime lens I make almost 3000! The colors I observe when selecting the Tageslichweißabgleiches a gentle slope in the green zone. A manual white balance is recommended. Then the colors are very good and a color cast, or even over-emphasis of individual colors I can no longer be detected with a color reference card. After the focus is a good depth of field that can be controlled very well with the panel. However, the lens is not very bright and hence iris gimmicks have quickly found their end if you do not stand under the camera or the light is too weak. The rotary zoom is pleasantly stiff. A creep I could not watch until now and the Lock switch is really just for the camera bag. Thus one can not get the part by slowing down to maximum length. The distortions in the short focal length range shows herself only to the edges and also brings a slight blur. However, the effect is not entirely unpleasant and may be desirable for one or another situation entirely. Very exemplary work the interaction with the camera. The measuring system of my Pentax plays very well together with the Tamron. Focus and exposure functions even exemplary in flash mode (external Pentax dedicated flash). I'm very often rely on other manufacturers on hand. The Shake Reduction is working very well together with the Tamron. On PC at full magnification, the image is sharp. CAs are conspicuous even in strong backlight gratifying low. The lens coating is to be assessed for the price range as excellent. Lens reflections are extraordinarily low. However, you can see that one here at the limit of price range. A higher resolution camera than my K200 perhaps reveals more deficiencies, but in this constellation is a very flexible package on the go, which can provide remarkable images in the hands of a skilled amateur. One point I draw from for the noisy, sluggish and battery-eating autofocus that works well, however, as long as the finger is taken too quickly from the shutter button. The focus is in manual mode too stiff and difficult to focus manually. Also focus shift as Pentaxobjektiven does not exist here. But the Tamron is worth every penny and you get an inexpensive universal companion of much of his money making. Addendum: The lens I have now tested on my Pentax Kx. Thanks to the low noise and light-sensitive sensor of the Kx offers here now a genuine universal lens for small money. Now you can even with slightly worse lighting conditions with the iris games. The stage program of Kx works perfectly with the Tamron. The autofocus works perfectly even in low light. That brought more resolution here no unpleasant shortcomings to light. So always plan for the schraubfaulen Pentax Kx owners.