A Little Bag Of Primes Lens: The Tamron 20-40mm f/2.8 Di III VXD.

I had a nonsense thought yesterday.

Not the first time and will not be the last. The thought:

This 20-24mm has become my 35-150mm of wide angle lenses.

What am I on about? I am glad I imagined you asked.

The 35-150mm has been a bit of a revelation for me. It covers every of my favorite normal to tele prime focal lengths.

35mm
50mm
75mm (77mm if you are a Pentax fan.)
85mm
105mm
135mm
150mm (At 225mm in APS-C mode it displaces my need for 200mm. I programmed a button for one touch access.)

The 20-40mm does the same for my most used wide lenses.

20mm (Close enough to take the place of 17mm.)
28mm
35mm
40mm (Which is close enough to displace a 50mm.)

A lot of words to say that it is a great lens for close quarters photography. Yes, the range is not as broad. But this is a small lens which has the benefit of discretion and not startling folks like a bazooka sized zoom lens might do. Also I argue that close quarters photography reaps greater benefits from small adjustments in focal length than distant subjects. Mainly because at longer focal lengths you usually have room to adjust you distance by taking a few steps backward or forward. But in close quarters that might not be the case.

It is the only lens I brought with me to a family gathering yesterday. It was the only lens I needed.

The setting was the area where my Mother grew up. A place that served as a cradle for my family. A safe space. Where Black families owned and farmed their own acreage. Surely they dealt with racism. There is a reason many traveled North. My Mother tells me of segregation in town where she had to sit in the balcony to see a movie and other indignities she did not deserve. But not touched by the terrible massacres history tells of where violent mobs rewarded African Americans who secured success by burning their towns down to the ground and murdering those who did not manage to flee. I do not take this for granted. For that reason this town holds a special place in my heart.

This was a gathering to bring together the descendants of my Great Grandfather Christopher Bullock and his siblings. Here are the pics.

A capture in town on the way home.

I could not be happier with how the 20-40mm performed. A perfect alternative to the bag of wide primes I used to bring and a beautiful day wth family. Some I know. Many I met for the first time.

It has now transformed from my, “I just need the pic.”, lens to the only wide lens I need.

Well done Tamron.