Up next in 10
Photographer Dustin Abbott shares a look at the E-mount Bangers - Dustin's favorite lenses for Sony E-mount. Reviews of each "banger":
Viltrox 14mm F4 | Video https://youtu.be/WiNO-U9aAoU | Text https://tinyurl.com/AIR14da
Schneider x Samyang 14-24mm F2.8 | Video https://youtu.be/FwVhx7JuKJU | Text https://tinyurl.com/LK14-24Review
Viltrox LAB 35mm F1.2 | Video https://youtu.be/VGwyXx5oIYI | Text https://tinyurl.com/LAB35review
Sony 50mm F1.4 GM | Video https://youtu.be/yioxJTaJNgw | Text http://bit.ly/50GM14da
Sony 70-200mm F4 Macro G II | Video https://youtu.be/IDzjnLOidWI | Text https://bit.ly/70-200GIIda
Tamron 35-150mm F2-2.8 VXD | Video https://youtu.be/DjkxAGrtu6M | Text https://bit.ly/A058DA
Sony 200-600mm F5-6.3 G | Video https://youtu.be/sS-aUZw8PjU | Text http://bit.ly/FE200_600DA
Sony 100mm F2.8 Macro GM | Video https://youtu.be/6zwQQURl1yI | Text https://tinyurl.com/100GMreview
Sigma 35mm F1.4 ART II | Video https://youtu.be/7RIvQ7bWIDw | Text https://tinyurl.com/1435ARTIIda
Show More Show Less View Video Transcript
0:00
[music]
0:10
Hi, I'm Dustin Abbott and I'm here today
0:12
to do something a little bit [music]
0:13
different. I've been thinking about this
0:15
for a while because I do get questions
0:17
periodically about what lenses I
0:19
actually invest in, which lenses I think
0:21
are really fantastic. I obviously review
0:24
tons of lenses. On average, I'm going to
0:26
cover close to a hundred lenses per
0:29
year. And so that means that over the
0:31
course of a uh, you know, more than
0:32
decade long career at this point, I have
0:34
reviewed a lot of lenses. I'm going to
0:37
start this series by taking a look at
0:39
Sony E-mount because E-mount has been
0:41
the most prolific mount for lens design,
0:45
I think, in all of camera history. There
0:47
are more lenses available on Sony
0:49
E-mount than you could ever possibly
0:52
shoot. And I've reviewed a lot of them,
0:54
but there are still many, many lenses
0:56
that I have never seen, touched or used.
0:59
And so, at this point, you have hundreds
1:01
and hundreds, if not more than a
1:03
thousand choices on E-mount. So, it is a
1:05
very prolific platform. So, there's lots
1:07
of choices. And of course, a lot of
1:09
those lenses have come through my hands
1:11
over time. And obviously I can't afford
1:14
everything, nor do I try to add a lot of
1:16
lenses to my own personal kit because
1:18
the reality is is that most of the time
1:20
I'm shooting with other people's lenses.
1:22
And and so I don't have a lot of time to
1:24
shoot with my own personal kit. But
1:26
there have been some lenses that just
1:27
stood out enough to where I said, I need
1:29
to add those to my own kit. Some of them
1:32
are newer lenses. Some of them are
1:34
fairly old at this point, but all of
1:36
them I think are still really
1:37
exceptional. And so I'm going to talk to
1:39
you about I've got in front of me I have
1:41
got seven E-mount bangers here. And
1:43
there's also a couple of bonus lenses
1:45
I'm going to talk about that I don't
1:47
have in front of me, but I wish that I
1:49
did. And so we're going to dive in and
1:51
take a look at going from wide to long
1:54
and in price going all the way from $160
1:58
up to about $2,250.
2:01
So none of these are the most expensive
2:03
lenses out there. Many of them are
2:05
really, really excellent value. And so I
2:07
think that there is some application for
2:09
you. And the lenses that I have here
2:10
that are a little bit more expensive, I
2:12
think are well worth the price that is
2:14
asked for them. Now, one caveat I'm
2:16
going to give is I'm giving you prices
2:18
as of today from B&H Photo, which is the
2:21
standard that I typically look at for
2:22
prices. Prices are going to be given in
2:24
US dollars and there obviously is going
2:27
to be fluctuation from market to market.
2:29
Also fluctuation even here in the North
2:31
American market depending on sales
2:32
because some of them are on sale at the
2:35
moment. I'm just giving you a snapshot
2:37
of the price at this moment in time. So,
2:40
let's start with the wide end of things
2:42
and I'm going to start with the Viltrox
2:44
Air 14mm F4. This is such a unique
2:47
little lens because it is incredibly
2:50
compact palm size and yet covers an
2:53
extremely wide focal length of 14
2:56
millimeters. It has a maximum aperture
2:58
of f4. But what is interesting is that
3:00
while it is so small and while it covers
3:02
a very wide focal length, it does it
3:05
with a lot of great uh detail, even on a
3:08
high resolution 61 megapixel sensor um
3:12
like my A7R Mark II. It delivers highly
3:14
detailed images, making it a great lens
3:17
to bring along to throw if into a
3:19
backpack if I'm out hiking or I'm
3:21
traveling when I want to add that extra
3:23
wide angle of view. And for only 160
3:25
bucks, it is a a tremendous value. Now,
3:29
the second lens I want to talk to you
3:30
about is one again from another
3:32
thirdparty manufacturer, and this is the
3:35
Schneider Cruz Knox and LK Samyang 14 to
3:39
24 millimeter f2.8. The name is a bit of
3:43
a mouthful, but I love this wide angle
3:46
zoom lens. Um, I love the fact that it
3:48
is so compact and it is very, very
3:50
competent. It covers an amazing zoom
3:53
range of 14 to 24 millimeters all with a
3:56
constant maximum aperture of f/2.8. You
3:59
can put traditional filters on there and
4:02
a common 77 mm uh filter size. And
4:06
what's more, it has amazing uplose
4:08
capabilities as well. I have found this
4:10
lens to be tremendously versatile. It
4:13
also adapts very well um via like a
4:16
megaap adapter to Nikon Zmount bodies.
4:19
And so it is a really fantastic lens. I
4:22
love it. You can right now it is under
4:24
$1,000. $960.
4:27
It's a great value for a great lens. Now
4:29
on B&H Photo, just so you know, if
4:31
you're looking for the lens, they don't
4:33
sell it under the LK Samyang name, but
4:35
they sell it under the Roken brand. It's
4:37
kind of a weird thing that LK Samyang
4:39
does. Um, but for whatever reason, in
4:42
some different markets, they sell under
4:43
different brands. So either the Rokinon
4:45
or LK Samyang 14 to 24 millimeter. This
4:48
collaboration with the German optical um
4:51
designer has produced a lens that I
4:53
think is really really special and at
4:55
this price I think it's a great value
4:57
because it covers such an amazing focal
4:59
length. Well worth your consideration.
5:02
Third lens that I think is an absolute
5:04
banger is the Viltrox Lab Series 35mm
5:07
F1.2. Now this is a bit of a beast of a
5:10
lens. It's big. It's heavy. But it is
5:13
amazingly good optically. And I've put
5:15
it in a number of different comparisons.
5:18
It holds up really well in all of those
5:20
comparisons. Despite at the moment being
5:22
just $800,
5:24
800 bucks for a lens that is this good
5:27
is a truly amazing price. And I've put
5:30
it up on the Nikon platform. I've put it
5:32
up against their extremely expensive and
5:35
even bigger 35mm f1.2 S-line lens. This
5:39
lens does shockingly well in that
5:41
comparison and so I think it is a
5:44
tremendous value. It's a really really
5:46
amazing lens and if you can handle the
5:48
weight, you're going to be delighted
5:50
with the the actual images that you can
5:52
get. Fourth lens that I have now used
5:55
for a number of years since its release
5:57
and it has been perhaps my most used
6:00
prime lens over that time because I've
6:02
used it a lot for filming on this
6:04
channel and that is Sony's 50mm f1.4 4 G
6:08
Master lens. Now, I really love the
6:10
optics from the 50mm f1.2 G Master lens.
6:14
However, when the f1.4 came out, I
6:16
thought that it was a sweet spot of
6:19
size, weight, and then delivering
6:21
really, really high performance. I do
6:23
think that the overall rendering is a
6:25
little nicer from the 50mm f1.2, but
6:28
this lens is even sharper. The autofocus
6:31
is amazing on it, and it is utterly
6:33
reliable. I've put it into comparisons
6:36
with a lot of other 50mimeter lenses and
6:38
I haven't really seen any of them that I
6:41
think surpass it in terms of the overall
6:44
package when you consider the the
6:46
overall, you know, build and handling,
6:48
the feature set, the autofocus
6:50
capabilities, the sharpness, the
6:52
rendering from the lens. It does a lot
6:54
of things really, really well. Now, it's
6:56
not cheap. It's $1,450.
7:00
However, when you look at some of the
7:02
lenses it competes against, it just
7:04
doesn't have the compromises that some
7:06
of them do. And so, this is a lens that
7:08
I would continue to take every day of
7:10
the week. It is my favorite 50mm lens
7:13
that I own. Number five here is a lens
7:16
that I have fallen in absolute love
7:18
with, and that is Sony's 70 to 200
7:22
millimeter F4. This is their macro Goss
7:26
Mark II lens. This lens is just good at
7:30
everything. And uh at the moment because
7:33
we'll get to a caveat there as one of
7:36
the the unshown lenses in just a moment.
7:38
But at the moment, this is the primary
7:39
lens that I'm actually using for macro
7:42
photography for all of my product
7:43
photography when I'm doing a lot of my
7:46
video shooting for the channel. It just
7:48
does everything great. And I absolutely
7:50
love the fact that you have a 1:2 macro
7:54
or 0.50 magnification at every single
7:57
focal length. It gives you such
7:59
tremendous um just flexibility for
8:02
framing and shooting and it delivers
8:05
really really gorgeous image quality.
8:07
There's some lenses that just have an
8:09
extra sparkle to them. It's not just
8:10
that they're competent or they're sharp,
8:12
but there's a bit of magic to the
8:14
rendering. And this lens, despite being
8:16
a zoom lens, is one of those. It's not
8:19
cheap, but at the same time, it is so
8:21
versatile that I absolutely love it. And
8:24
this is a lens that is getting a lot of
8:26
use for me personally right now. And I
8:28
100% recommend it. In fact, if you want
8:31
to throw on um you know, either
8:33
extension tubes or teleconverters. It is
8:35
fully compatible with f1.4 or excuse me,
8:37
with 1.4 times and two times
8:39
teleconverters. It just adds to the
8:41
versatility and gives you even more
8:42
macro capabilities. throw on a two times
8:45
teleconverter and all of a sudden you
8:47
are shooting with a full one to one
8:50
macro lens and it still delivers great
8:52
results. And so I I think you could get
8:54
by with it as being your sole macro lens
8:57
if you're not hardcore into macro
8:58
photography. It just adds a lot of extra
9:01
versatility there. It can be had right
9:03
now for about $2,000 and so it is it's a
9:06
bit spendy or pricey, but it is so
9:09
versatile. I mean, it's good for all the
9:11
macro stuff and then of course for all
9:12
of the telephoto things that it is
9:14
capable of doing. Again, with the
9:16
teleconverters on there, you can move
9:18
out to a maximum of 280 mm or even 400
9:21
millimeters with the two times
9:22
teleconverter. I love it. It is
9:25
absolutely great. Lens number six is my
9:29
mostus lens of all and since it has been
9:32
released, Tamron's 35 to 150mm f2 to 2.8
9:36
VXD lens. It is a lens that has gotten
9:39
huge use from me for about close to 5
9:42
years now. I have used it in all kinds
9:44
of situ situations. It is my absolute
9:46
go-to lens when it comes to any kind of
9:48
event photography. If I'm shooting
9:50
weddings, I don't shoot them often, but
9:52
when I do, this is the number one lens
9:54
that's on my camera for all of my church
9:56
event things. This is always on the
9:58
camera. It is so versatile. It does so
10:00
many things well, and the image quality
10:02
is just fantastic. You've got that
10:04
bright aperture, that uniquely kind of,
10:07
you know, genre bursting zoom range, all
10:10
with bright aperture throughout. It is
10:12
an absolutely fantastic lens. And people
10:14
ask me, if you could only own one lens,
10:16
what would it be? This is it right here.
10:18
This is my one lens because it is the
10:21
one that does the most things. Yeah,
10:23
it's it's a little bit big and heavy,
10:25
but considering what it does, it's an
10:28
absolute banger of a value. Particularly
10:31
considering that the price has drifted
10:33
down on it, and you can get it right now
10:34
for $1,500. At that price, it is an
10:37
absolute steal. And if you owned only
10:39
one lens, this would be a very good one
10:42
to consider.
10:44
Final banger that's being shown to you
10:46
here is an oldie here. I've owned it for
10:48
a long time, but it remains in all of
10:50
the comparisons of telephoto zooms that
10:52
I have done since. It continues to hold
10:54
up really well despite its age. And that
10:56
is Sony's 200 to 600 millimeter. This is
10:59
the f5 to 6.3s
11:03
lens. It is a unique lens and still
11:06
remains quite a unique lens and that it
11:08
is an internally zooming design. I
11:10
absolutely love this lens in the field.
11:12
It is so easy to grab the focal length
11:15
that I want or as I'm tracking to be
11:17
able to easily move it. That zoom range
11:20
is nice and short. It moves with
11:22
absolute precision. It's got great
11:24
autofocus. Pair it with one of Sony's
11:26
sports bodies and tracking becomes
11:28
effortless. And typically to get that
11:31
kind of performance in the past, you
11:32
were having to spend big money for big
11:35
glass. No, it's not the brightest lens
11:37
out there. at a maximum aperture of f5
11:40
on the wide end, f6.3 on the telephoto
11:42
end. But neither does it compromise
11:45
further. Some of the other lenses that
11:46
have come out will compromise by going
11:48
to, you know, beyond that to f7.1, f8.
11:53
Not the case here. I absolutely love
11:55
this lens and I continue to use it
11:57
often, particularly when I am testing
11:59
um, you know, new cameras or if I just
12:02
want to get out and get some great
12:03
action shots at a distance. It's
12:05
absolutely a great value. $2,250. Again,
12:08
it's not cheap. It was more like $2,000
12:10
when I bought it because prices have
12:12
drifted up, unfortunately, on it, but it
12:15
continues to be a really strong value
12:17
and I feel like it has maybe fewer
12:18
compromises than a lot of the lenses
12:20
that it competes against. So, two bonus
12:23
lenses. One of those is my next lens
12:26
purchase and I've already it's already
12:28
set in motion. I'm just in the process
12:29
of selling off another lens right now
12:31
to, you know, put together some funds to
12:33
purchase it. But I am absolutely going
12:35
to add Sony's 100mm f/2.8 macro G Master
12:40
lens. And that lens is so incredibly
12:43
versatile. It is so incredibly sharp. It
12:45
works with Sony's teleconverters. And at
12:48
1,500 bucks, it's not a cheap macro
12:50
lens, but it is absolutely without
12:53
qualification, it is the best macro lens
12:55
that I've personally ever used. I
12:57
absolutely love it. It is going into my
12:58
kit. I, as I said, I think that this is
13:00
a great substitution in the short term,
13:03
which is why I've been able to sell off
13:04
other macro lenses to help to purchase
13:06
that. But absolutely, it is a lens that
13:08
is going into my kit. The final kind of
13:11
bonus addition here is there is no Sigma
13:14
lens represented here, but here's the
13:16
Sigma lens that I wish was in front of
13:18
me right now. It's one that I would
13:19
absolutely consider adding to my kit,
13:21
and that is one of their newest lenses.
13:23
It is Sigma's 35mm F1.4 um Art Series M2
13:27
lens. Not only did they manage to shrink
13:29
the size down and make it really, really
13:32
compact. Not only is it incredibly sharp
13:34
as we expect from Sigma lenses, but it
13:38
also has incredible autofocus and what's
13:40
more, it has beautiful rendering. A lot
13:43
of people don't know, but there were a
13:45
couple of exceptional lenses in the
13:47
previous generation of Sigma's DSLR
13:50
lenses, and those were the 28mm f1.4 and
13:54
the 40mm f1.4.
13:57
They just had a bit of a special sauce
13:59
that ordinary Sigma lenses didn't have.
14:01
I feel like this new 35mm f1.4 Art M I
14:05
is a lens that recaptures some of that
14:08
spirit, but does it in a much more
14:10
compact package with the engineering
14:12
that Sigma can only do in 2026. And so I
14:16
think that it is an absolute banger of a
14:18
lens. And it costs a little over $1,000,
14:20
$1,60, but it is an absolute value. And
14:24
it is the first 35mm f1.4 4 lens that I
14:27
think can go head-to-head with Sony's
14:30
own 35mm f1.4 G Master and actually take
14:33
the win. It is a really really special
14:36
lens. So there you have it. A total of
14:38
nine different Sony E-mount bangers that
14:40
I think are if you buy any one of these
14:42
lenses, you absolutely will not regret
14:44
it. They are fant fantastic additions to
14:47
anyone's kit and I am certainly
14:49
delighted to have them in my own. If you
14:51
want more information about any one of
14:53
these lenses, I in the description down
14:55
below have added the links to both my
14:57
video and text reviews for each one of
15:00
them. So, go ahead and check it out and
15:02
so that you can make a more informed
15:03
buying decision for yourself in the
15:05
future. As always, thanks for watching.
15:07
Have a great day and let the light in.