The type of photography that you are planning to use is an important decision factor. Here we have evaluated the Tokina 16-50mm f2.8 DX and the Tamron 17-50mm f2.8 XR II LD for their suitability to various photography scenarios:
Size and Weight Comparison
Size of a lens is an important deciding factor when comparing two lenses.Tokina 16-50mm f2.8 DX is the longer of the two lenses at 97mm. The Tamron 17-50mm f2.8 XR II LD with a length of 82mm is 15mm shorter. Besides being longer, the Tokina 16-50mm f2.8 DX also has a larger diameter of 84mm compared to Tamron 17-50mm f2.8 XR II LD's 74mm 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. Tamron 17-50mm f2.8 XR II LD weighs 430g, 29% (180g) lighter than the Tokina 16-50mm f2.8 DX's weight of 610g.
Below you can find the dimension and weight table of the 'Standard Zoom Lenses in Canon EF Mount for size comparison purposes.
Standard Zoom Lenses in Canon EF Mount for Size Comparison
Lens Mounts
Both Tokina 16-50mm f2.8 DX and Tamron 17-50mm f2.8 XR II LD has the same Canon EF lens mount. Some of the latest released cameras that are compatible with the Canon EF lenses are Canon T8i, Canon 90D and Canon SL3.
Tokina 16-50mm f2.8 DX is also available in Nikon F (DX) mount.
Tamron 17-50mm f2.8 XR II LD is also available in Nikon F (DX) , Sony Alpha and Pentax KAF mounts.
Focal Range
Tokina 16-50mm f2.8 DX has a focal range of 16-50mm and 3.1X zoom ratio which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of 25.6-80mm when used on a APS-C / DX format camera. Tamron 17-50mm f2.8 XR II LD has a focal range of 17-50mm and 2.9X zoom ratio which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of 27.2-80mm when used on a APS-C / DX format camera.