The type of photography that you are planning to use is an important decision factor. Here we have evaluated the Tamron 180mm f3.5 LD Macro and the Canon 200mm f2.8L II USM 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 180mm f3.5 LD Macro is the longer of the two lenses at 166mm. The Canon 200mm f2.8L II USM with a length of 136mm is 30mm shorter. Besides being longer, the Tamron 180mm f3.5 LD Macro also has a larger diameter of 85mm compared to Canon 200mm f2.8L II USM's 83mm 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. Canon 200mm f2.8L II USM weighs 765g, 16% (155g) lighter than the Tamron 180mm f3.5 LD Macro's weight of 920g.
Lens Mounts
Both Tamron 180mm f3.5 LD Macro and Canon 200mm f2.8L II USM has the same Canon EF lens mount. Some of the latest released cameras that are compatible with the Canon EF lenses are Canon 1D X III, Canon 6D MII and Canon 5D MIV.
Tamron 180mm f3.5 LD Macro is also available in Nikon F (FX) and Sony Alpha mounts.
Focal Range
Tamron 180mm f3.5 LD Macro is a prime lens with fixed focal lenght of 180mm. When it is mounted on an APS-C sensor camera with 1.6x crop, it provides an 35mm (FF) equivalent of 288mm.
Canon 200mm f2.8L II USM is a prime lens with fixed focal lenght of 200mm. When it is mounted on an APS-C sensor camera with 1.6x crop, it provides an 35mm (FF) equivalent of 320mm.