My brother and I took a few hikes in Ireland this summer with our beloved cameras. Lucas recently bought a new Sony camera body and was still on the hunt for his perfect lens. He owns a 24-70 and a 70-200, and he wanted something a bit wider, but didn’t want to buy a third lens. The new Sony FE 20-70mm f4 G lens would be a great compromise for someone like him.
The 20-70mm f4 lens offers photographers and content creators extra versatility. It’s a great focal length to turn the camera on yourself during an adventure with friends. The extra 4mm gives more breathing room without needing to switch lenses.
Is it worth the $1,099 price tag? Without a doubt, yes. Keep reading to find out more.
The Big Picture
The Sony FE 20-70mm f4 G lens is a lightweight, compact, wide-angle zoom lens. The extended focal length equips creatives with extra versatility. It’s an excellent choice for cityscapes, landscapes, travel, portraits, photojournalism, and street photography. And content creators will appreciate the extra space for the notorious selfie angle.
The autofocus is fast and accurate, with very few misses. Manual focus is more efficient when capturing small details with ample background separation.
Images are sharp with lifelike hues, plenty of bokeh, and lovely contrast. They require minimal editing. Barrel distortion is most apparent at 20mm and can be corrected in post-production. Or embrace it and have some fun.
We are giving the Sony 20-70mm f4 G lens four out of five stars. Want one? You can pick it up for $1,099 or rent it from Lensrentals.
Pros
- Versatile
- It handles very well in subzero temps
- Plenty of character
- Lightweight and compact
- Sharp
- Beautiful colors
Cons
- Noticeable barrel distortion
- Lens hood produces black vignette at widest focal length
- It’s easy to get deep blacks, and that’s not necessarily bad
Gear Used
We tested the new Sony 20-70mm f4 G lens with a Sony a7 IV rental from Lensrentals.
Innovations
In our conference call, Sony stated that they received numerous requests for non-standard focal lengths. Rather than shifting the focal length, Sony opted to extend it. The 20-70mm f4 G lens still features the beloved 24-70mm zoom, and it now provides content creators with extra width for when they need to focus the camera on themselves.
Ergonomics
The Sony FE 20-70mm f4 G lens is lightweight and compact. It weighs just over a pound, fits nicely in the hands, and is comfortable to photograph with all day. The click-style aperture ring is closest to the camera mount, followed by the zoom ring. One of the customizable focus hold buttons sits on top, just before the manual focus ring.
The other is located on the left of the camera by the AF/MF switch. Both are customizable to best suit your needs.
Videographers and hybrid creators will appreciate the Iris Lock switch closest to the lens mount. They can also turn the click-style aperture off by toggling the button on the lower right for smooth transitions.
Sony’s 20-70mm lens accommodates a 72mm filter.
Build Quality
The Sony 20-70mm f4 G lens is robust and feels solid in the hands. Its manual focus and zoom rings operate smoothly. It’s also dust and moisture-resistant. I took the lens for a test run when the temperatures dipped below -20 degrees.
The -54 windchill and moderate snow were no adversaries for this lens. It performed admirably without a hitch, and sensor dust was a nonissue. While I would be more hesitant in torrential rain, I’d otherwise feel comfortable taking this lens with me everywhere.
Focusing
Sony’s 20-70mm f4 G lens does an excellent job tracking subjects with the applicable AF modes engaged. Watching it keep up with Mark in an urban setting and with my cats gently playing was fun. AF-C mode with wide tracking enabled didn’t keep up with Pip when she entered one of her rambunctious moods. In that situation, I had the best results with single focal point.
The lens would sometimes focus on the background when attempting to maximize the bokeh of small details. I found it easier to shift to manual focus in these instances. I appreciate Sony’s magnification and focus-peaking.
The Sony 20-70mm f4 G lens quickly focuses in various lighting conditions. It does an excellent job focusing on landscapes and cityscapes swiftly. I only experienced a few misses when I turned the camera on myself for selfies with my cats. I will chalk up most of those slight misses to user error camera shake.
Ease Of Use
The Sony 20-70mm caters to content creators, though photographers of all skill levels will feel comfortable operating this lens. Professionals will feel right at home with the classic click-style aperture ring. It’s easy to navigate without looking away from the viewfinder. Photographers can also opt to change their settings through the camera body instead.
There’s noticeable barrel distortion at 20mm, although it’s not difficult to work with. Even novice photographers will quickly adapt when taking portraits or turning the camera on themselves. One of my favorite aspects of this lens is the deep black it can create. It produces impactful, low-key portraits.
In Capture One and Lightroom, distorted vertical lines are evident with images captured at 20mm. I corrected a good portion of them, although they could still improve. If it bothers you, zoom in to mitigate it. Distortion will likely be less of an issue once the lens profile is added to the editing programs.
Sony’s 20-70mm lens is an excellent focal length for various applications. Professionals and enthusiasts will appreciate the versatility of this lens. It’s perfect for landscapes, cityscapes, portraits, photojournalism, travel, and hybrid content creation.
Image Quality
The Sony 20-70mm f4 G lens produces incredibly sharp images with lifelike hues, excellent contrast, and deep blacks. Unwanted distortion can be corrected in post if you find it bothersome. Or, lean into it and create unique viewpoints for fun. The best part is that you can skip editing altogether if you want.
Bokeh
The Sony-20-70mm f4 lens creates its most desirable bokeh at 70mm with adequate background separation. It’s less velvety than other lenses with wider apertures and can get a bit geometric, but it works. It’s an excellent option for storytelling.
Color Rendering
The Sony 20-70mm f4 G lens produces beautiful lifelike hues no matter the color temperature. It replicates golden winter light against blue shadows wonderfully. Plus, skin tones are natural and do not require color correction.
Sharpness
Images captured with the Sony 20-70mm f4 lens are sharp throughout most of the frame. Only the corners and outermost edges are a bit soft at its widest aperture. Stop down to extend the sharpness throughout the frame.
Lens Character
As many manufacturers are chasing clinical perfection, Sony’s 20-70mm G lens is a breath of fresh air. It creates unique angles and fun distortion, which is most evident at 20mm and can be corrected in post. The lens provides plenty of artistic expression with lens flares, light flares, and lovely tones. Photographers who prefer contrast will appreciate the deep blacks easily created with this lens.
Extra Image Samples
From day one, The Phoblographer has been huge on transparency with our audience. Nothing from this review is sponsored. Further, lots of folks will post reviews and show lots of editing in the photos. The problem then becomes that anyone and everyone can do the same thing. They’re not showing what the lens can do. So we have a section in our Extra Image Samples area to show edited and unedited photos. From this, you can make a decision for yourself.
Unedited
Edited
Who Should Buy The Sony 20-70mm f4 G Lens?
Photographers looking for a primary zoom lens with more reach should buy this lens. I prefer prime lenses and had much more fun photographing with this lens than I anticipated.
Capturing urban environmental portraits of my friend Mark was very enjoyable. I was impressed with how little editing was needed, if any. It would be a great lens for aspiring fashion photographers to add to their arsenal.
Sony created this lens with content creators and the selfie crowd in mind, and those crowds will not be disappointed. However, it’s not just for them. The 20-70mm focal length is versatile enough to be one of your main workhorses. It’s fast to focus, tracks well, and produces beautifully sharp images with lovely colors.
The Sony FE 20-70mm lens is an excellent choice for landscapes, cityscapes, travel, portraits, fashion, weddings, photojournalism, and architectural details. Moderately priced at $1,099, it would make an excellent primary lens or a wonderful addition to an existing lineup. You can also choose to rent it from Lensrentals before you buy it.
Tech Specs
Abbreviated tech specs are from the manufacturer’s press release.
- 20-70mm focal length
- f4-f22 aperture
- Two advanced aspherical elements
- Internal focusing
- 9-blade aperture
- Minimum focusing distance: .3 meters with AF, .25m with MF
- .39x maximum magnification
- Dust and moisture resistant
- 72mm filter thread
- 3.09 x 3.89 inches
- 17.2 oz
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