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Sony FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS: two-minute evaluate
Nearer is best in terms of wildlife images, and that’s the place Sony’s super-telephoto zoom delivers in spades: with a attain of 400-800mm, it’s the longest lens of its variety in Sony’s E-mount lens lineup. Trumping the 200-600mm F5.6-6.3 G OSS by a full 200mm on the telephoto finish, it sacrifices wide-angle flexibility to present you a considerably tighter shot of distant topics.
Comparable in lots of respects to Canon’s RF 200-800mm F6.3-9 IS USM, Sony’s super-telephoto is a win for capturing wild and winged creatures. It is much less efficient within the sports activities enviornment although: a sluggish f/6.3-8 most aperture makes it more durable to work on the sorts of shutter speeds wanted to freeze fast-moving topics, particularly in low-light situations, and in addition limits your scope for blurring busy backgrounds.
Nonetheless, in shiny circumstances, the 400-800mm excels. You don’t get absolutely the pin-sharp element of a telephoto prime, however it’s nonetheless sharp each all through the zoom vary and throughout the body. Efficient picture stabilization additionally helps to maintain issues crisp when capturing handheld, with movement blur solely changing into noticeable on the lengthy finish. Chromatic aberrations are stored underneath tight management, too.
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Tipping the scales at the very best a part of 2.5kg, this isn’t a light-weight lens. Neither is it small by anybody’s requirements, particularly with the lens hood connected. But Sony has made it a surprisingly manageable telephoto zoom to shoot with. For starters, inner zoom retains the load stability comparatively centered over the tripod foot, which usefully doubles up as a deal with.
You then’ve received the tactile, accessible controls. With well-judged resistance, the main focus ring makes guide changes a pleasure. Equally, the quick throw and easy motion of the zoom ring imply it’s swift and simple to shift by the complete spectrum of focal lengths. Add a trio of programmable focus maintain buttons, and the 400-800mm turns into a super-telephoto that’s simple to deal with.
It’s additionally a lens with very good focusing abilities. This isn’t G Grasp glass, however you wouldn’t realize it from the responsiveness of the autofocus: pushed by two precision linear motors, it strikes quick and really not often misses, and solely when capturing busy scenes at a severe distance will it is advisable take into account guide fine-tuning. On the large finish of the vary, it additionally has the flexibility to give attention to topics simply 1.7m away.
This isn’t an ideal lens. Skilled wildlife photographers will get higher superb element from a premium telephoto prime, whereas severe sports activities protection requires the sooner most aperture of one thing just like the Sigma 150-600mm F5-6.3 DG DN OS Sports. However compromise is inevitable with a lens that is designed to cowl a number of bases, and in order for you a super-telephoto zoom that will get you nearer than another Sony E-mount glass, the trade-offs listed here are greater than palatable.
Sony FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS specs
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Kind: |
Tremendous-telephoto zoom |
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Mount: |
Sony E-mount |
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Sensor: |
Full-frame |
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Focal size: |
400-800mm |
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Max aperture: |
f/6.3-8 |
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Minimal focus: |
1.7-3.5m |
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Filter dimension: |
105 |
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Dimensions: |
119.8 x 346mm |
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Weight: |
2475g |
Sony FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS: Design
- Heavy however well-balanced lens
- Strong construct with climate seals
- Inside zoom with easy ring rotation
There’s no escaping the truth that the Sony FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS is a hefty lens. At the very best a part of 2.5kg, you’ll really feel its weight when wielding it. That stated, it’s not an excessive amount of larger than the 200-600mm: it is 358g heavier, 29mm longer and simply 8.3mm wider. These don’t really feel like large trade-offs for the additional attain on the lengthy finish, though you will have to put money into expensive 105mm entrance filters.
It helps that Sony has performed a superb job of balancing the lens. Somewhat than telescoping out in entrance, the zoom mechanism is all packaged internally. That retains the load distribution pretty constant, whether or not you’re capturing handheld or on a tripod. It additionally signifies that the zoom management ring solely requires a lightweight contact, which contributes to the sense that this can be a manageable lens.
So does the tripod foot, which sits fairly squarely beneath the lens and physique’s middle of gravity. Its collar isn’t detachable, however you’ll seemingly discover the foot helpful to have as a rule. The design isn’t precisely ergonomic, however the foot makes for a pure deal with, each when carrying and framing. The collar will be simply rotated, with markers for panorama and vertical orientation.
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Whereas this isn’t a pro-grade lens, it’s greater than sturdy sufficient to outlive a lifetime of shoots within the wild. In addition to its basic weightiness, every part feels well-assembled: the barrel is strong, the management rings flip easily, and the switches have a pleasant, affirmative motion. Climate seals are there to maintain mud and moisture out, too.
Regardless of its dimension, Sony has tried to make the 400-800mm an accessible lens. The hood, for instance, attaches with a easy button launch, and includes a sliding window, so you can also make filter changes with out eradicating it. Across the barrel, three focus-hold buttons sit at 90-degree intervals, and every will be programmed with customized features. Then you could have its stack of 5 focus and stabilization switches. As heavyweight telephoto zoom lenses go, this is without doubt one of the most user-friendly.
Sony FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS: Efficiency
- Quick autofocus with two linear motors
- Comparatively sluggish f/6.3-8 most aperture
- 1.7m minimal focus distance at 400mm
Relating to focusing efficiency, the 400-800mm impresses. Pushed by a pair of high-speed linear motors, autofocus is each speedy and dependable, with zero delay between button press and motor response. In keeping with Sony, the telephoto zoom can deal with the 120fps most burst speeds of the A9 III. We didn’t have Sony’s sports activities star at hand throughout testing, however our chosen physique – the A1 II – isn’t any slouch, and the 400-800mm had no bother maintaining.
It’s not immune from the odd miss, notably when capturing over vital distances, however two options assist right here. The primary is the main focus limiter change, which helps you to give the 400-800mm a serving to hand. By switching from the complete vary to one among two restricted modes, based mostly in your distance from the topic, the lens has to hunt round much less to search out focus.
The second is full-time direct guide focus, which lets you manually fine-tune focus in any mode by twisting the management ring. There aren’t many events the place you’ll want to do that, but when the autofocus is having bother with branches, for instance, you’ll discover the main focus ring has simply the correct quantity of resistance to allow you to make cautious changes.
Shut focusing is one other key promoting level of the 400-800mm, with a minimal distance of 1.7m on the large finish. In apply, that allows you to get the shot even when your topic is comparatively shut. 400mm might be too tight to virtually shoot from the sidelines of a sports activities occasion, however that distance does imply you’ll be able to seize small creatures which are close to the top of the lens.
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In fact, it’s the super-telephoto quantity that grabs the headlines – and for good motive: 800mm is a great distance in. In comparison with a barrel that maxes out at 600mm the additional attain will get you considerably tighter in in your topic, and whether or not you’re capturing a kingfisher or a kickabout the distinction is dramatic.
Virtually as essential because the vary itself is the quick throw of the zoom ring, which is optimized for fast shifts in focal size, and has a splendidly easy motion; the inner zoom mechanism helps right here, as a result of the management ring isn’t liable for telescoping parts. The web result’s that it is fairly easy to maneuver by the complete 400-800mm vary, and along with the swift autofocus it lets you readily change between topics close to and much.
What does maintain the 400-800mm again in some situations is the sluggish f/6.3-8 most aperture. This isn’t a problem in good mild, the place the lens performs properly (see the pattern pictures under). Below darker skies, although, it will probably wrestle to maintain up with speedy motion, and on the shutter speeds required to freeze motion you’ll must crank up the ISO setting or threat underexposed stills.
Because of this, this isn’t a lens for capturing sports activities, particularly not indoors. Even within the dimmer circumstances of undergrowth, it may be a problem to seize blur-free animal movement.
That slower most aperture additionally makes the lens much less efficient at blurring backgrounds. It’s not a significant subject with leafy scenes or distant backdrops, however it does demand extra care when composing in opposition to busy settings. At f/5.6-6.3, the 200-600mm has higher light-gathering skills and allows a tighter depth of area.
Sony FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS: pattern pictures
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Optically, there’s quite a bit happening contained in the 400-800mm. There are 27 parts in 19 teams, six of that are extra-low dispersion, which interprets into sharp stills that are just about free from chromatic aberrations.
At a pixel stage, you’ll get finer outcomes from a telephoto prime, however for a super-telephoto zoom, the 400-800mm displays first rate sharpness. Element is crisp at each the middle and the sting of the body, throughout the complete zoom vary. Once more, the lens delivers its greatest leads to good lighting, the place you’ll be able to work at shutter speeds quick sufficient to get rid of movement blur.
SteadyShot stabilization helps to maintain issues sharp. Sony hasn’t revealed the official ranking of its OIS system, however with a trio of modes overlaying static and panning pictures, in addition to lively topics shot utilizing the viewfinder, we discovered it fairly efficient at counteracting hand shake. Blur did change into noticeable on the excessive finish, however panning handheld at 800mm isn’t going to bag you the sharpest stills.
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Chromatic aberrations are tightly managed, with only a trace of purple fringing creeping in at super-telephoto focal lengths. Pincushion distortion is minimal, too, leaving you with little or no to repair in uncooked pictures. The 11-blade aperture diaphragm additionally produces bokeh easy sufficient to fulfill most lovers.
Must you purchase the Sony FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS?
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How I examined the Sony FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS
- I used the lens extensively for every week
- I paired it with the Sony A1 II
- I examined it in a spread of situations
Sony solely made the FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS obtainable for a brief mortgage interval, so I made probably the most of my week with it. I used to be blessed with a a number of days of clear skies and winter solar, permitting me to check the telephoto zoom in excellent circumstances.
Given the lens’s wildlife credentials, animals had been clearly a spotlight of my take a look at pictures. That stated, I additionally made certain to evaluate its capabilities as a sports activities lens, capturing on-track motion on the Goodwood motorsports circuit close to my residence within the UK. To be thorough, I additionally shot architectural particulars, flowers, and a handful of portraits.
Paired with a Sony A1 II, I took the FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS on a number of walks to get a superb understanding of how simple it was to maneuver and shoot with the lens handheld, bearing in mind not simply its weight, but additionally its full complement of controls, in addition to the collar.
- First reviewed March 2025