Soon Sony will have a major product announcement day but it will not be particularly interesting when it comes to the new lenses. There will be two new zooms. One is the already leaked 18-135mm SAM lens and another zoom I don’t have the exact specs yet. So no primes and no fast lenses. Overall I got the “impression” Sony is facing some production issues. They still cannot produce enough 24mm Zeisss and 50mm (both for NEX) lenses. This may be one of the reasons for that unspectacular new announcement 🙁
Check the availability of the mentioned lenses by clicking these search links:
Zeiss 24mm f/1.8 at [shopcountry 8450].
Sony 50mm f/1.8 at [shopcountry 8448]
79 Responses
Its not like the beercan was a “fast” zoom, we can hope right?
I know there’s a roadmap and whatnot… but really news on E mount lenses would be nice. Specifically, when can we expect a 35mm prime, and what is
the forthcoming pancake going to be.
There’s a world of manual legacy glass out there, but having a wider selection of auto lenses would be nice.
I am not really on the market for a zoom but this one seems good to me.
I got good experience from my 18-70 kit zoom and it produced some of my best shots.
if the price is right then I might give it a go
You already have a kit zoom. Why not give a nice prime a try?
I dont have the 18-70 anymore. sold it
I got the 50mm f1.8 and 28-75mm f2.8 tamron.
I also got two old MD lenses with adaptor.
quite fancy a bit more range in a zoom but i dont want anything uber bulky, that lens would fit me nicely
Admin,
Which day is the announcement day?
Damn, you Sony. Just release the CZ 50mm 1.4 or 1.2. Don’t hold out on us.
It seems Sony lacks visions and no committments to it’s customers? Really a shame.
A Zeiss 24-105 f4 isnt exactly fast either right 😛
Is the 18-135 a FF lens? If not, it’s not a great step forward from the 16-105 either on focal range or in speed. Disappointing.
Of course it’s not.
A full frame 18-135 would be serious business.
It would also be the size of a bus.
An Airbus
Ya, but Sony doesn’t want to do serious business though. Their activities shows and proves that.
How? By releasing more lenses and FF cameras?
By releasing a 500mm f4 lens?
By innovating on sensors and leading in certain areas such as EVF etc.
You must be one of those bitter OVF people.
By discontinuing many of their cameras withing a year of release
In their short (5-6 year) history since the a700, Sony have released 28 different alpha bodies. And there are only 7 current models. They’re just crazy. Nikon is STILL selling brand new d90s. Whereas Sony discontinued the a580 after only 11 months on the shelf.
Nobody will buy the 500/f4 and I’d be surprised if there are more that a few in existence anyway since they’re made to order and priced stupidly.
Sensor innovation and EVF is fair enough, but Sony is basically schizophrenic. Do something serious, then something stupid. Release the most down to earth, photography-based camera in the a850/900 with a huge viewfinder, rugged build. Then release smile activated shutter plasticy piles of crap with TINY viewfinders (far worse than Canon/Nikon equivalents).
That’s what put me off Sony. Want an 85mm? Choose from a £1400 Zeiss or a £150 plastic fantastic. No sensible 1.8 midrange option. Nikon has four choices of 85mm. Same for a wide angle.. the only choice is the £1300 16-35. Nikon again has two zooms and several primes in that area.
Sony are absolutely mental and I don’t think they know what they are doing.
Again the same premise that Sony is facing serious production problems. Why they can’t invest on more production plants? (please, this time on high ground, or do a proper environmental analysis)
The other zoom could be the 2nd generation of G lenses. Or maybe a 70-200 or 70-210 f/4?
Wasn’t there also a rumour about a 2nd gen. 70-400 with weather sealing? Safari for Afrika is planned for next year and I need the 400mm.
They were suppose to hit the market in late 2012 / early 2013 as far as I remember…
…yep, I remember right. Here’s the original rumor.
The date has probably been pushed back.
I really hope not.
I don’t know if a lens without weather sealing is the way to go in sandy/dusty regions. I’m already considering buying the Nex-5n + Alpha Mount adapter (or a good/fast E-lens if they have it until then) to not switch lenses. Somehow all this NEX Talk got me interested in the NEXes and I must say, I’m more and more considering it.
BTW: Did anyone of you NEXers ever try the LA-EA1/2 with a Sigma HSM? I should have AF or not?
New Zeiss ZA lens, please!!!!
the other one is the new 18-250 SAM..
looking at the leaked photo of 18-105, im pretty satisfied with the lens cosmetic looks..it looks better compared to the cheap looks of past zoom lens
Unspectacular? I for one would be very happy if the other lens would be an 18-135 one for the NEX! The kit lens 18-55 is just not zoomy enough for me and the 18-200 has a bit too much zoom for me, besides being pretty bulky. Having a small(ish) lens inbetween those two is very welcome.
I’d love to have a 16-105mm for E-mount, stabilized. The extra 2mm on the wide end is way more useful than the extra 20 on the tele.
+1 Like.
Give me 2mm less at the wide end any day. 16-80 would be fine for me on a NEX. If it was a CZ16-80 I might sell all my Alpha gear and migrate to NEX!
while i woudl not get rid of my alpha you coudl bet my 2nd cam woudl be a NEX the 16-80 hardly ever leaves my alpha (less im hiking an dwant to shoot wildlife )
and the lens will like a godzilla 😀 after that people complaining again about size hahaha
E-mount 16-105mm, that would be even better!
Strongling … nice.
Any news about nex-f3?
looking for that one to, and the mysterious aps fixed lens camera
How about the SEL 55-210 for NEX? I am waiting ages already.. Nowhere to buy (at least in Germany)
GOOD! Finally some lens news!
I’m happy 🙂
Really hope that the second lens is rumored UWA to replace Sony 11-18mm f/4.5-5.6 🙂
More lens for beginners 🙁
I think it is what we need more than pro lenses imho.
Zeiss and G lenses are present and all are good.
that wee zoom seem to be a great take everywhere lens to me.
amen to that !!!
Yeah, finally a a-lens announcement news! But a 18-135 mm sounds like super-bad image quality right away. Sony should add more small range zooms and primes with super-sharp image quality. Noone seriously needs those super-zooms.
16-105 is a quite decent lens. Even though it got similar zoom range. Besides – it’s nowhere close to the ludicrousnesses of Nikon AF-S DX 18-300mm f/3.5-5.6 😉
Lets wait and see. The 16-105mm surprised a lot of people. Not CZ16-80 quality but far better than the old 18-70 kit.
Thats all the 18-135 needs to be; better range and a bit better IQ than the kit.
The rest of us are waiting for an SSM and weather-sealed replacement to the CZ16-80…
Per the wording by Admin, sounds like the other zoom lens is for E-mount.
Yeah…but waiting for a 100% confirmation from my top sources!
bleah ~_~
*goes back into corner*
What wording? You mean the Alpha bit? Technically NEX is part of the Alpha range too. 😉
A-mount would have been a better description.
I don’t see why a zoom can’t be fast. Unless Sony are going to release something similar to the 18-135mm for e-mount, then what else could it be? Maybe an ultra wide angle zoom (10-20mm, 11-18mm??), or maybe a fast zoom (16-50mm f/2.8?).
Admin, why do you think it won’t be exciting? Granted, the 18-135mm isn’t particularly exciting, but it is a decent alternative to the 18-55mm. Plus if you don’t have specs of the other zoom, how do you know it won’t be exciting? Do you have solid information that it won’t be?
I can’t understand why you guys spend 1.5k an a SLT/DSLR and buy a lens has not much better image quality than any compact camera but more zoom. Get yourself a decent prime and see what’s possible with your cameras! Super-Zooms are for lazy people 😀
is this 18-135 weather sealed?
I wish, but I doubt it. I wonder how much weather sealing adds to the cost of a lens.
If it is weather sealed why do they make it a SAM not an SSM? so more likely its a cheap plastic unsealed but hopefully the image quality is better!
ssm would be nice, but for me its more important WS than SSM, this would be a perfect travel lens, for the beach, hiking, where ws is more usefull than super-fast-silent focus… but by the picture the built quality seems to be nice, not like the easy choice ones, i own a 35/1.8, superb optical quality but probably the worst built quality i ever saw in a lens.
It looks similar to the nikor 18-135 kit from the d90 and d7000… but then again all lens are similar in design.
We and pretty much every Sony fan site have been asking for more nex lenses and faster production since day one.
If Sony is just now realizing their production issues, then the new management structure must be working!! You would think the constant back orders would be enough.
Anybody know where the lenses are made?
AFAIK:
SEL30, SEL50 and SEL18200 – China
SEL1855 and SEL16 – Thailand
VCL adapters and SEL24 – Japan
If the A99 uses an A77 body then it will be pretty compact for a full frame camera.
So I would have thought a reasonably small kit zoom would be an absolute necessity.
At the moment there is no such thing available new unless you buy third party.
They should release a makeover of the 24-105 f3.5-4.5 FF (hopefully with SSM).
Full frame body with crappy lenses?
Yeap crappy Zeiss lens.
Yes, as a owner four FF Zeiss I have learned not to do two much pixel peeking.
Just because its not F2.8 doesn’t mean it has to be crappy.
Not everyone wants to carry a hulking great zoom around.
f4.5 at 105 can look great on a full frame.
Nikon and Canon have always povided something like this for
their FF users. I think it would make even more sense on the
probably light and compact A99.
If there wasnt already the pretty-good 16-105, then this new 18-135 would seem like quite a good idea. But as it is… meh. Rather see a SAM/SSM 16-105 personally.
If this was a NEX lens then, yey, a good zoom range, small-ish package, and with hopefully better optics than a 18-200/250 superzoom.
16-105 won’t work on A37 (it’s rumored it will be first alpha with no build-in motor), so IMO this lens makes perfect sense. Otherwise A37 owners would be left with no mid-range zoom to upgrade (as neither CZ nor SAL16105 have SSM).
A quiet 18-135mm lens (for video) would be a nice thing to have. I am holding off on an A57 purchase in the hope that they will bundle the 18-135 with the A57 (and maybe the other cameras as well).
Still no FF lenses …
Sony facing stiff competition from Nikon.
SLT price/performance pressure.
Lowered expectations for new a99 flagship camera.
Not a good week for those of use waiting for highend gear.
Is Sony becoming just a lower end consumer brand?
No real reason to release new FF lenses until the new FF bodies ship. Sony should concentrate on production of the new E-mount and Alpha DT lenses until fall.
a 16-50 f2.8 would be great for the nex7…or a revisited version of the cz 16-80 with a constant aperture for nex would boost their sales
I hope that the second zoom will be a high-quality “G-lens” standard zoom for the Nex 7. e.g. a 17-50/2.8.
I hope that it is going to be a 10-22mm SEL in the Canon quality.:-)
You mean with huge vignette on all apertures? No, thanks. I prefer Sony G quality.
f/5.6 at only 135mm? Come on… That is an unnecessarily slow lens. Why couldn’t they make it f/4 or f/4.5. I really don’t don’t see what this lens brings over the standard 18-200,18-250 and 18-270mm lenses.
Might have better optical quality or just be less expensive or both.
It’s designed to be a cheap lens, so that speed is hardly surprising. People who f2.8 zooms wouldn’t even give it a second look anyway. If the optics are good, then I don’t see a problem.
I agree with you. Many Minolta (full-frame!) lenses end at f/4.5, so I don’t get why all the APS-C zooms have to end at f/5.6. If seems that all manufactures use the same standard, like lets just take a zoom range with f/3.5 at start and f/5.6 at the end. If I was about buying a zoom lens ending at f/5.6, then it would indeed be a superzoom or a telezoom, ending at 250-400mm. I’m also afraid that this won’t be that much cheaper compared to a superzoom.
However, it is good that there are going to be options like this, since it is likely that Sony will sell truckloads of lenses like these. I just hope that they will bring out more sensible lenses, especially with the upcoming A99. Think of an f/4 zoom, 35/2, 85/2, 135/2.8, end some new macro’s.
I wish they had another name for SAM besides SAM. It’s like having LARRY or BOB… or FRED stamped on every lens. Now if CLYDE was on every lens…. hmmmm…
Admin.. Anymore ff body rumours?
18-135sam is good news. Let’s expect 24-105 f4 G or 24-135 3.5-5.6 SAM for α9x.
I’m not quite sure but I don’t get the point producing loads and loads of lens with similar range (18-55 sam, 16-105, 16-80 za, 16-50 ssm and now a 18-135 sam) but not developing lens that are currently missing (like the good old 70-210 beercan). Can sony have a better lineup instead of designing lens without consideration?
Here’s hope for a high quality E-mount standard zoom to complement the Nex 7; I’d love a 20-40mm or thereabouts, not too fast, and limited to a narrow range of FOV , to keep the size down and IQ up .
Due to the amateur majority in the market it will probably be something like 16-70, with heavy PP correction like the MFT lenses, but one can dream .
I am about to purchase new tele-zoom plus a second later for my A77. Can you confirm the 2nd lens is NOT such a lens? so I can go ahead and order. If it was for example an F4 version of the sal70300G I would wait but holiday says otherwise I need to order sooner rather than later.
Any speculations of the weight of this lens and when it will arrive?
I am planning to buy an A65 at latest in beginning of June and would like this lens. Don’t want it to be as heavy as the 16-50 lens though, and not as expensive either.
@David You want a 85? We have the £1200 Zeiss 85 1.4, the ‘Plastic Fantastic’ 85 2.8, finally we have the MINOLTA 85 F1.4 G for £600-700. You want a wide angle? I’ll agree with you here but we have the £1300 Zeiss 16-35 2.8, MINOLTA 17-35 F3.5 G for around £600-900, Zeiss DT 16-80 F3.5-4.5 for £500, MINOLTA 17-35 2.8-4 D, Sony DT 11-18, Minolta 11-18 DT. Plus you got a load of 3rd party lenses too. So you can’t say that Sony have like only one or two choices for lenses, EVERYONE forgets that Minolta used the exact same mount.
We just finished a head to head of the Sony 18-135 vs the Minolta 28-135 and the results were close enough that we no longer own a Minolta 28-135! Don’t be fooled by the fact that Sony is including it as a “kit” lens, this lens is serious business and follows the footprints of the 16-50 as one of Sony’s better lenses. See our review under the Sony/Minolta tab on our site http://www.abetterdj.net