SONY SEL90M28G FE 90mm F2.8 Macro G OSS

[Zoom] Wide-zoom | Standard-zoom | Tele-zoom | High-zoom  
[Fixed-focal] Wide angle | Standard | Telephoto | Macro

This is the first 90mm short telephoto macro lens for the full frame E-mount and it's a "G" version meaning the excellence in design, operation feel, and optical performance. And, the optical image stabilizer and the 1:1 magnification ration make it an indispensable lens for Alpha 7 series shooters. The massive presence and high quality finish definitely enhance motivation. As we expect from a macro lens, the rendition is sharp and delicate, while the bokeh is soft and beautiful. The sharpness increases further by stopping down and the contrast is very natural. So, it captures actual views just as they are. The short telephoto macro is great for both close-up and distant shots. And, the bright view in the viewfinder is also motivating. Now, let's check the image quality.

( Photography : T.Nakanishi / Text : KIMURAX )

Despite the shallow depth of focus, the image looks so natural as if I am taking a glance at the bread and I think it's due to the smooth and somewhat noble bokeh taste. The texture of the crispy bread and the cloth looks very realistic. Focusing is easy thanks to the "ring side switch" which moves back and forth to switch between AF and MF as well as the inner focusing which doesn't change the physical size of the lens.

The quiet AF and the good working distance of the 90mm fixed-focal macro lens assists shooting insects and animals without surprising them. And, the powerful SteadyShot image stabilizer lets you enjoy shooting macro photography handheld. The thick leaves are spine-tinglingly realistic on this shot. :)

This 3D pop is not realized by the gap between the focal plane and the bokeh, but by the sharpness of the focal plane. It was shot wide open, but the wet shiny water surface looks wonderful without becoming hard.

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Because I shot more under than the "correct" exposure calculated by the camera, the colors look denser. But, despite the high contrast, the color tone is natural and the tonal gradation of the shadow is rich.

Because it was shot wide open under the reflecting light, the handrail has clipping as expected. Yet, the diffusing light around the handrail has a nice nuance. The chromatic aberration is well controlled, too. If you take a close look at the front wall, you can see the dust flattering in the light, and I'm amazed that it was shot wide open. Speaking of dust, this lens has anti-dust/drop construction, which is a reassuring feature for a lens to be used heavily.

I could shoot vertically, but I wanted to play with the bold front bokeh by shooting horizontally. This image looks more like a photographer's gaze rather than a capture of the subject. The clear rendition unique to a fixed-focal lens is pleasing.

The sharpness increases significantly stopping just by 2 steps, and it's more than enough to depict the straight lines of the artificial object.

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I took this scene by stopping down as well, but I'm showing the one shot wide open. When I enlarged it, I noticed the colorful lines were defined perfectly. Because of this impressive sharpness wide open, you can change the aperture values just to control the amount of bokeh.

The distant shot looks sharp, but never too hard. The 3D feeling can't get any better.

This lens doesn't know how to be affected by backlit and this shot demonstrates the power of the "Nano AR Coating" which boasts low reflectivity of approximately 1/5 compared with the standard anti-reflection coating

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The high image quality is almost unaffected by the distance to the subject and the aperture values. And, the sharpness is high while the bokeh is noble and soft. In addition, when I enlarged the last image of the wheat field, I noticed the natural growing of bokeh even under the intense sunshine. With an ordinary lens, the bokeh can get disturbing with this distance. However, it doesn't happen with this "G" lens. This is one of the indispensable lenses for Alpha 7 shooters. Also, it's becomes a 135mm equivalent lens with APS-C cameras and the image stabilizer offers a peace of mind to beginners.

( 28.06.2015 )