First review of the new Sony E 70-350mm lens by Marc Alhadeff

October 28, 2019
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E 70-350mm F4.5-6.3 G OSS at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama , FocusCamera. In EU at Calumet DE, Park UK, WexUK.

Marc Alhadeff tested the new Sony E 70-350mm lens. Here is the conclusion:

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The new Sony 70-350mm F4.5-6.3 G OSS (900 euros) is the professional photo zoom we needed for Sony APSC cameras. It is the counterpart of the excellent Sony 100-400 mm on full frame but for 2.5 time less.

Sharpness is very good to excellent and background blur is very nice at 135mm and above. The optical stabilisation is a must for such telephoto lens and will allow to use it without issue on older Sony APSC cameras like the A6000.

What is surprising is that the lens is almost full frame : the entire frame is covered except at 350mm , although with very important vignetting and distorsion

The lens is not without compromise with a very important distortion for which automatic corrections should alsways be on, a small aperture at 350mm making ISO climbing fast, a medium resistance to flare and a minimum focusing distance a little bit too big

It does not reach the excellence of the Sony E 16-55mm F2.8 G in term of color rendition and bokeh but overall it is an excellent lens for the price and a very versatile telephoto lens

Pros

Very Good to excellent sharpness thought the range. Sharpness is better than the Sony 70-300G full frame
Extended Zoom range very suited for Animals or outdoor Sport photography
Excellent for portrait from a distance (>135mm) with very nice background blur
Price is reasonable considering range and quality of the lens
Very fast and efficient AF outdoor (less indoor in low light)
Very good build quality
Very good background blur above 135mm
Low CA
Low vignetting

Average

Background blur between 70-100 mm is limited
Bokeh balls are ok but not perfectly rounded and with some onion rings sometimes
Resistance to flare is ok but below other lenses of same price
Size and weight : reasonable for such kind of lens but bigger and heavier than most APSC zoom on E mount
Limited aperture requiring to use quickly high isos

Cons

Distorsion is huge
Min focusing distance is quite big not allowing for proxy photography

Alternatives

Sony 70-300G full frame : a Good lens but color rendering is a little bit less good and sharpness is less good, but more suite for full frame and less distorsion

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Preorders:
Sony A6600 at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama, FocusCamera. In EU at Calumet DE, Park UK, WexUK.
Sony A6100 at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama, FocusCamera. In EU at Calumet DE, Park UK, WexUK.
E 16-55mm F2.8 G at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama, FocusCamera. In EU at Calumet DE, Park UK, WexUK.
E 70-350mm F4.5-6.3 G OSS at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama , FocusCamera. In EU at Calumet DE, Park UK, WexUK.