Hey everyone, I'm John Sison and today we're taking a look at the Sony 24-70mm F2.8 G Master
lens, for the Sony E-mount system.
So Sony have finally released a 24-70mm F2.8 lens.
This is something a lot of people have been asking for and whether they like the size
or not, Sony have delivered it and they delivered it with a new type of a new class of lens
really which is the G Master range and that not only includes the 24-70mm F2.8 but also
the 85mm F1.4 and the 70-200mm F2.8 lenses which I'll be covering in future videos.
With these three lenses, Sony are being taken more seriously as a professional photography
company and that's a good thing because it not only extends the lens range for Sony users
but also gives it more of a professional consideration for enthusiasts and professional photographers
who are even thinking about switching to Sony's mirrorless cameras.
With these three lenses though, Sony are promising three different things and that's resolution,
so that's how sharp your photos are going to be, detail and all that good stuff.
Also you've got bokeh which is something that they're pushing.
So nice and smooth out of focus blur which your subject in focus and the background not
being too distracting.
That's also a bit subjective either way but I'll let you take a look at the sample photos
to see how you like them and also they are pushing construction.
So how well built the lens is.
So dust and moisture resistance, good quality build and just all that good stuff as well.
So I'm going to try out the 24-70 today and I'll put it through its paces and I'll let
you know what I think of the lens at the end of the video.
So stay tuned for that.
The lens certainly looks high quality with a matte black finish with the G Master label
on the side.
It has a high quality plastic construction and has a dust and moisture resistant design
which is evident with the rubber gasket on the mount of the lens.
It has rubber zoom and focus rings, a focus hold button and a focus switch to switch from
autofocus to manual focus.
It also accepts 82mm filters and comes with a plastic petal type lens hood with felt lined
within.
Now the lens itself weighs about 886 grams and that's fairly heavy for a mirrorless lens
but to be honest, I thought it would weigh a lot more because of its size.
Ideally, this isn't the best travel lens but if you want really good image quality, this
is pretty much the one to go with.
Comparing it to the Zeiss 24-70mm F4, its clear that it is a lot larger and heavier
and that's mainly due to a better construction and better quality optics.
Using the lens was fantastic.
It felt great in the hand and somewhat well balanced.
If you're using this lens on the second A7 series cameras, its great but anything other
than that will feel a bit front heavy.
I didn't have any issues with zoom creep while walking around but there is a lock switch
to prevent any just in case.
Focusing is fast and accurate and that is due to the direct drive super sonic motor
or DDSSM to keep it short.
Focusing is smooth and dead quiet for stills and videos and paired with the A7R2, this
is going to be a perfect match for image quality but to give you a glimpse of how fast the
focusing is on the camera, here is just a little focusing test.
Its fairly fast but do keep in mind, focusing speed is going to vary on your focusing mode
and camera.
Minimum focusing distance is a respectable 38cm which is going to give you some pretty
nice closeup shots.
Now this lens is extremely sharp.
In the centres its very much perfect and wide open, the edges and corners are just a little
less sharp in the centres.
Stopping down to about F4 is sharp throughout the frame, there is a bit of vignetting in
the corners and chromatic aberration isn't really an issue from what I've seen but shooting
at the wide end, there is a tiny bit of distortion.
Having the F2.8 aperture obviously helps for low light performance but with a lower aperture
and 9 aperture blades it helps achieve some nice bokeh.
While it is subjective in regards to out of focus blur, I find it nice and smooth and
with eye catching colours and resolution, to me this lens definitely lives up to the
G Master status.
For video, it may drive people crazy that this lens is focus by wire.
Its not necessarily a bad thing but it depends on how you shoot.
I do recommend people use the peaking mode in the camera which does an excellent job
at helping achieve focus.
Okay first, I'm going to start off by saying hands down the Sony 24-70mm F2.8 G Master
is the best fast standard zoom lens I've ever played around with.
Its quick to focus, has outstanding resolution and pleasing out of focus blur, although I
do believe the 85mm F1.4 G Master is going to be a bit better than this in regards to
bokeh.
Now if you're using this on anything other than the A7 II series cameras, you're going
to find it a bit too front heavy and I do recommend people try the lens before they
buy it, especially if they have a smaller camera so just so they can get a hands on
and see how it feels because it might not be too comfortable for you when you're shooting.
But for a mirrorless lens it is pretty big, I'll take the lens hood off.
It is pretty big but if you're looking for the best that Sony has to offer, this is pretty
much it.
Its got a lot of pro features, its got the F2.8 aperture which was what a lot of people
have been asking for.
Proper weather seals, a focus hold button.
Its got a lot of features that people would like.
Again, if you're looking for the best that Sony has to offer, this is pretty much it
but if you're considering switching from another brand, say Canon for example.
This is about 700-800 dollars more than the Canon equivalent in Australia anyway.
So if you're considering switching but you're more on a budget, you may want to save up
a bit but if you value high quality images and pro features, this is the one to get and
I wouldn't hesitate in recommending it.
Now if you have any more questions, please feel free to leave a comment below and if
you found this video helpful, click that like button and you know if you found this video
review helpful, the way I did it this time click that like button so I can do more videos
like this.
Anyway, also hit that subscribe button if you're new to my channel, I'll have more Sony
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Now until then, happy shooting and thanks for watching!