Sony 70-400mm F4-5.6 G SSM II - Review 2022

The 70-400mm F4-five.6 G SSM II ($2,199.99) is the premium telezoom lens for Sony's A-mont SLR system. It delivers a longer range of coverage and a sturdier build than the 70-300mm F4.5-5.6 One thousand SSM 2 ($1,149.99), merely carries a premium price. Images are crisp through the wider ends of its zoom range, and information technology continues to net excellent performance when zoomed as long as you lot narrow the aperture a bit. It's a solid selection for Sony photographers, only if telephoto performance is more than important, consider a third-party option. The Tamron SP 150-600mm f/5-6.3 Di VC USD G2 is an excellent, affordable telezoom, and it'southward bachelor for A-mount SLRs.

Pattern

The seventy-400mm isn't that much bigger than a typical 70-200mm f/ii.eight zoom, merely it does extend when zoomed. It measures 7.7 by 3.7 inches (HW) at its shortest position, weighs 3.3 pounds, and supports 77mm front filters. Similar many pro telezooms, its metallic barrel is finished in off-white rather than black, a pick Sony says is to aid keep internal elements absurd when shooting in sunny conditions.

Forepart and rear caps, a soft conveying example, and a reversible hood are included. The hood has a retractable cut-out window, which lets you accommodate the orientation of a circular polarizing filter without removing the hood. Since information technology's long, there's a foot to mount the lens direct on a tripod or monopod. The foot is mounted on a rotating neckband, so you can shoot with a support in portrait or landscape orientation. A large thumbscrew is there to lock it in place or to allow it plough freely.

The zoom band sits toward the front of the lens. It'south covered in knurled rubber so it'south easily gripped, and marked at 70, 100, 135, 200, 300, and 400mm. The manual focus band sits at the middle of the barrel and is also finished in textured rubber. There are three Focus Hold buttons placed around the barrel, between the two focus rings, forth with a switch that sets the focus range or changes to manual focus. If you shoot with the Alpha 99 II, you also have the pick of setting a custom focus range in camera.

The lens focuses as close as four.9 feet (1.5 meters). At 400mm that delivers a pretty solid one:3.7 magnification ratio, projecting objects onto the image sensor at close to one-third life-size. Information technology likewise gives you plenty of working distance for portraiture and general photography at shorter focal lengths.

Image Quality

I tested the lens along with the full-frame, 42MP Alpha 99 II. Imatest shows that information technology's a sharp performer. At 70mm f/4, information technology captures photos that testify 3,115 lines per movie height on a center-weighted test, with clarity that is fairly even from edge to edge. Image quality improves at f/5.half dozen (3,621 lines), f/8 (iii,934 lines), and f/xi (3,925 lines), before falling off slightly at f/16 (three,718 lines) and more significantly at f/22 (2,739 lines).

At 135mm the maximum aperture has narrowed to f/4.5, and epitome quality is withal superb—3,540 lines with potent performance from edge to edge. Over again, y'all go fifty-fifty crisper images at f/5.half-dozen (3,854 lines), f/8 (3,998 lines), and f/11 (iv,020 lines). There's the expected drib at f/sixteen (3,707 lines) and f/22 (2,884 lines).

See How We Examination Digital Cameras

Things aren't as sunny at 250mm. The maximum aperture has narrowed to f/5.6, but sharpness has as well dropped quite noticeably to two,291 lines—merely a little improve than the 2,200 lines nosotros want to see at a minimum from a high-resolution organization. To put in plain language, clarity drops from exceptional to simply adequate.

Stopping down to f/eight is a cure. Sharpness jumps to iii,587 lines, and maintains that level of quality at f/eleven (iii,805 lines). The expected drop shows up at f/xvi (three,612 lines) and f/22 (two,718 lines).

At 400mm f/5.6 the lens is besides simply acceptable, showing well-nigh ii,263 lines, but here we likewise come across a drop in clarity toward the mid parts (1,921 lines) and edges (one,492 lines) of the frame. At f/viii the boilerplate score is meliorate, 2,805 lines, with solid performance through most of the frame, and edges that are just a tad soft at 2,015 lines. You'll need to stop down to f/eleven to bask sharp, fifty-fifty performance from edge to edge—3,369 lines. Image quality remains strong at f/16 (3,324 lines), just don't shoot at f/22 (ii,339 lines).

Distortion isn't absent, only it's adequately controlled. There'due south negligible butt baloney at 70mm, and just about 1.i percent pincushion distortion from 135mm onward. It's a small effect, and one that JPG shooters tin eliminate using in-photographic camera correction. Lightroom CC includes a profile for this lens, which corrects distortion with a single click.

Corner illumination is most a complete nonissue. At that place's some dimness at 70mm f/four, about -1.1EV, which adds a very slight vignette to photos. But at narrower apertures it's not an issue at 70mm, and is likewise negligible at longer focal lengths.

Conclusions

The Sony 70-400mm F4-v.vi G SSM Ii is a solid telezoom selection for A-mount SLR photographers. It offers a expert range and image quality that ranges from acceptable to outstanding. You take to remember to narrow the aperture when shooting beyond 250mm for the best results, which shouldn't be a problem as long every bit you have enough calorie-free. If you lot're trying to capture distant action or get upwardly shut and personal with a bailiwick in more difficult low-cal, a prime lens like the Sony 300mm F2.eight G SSM II ($7,499.99) or 500mm F4 K SSM ($12,999.99) is a meliorate, but much more expensive, option. Our favorite telezoom available in A-mount is all the same the relatively affordable Tamron 150-600mm G2—merely it's a heavier lens with a unlike range of coverage, so at that place's probably room for both in your kit.

Source: https://sea.pcmag.com/lenses/14812/sony-70-400mm-f4-56-g-ssm-ii

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