I would immediately like to recommend the 35mm f/1.8 for $450 as your main lens (or as great alternative the slower Sigma 30mm f/2.8 for $200, or the lens at the other end of the spectrum is the 32mm f/1.8 Carl Zeiss for $900 if price doesn't bother you). If you need a telezoom, check out the Sony 55-210 f/4.5-6.3 for just $350. If you want a moderately wide-angle lens, consider the 19mm f/2.8 Sigma for $200.

You might also potentially be interested in the $275 50mm f/1.8 for portraits and perhaps the $350 Sony 20mm f/2.8 pancake for wide-angle viewing and to keep the camera compact.

How we chose (and a few words about focal length)

We've focused on more affordable options first, as this list is aimed at those photographers just getting started in the world of interchangeable lens cameras. When choosing good optics, we note that there are even better options High Quality, the price of which fluctuates around $1000. These are mainly lenses Carl Zeiss.

For beginners, the limited selection of NEX lenses is both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, you don't have to waste time comparing dozens of often very similar options to figure out which is best. On the other hand, if you don't like the lenses available, you'll have to be patient until Sony and/or third-party manufacturers release new lenses. Some of these lenses are actually pretty mediocre. But, fortunately, there are enough good models, so you don't have much difficulty taking great photos.

Owners of Micro Four Thirds cameras are luckier in this regard. They have a much wider range of lenses available and prices tend to be lower and there is a more substantial consignment market.

Why do we focus on fast lenses? Included with the NEX camera you will undoubtedly get a zoom lens that can cover the widest mid-range. The kit will likely include the 18-55mm, but if you opt for the NEX-6 you'll get a sleeker 16-50mm zoom lens. The 18-55mm is an average quality lens for the kit and the 16-50mm is about the same. It has been criticized for its softness and distortion, although some users think it is quite sharp.

Let's go retro

One of the delights Sony cameras NEX is that they are uniquely suitable for adapting older manual focus lenses. This is almost the same advantage as with any (mirrorless) system camera. You can easily use an adapter to attach old lenses that will work on your camera.

Sony NEX has another interesting feature called " focus peaking"It illuminates the areas of the frame that are in focus on the camera display, allowing you to manually focus perfectly on what you want. So you can successfully use older lenses from before the autofocus era.

There are third party manufacturers that make manual focus lenses, such as Rokinon, which specializes in wide-angle and fast fixed-distance lenses. Their characteristics are not the most outstanding, but the price is affordable.

What is missing?

The big gap in the NEX line is the lack of a good macro lens. Of course there is 30mm f/3.5 macro, but 30mm is a very short focal length for macro, you have to get close to your subject to get the size you need.

There is also a shortage in portrait lenses. The 50mm prime is pretty close, but it's not quite the focal length traditionally used for portraits.

Let's summarize

First and foremost, we recommend the $450 35mm f/1.8 as a stock, fast lens. Or for $200, the slower Sigma 30mm f/2.8 lens is a great, more affordable alternative. Another excellent option is the 32mm f/1.8 Carl Zeiss for $900, if you don't mind the price.

Consider purchasing the Sony 55-210mm f/4.5-6.3 for just $350 when your zoom needs arise. And 19 mm f/2.8 Sigma for 200 USD. useful if you need slightly wider coverage at a fixed focal length.

Contact lenses with tiny built-in cameras have been patented by Google and Samsung. The emergence of this technology in everyday life already seems inevitable. Soon people will begin to communicate with each other in a new way. The only thing that worries most users in this regard is the question of whether they will improve or worsen technical means quality of human communication.

The day is not far when we will be able to record our conversations with family members and friends on video. For some, such recordings will help them prove they are right in a dispute, while others will be able to review pleasant or important moments of their life over and over again. Despite the fact that this technology can be used for personal gain, in general, the presence of so-called “smart eyes” will incredibly complement our physical capabilities.

The patent description talks about contact lenses that can detect when a person blinks intentionally rather than for natural reasons. A deliberate action (blinking) turns on or off the video recording produced by the contact lenses.

"It is known that blinking, on average, takes from 0.2 to 0.4 seconds. Based on this, if this process lasts more than 0.5 seconds, then we can assume that this is a deliberate delay." This is stated in the patent.

An interesting fact is that three weeks ago Samsung received almost the same patent. You might think that Sony is just trying to copy Korean technology. But the key difference between the patents is that the contact lenses developed by the Japanese also have a mechanism for storing recorded video information.

When recorded using Samsung's hypothetical contact lenses, the video is sent directly to an external storage device such as a smartphone. But the Sony patent refers to a technology by which recorded video can be stored directly in the lens. This ensures easy and quick access to information.

How is this even possible? Online publication Tech Story reports that the lenses are equipped with miniature piezoelectric sensors that measure changes in pressure, acceleration, temperature or force. All these changes are converted into electrical charge. Sensors read the user's eye movements and determine the moment when the recording needs to be turned on or off.

The power required to operate the sensors and other electronic components of the lens is supplied through a simple process called electromagnetic induction when, under the influence of a magnetic field, a conductor is capable of generating a weak electric current.

This current will not only be needed for power, it will also be used in the mechanism for adjusting the angle of the lens relative to the human eye. This is how autofocus will work, adapting to the subjects being photographed.

"It appears that Sony is introducing additional controls for contact lenses," writes Rody Lee, a reporter for Tech Times magazine, in his article. “To correct defects caused by eye movements, the lenses can be adjusted to adjust the aperture, autofocus, and even image stabilization.”

Unfortunately, many of the features described above, regardless of whether they relate to the versions of smart eye technology being developed by Google, Samsung and Sony, are purely hypothetical, i.e. assumed.

But Lee says the three tech giants have been working on the technology for several years. There are serious reasons to believe that they have achieved some success and do not intend to give up their positions so soon. Technologically, exciting prospects await us. Let's hope that all the innovations that will appear in the very near future will be aimed at benefiting humanity.

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Choosing a standard lens for a Sony camera

It is believed that the choice of optics for Sony cameras is significantly narrower than for Nikon and Canon models. It’s difficult to argue with this statement, but there is one interesting nuance. The market leaders gained superiority not due to native lenses, but due to “non-original” ones. Tokina, Tamron, Sigma and others willingly make models with both F mount (Nikon) and EOS mount (Canon), but they often ignore Sony cameras. It’s difficult to explain in a nutshell why this happened, let’s just accept this fact as an axiom. However, if we compare the number of models and the choice among original glasses, then Sony is not only not inferior to Nikon and Canon, but can even surpass them in some segments.

Firstly, Sony's photography division did not arise out of nowhere. In 2006, the company bought the photography division of Konica Minolta. Sony engineers shrewdly did not invent a new bayonet mount, but left Minolt’s A. This means that the vast array of optics produced by this once top manufacturer can be installed on modern Sony cameras without any problems.

Secondly, such a legendary company as Carl Zeiss has a special love for Sony. Zeiss lenses are available in different mounts, but only for Sony with autofocus and electronic contacts, which allows these lenses to be considered “native”. Despite the fact that the alliance with Sony somewhat damaged the reputation of Carl Zeiss (primarily because glass for the masses began to be sold under the once very expensive brand), the optics of this company cannot be called unsuccessful.

In general, the choice of standard lenses for Sony is not as meager as adherents of the Nikon and Canon camps like to imagine. In this review we are looking at standard lenses (you can find out what they are).

Sony SAL 18-70 f/3.5-5.6 DT

• Groups/elements in the 9/11 optical design.
• There are 7 aperture blades.
• Filter diameter 55 mm.
• Dimensions (max. diameter x length) 66x77 mm.
• Weight 236 g.

This is the oldest kit lens that Sony equips kits for beginner photographers. In fact, it is an old film Minolta 28-100, converted to a 1.5 crop with a corresponding change in focal lengths. The rework was unsuccessful. It does not shine with sharpness, color rendition, or optical quality. Even by the standards of whale models, this is not the most successful lens. The main and only thing competitive advantage- low price.

Sony SAL 18-55 f/3.5-5.6 DT SAM

• Lens for cameras with crop factor 1.5.
• Groups/elements in the optical design are 7/8.
• There are 7 aperture blades.
• Maximum aperture f/3.5-5.6.
• Minimum aperture f/22-36.
• Minimum focusing 0.25 m.
• Filter diameter 55 mm.
• Dimensions (max. diameter x length) 69.5x69 mm.
• Weight 210 g.

Sony's second attempt to make a kit lens was much more successful. Despite the significant variation in the quality of different copies, the 18-55 is optically much better than the 18-70 in almost all respects, except for zoom ratio. It is clear that you cannot expect miracles from this “glass” either, but, in any case, with proper skill you can get good shots with it. For beginners, the capabilities of this lens will be enough for the first time, and then you can change it to something more advanced.

Sony SAL 16-105 f/3.5-5.6 DT

• Lens for cameras with crop factor 1.5.
• Groups/elements in the optical design are 11/15.
• There are 7 aperture blades.
• Maximum aperture f/3.5-5.6.
• Minimum aperture f/22-36.
• Minimum focusing 0.4 m.
• Filter diameter 62 mm.
• Weight 470 g.

This is a very versatile lens, covering both wide angle and moderate telephoto, while being relatively compact and lightweight. They love him for his versatility. The optical characteristics of this model are average: it is superior to whale models, but does not reach professional optics. The downside of this lens is the price (about 16 thousand rubles), which should be considered overpriced. However, for the sake of the versatility of this model, the high price tag is forgiven. It is especially popular among tourists and travelers: you don’t have to take anything else on a trip other than 16-105.

Sony SAL 24-105 f/3.5-4.5

• Groups/elements in the optical design are 11/12.
• There are 7 aperture blades.
• Minimum aperture f/22-27.
• Minimum focusing 0.5 m.
• Filter diameter 62 mm.
• Dimensions (max. diameter x length) 71x69 mm.
• Weight 395 g.

Another Minolta development brought to life by Sony. Despite the complete similarity in focal lengths, the lens is not an analogue of Canon, being inferior to it in all respects. The Kenon model is a professional L-series lens, and the Sonev one is the initial “glass” for cameras with a full-frame matrix, which lacks stars from the sky. There is little point in its existence: focal lengths are inconvenient for a crop lens, and full-frame owners are usually advanced enough not to shoot with such a simple lens.

Sony SAL 16-50 f/2.8 SSM DT

• Lens for cameras with crop factor 1.5.
• There are 7 aperture blades.
• Maximum aperture f/2.8.
• Minimum aperture f/22.
• Minimum focusing 1 m.
• Filter diameter 72 mm.
• Dimensions (max. diameter x length) 81x88 mm.
• Weight 577 g.

Prior to the release of this lens, Sony did not have a model for advanced enthusiasts. 16-50 closed this niche. It cannot be called unique in terms of optical characteristics; if you look at the picture from it very closely, then weak spots you can find it. However, this is a fast lens with a constant aperture of 2.8, and it costs only 25 thousand rubles. This is an excellent combination that can be forgiven for minor optical flaws. Competitors' similar lenses are more expensive.

Sony SAL 28-75 f/2.8 SAM

• Lens for full-format cameras.
• Groups/elements in the optical design are 14/16.
• There are 7 aperture blades.
• Maximum aperture f/2.8.
• Minimum aperture f/32.
• Minimum focusing 0.38 m.
• Filter diameter 67 mm.
• Dimensions (max. diameter x length) 77.5x94 mm.
• Weight 565 g.

One of the most controversial lenses in the system. This is a very ancient model. It was developed in the 90s by Tamron, then produced under the Minolta brand, Sony engineers only built an ultrasonic motor into it without touching the optical circuit. The lens is not bad. It does everything well with sharpness and contrast, and it reproduces colors adequately and does not suffer from aberrations. Here's the contradiction. The price of the lens hints that this is a professional model, with corresponding requirements for design and reliability, but in this regard the 28-75 f/2.8 has nothing to brag about. This fact makes determining the potential audience of “glass” somewhat difficult. For amateurs it is a bit expensive (although 35 thousand rubles for a full-format lens with a constant f/2.8 aperture is cheap by the standards of other systems), but for professionals it is rather weak. Focal lengths also add inconsistency, which are good on a full frame, but not on a cropped one.

Sony SAL 18-200 f/3.5-6.3 DT

• Lens for cameras with crop factor 1.5.
• Groups/elements in the optical design are 13/15.
• There are 7 aperture blades.
• Filter diameter 62 mm.
• Dimensions (max. diameter x length) 73x85.5 mm.
• Weight 405 g.

There is a similar hyperzoom in model range almost any optics manufacturer, but Sony turned out to be one of the most unsuccessful. While Nikon and Canon 18-200 can boast of quality higher than that of a kit lens, Sony does not - it’s exactly the same kit, only with very wide focal lengths. To be fair, it should be noted that the price of the Sony hyperzoom is cheaper than its competitors, but this does not really save it. The only one possible scope applications - travel photography, although the 16-105, even despite the smaller focal range, looks more interesting in this role.

Sony SAL 18-250 f/3.5-6.3 DT

• Lens for cameras with crop factor 1.5.
• Groups/elements in the optical design are 13/16.
• There are 7 aperture blades.
• Maximum aperture f/3.5-6.3.
• Minimum aperture f/22-40.
• Minimum focusing 0.45 m.
• Filter diameter 62 mm.
• Dimensions (max. diameter x length) 75x86 mm.
• Weight 440 g.

With this lens, Sony engineers went further and made an even longer zoom, the magnification ratio was 13.8x. This lens turned out to be slightly better than the 18-200, even despite the increase in focal range. In any case, I no longer want to compare pictures from it with point-and-shoot cameras. It is also inferior to 16-105, but not as critical as 18-200, so for photographers who do not have too high quality requirements, this lens can even be recommended as the only one in the kit. But you shouldn’t expect miracles from him either.

Carl Zeiss SAL 16-80 f/3.5-4.5 DT ZA

• Lens for cameras with crop factor 1.5.
• Groups/elements in the optical design are 10/14.
• There are 7 aperture blades.
• Maximum aperture f/3.5-4.5.
• Minimum aperture f/22-29.
• Minimum focusing 0.35 m.
• Filter diameter 62 mm.
• Dimensions (max. diameter x length) 72x83 mm.
• Weight 445 g.

This was the first lens for Sony from Carl Zeiss, and it made a lot of noise. It was after this model that Carl Zeiss began to be accused of being pop. The lens, by the way, is not bad at all. It has high contrast, dense, rich color, and a very noble background blur, which is rarely found in zoom lenses. Without a doubt, the 16-80 has no analogues in terms of quality among lenses with the same focal lengths from other manufacturers: both the 15-85 from Canon and the 16-85 from Nikon are optically worse. Everything would be fine, but 16-80 costs almost 35 thousand rubles, and for such a price you can and should find fault with it. There are two complaints - strong chromatic aberrations and poor design. In general, the lens is more than good, but in terms of price-quality ratio it is far from ideal.

Carl Zeiss SAL 24-70 f/2.8 ZA SSM

• Lens for full-format cameras.
• Groups/elements in the optical design are 13/17.
• There are 9 aperture blades.
• Maximum aperture f/2.8.
• Minimum aperture f/22.
• Minimum focusing 0.34 m.
• Filter diameter 72 mm.
• Dimensions (max. diameter x length) 83x111 mm.
• Weight 955 g.

This lens costs 75 thousand rubles, which could immediately put an end to its market prospects, if he weren't so good. If after the release of the 16-80 many blamed Carl Zeiss for compromising, then with the 24-70 there are no such questions - this is truly a lens of the highest level. It is widely accepted as one of the best 24-70 f/2.8 zooms of any brand, perhaps even the best at the moment. He has no shortcomings. Excellent resolution and sharpness straight from an open aperture, high contrast, pleasant color and background blur, reliability and indestructibility. In general, this is a dream lens, but this dream costs more than almost all cameras in the Sony line, and this is the only fact that overshadows the pleasure of using this lens.

Let's summarize. The line of standard Sony lenses includes models of popular focal lengths, as well as several exclusive ones. The set is quite extensive, it contains both kit lenses like 18-70 and masterpieces like 24-70, and is quite balanced. There is a choice for both beginning photographers and professionals. Advanced amateurs who want and know how to take high-quality photographs, but cannot spend too much money on a lens, have not been forgotten either. For them, 16-50 is optimal. The only thing missing from the lineup is optics with a constant f/4 aperture.

With the advent of new high-resolution full-frame sensors, there is a need for lenses that will be able to unleash their full potential. Sony, one of the first to realize this, introduced the G-Master line in 2016, setting a new standard in the field of photo optics. In this material we will look at key features series, and also monitor the development of this line of lenses.

Previously, most often manufacturers pleased us with either sharp lenses or lenses with beautiful bokeh. Apparently, looking at this, Sony, which has enormous experience in the production of optics, decided to produce lenses that could incorporate these two qualities: thanks to a new type of lens, G-Master lenses became ultra-sharp, without losing beautiful defocus.

To understand where Sony got so much technology and how the company achieved something that no one else had achieved before, let’s look at history.

2003 and 2006: prologue

Back in 2003, the two oldest Japanese manufacturers of photographic equipment, Konica and Minolta, merged into the Konica Minolta holding. It would seem that the two giants of the photo industry should form an indestructible duet that will dictate terms to the entire market. But after a short cooperation over three years, the holding acquires Sony entirely.

In 2006, the photographic division of Konica Minolta was transferred to Sony, and the well-known Sony α brand was born. Thus, the company strengthens its technological position with many years of experience and new employees. Minolta, for example, is known for introducing world's first autofocus 35mmSLR camera. And cooperation in the 1970s with the German company Leitz gave a separate impetus to the development of optics. Minolta lenses are still called the “golden reserve” due to their high sharpness and good contrast. Of course, these characteristics are inherited by Sony lenses, and the G-Master line becomes the crown of optics development.

Further proof that Sony knows how to make revolutionary optics is the CineAlta line, which appeared in 1999. Sony was the first company to make a 4K cinema system... in 2006! Today, its lenses support resolutions up to 8K and are used in the production of major Hollywood films.

Sony Alpha Professionals - Sergey Semenov

Sergey Semenov is an international economist by training. He worked in his specialty for 7 years and then completely went into photography. Moreover, the impetus was the 2008 crisis. During 10 years of work in photography, he visited more than 40 countries. He shoots in the genre of artistic landscape. He holds the post of director of the world-famous AirPano project, the goal of which is to show the most beautiful corners of the planet from a bird's eye view, capturing them in a spherical (360°) format (photo and video). Laureate of competitions: “Wildlife of Russia” (conducted National Geographic), EpsonPanoAwards, Trierenberg Super Circuit, AdMe Photo Awards, “Golden Turtle”, Photosight Awards, The Best Of Russia. His works are published in such publications as National Geographic, GEO, Der Spiegel, Daily Mail.

2016: the appearance of the first three Sony G-Master models

Three years have passed since the presentation of the full-frame Sony A7 and A7R, and it becomes clear that the further, the more new full-frame high-resolution matrices require special lenses. These are exactly what Sony is presenting, demonstrating three models at once: everyone’s favorite zoom lenses F.E. 24–70 mmF/2.8 GM and FE70–200 mmF/2.8 GM OSS, as well as portrait prime FE 85 mm F/1.4 GM. All lenses receive XA aspherical lenses.

XA lenses are some of the highest quality in the world. It is thanks to them, or rather, thanks to precise processing when producing a surface of 0.01 microns, that the lenses provide high resolution and beautiful bokeh.

“These lenses are very difficult to manufacture, and for us it turned out to be a kind of challenge: how much precision can we achieve?” - Masanori Kishi, Deputy General Manager of Lens Design Department

The FE 24-70mm F/2.8 GM lens has such a quality of resolution at any focal length that any discrete lens would be envious. The model is designed for full-frame E-mount cameras, but it is also possible to use it with APS-C matrices (the focal length in this case becomes 36–105 mm). The 9-blade F/2.8 aperture remains unchanged at any focal length. Inside there is a system of four types of lenses that provide excellent detail.

Frequency response (MFT) graphs show how well a lens reproduces the smallest details:

Sony Alpha Professionals - Vlad Shutov

He has been engaged in photography professionally since the 80s of the last century. Graduated from Moscow State University named after M.V. Lomonosov (philological faculty), Institute of Journalism Excellence (photojournalism) at the Union of Journalists of the USSR. Member of the Union of Photographers of Russia. Participant of 15 personal exhibitions. He taught at the Academy of Photography. Gives lectures and conducts master classes.

“Sony 24-70/2.8 GM is a real reportage lens, fast and tenacious when autofocusing. It, of course, cannot boast of such bokeh as its “longer” brother, but it is good for its sharpness, lack of bunnies and versatility of use.” - Vlad Shutov.

Joining the 24-70 is the FE 70-200mm F/2.8 GM OSS, which provides powerful resolution for closed-aperture reportage shooting and beautiful bokeh for portraits. It becomes possible to block the tracking focus using three programmable buttons on the body (number 5 in the illustration). Once you have achieved precise focus, press this button on the lens barrel - the focusing plane will be locked in its current position. Once you have the focus accurately, press this button on the lens barrel and the focal length will be locked at the current position. This button can also be assigned a preview function using the camera's custom settings. In addition, there are controls for autofocus, stabilizer and distance limiter.

The lens is dust and moisture resistant. The illustration shows the locations of the sealing elements.

The optical design of the lens is complex: 23 elements are included in 18 groups.

“The Sony 70-200/2.8 GM OSS covers my favorite focal length range. It focuses very quickly, so much so that even tracking autofocus works perfectly - there are practically no misses. This lens is very sharp, but at the same time shows excellent bokeh, and for me this model can be said to be a standard lens. I use it not only when shooting on the street, but often in the studio.” - Vlad Shutov

The latest lens presented in 2016 is the FE 85 mm F/1.4 GM portrait lens with an extended aperture ring. Sony says this lens will shoot 8K video. And this is not hard to believe, given that today the 42.4-megapixel matrix in the Sony A7R III produces 7952 × 5304 images and 4K video with a resolution of 3840 × 2160 with stunning detail.

The portrait lens has an 11-blade aperture with rounded elements. This design provides a perfectly round opening, which helps create particularly soft areas in the defocus zone. For videographers, there is an aperture click control switch - in the smooth aperture mode there will be no sharp jumps, which will allow you to change the values ​​​​right while recording video.

2017: the already legendary line is replenished with a new trio

The FE 100 mm F/2.8 STF GM OSS, FE 16–35 mm F/2.8 GM and FE 100–400 mm F/4.5-5.6 GM OSS models appear on the market.

The FE 100 mm F/2.8 STF GM OSS becomes the first autofocus lens with an apodization element, and also receives the abbreviation STF in its name - Smooth Trans Focus optics allows you to achieve spectacular bokeh. Previously, this technology was used in Minolta lenses and later Sony in the 135 mm F/2.8 model.

APD filter Aspherical lens Low dispersion glass

The apodization element works on the principle of a gradient ND filter: it slightly darkens the edges, weakening various aberrations that can occur at the edges of the image. The number of aperture blades is 11.

The FE 16–35 mm F/2.8 GM is one of the most popular lenses in the line today. At 35mm, many photographers use the lens as a portrait lens. The 11-blade diaphragm, already traditional for the series, produces almost perfect bokeh on a full-format sensor. The optical design consists of 16 elements in 13 groups.

“Sony 16-35/2.8 GM is fast and sharp. It, like all wide-angle lenses, has some vignetting when the aperture is fully open and at the short end, but, again, it can be easily removed in a photo editor. As a summary, I will answer the question: are these lenses worth the money? Yes, they do. Should you buy them? If you have a Sony R camera - of course!” - Vlad Shutov

FE 100–400 mm F/4.5-5.6 GM OSS is a fast and quiet sports lens, and today it is Sony's longest zoom lens. On APS-C matrices, the focal length increases to 150–600 mm. Dual DDSSM linear drives ensure fast focusing and clear subject tracking. The new motorized focusing system Direct Drive Super Sonic wave Motor allows you to focus even at the minimum depth of field. The motorized DDSSM system is quiet, making it ideal for video shooting where the focus point is constantly changing during video recording. The lens itself is smaller and lighter than its closest competitors.

Sony Alpha Professionals - Anton Unitsyn

Anton Unitsyn proves by his example that sometimes it is not only possible, but also necessary to seriously change your life. It would seem that he was destined for a wonderful career as a physicist. Graduated from Novosibirsk State University, worked for 5 years at the Institute of Chemical Kinetics and Combustion of the SB RAS. And suddenly he quit graduate school to go to professional photography. But the result he immediately showed in new area, surprised everyone. Three dozen international (collective) exhibitions. Winner of many competitions. Publications in various media. Laureate of the Russian Government scholarship for cultural and artistic workers in 2015, laureate of the Russian Ministry of Culture scholarship in 2012 and 2014. Teaches photo reporting at the Faculty of Journalism of NSU.

“100-400 mm lenses, like any telezoom, are rare guests in my backpack. Robert Capa’s statement is very close to my heart: “If you couldn’t do good shot, you couldn’t get close enough.” Therefore, a telephoto camera ends up in my hands when I physically cannot get closer to the object being photographed. This was the case with the sports filming of the regatta in Croatia. The yachts travel at a relatively long distance; there is no opportunity to move between them during the race. This is where super-telephoto distances come in handy, allowing you to compress the space for interesting rhythms and angles and take close-ups. The lens performed brilliantly. I used aperture 5.6 for all cases as it is available across the entire focal length range. Excellent fast, tenacious focusing pleasantly surprised me, given the fairly closed aperture. All images are exceptionally sharp, on the 24 MP of my A9, very nice drawing. I took a number of close-up portraits of regatta participants using this particular lens.

In general, I am very afraid of the word “ideal” - in my opinion it is something unattainable. However, the 100-400 certainly comes very close to that line. In a year I will have to film a regatta again, but this time in Italy, and, in principle, there is an opportunity to take the new 400 2.8. But I will give preference to the 100–400 as it is lighter, more compact and more flexible to use due to its wide range of focal lengths.” - Anton Unitsyn

“I really like to capture all sorts of details when shooting in the city, from rooftops or from mountains, and often 200 mm is not enough. So I switched to 100–400 mm with pleasure; It's just a pity that the weight has let us down - it's too heavy. But the 100-400 works great with an extender, and when I photographed bears in Kamchatka, the extender helped a lot, turning the lens into a super telephoto without losing autofocus and without compromising on quality. Obviously, these two lenses are amazing in quality, the bodies are monolithic! Ergonomics are beyond praise. The kit includes smart cases in which lenses can be transported separately. For me, there is only one drawback - these are different diameters, so I have to carry a whole bunch of different filters.” - photographer Sergey Semenov

2018: discrete breakthroughs

This summer, another long-focus lens from the G Master series will be released - the FE 400 mm F/2.8 GM OSS prime. Lightweight for its class, the model is designed for sports and wildlife photography. Along with the company's portrait cameras, the FE 400 has an 11-blade aperture that produces remarkable bokeh.

In contrast to the 400 mm telephoto, a new wide-angle model was released in September 2018 - the FE 24 mm F1.4 G Master, which, together with the FE 85 mm, becomes the fastest model in the line. The weight of the 24mm lens is only 445 grams, which is an order of magnitude lighter than competing models. For example, a similar model from Sigma weighs almost twice as much. The lens uses a 13-element system, two of which are XA lenses. The DDSSM autofocus drive gives videographers fast, accurate and quiet focusing. In addition, it is possible to disable aperture stops to smoothly change exposure while recording. The body has a programmable autofocus lock button, as well as an AF/MF switch. Like all lenses in the G Master series, the FE 24mm F1.4 is dust and moisture resistant.

Instead of a summary, a few more words about technology

Aspherical XA lenses, which were already mentioned in the article, is a unique proprietary Sony technology developed specifically for the G-Master series, which allows for ultra-high sharpness at all focal lengths. In the manufacture of aspherical lenses, more complex and precise technologies are used than for spherical lenses. This is how it is achieved high accuracy surface treatment of 0.01 microns.

Resolution 50 line pairs/ mm allows you to convey subtle contrast transitions. When designing lenses, Sony engineers eliminated optical aberrations, in particular chromatic ones.

Perfect bokeh. When designing a lens, in parallel with increasing resolution and improving frequency-contrast characteristics, you need to constantly monitor the quality of bokeh. For this purpose, the simulation method was used. In addition, each lens is adjusted manually. The higher the resolution, the better the lens conveys subtle contrast transitions. To achieve this, a number of optical aberrations, in particular chromatic, and coma, were completely eliminated at the design stage.

New drive. When focusing, lens position sensors are used. For each model in the G-Master line, the drive is designed separately. For example, in the FE 70-200mm F/2.8 GM OSS model, the optical elements are divided into two groups, each of which has its own autonomous drive. The result is smoother focusing when shooting photos and videos. Additionally, linear drive technology is used - direct, non-contact electromagnetic focus control for fast response and extremely quiet operation. This ensures easy operation and quiet operation both when taking photos and recording videos.

Today, seven lenses in the G-Master line give photographers an unlimited field of activity in completely different categories: sports, outdoor photography, portraits, urban photography, architecture and much more.