Sony SEL70200G E Mount - Full Frame 70-200mm F4.0 G Lens, White

This is a fantastic lens well worth the somewhat inflated price tag (in comparison to the Canon and Nikon equivalents).Firstly the build quality. This lens feels very well put together. It’s a full metal construction which makes it feel solid in the hand. Both the focus and zoom rings are silky smooth with a rubberised, slip-free feel to them and the included Tripod Mount is reassuringly solid. All in all, nothing to complain about here.The lens is relatively small for the range it covers and not too heavy. It’s similar in size and weight to the Canon and Nikon equivalents so nothing to write home about. Put it like this, I’ve spent several days with this attached to my A7 worn around my shoulder (using a Black Rapid) without issue.Focus speed is great actually. The Sony A series aren’t renowned for their focusing speed but this lens performs surprisingly well. The focus is fast and accurate. I found tracking to be a little ropey when tracking fast moving objects so I just turned this off and opted for single shot focus instead.Lastly (and arguably most importantly) image quality. The image quality is really fantastic. The lens is sharp across the frame throughout the entire range however, 200mm is its weakest. It’s still great at 200mm but isn’t quite as sharp as throughout the rest of the range. Contrast is good without being overbearing and the bokeh is silky smooth.Overall, a great lens deserving of a spot within your collection.

This is a full frame standard zoom for the Sony cameras using the E Mount. It is well built and light in weight (when compared to its competitors from Canon and Nikon). I use it with an A7 RIII and now an A7 RIV.I have been very impressed with this lens. It focuses quickly and accurately and is light enough in weight that it does not unbalance the camera for hand held shots. Picture quality is above average and they seem to be sharp and performs as expected from a lens of this cost. Whether it extracts the full resolution from either Sony A7's I have is subject to debate (it does not), but I know I can crop in without a problem and get very sharp pictures. I have invested in F/4 series lenses rather than F/2.8 since the larger aperture lenses are too heavy for carry around use even though their better light collecting ability is not in doubt. However the sensors in todays cameras are extremely good and low noise even up >6400 ISO which means we can use these smaller aperture lenses without fear of loosing that shot in low light.I would recommend this lens to anyone with an E Mount Sony, especially the A7 and A7R series. It is portable, very well made and gives excellent results. Thoroughly recommended.

Great!

I bought this lens as a photographer doing everything from events to landscapes to travel.The 70-200 f4 is, I think, the best option in its price bracket - but its autofocus and sharpness lag behind modern competitors.Autofocus is good in good light but slows down in dimmer situations.My 28-75, 85 1.8, and samyang 18 and 24mm seem faster. The middle of the frame is always quite sharp up to f/16 (where diffraction is unavoidable) and the corners are sharp by f/5.6 to f/16. Peak sharpness across the frame is reached at f8, and it is very good.For reference, the 70-200 f4 is competing with the Tamron 70-300 (cheaper), the Tamron 28-200 (about the same), the Tamron 70-180 (more expensive) and the Sigma 100-400 (more expensive) as well as of course Sony's own 70-300 (cheaper) and the 70-200 f2.8 version 1 (more expensive) and version 2 (much more expensive).These are all newer lenses, with generally better autofocus and sharpness than this.However, compared to the Tamron offerings this Sony has image stabilisation which is good for handheld shooting, and a tripod collar which is good for on a tripod. Tamron's 70-180 is the closest competitor because it has a wider aperture which makes up for the loss of stabilisation, but it does cost more too.Compared to the Sony 70-300 you lose a bit of focal length with this one, but get a wider aperture instead.Comparing to the f/2.8 (G master) Sony 70-200s, the picture is more interesting. At £700-£1100 for this one compared with £1400-£1700 (including second hand) for the version 1 GM, it's more down to your needs. The GM is far heavier so I went for this. The version 2 is much lighter, not much heavier than this one, and incredibly sharp - but costs way more. It was out of my budget.Another interesting comparison is with the Tamron 28-200. It's smaller, lighter, has a darker aperture when zoomed in - but it does every focal length this does and many more on the wide end. If you need one lens to do it all, for example for travel, the Tamron 28-200 is great.The main comparison I was making personally was with the Sigma 100-400mm, which comes in costing just a little more than this one but adding much more versatility in terms of focal length. The Sigma is far sharper but is much larger and has a darker aperture. This is a very personal choice - a pure landscape photographer would probably go for the Sigma. I went for the Sony because it's smaller, lighter, and nicer to use (with a zoom ring which can be moved with just two fingers rather than the stiff one on the Sigma moving much more glass around).In conclusion: If you need just one small lens to do everything, look at the Tamron 28-200. If you need a very sharp lens that zooms in ridiculously far but don't mind it extending when you zoom in, try the Sigma 100-400 (and buy the additional collar if you do landscapes). If you like the 70-200 focal length but need it even lighter weight than this, consider the Tamron 70-180. And if, again, you like the 70-200 focal length, and want the best of the best where money is no object, get the Sony GM version 2.But if your needs are the same as mine, this 70-200 f4 is highly recommended.

Yes, you lose a stop of light compared to the f/2.8 GMYes, on paper the 2.8 GM is sharperBut by god, this lens is far easier to carry around and significantly cheaper. I can tell the 2.8 is sharper when I pixel peep my images at 200% or more. But which normal person does that???If you are needing low light performance, this is not the lens for you.If you're a pixel peeping enthusiast then this is not the lens for you.If you want a great lens that doesn't make your arms hurt, this is great.

Don't buy used products from Amazon! Today I was frustrated because I bought this lens to photograph the vacation I planned for 35 days on a Safari! and now I can't use my camera!Do not buy products that have already been opened or are supposed to have minor damage! don't fall for this 🙏

It's big and fairly heavy and I wish it wasn't white*, but that's where the complaining stops. Only a few images so far using this lens on my A7II but its image quality is evidently head and shoulders above the SEL24-240 kit lens I've been using.*Note for pedants: it's actually pale grey but looks white at a glance....... :-)