Sony SAL-1680Z 16-80mm f/3.5-4.5 Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T DT Zoom Lens for Sony Alpha Digital SLR Camera by Sony
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Digital camera reviews of Sony SAL-1680Z 16-80mm f/3.5-4.5 Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T DT Zoom Lens for Sony Alpha Digital SLR Camera
Digital camera Review: Excellent all-round lens
Summary: 5 Stars
I recently purchased a Sony Alpha 300, which is my first DSLR. I have been a Panasonic Lumix FZ series user for around 5 years now - my last 3 cameras were the FZ10, FZ18 and the FZ50. I enjoy taking photographs, but I am not a 'technically oriented' photographer - yet. So the Alpha 300 was a careful choice for me and has so far worked out great. So that's the basic background.
At this point the most important criteria for me were:
1. Range - I want to be as close to a single lens solution as possible. That was one reason I had stayed with the Lumix mega zoom series for so long. For me wide angle was important and the 17-70 range of the kit lens was the minimum acceptable.
2. Speed - I wanted a reasonably fast camera and lens. One BIG drawback of the Lumix series or any non SLR is speed. The kit lens was just OK in this respect. Much better than my Lumix, but not great in low light conditions.
3. Image quality - sharpness, good contrast and colors are what I look for. The kit lens that came with my Alpha actually seemed softer many times than my FZ18 or FZ50 pictures! That was a huge concern. Why get a DSLR if there isn't a marked improvement in IQ!
4. Weight - while I like a nice substantial feel to the camera and lens (the FZ 50 isn't light and neither is the 300K the lightest) I prefer it to be light enough that both me and my wife can operate. I liked the light weigth of the kit lens. The kit lens was also well balanced and the fact that it did not have a huge zoom that extended far out of the camera was a plus for me. So, unlike many others, the construction of the kit lens wasn't a problem.
What I was looking for then was a way to overcome the relatively poor IQ of the kit lens without losing its advantages such as light weight, fast focusing and versatile range. I also didn't want to spend a lot of money in the upgrade either.
After doing a ton of research it came down to the Sony 16-105 and the CZ 16-80. I decided to go with the 16-80 for slightly better sharpness, slightly lower weight and slightly better feel on the camera (It seemed to me that the focus on the CZ was a tad faster). In the end the CZ overcame the slightly lower price and slightly longer range of the 16-105 for my $.
So far I have been very pleased with the performance of this lens. Clearly, Sony has done an excellent job in optimizing this lens for performance. The difference v. the kit and the leica on the Lumix finally makes my upgrade worth it. It's a very easy lens to use and even on full auto controls the pictures look sharp and nice saturated colors.
If you're someone like me who is looking for a nice all in one DSLR solution with an emphasis on ease of use and great IQ then this is probably the best lens I can think of right now at any price for the Sony Alpha system. The Sony Alpha system itself with in camera stabilization and Live View is probably the best camera system for someone looking for ease of use....
Also wanted to point out that yesterday at my local sonystyle store I was able to directly compare the new 330K with my older 300K and looks like the 330 is a step back in build quality. For instance if you put the CZ 16-80 or anything heavier on the 330K body you end up with a really lens heavy camera. Personally, if I had the 330K I'd consider the 16-80 too heavy for it and it is one of the lighter zoom lens out there!
Digital camera Review: Excellent product!!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a great lens and has good sharpness, contrast and zoom range. I bring this lens around where ever I go due to its versatility.
It is as sharp as a prime at 80mm. At 16mm, it is already very sharp in the center at f3.5 and when stop down to f5.6 it is sharp from corner to corner. Due to its great range, it can be use as a wide angle lens as well as a portrait lens.
The T* coating also gives this lens a good contrast. It is very noticeable when comparing to my older lens.
In one word, it worth every penny I paid for.
pros:
- light weight
- useful wide angle
- good zoom range
- sharp
- good contrast
cons:
- vignetting at 16mm
Digital camera Review: Extremely sharp and excellent color and contrast!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is the first time I ever own a Zeiss lens. I am very impressed. Vow! was all I can say. Great combo when use with the Sony A55. It is worth the high price.Digital camera Review: Flawless Mechanical Quality
Summary: 5 Stars
Previous reviewers have addressed the optical quality of the Sony Zeiss 16-80mm lens, generally giving high praise. This review is about the mechanical quality (`build quality') of this lens.
I hesitated for a long time before buying this lens. Popular Photography reviewed it after it first appeared (December 2008), and summarized their conclusions as follows:
"Among the poorer-handling zooms here, with sluggish noisy AF and uneven zoom and manual focussing actions.......this lens makes up for it optically......." (repeated in Popular Photography, February 2010, page 88, `The Guide')
Finally, after seeing no such complaints in recent consumer reviews on Amazon and elsewhere, I bought the Sony Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 16-80mm in May 2010.
If the criticisms in Pop Photo's review applied to early production of the Sony Zeiss 16-80, they certainly DO NOT APPLY to the lens I bought in May 2010. Zooming is very smooth, even and well-damped, and so also is manual focussing. Autofocus (AF) is very fast, as fast as a prime lens mounted on my film SLR, and not noisy.
Perhaps the Sony Zeiss 16-80mm has improved in mechanical quality since the first production run in 2007. The price has increased from $650 to $749. But Popular Photography should re-test and update their review. My 2010 copy of the Sony Zeiss 16-80mm has smooth zooming and focussing and fast AF. It is mechanically flawless.
Its optical quality is first-rate, as other reviewers have noted. And I am very happy with its range of focal lengths starting from a very useful 16mm wide angle (equivalent to 24mm on a 35mm camera), which corresponds to the range of the excellent 24-105mm Minolta lens on my Maxxum 7 35mm film camera, except that the Zeiss lens has a longer range up to the equivalent of 120mm telephoto.
Digital camera Review: From a Zeiss Fanatic--> this lens is a dud.
Summary: 1 Stars
1. Obviously, most folks are going to disagree with me (which is fine), but this lens (which was widely anticipated by many people, including me) is a huge dissapointment.
2. I'm not an expert on Zeiss optics, but I'm probably more familiar that most folks who've written rave reviews on this lens. Prior to digital, I used Olympus, then Nikon and then Contax (with the Zeiss MM lens) system for many years. Compared to the Zeiss lens made for the Contax system, Hassy and even the current Zeiss lens made for the Nikon F Mount, and the two Zeiss Sony Primes along with the 24-70mm--> this 16-80mm appears and performs as if it was designed primarily for marketing purposes. The build is cheap, which I could kind of live with. What I can't live with is the performance: unacceptable vignetting and such crazy tolerances to which this lens was built so that even with a B+W slim 62mm UV filter--> you can actually see the filter when shooting at 16mm.
3. If you're used to and expect the build quality of a real Zeiss lens along with the optical performance of a Zeiss lens--> pass this one up and pray that more high quality optics will come along for the Sony full frame. Or check out the ZF line for the Nikon F mount.