SAL70400G
4.9
5
17
17
Compatable with the a37?
Is this lens worth buying for the sony a37 camera?
February 12, 2013
You really do get what you pay for
Ok so after much debate on what lens would be good I decided to buy this lens and when I first took it out of the box my jaw dropped. I am an amateur photographer only doing is for family pics, nature, and as hobby so I have never owned a real professional lens. I purchased Sony a350 from Circuit City which came with the good old 18-70mm and 70-300mm zoom lens which for being my first time owning a DSLR seemed really good. Recently I sold my a350 and got the new a57 using same lenses because I thought they were good enough and with new camera my pictures looked much better.
I bought this lens after messing around with a friends lens for mid range and the pictures were insane crisp compared to anything I ever took. Well needless to say, this lens really degraded my 70-300mm and degraded it bad LOL. If you look at the pictures you will see what I mean LOL. Both were taken off same tripod, same 300mm range, setting on A for aperture priority with 2 second shutter delay to avoid camera shake. nothing was added to picture, no exposure increase, no color balancing or any other settings just default "A" with default AWB.
When I loaded the pictures on my laptop I remained in shock. How could I have accepted that my current lenses are good. Mind you, they were taken at 11:30 pm with only basic low energy cheap bulbs in house (5 13w GE neon looking bulbs, 3 in dining room and 2 in living room). Images speak for themselves at the quality you get with this lens.
Others have said it is heavy............. YOU THINK....... this thing is a beast compared to the tiny lenses you get with a kit LOL. And the amount of glass as well as metal construction...... I'm surprised it was not heavier, even wife said it looks more heavier than it is.
My only concern and hoping it's just me (will call Sony to verify) is that when zooming from 200mm to 300mm you can see a substantial zoom but from 300mm to 400mm only seems like 25mm :/. Maybe I'm doing something wrong or miscalculating but when looking at photos that I have taken at 100mm, 200mm, 300mm, and 400mm and marking on the 100mm where the 200mm frame would be and so on, the difference between 300mm and 400mm is less than 1/2 than 200mm to 300mm.
Over all, I can honestly say YOU REALLY DO GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR AND DEFINITELY WORTH EVERY PENNY.
December 28, 2012
Great Zoom in Good Light
When you can shoot this lens at f/8 or smaller the lens is very sharp. If you are using this lens for action photography you are limited to daytime shooting. This lens is all but useless when shooting in poor lighting. Would not recommend for inside action or sports under the lights. When shooting wide open the image becomes very soft to the point I thought the lens was not focusing properly. I was so bothered by the images wide open that I contacted a Sony Technician. He was very helpful but the conclusion was the lens appears to working properly but he agreed the images were extremely soft wide open. These were even shot on tripod with cable release. The lens is heavy but this is what you would expect for a zoom of this size. The hood is more flimsy than it should be. If you plan to shoot during the day and aperture at 8 or smaller than this lens is very good. I make this lens sound less than adequate but one really good thing about this lens is at f/8 or smaller, the lens is sharp throughout its full zoom which is very excessive (70 to 400). It definitely reaches most of my shot needs. If this lens was sharp wide open it would be perfect.
October 16, 2012
600 mm Effective Focal Length with APS-C Alpha's!
Once I experienced the joy of photographing soccer matches with the perfect reach of the 590 mm G glass on my HDR-FX1000 camcorder, my SAL70300G, sharp as it is, was not quite doing the job for capturing sports action still images on the far side of the full-size field.
The SAL70400G allows me to effortlessly cover all the intimate sports action from one strategic location.
It works wonderfully well with my smooth-tracking SONY VCT-1170RM camcorder tripod.
I have temporarily brought my trusty A700 back into service, and I expect to soon purchase an A77 body (or it's successor). Quiet motor. Outstanding near-professional results. No buyer's remorse ever on higher end SONY gear. Will enjoy it for years to come.
March 25, 2012
