The engine's answer
Best zoom lens for portraits, under €1,000
Tamron 28-75mm F2.8 G2
84% match
Eighty percent of the GM for forty percent of the price
Why it wins here
The Tamron 28-75mm F2.8 G2 takes this question at €900 — €100 under the €1,000 ceiling — with a 84% match against 65 current lenses. For portraits the engine leans on bokeh and max aperture: it scores 74/100 and f/2.8, where the pool averages 71/100 and f/3. At 540 g it is lighter than the average lens here (633 g). Asking for a zoom lens alone ruled out 28 of the 65 lenses before scoring began.
The dimensions where it beats the rest of the field by the most, for this question specifically.
- Budget
- Prime/zoom
- Use
What's good
- The value pick that built Tamron’s comeback
- Close-focus ability zooms rarely offer
What to watch
- Starts at 28 mm, not 24
- Rendering is competent rather than magical
What came close — and what each gave up
- Panasonic 35-100mm f/2.8 II84%The 70-200 look at a third of the weightThe Panasonic 35-100mm f/2.8 II (84% match) costs €100 more (€1,000 against €900). Check price: B&H Photo Adorama MPB (used) eBay (used)
- Sigma 18-50mm F2.8 DC DN79%A constant f/2.8 that fits in a coat pocketThe Sigma 18-50mm F2.8 DC DN (79% match) trails on bokeh — 66/100 against 74/100. Check price: B&H Photo Adorama MPB (used) eBay (used)
- OM System M.Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8 PRO II79%The rainproof standard zoomThe OM System M.Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8 PRO II (79% match) trails on bokeh — 66/100 against 74/100. Check price: B&H Photo Adorama MPB (used) eBay (used)
Questions this answer raises
- Is the Tamron 28-75mm F2.8 G2 within a €1,000 budget?
- Yes. At €900 it leaves €100 of the ceiling unspent; the Panasonic 35-100mm f/2.8 II costs €1,000 and the Sigma 18-50mm F2.8 DC DN costs €450.
- How good is the Tamron 28-75mm F2.8 G2 for portraits?
- On the use question it scores 56%, 6 points above the average of the 65 lenses ranked. Its strongest numbers for this use are bokeh (74/100) and max aperture (f/2.8).
- Is the Tamron 28-75mm F2.8 G2 a zoom lens?
- Yes — type: Zoom. 28 of the 65 lenses in the pool are not, and were never in contention here.
Change an assumption
This page answers one photographer's question. Yours is not that question — adjust the subject, the format or the budget and watch the whole field re-rank.
Answer for your own shooting