I've used Canons 85 1.8 for a few years. Without VC on, it's just as fast. The VC as noted in a few videos pauses for a quarter second before locking on. It's the weirdest thing and the increment of time is very slight but it is there, given the bonus of VC I'm willing to deal with it. I will say my keeper rate is by far better than the Canon, and that thing was very good in my opinion.
These shots were straight out of the box, and I feel I need just a hair of MFA. But that's me nitpicking.
I'll post more examples this weekend. My Canon was my Go To lens, and I'm thrilled this one performed so well before tweaking. Has anyone played with the Tamron Docking set up yet? I'm curious how beneficial it is. I would get it if it performed as advertised, but would like to hear real world tests. My 35 SP would need to be adjusted by Tam to work with the dock from what I've read.