Sony E 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 OSS LE
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According to our camera lens expert
The Sony E 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 OSS LE is a lens with a large zoom range. It's suitable for Sony mirrorless cameras. You can use this lens in various situations thanks to the 11x optical zoom. With the maximum aperture of f/3.5, you can create a strong depth of field effect. The 7 aperture shutters ensure round, natural-looking bokeh. If you zoom in from afar or take photos at dawn, the optical image stabilization ensures you barely see any movement in your images. This lens contains 4 aspheric and 2 ED lens elements, which together provide bright images with a strong contrast and little lens errors.
Lens mount | Sony E mount | |
|---|---|---|
Suitable for camera type | APS-C | |
Zoom or prime lens | Zoom lens | |
Fixed focal point | ||
Lens type | Standard, Telephoto lens, Wide-angle | |
Image stabilization | ||
Weight | 460 g | |
Type of photography | Architecture and interior, Landscape, Nature photography, Sports and action, Wild animal photography |
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You often look around the internet for reviews of, for example, a lens. But in the end you still have doubts. Does this sound familiar to you? Then read on. I myself am a hobby photographer and like to experiment with different techniques. I am fairly critical of the quality of the photos and do not easily settle for less. I opted for an all-round lens especially for vacations and capturing my family. Previously used a canon with different lenses. This is kind of the image about me, the person who writes this review. No technical testing but just visually assessed.
Appearance Of course, delivered super fast by coolblue. Once inside and unpacked it was love at first sight. In terms of construction and materials used (metal and plastic), all praise for Sony. I use the lens on the Sony A6000 and this is a really great combination and perfectly balanced in weight. The lens, weighing 460 grams, fits perfectly on the body without any play and is supplied with a lens hood. There are two rotating rings, namely zooming and focusing. At 18mm you can lock the lens with the zoom lock if desired. The lens also has a built-in steady shot. It is possible to mount 62mm filters on this lens. A possible disadvantage could be that dust enters the lens during zooming, but I have of course not experienced this (yet).
Usage As mentioned before, the combination camera + lens feels natural, making it wonderful to take pictures. Two rotating rings of which the zoom does feel a bit stiff compared to my previous canon (camera) lens. But to be honest, you get used to it quickly. While walking with the camera in my hand or around my neck, the lens does not extend, even when the zoom lock is not on. I use the lens for which it is also intended, because all-round, not changing lenses is a relief. Especially with children going in all directions, I hardly miss a moment now. Landscapes, macro, portrait and the like all work fine and the lens focuses quickly during the day. In dark shots, the lens has more difficulty focusing (AF). For real wildlife such as flying birds and fast objects, this lens will not give the best results. The lens does give a great bokeh effect and the macro photos look great.
Quality photos Then an important question for most of us, is the quality sufficient for an 18-200 mm lens (with APS-C 27-300 mm). When purchasing such a lens, you read everywhere that you are sacrificing quality. Now I am of the opinion that the lens produces an excellent image in different ranges. Even at the extreme I am very surprised at the quality. I have not noticed any distortion or other peculiarities with all the photos. Sharp photos in almost all ranges. At full zoom 200mm, the photos sometimes seem a bit softer, but this is not with all photos, depending on the incidence of light and what kind of object you are photographing. This is especially visible when you really zoom in on photos. For prints up to and including A3, the quality will be fine. In daylight, this lens performs well. In dark scenes, the lens has difficulty focusing and the photos are of lower quality and noise occurs more quickly.
Video Yes, filming with this lens. As long as you keep filming at 1 range, for example 18mm, it works excellently, but as soon as you want to zoom in and out, your images are quickly moved if you film by hand. This is simply due to the stiff zoom, which means that you cannot zoom smoothly. The lens focuses quickly when zooming in and out, and the images look fine, depending on your camera, of course. It may be that filming from a tripod will provide better still images during zooming. I prefer to film with the 16-50mm g lens that came with my camera.
Conclusion The lens is reasonably priced, but for that you get a nice, well-finished product. The quality of the photos is really top for the hobby photographer, ranging from 18mm to 200mm, with APS-C even up to 300mm. This produces beautiful prints up to A3 and more than sufficient quality for digitally produced photo books. Of course you will take EVEN nicer photos with more expensive brighter lenses, but you don't buy this lens for that. Here you opt for convenience and quick switching in different circumstances. Especially during the day the pictures are TOP! Some photos shot at 200mm can appear a bit soft and less sharp, depending on the light and what kind of object you are photographing. In dark scenes and fast movements such as birds, the lens has difficulty focusing. Focusing (AF) during the day is just fine for its purpose. If you are specialized in a certain type of photography, such as only portrait or macro, etc., then I advise you not to buy this lens. I find the lens less suitable for filming because of the stiff zoom. I doubted myself between the Tamron and Sony, but because of the cashback promotion and that Sony has chosen this lens after all. So far no regrets and happy with this purchase. See the photos as an example, these are all unedited* and shot in auto mode. *Slightly resized otherwise I couldn't upload it. Hopefully it gives some idea of the quality. This is really an ideal companion for travel and everyday use. All family members can now shoot without changing lenses. I will use another lens for dark conditions and filming.
John Stijnman
25 June 2017
Automatically translated from Dutch
the lens works perfectly, no more changing lenses to be able to take pictures far or close. Just been on a high atlas trekking in Morocco, does its job perfectly and makes for fantastic photos!
Ingrid Aerts
18 January 2018
Automatically translated from Dutch
I am a starting photographer, and I bought this lens on the recommendation of another photographer, because I still want to photograph from close by and far away without changing it. I really like this lens, it just zooms a bit stiffly. I've been using it for a week now and I'm very satisfied I use this lens on a Sony alpha 6000 with E mount
Erik
9 July 2018
Automatically translated from Dutch
Product number | 300758 | |
|---|---|---|
Manufacturer code | SEL18200LE.AE | |
Brand | Sony | |
Warranty | 2 years | |
Processing of your defect | Via Coolblue |
Lens type | Standard, Telephoto lens, Wide-angle | |
|---|---|---|
Type of photography | Architecture and interior, Landscape, Nature photography, Sports and action, Wild animal photography |
Lens mount | Sony E mount | |
|---|---|---|
Suitable for camera type | APS-C | |
Compatible with lens filter | ||
Filter size | 62 mm | |
Lens series | Sony E |
Zoom or prime lens | Zoom lens | |
|---|---|---|
Maximum magnification factor | 0,27 | |
Number of aperture shutters | 7 | |
Fixed aperture | ||
Number of groups | 13 | |
Number of elements | 17 | |
Type of lens elements | Aspherical, ED | |
Special lens elements | ||
Number of stops | 4 | |
Image stabilization | ||
Fixed focal point |
Shortest focusing distance | 50 cm | |
|---|---|---|
Manual focus override | ||
Silent focusing motor | ||
Internal focus | ||
Focal distance control | ||
Autofocus |
Color | Black | |
|---|---|---|
Weight | 460 g | |
Material | Metal, Plastic | |
Diameter | 68 mm | |
Length camera lens | 97,1 mm |
Dustproof | ||
|---|---|---|
Shockproof |
