The type of photography that you are planning to use is an important decision factor. Here we have evaluated the Tamron 15-30mm f2.8 VC USD and the Tokina 12-28mm f4 Pro DX for their suitability to various photography scenarios:
Size and Weight Comparison
Size of a lens is an important deciding factor when comparing two lenses.Tamron 15-30mm f2.8 VC USD is the longer of the two lenses at 145mm. The Tokina 12-28mm f4 Pro DX with a length of 90mm is 55mm shorter. Besides being longer, the Tamron 15-30mm f2.8 VC USD also has a larger diameter of 98mm compared to Tokina 12-28mm f4 Pro DX's 84mm diameter.
Weight of a lens is as important as its external dimensions, especially if you are planning to hand hold your camera and lens combination for longer periods. Tokina 12-28mm f4 Pro DX weighs 530g, 51% (570g) lighter than the Tamron 15-30mm f2.8 VC USD's weight of 1100g.
Lens Mounts
Both Tamron 15-30mm f2.8 VC USD has the Nikon F (FX) lens mount whereas the Tokina 12-28mm f4 Pro DX has the Nikon F (DX) lens mount. Some of the latest released cameras that are compatible with these mounts are Nikon D6, Nikon D780 and Nikon D3500 for the Nikon F (FX) Mount and Nikon D3500, Nikon D7500 and Nikon D5600 for the Nikon F (DX) Mount.
Tamron 15-30mm f2.8 VC USD is also available in Canon EF and Sony Alpha mounts.
Tokina 12-28mm f4 Pro DX is also available in Canon EF mount.
Focal Range
Tamron 15-30mm f2.8 VC USD has a focal range of 15-30mm and 2.0X zoom ratio . When it is mounted on an APS-C sensor camera with 1.5x crop, it provides an 35mm (FF) equivalent of 22.5 - 45mm.
Tokina 12-28mm f4 Pro DX has a focal range of 12-28mm and 2.3X zoom ratio which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of 18-42mm when used on a APS-C / DX format camera.