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I bought this lens to replace a Sigma 28-80 f/3.5-5.6 macro lens. I have upgraded from a 35mm K-M SLR to the Sony alpha 100, and was using the older camera's lenses until I could afford to replace them. The first thing I noticed with this lens is the different focusing ring, which has no markings on it. This makes zone focusing impossible. It also makes adjusting the diaphragm & focus for the proper depth of field far more difficult when using the lens' hyperfocal distance. Maybe I can mark up the ring myself to fix this... After field testing the lens, I found I was having problems with vignetting due to the low-profile polarizing filter I had on the lens. My older lens, which was made for 35mm film, had the same field of view on 35mm film as this one does on the camera's APS-C sized sensor, but the older lens did not have the same vignetting problem with the same filter. Bummer. Finally, after getting the files downloaded to my PC and opening them in photoshop, I noticed that this lens is just not as tack-sharp as my older lens could be, although the focus does seem to be more consistent throughout the image frame. I used this lens in autofocus mode, while the older one was used as a manual focusing lens (the focusing gear broke on the old lens), so the problem could be in the camera's autofocus, but I doubt it. (After all, this lens was made for this camera.) Overall, while this lens is OEM for my current camera body and is built better than the old Sigma lens it replaced, there are some significant deficiencies with the design of this model for any serious photographer.Read full review
This is a great everyday lens! Very compact & lightweight (about 8oz.). I have several lenses for my Sony A100. Carrying this lens around for quick snapshots, it's size makes it very comfortable hanging around your neck. If you need more zoom capability the SAL 18200 18-200mm lens is just a little bigger when closed and a mere 6oz heavier, although it is priced quite a bit higher than this one. If your buying a new A series camera it's worth upgrading to the 18-200 lens. This is the most standard lens sold with the Sony A series camera. It will take great still or action photos & the prints come out just as clear & vivid as any of the other lenses I have and unless you need more zoom this will be a great lens and save you a few bucks as well! Please vote YES below if you found this review helpful! THANKS!Read full review
the lens is absolutely perfect especially for eternal practicer and non-professional like me ;) the goal was to make nice pictures to the family album and it works wonderfully. of course would be convenient to have access to wider range (especially close zoomings) but for the price I could not expect more. it is an equivalent of classic 27-105mm and in most situations it's quite enough the requirements like decent lightness / sharpness / and brightness are fulfilled and pictures to my eye seems to be of pretty decent quality. PROS: wide range of zoom, small size, and light weight
I know a lot of people knock this lens. For $200 retail (I bought for $32!!) it's not worth it, but when you can find them on Ebay for under $60 they're great. Very wide angle, some color loss and fisheyeing at 18mm, but really does a decent job on shooting small rooms or big groups inside. Cool thing is I can lose this lens and only be out $32 instead of $600-$700 for a fast APO. So, great for cheap utility lens or an upgrade from stock 35mm-70mm that used to come with the Minolta kits.
This is a great lens with a wide zoom coverage - I have used it alot and it performs very well. This is my first "D" lens and it works well with my 3600-HSD flash. I have used this lens for flash and fast stop-action shots and for 30-second long night shots of lighting storms and it is very sharp. The only thing this lens is missing is a focus scale - the front ring on the lens functions as the focus ring - but it has no markings, so you have to play with it and learn which way is near and far - but it's a small price to pay for a versatile zoom range at an affordable price.
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