skidiver8

I have the Tamron 150-600 G2 lens that I love. I use it on a Canon 7d Mark ii with great results. I had the G1 version but the sharpness wasn’t there and got the G2. Big Improvement!

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

I don't have or use either lens.

If I were making this choice, I'd pick the Nikon 200-500mm. First, as a native lens it's most likely to be fully compatible with future Nikon cameras and is likely to give the best performance on current and past models. It's not a very big deal, but also prefer a non-variable lens aperture, when possible. The Nikon is f/5.6 throughout it's range, while the Tamron goes from f/5 to f/6.3 across the zoom focal lengths.

It also appears to have the best image quality at the "short end" of the zoom range. See for yourself: https://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/ISO-12233-Sample-Crops.aspx?Lens=1035&Camera=1210&Sample=0&FLI=3&API=0&LensComp=1079&CameraComp=979&SampleComp=0&FLIComp=4&APIComp=0

Those sample shots are magnified quite a bit (see the full target here: https://www.the-digital-picture.com/Help/ISO-12233.aspx).

That website is primarily about Canon gear and gear to fit Canon, the Tamron lens test shots were done on a Canon 5Ds-R (50MP) and, of course, the Nikkor lens couldn't be tested on that camera. But Bryan provides quite a few examples of other brands for comparison purposes and the Nikon D850 he used has similar style sensor and resolution (46MP), so the image comparisons seem reasonably valid.

I only looked at the test shots of the lenses at their maximum apertures, since that's where most lenses are at their worst, plus telephotos tend to fairly often need to be used wide open. I also only looked at a few focal lengths:

At 200mm the Nikkor is clearly the winner. While they're similar in the very center, the Tamron appears nowhere near as sharp in the mid-frame or the corners of the test images.

The Tamron gets closer to the Nikkor when both are at 300mm, but the Tamron still isn't quite as sharp in the mid-frame and corners.

Interestingly, the Tamron appears a little bit sharper across the whole image at 400mm.

At 500mm they seem quite similar, especially in the center and mid-frame. The Nikkor might have a very slight edge in the periphery.

At that website you also can compare:

Optical vignetting: https://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Lens-Vignetting-Test-Results.aspx?Lens=1035&Camera=614&FLI=0&API=0&LensComp=1079&CameraComp=979&FLIComp=1&APIComp=0

Flare: https://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Lens-Flare.aspx?Lens=1035&Camera=614&FLI=0&API=0&LensComp=1079&CameraComp=979&FLIComp=1&APIComp=0

Distortion: https://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Lens-Distortion.aspx?Lens=1035&Camera=614&FLI=0&LensComp=1079&CameraComp=979&FLIComp=1

Specifications: https://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Lens-Specifications.aspx?Lens=1035&LensComp=1079

The Tamron has an edge in it's zoom focal length range... going both shorter (150 vs 200mm) and longer (600 vs 500mm).

Currently these two lenses are priced identically: $1400.

EDIT: Important! The test shots linked above were done with full frame cameras. I see you are using a crop sensor camera (D7100?) and plan to continue using one in the future. In that case, you would never see some of the corner softness that showed up in the full frame test shots. Your camera will crop it away. Skidiver8 is also using a crop camera with the Tamron (though it's a Canon).

The density of the Canon 7DII's sensor is very similar to that of the 5Ds-R used for the above test shots. Your Dl7100's is slightly higher density than the D850 used for the Nikkor test shots. The higher it's image sensor pixel density, the less "forgiving" a camera will be of any lens shortcomings.

On the other hand, on a crop (DX) camera 500mm is a whole heck of a lot of telephoto lens. Of course, 600mm is even more!

Real Nikon Lover Loc: Simi Valley, CA

Agree. Good clean and crisp shots. Best moon shot I ever took was handheld with this lens as I braced against my house. Use mine with a D850

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joecichjr Loc: Chicago S. Suburbs, Illinois, USA

Beautiful, with great detail 👁️🏆👁️

A. T.

I have both and in my opinion, the Nikkor 200-500 5.6 is by far the better of the two. Both lenses are used on my D500 for wildlife and I can tell you that the 200-500 is sharper throughout the focal length where the 150-600 is soft at the 600 length. Some on the forum will argue the point but I'm telling you that I have conducted experiments that will validate what I'm telling you. Also, the Tamron is a light hog. If you have adequate light, it's good with the exception of being soft at 600mm. Also, it tends to hunt for focus lock at times in lower light whereas the 200-500 does not. Now, the Nikkor is not weather sealed and the Tamron is; however, for me weather sealed is not an issue because I don't shoot in inclement weather and if the need arises, I cover the lens.

Sparky54 Loc: Central Pennsylvania

Hello to all, as a follow up I will be using the Nikon D500,
Thank yopu to all for your input ! your the best ...