The Sony 70-400 lens is a lens that Sony made to compete with Nikon and Canon. You can get this lens from Amazon
The G designation tells you that this Sony 70-400 lens belongs to Sony’s “GOLD” lens standard which is Sony’s elite lens lineup.
This lens is both compatible with cropped sensor and full frame DSLR. Given this focal length and aperture, this is the ideal lens for capturing both sports photography under bright light as well as safari wildlife photography.
The price is not cheap by any means though because it is targeted towards professional photographers.
I enjoy looking at the different finish (silver color) that Sony make for this lens.
Enough about the introduction of this lens. How well does this lens perform optically?
Let’s see it in my full Sony 70-400 review below.
Specs • Performance • Sample Image • Conclusion • Where to Buy
Sony 70-400 Specs
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Official Name:
Sony 70-400mm f/4-5.6 SAL-70400G
Focal Length Markings:
70, 200, 300, 400mm
Features:
G – Sony Professional Lens – Sony’s code for their professional, expensive lens.
Full Technical Specs (from Sony’s website):
| Technical Specifications | |
| Groups / Elements | 12 / 18 |
| Angle of View | 34 – 6.2°(FF) 23 – 4.2° (APS-C) |
| Number of Blade Diaphragm | 9 |
| Minimum Aperture | f/32 |
| Minimum Focusing Distance | 1.5m |
| Filter Thread | 77mm |
| Weight | 3lbs. 5oz. (1500g) |
| Dimension (Diameter x Length) | 3 3/4 X 7 3/4″ (94.5 X 196mm) |
| Macro Magnification Ratio | 0.27 |
| Available at | Amazon, B&H Photo Video or Adorama |
Optical Performance
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Sony 70-400 Sharpness
For the price that you have to pay, this lens is very sharp both on the borders and on the center at any aperture.
The point of maximum sharpness is at f/4.
See the sharpness table test below to see the test result.
Sharpness Scale (from Best to Worst):
(5) Excellent
(4) Great
(3) Good
(2) Fair
(1) Poor
Sony 70-400mm f/4-5.6 SAL-70400G Center Sharpness
| Focal Length / Aperture | f/4 | f/5.6 | f/8 | f/11 |
| 70mm | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | Great |
| 200mm | n/a | Great | Excellent | Great |
| 300mm | n/a | Great | Great | Great |
| 400mm | n/a | Great | Great | Great |
Sony 70-400mm f/4-5.6 SAL-70400G Border Sharpness
| Focal Length / Aperture | f/4 | f/5.6 | f/8 | f/11 |
| 70mm | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | Great |
| 200mm | n/a | Great | Excellent | Great |
| 300mm | n/a | Great | Great | Great |
| 400mm | n/a | Great | Great | Great |
Distortion
Distortion is extremely well controlled on this lens. This should come off as no surprise given the price again. At every focal length, distortion can be ignored.
See the distortion test image grid below for each focal lengths.
Vignetting
Tested on a cropped sensor DSLR camera, vignetting is not visible at any focal length at any aperture. This is awesome!
Even at wide open, you won’t see any vignetting.
See my vignetting test chart below for each focal lengths and aperture.
Chromatic Aberration
Chromatic aberration is exceptionally well controlled as well on this lens. It is not visible at any focal length and at any apertures.
To finish off the optical test, I have to say that this lens passed everything with flying colors.
See my chromatic aberration test table below for each focal lengths and aperture.
Chromatic Aberration Scale (from Best to Worst):
(5) Negligible
(4) Very Low
(3) Low
(2) High
(1) Very High
Sony 70-400mm f/4-5.6 SAL-70400G Chromatic Aberration
| Focal Length / Aperture | f/4 | f/5.6 | f/8 | f/11 |
| 70mm | Negligible | Negligible | Very Low | Very Low |
| 200mm | n/a | Negligible | Negligible | Negligible |
| 300mm | n/a | Very Low | Negligible | Negligible |
| 400mm | n/a | Very Low | Very Low | Low |
Build Quality
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Materials
Build quality is simply exceptional on this lens. It is made mostly of metal combined with high quality plastics part and the workmanship is simply astonishing.
The lens will extend when zoomed towards the telephoto range.
Zoom Ring
Zoom ring is exceptional as well on this lens. It operates very smooth and feels solid at the same time. There is no zoom creep on this lens.
It is a bit unusual here that the zoom ring is located in front of the focus ring.
Focusing
Focusing ring also behaves similarly to the zoom ring. It is very smooth to operate as well.
The front element does not rotate on this lens so you can use a polarizing filter with ease.
The autofocus features the SSM – Super Sonic Motor on this lens. Consequently, autofocus mechanism is fast on this lens and nearly silent.
There is a focus stop button as well a focus limiter on this lens. You can take advantage of those to prevent focus hunting when necessary.
Image Stabilization
In the Sony DSLR world, the Image Stabilization is built into the camera sensor, not on the lenses. Check your camera body to see if it has the Image Stabilization feature.
Compatibility
This lens is compatible with both cropped sensor and full frame DSLR camera.
Sample Image
Back to: Menu • Introduction
Below are some sample images taken with this lens. Click on any thumbnail to open the image.
Get the best price online from these sites: Amazon
Conclusion
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Here are the summary for this Sony 70-400 lens review.
Drawbacks
- Expensive
Positives
- Excellent sharpness at any aperture and focal length both on the center and borders
- Negligible distortion at any focal lengths
- No visible vignetting at any aperture and focal length
- Excellent chromatic aberration control – negligible at any focal lengths and aperture
- Superb build quality
- Fast and nearly silent autofocus mechanism
Good For
- Wildlife photography – think of a safari trip
- Sports photography under sufficient light condition
Not So Good For
- Indoor or dim light sports photography due to the maximum aperture
What Others Are Saying…
by “S. Paradise”
Have owned many lenses of this focal length . Namely the Nikon 80-400mm, Canon 100-400mm , etc and I have to say the Sony is a fine lens . Fast and very quiet AF. Very sharp for a lens in …
Click here to see the full review
by “Joseph”
I have been using this lens for the past three weeks. Mostly to shoot local league Rugby, Soccer, and Baseball. Let me say up front, if you do not have a monopod get one now. The total weight…
Click here to see the full review
Where to Buy
Support this site, buy the Sony 70-400 from these sites (best price online):
Do check out the related Sony lens review post below if you want to explore your options further.
Thanks for reading my Sony 70-400 lens review, hope you’ve enjoyed it and I will catch you in the next one!
| Lens Score | |
|---|---|
| Optical Quality | |
| Build Quality | |
| Value for Money | |
| Overall | |
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