Sony Reveals Bright Compact Full-Frame Zoom

2024.02.21

A new compact Bright Compact Constant-Aperture Full-Frame Zoom lens was just announced by Sony today. This lens is the 72nd first-party Sony Full-Frame E-mount lens and it joins the G-series of performance optics.

The Sony FE 24-50mm F/2.8G is a bright zoom lens with a constant maximum aperture spanning wide to normal viewing-angles. Its versatile focal-range is highly suitable for cityscape, urban, landscape, group photography, among other subjects. It can be used for portraits and street photography yet is not ideal for those subjects.

As a G-series lens, the FE 24-50mm F/2.8G is built with high-grade optics and has a sturdy lens barrel that is weatherproof. There are plenty of controls all-around this lens, notably a dedicated aperture-ring, focus-ring, iris lock and focus switch. The aperture-ring is declickable too.

By creating a lens with a shorter focal-range than the FE 24-70mm F/2.8 GM II workhorse, Sony manage to make the new model 50% lighter and 25% shorter. This makes it the second lightest bright constant-aperture zoom for Full-Frame cameras, after the wider Tamron Di III 20-40mm F/2.8 VXD. It find itself slightly lighter than the also wider yet dimmer Sony FE 20-70mm F/4G reviewed here. Photographers have the choice of which compromise to take when it comes to lenses for their Sony FE system cameras.

The Sony FE 24-50mm F/2.8G can focus down to 18cm which provides it with a magnification of 0.3X. The front of the lens is equipped with a common 67mm filter-thread. A supplied lens hood attaches to the lens. Sony plans to ship this lens in May for $1100 USD or $1500 CAD. It is possible to preoder the lens ahead of time from either B&H Photo or Adorama.

• Lens