Sony FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G Assessment

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Introduction

The Sony FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G is a really compact, light-weight and weather-sealed ultra-wide-angle energy zoom lens for the Sony Alpha full-frame mirrorless digital camera system.

This professional-grade E-mount lens has been designed with an emphasis on videography fairly than stills images. Whereas it is totally suitable with Sony E-mount full body and APS-C cameras, it is in all probability greatest suited to higher-end interchangeable lens video cameras just like the PXW-FS7 II.

This lens’ most notable characteristic is an inside powered zoom system which offers extraordinarily clean and quiet motorized zooming that’s important for clean film making.

It provides a continuing most aperture of f/4 all through the 14-35mm zoom vary, plus quick and quiet auto focusing.

It has an optical formulation comprised of 13 parts organized in 12 teams, together with two Superior Aspherical (AA) parts, a regular aspherical factor, and one ED aspherical factor to suppress distortion and aberrations, and one Tremendous ED (Additional-low Dispersion) glass factor and one ED glass factor to subdue chromatic aberrations.

Different highlights embody a minimal focusing distance of 24cm and a most magnification of 0.23x, with a fluorine coating utilized to the entrance factor to withstand mud, oils, and fingerprints.

The Sony FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G lens is priced at £1299.99 within the UK and $1199 within the US. The Sony PZ 16-35mm F4 was launched in March 2022 and is manufactured in Thailand.

Ease of Use

The Sony FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G is a totally weather-sealed ultra-wide-angle zoom lens with a devoted Sony E mount that’s manufactured from steel. Communication between lens and digital camera physique is offered by means of 10 electrical contacts.

Be aware nevertheless that with a purpose to take full benefit of the weatherproofing, you will have to mount it on a equally weather-sealed physique, just like the Sony Alpha A9 digital camera that we examined it with.

The weather-proofing offers you confidence that the lens will survive every kind of various inclement situations, whereas its sturdy development additionally offers the lens an air of top quality.

The FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G lens is nicely constructed, totally dwelling as much as the skilled designation that Sony have given it.

Tipping the scales at simply 353g / 12.5 oz and measuring 88.1mm in size and 80.5mm in diameter, the Sony FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G is an extremely compact and light-weight ultra-wide-angle zoom lens which you can carry round all day with out noticing.

The Sony Alpha A9 used for this check proved to be an excellent match for the lens, providing pleasing stability, quick and near-silent auto-focus, and full environmental sealing.

The FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G options separate focus, zoom and aperture (iris) rings.

The aperture ring has 1/3ev stops starting from f/4 to f/22 and may be switched between clean and notched rotation utilizing the devoted Click on change on the lens barrel.

Utilizing the Iris Lock change on the lens barrel, it will also be locked to both the Auto or F4-F22 settings to stop unintended motion of the aperture ring.

The zoom ring sits in the midst of the aperture and focusing rings and rotates by means of roughly 90 levels.

Though the zoom ring seems to function the lens parts immediately as you’d anticipate from a typical zoom lens, it would not right here. As an alternative the ring merely actuates the 4 inside XD Linear focusing motors.

In contrast to the older FE PZ 28-135mm f/4 G OSS lens, which suffered from a slight lag when rapidly zooming from most broad angle to full telephoto, the brand new FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G instantly responds with just about no delay in any respect.

The ability zoom may be be remotely managed through suitable digital camera our bodies, a distant commander or accent grip, and even whereas the digital camera is mounted on a gimbal utilizing the Imaging Edge Cellular utility.

In contrast to most zoom rings on ultra-wide-angle lenses, the FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G just isn’t marked with completely different focal lengths so you’ll be able to rapidly leap to the focal size you’d like to make use of.

As an alternative it’s a must to depend on the horizontal scale and focal size which can be displayed within the viewfinder and LCD display screen, which fairly slows down the operation of the lens.

Along with the guide zoom ring, there’s additionally a rocker lever for full energy zooming. Push the lever as much as zoom in and right down to zoom out.

It’s a management system a lot as you’d discover on the lens barrel of many superzoom bridge cameras and works very nicely right here, offering regular and fully silent zooming that’s good for video work.

Importantly the zooming is totally inside so the lens barrel would not prolong, making FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G ideally suited to make use of with a gimbal.

This lens doesn’t characteristic built-in picture stabilisation, as an alternative counting on the digital camera physique to provide it, which is able to show irritating for homeowners of early Alpha digital camera our bodies with out IBIS.

Handbook focusing is feasible by utilizing the main target mode change to toggle between AF and MF.

Handbook focusing is completed in a standard vogue, with the adequately sized focus ring electronically coupled to the transferring lens parts, though there are not any exhausting stops at both finish. Focusing is totally inside and the 72mm filter thread doesn’t rotate on focus.

With the FE PZ 16-35mm lens hooked up to a Sony Alpha A9 physique, focusing proved to be very fast in most conditions because of the XD Linear Motor system which makes use of two separate motors.

This mixture is able to locking concentrate on a topic nearly immediately, even when alternating between shut and faraway topics.

In excessive low-light conditions you might expertise slightly focus searching on the lengthy finish, the place a lens with a quicker f/2.8 fixed aperture would assist keep away from this.

The lens has a customisable focus maintain button which retains the lens locked to the present focusing distance, helpful when you’re auto-focusing and don’t desire the lens to try to discover focus once more. It will probably additionally, amongst different issues, be usefully set to Eye AF.

Included within the field is a slim petal-shaped lens hood (ALC-SH172), which is straightforward to connect to the lens – merely line up the crimson line with the crimson marking on the lens and twist into place till it clicks. You may also reverse the lens hood for decreasing the general measurement when transporting the lens. This lens accepts 72mm entrance filters.

Focal Vary

The 16mm focal size offers an angle of view of 107 levels.

16mm

The 35mm focal size offers an angle of view of 63 levels.

35mm

Chromatic Aberrations

Chromatic aberrations, usually seen as purple or blue fringes alongside contrasty edges, usually are not an excessive amount of of an issue with the Sony FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G lens, besides in areas of very excessive distinction.

16mm

35mm

Vignetting

With the lens set to its most aperture of f/4, there’s some mild fall-off within the corners, requiring you to cease down by not less than 2 f-stops to fully stop it.

16mm

35mm

Distortion

The Sony FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G would not exhibit an excessive amount of barrel or pincushion distortion, as you’ll be able to see within the pictures under.

16mm

35mm

Sunstars and Flare

The Sony FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G is able to producing good sunstars when stopped-down to f/16 or f/22, as proven under, and the lens is not very prone to flare when capturing immediately into the solar with the provided lens hood fitted.

16mm

35mm

Macro

The Sony FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G just isn’t actually a macro lens, however it does supply a usefully shut focus level of 24cm / 9.4in throughout your complete zoom vary from the sensor airplane and a most magnification of 0.23x.

Bokeh

Bokeh is a phrase used for the out-of-focus areas of {a photograph}, and is often described in qualitative phrases, comparable to clean / creamy / harsh and many others.

Sony have paid shut consideration to this facet of lens use, using a 7-segment diaphragm with rounded blades for extra pleasing bokeh.

In our view, their efforts have been pretty profitable for an ultra-wide zoom lens – see the examples under to evaluate for your self.