My new old 500mm Tamron catadioptric lens

I always rather fancied a decent 500mm catadioptric lens. I bought a cheap Korean one off eBay a few years back and frankly it was not very good. But the old Tamron 500mm mirror lens has quite a good reputation. And as luck would have it, one turned up cheap on eBay a few weeks ago…

I’ve not had the chance to test it thoroughly. It’s too cold and damp outside, and the light is terrible. But I hope to take it up on Portsdown Hill in the spring and and gets some shots overlooking Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight.

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Editor’s note 2024-06-29: Finally had a chance to test the Tamron 500mm. For a forty year-old catadioptric lens, the results were surprisingly good too…

• Testing my cat