CP+ 2015: A Preview of the Upcoming Full-Frame Sony FE Lenses

With arguably the most successful full-frame mirrorless cameras on the market, Sony is planning to add four new lenses to the FE, full-frame-covering E-mount line. They include a 24–240mm f/3.5-6.3, a Zeiss-badged 35mm f/1.4, a high-quality Sony G 90mm f/2.8 macro, and a 28mm f/2.0 that has two add-on lens converters: a fisheye and a wide-angle converter.

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At this year’s CP Plus Expo, now taking place in Yokohama, all the lenses were on display and available for use at the shooting kiosks and at the demonstration counter in the Sony booth. While the Sony reps there all said a release date for the lenses is not yet set, the lenses look ready for production. All have a solid build that was holding up well under the constant handling by lines of eager Sony users looking for new glass.

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These lenses should complement the wildly successful Sony Alpha a7S, known to perform so well in low light and used in 4K video productions, as well as the high-resolution Sony Alpha a7R; both cameras have been crossing that line into professional use, which was once the exclusive domain of DSLRs.

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The first lens will probably find its place as the all-around lens for general users. The zoom range of 24-240mm is a great and practical single-lens solution for people who want one lens that can give them a creative 24mm on the wide end and a longer-than-most reach of 240mm on the telephoto end, and forget about the hassle of changing lenses for the day. That convenience does come at a price: the lens has an f/3.5 to 6.3 maximum aperture. But, the in-lens Optical Stabilizer System (OSS) works well at countering hand shake at even the long focal lengths, and users of the a7S know their camera’s excellent high-ISO performance can help them out if action-stopping shutter speeds are needed, with minimal trade-off in image quality.

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The new Zeiss-badged 35mm was my favorite performer for several reasons, and I hope it’s a direction Sony adopts for more of its FE lenses. First of all, the lens has a f/1.4 aperture coupled with a standard wide angle of 35mm, and that is a solidly fast aperture for that focal length and opens up a world of low-light action shots. This lens also has a manual-control aperture ring, which gives it a fast and easily accessible way to change aperture. But, this ring has another feature that makes it unique to all other Sony E-mount lenses. Turn the lens over, and you’ll see a switch labeled Click, with On and Off positions. Video shooters love this. The one-third of a stop detents that are built in to the aperture ring can be turned off with a flick of that switch. Why do video shooters love this? Because it allows them to change the exposure smoothly during a shot, using the aperture. De-clicked lenses are very popular for the Sony a7S when used in video production, and here is a user de-clickable lens from Sony. The only other lens from Sony to have this feature is the Sony RX10’s built-in lens.

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Easily the most popular lens with attendees at the CP Plus expo was the Sony High-Quality G 90mm macro lens. It’s a true 1:1 macro lens on a full-frame-sensor camera with a minimum focus distance of 11 inches. The maximum aperture is f/2.8. Popular as a portrait and general-purpose lens also, it sports a focal range limiting switch for faster non-macro autofocus. Knowing macro shooters use manual focus to dial in their reproduction ratio and field of view, Sony designed this lens with a simple push-pull on the manual focus ring to switch from autofocus to manual control, and the direction to push or pull for MF/AF are clearly marked on the end of the barrel.

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The last lens in this group of new lenses is the 28mm f/2.8. The first thing you notice is its compact size; without sacrificing solid build quality, it’s short and unobtrusive. Shown with this lens at the Sony counter were two accessory lenses that are made for the 28mm. They are thick, metal-bodied, and feel just as solid as the 28mm lens itself, and a locking bayonet mount feels like a lens mount with a release switch and mounts on the front of the 28mm with a turn of the wrist and positive click. The Ultra Wide Converter makes the wide-angle 28mm lens a decidedly wide 21mm, while the Fisheye converter turns your 28mm into a 16mm equivalent fish-eye lens that is full of creative potential.

When will these lenses be available, you ask? That’s the question I had for Sony. They are impressive new lenses to show the fans at the CP Plus Expo, and for now, Pacifico Exhibition Hall on Tokyo Bay is the only place you can see them, but they are drawing a crowd, and it looks like Sony is moving in great directions in its lens designs.

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