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Landscape Master: The new Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM lens
One of the factors that has been holding up professionals from adopting Sony's mirrorless cameras has been the relatively limited selection of lenses so far. Happily, this is starting to change.
The newest lenses are a pair of wide angle zoom lenses that will cover a full 35mm sensor.
First up is the $2198 16-35mm f/2.8 GM lens, Sony's professional line. Boasting a fast f/2.8 aperture and quite a wide field of view this will probably be quite popular with landscape and architecture photographers in particular.
This lens has an XA front element, an 11-blade aperture design, and dual autofocus motors to drive its floating focus system. Sony believes that it will be quiet enough for filmmaking. This lens is dust and moisture resistant, and the front element includes a fluorine coating to help prevent scratches and smudges.
It also includes a hood release button in addition to a focus hold button. Hopefully, that means that the lens hood won't get lost if the camera gets bumped in the field or on set.
The second lens is even wider, a 12-24 f/4 G lens. This should be great for landscapes and architecture, and it's also quite lightweight at 566g (around 1.2 pounds). The $1698 lens also includes a silent autofocus motor that Sony says will make it suitable for video as well as for stills. Like its bigger brother, it's also dust and moisture resistant, which all professional lenses ought to be.
Sony's expanding lens lineup should help to raise the overall appeal of Sony's camera system, and might even entice some people over from other systems. Some professional photographers who have been very impressed with some of Sony's newer bodies have lamented the comparatively meagre lens options to date. But, between these super wide lenses and the recently announced 400mm lens, Sony is definitely listening.
Tags: Production
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