Introduction
The Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G is supertelephoto zoom with an important steadiness of traits. It’s lengthy sufficient for distant wildlife images, but moveable sufficient to hold with you. It’s not the brightest telephoto on the market, however f/6.3 nonetheless permits for affordable photographs in low gentle. On high of that, the flexibility to zoom makes it very versatile – and most of all, the $2000 worth is way lower than you’d spend for an unique supertelephoto like a 600mm f/4.
All of these issues can’t be stated about, arguably, some other Sony FE lens in the meanwhile. For instance, the Sony FE 400-800mm f/6.3-8 is a powerful lens in the event you want most attain, however the f/8 aperture on the lengthy finish will make low-light images a bit more durable. In the meantime, the Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 is fairly brilliant and moveable, however 400mm might not be lengthy sufficient for very small or distant topics. That places the Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G in a considerably distinctive spot within the firm’s lineup.
It’s not that there are no alternate options. The Tamron 150-500mm f/5-6.7 (which I’ve already reviewed) and Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 are each shut rivals, they usually additionally price a bit much less at $1400 and $1500 respectively. I’ve had good experiences with each Tamron and Sigma previously, and I wouldn’t hesitate to purchase a lens from both of these corporations. Nonetheless, I additionally perceive that for sports activities and wildlife images, the place autofocus reliability and precision are particularly essential, why some photographers would solely ever think about a first-party lens. You’ll additionally see on the Comparisons web page of this assessment that the Sony is sharper than the Tamron head-to-head, so there’s one more reason to contemplate spending the additional $500. (I haven’t but examined the Sigma within the lab, sadly, however will replace this assessment as soon as I’ve.)
In any case, it must be fairly clear why the Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G is such a preferred lens, at the very least on paper. However how does it carry out in observe? Nicely, I already gave away a part of the reply by saying that it’s sharper than the Tamron 150-500mm f/5-6.7 (which is, itself, not a nasty lens by any stretch). Nonetheless, the reply doesn’t cease there. I’ve extensively examined the Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 each within the subject and within the lab, and my fellow Pictures Life author Libor Vaicenbacher additionally examined a duplicate of his personal within the subject. Based mostly on our experiences, this assessment covers each side of the Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3’s efficiency that you might have been questioning about. Right here’s what you could know!
Construct High quality
The Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G is a well-built lens with the attribute white barrel discovered on most of Sony’s longer telephoto lenses. As with most trendy lenses, the barrel is constructed of high-quality plastics that really feel sturdy and reassuring in-hand.
I discussed within the intro that the lens is moveable sufficient to hold with you, and that’s true, nevertheless it additionally isn’t a small lens. The 200-600mm weighs in at 2115 grams (4.65 kilos) and measures 318 millimeters lengthy (12.5 inches). That is about the identical as the opposite lenses on this class – for instance, the Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 weighs 2100 grams, and Nikon’s 180-600mm f/5.6-6.3 weighs 2140 grams. Whilst you actually will discover the burden of any of those lenses, they’re nonetheless inside cause. I discovered it attainable to handhold this lens with out challenge for lengthy stretches at a time, which I can’t say about my previous expertise with 600mm f/4 lenses (although perhaps I simply have to hit the fitness center a bit extra 
Considered one of my favorites issues concerning the Sony 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 is that the barrel doesn’t prolong if you zoom in. That is considerably unusual in zooms at this time, nevertheless it’s at all times a pleasant characteristic to have, particularly for a lens that you simply count on to make use of in adversarial climate situations. I felt no concern bringing out this lens within the rain, realizing that the inner zoom and in depth climate sealing can be sufficient to outlive something apart from a dunking. And that proved true in observe – I by no means bumped into any points regardless of utilizing it in some fairly tough climate. All issues thought of, this lens is constructed very effectively.
Now let’s cowl the dealing with options of the Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G.
Dealing with
The Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G handles properly. There are a number of various controls that ought to mean you can rapidly obtain the settings you’re after. Particularly, the lens features a operate button (duplicated 4 occasions across the lens) together with 4 management switches (two for focus settings, two for picture stabilization settings). The lens additionally has a detachable tripod foot, which many photographers will need to exchange with an Arca-Swiss suitable foot like this one.
It isn’t fairly as fully-featured as Sony’s unique lenses, although. For instance, the Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM additionally has a customized management ring / focus maintain ring on the entrance of the lens, together with further switches to your operate presets, beeping sounds, and full-time direct handbook focus. A few of that isn’t vital – I don’t suppose many individuals want a change for beeping sounds – however a further management ring on the Sony 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 would have been welcome, for my part.
Nonetheless, this can be a small factor. The lens nonetheless has extra handling-related options than most different lenses at this time, and it isn’t meant to compete straight with lenses just like the 600mm f/4 GM within the first place. It’s meant as a price range various, and provided that, it punches effectively above its weight within the dealing with division.
Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G Specs
- Full Identify: Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS
- Mount Sort: Sony E Mount
- Focal Size: 200mm to 600mm zoom (3× zoom)
- Angle of View (Full Body): 12°30′ to 4°10′
- Most Aperture: f/5.6 at 200mm; f/6.3 at 400mm and past
- Minimal Aperture: f/32 at 200mm; f/36 at 400mm and past
- Aperture Blades: 11, rounded
- Filter Dimension: 95mm
- Lens Components: 24
- Lens Teams: 17
- Particular Components: 1 aspherical, 5 ED glass
- Anti-Reflection Coatings: Nano AR Coating
- Fluorine Coated Entrance Ingredient: Sure
- Picture Stabilization: Sure
- Inside Focusing: Sure
- Inside Zooming: Sure
- Management Rings: Zoom and focus
- Operate Button: Sure (duplicated in 4 positions)
- Focus Motor: Direct Drive Tremendous Sonic Wave Motor
- Minimal Focus Distance: 2.4 meters (7.9 ft)
- Most Magnification: 0.2× (1:5)
- Mount Materials: Steel
- Climate/Mud Sealing: Sure
- Dimensions (Size × Diameter): 318 × 112 mm (12.5 × 4.4 inches)
- Weight: 2115 g (4.65 lbs) together with tripod foot
- MSRP: $2000 (verify present worth)
The subsequent web page of this assessment covers the optical traits of the Sony 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3, together with focusing efficiency and sharpness checks within the lab. So, click on the menu beneath to go to “Optical Options”: