Product reviewsSony Vario 16-70mm F/4 ZA OSS Lens

Incredible Lens, even more incredible Seller

I compared this to the Sony 16-55mm kit lens and the Sony 55-210mm zoom lens. All I can say is that there is NO comparison! The sharpness and realism is just incredible. With this lens, taken with the same zoom factor and lighting conditions, I took a picture of my cat's face. First I looked at the pictures taken with the Sony lenses and got scared because I thought "Did I just blow a big wad of money on a lens that surely could not do better than what I am seeing with my two Sony lenses?" I believed I was seeing all of the detail that could possibly exist. Then I looked at the pictures take with this ZEISS lens!! I was actually able to see the pores on my cat's nose! I could see the minute structures of my cat's iris. But even more importantly, the picture assumed almost a 3D realism to it. It looked as though I could reach into the photo and pet the cat. I kid you not. My wife even noticed the difference and told others about it.

This is the best photographic investment I could have made. I thought about replacing my Sony NEX 5N with a new Sonly Alpha 6300, then I read some reviews by Ken Rockwell and his emphasis on purchasing the best lenses that you can afford rather than upgrading and purchasing the best camera you can afford (along with the standard kit lenses.) I am now a firm believer in excellent quality "glass" vs. an excellent quality camera. Thank you Mr. Rockwell for that excellent advice! Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: cameragraphics

Awesome colors and contrast

My example is great optically. No decentering issues. Really sharp at the center throughout the range. Sharpness tapers off pretty quickly away from center wide open. The macro performance impressed me, better than I expected. Stopping it down as far as f/16 and possibly even f/22 to increase the DOF at 70mm for macro still gave lots of great detail.

I like the smoothness of the out of focus elements and notice an improvement in colors and contrast when compared to my other less expensive lenses.

Awesome all around outdoor daytime lens.
Don't expect F/4 to be good indoors unless the room is bright or your subject is near a window on a bright day.

I'm using it with an a6000.Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: new | Sold by: getitdigital

Good lens

I use the lens on my A-6000 which I bought as a carry around camera, my older A-900 being just too bulky. The Zeiss lens takes good photos but not as sharp as I had hoped for. Frankly, the best images that I've taken with this camera were when using a $180 Sigma 30mm f2.8 but a zoom is for me a necessary function for a carry around camera. Packing several lenses works for a shoot but all the time.

Maybe my Zeiss needs to be calibrated to my camera.Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: new | Sold by: mrphotostore

Great light lens

Perfect lens for my use. This lens has a decent focusing speed. I did not use it a lot, just tested it so far. But, I like the fact that it has a stable F size, very useful in focusing while doing vidéo, also, the great thing is that it is really light, so it will be really good to use with a gimble. Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: mikazuki-jpn05

Lightweight with superb optics

Purchase a6000 body and paired up with this versatile lens. The focus is quiet and fast, and the image sharpness is excellent (of course you can't compare it with a F/2.8 or prime lens). However, it is not doing very well in low light condition. The zoom range suits most shooting conditions, from portrait to scenery. If I ever need a telephoto, I would then switch to the SEL55210.Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: new | Sold by: getitdigital

I use this lens for all my photography and I am well satisfied with the picture quality.

Great range for all types of photography. Zeiss lens is well made and takes clear, sharp high quality photos with my Sony A6000!

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: ryhe84

There is no other lens with the size, shape, and quality this has.

This is easy for me to review.

Simply put: this lens and the Sony NEX-6 camera is the single best combo I've ever used.

I sold my Canon 6D and multitude of lenses for one camera and one lens, and I couldn't be happier.Read full review...

Great Optics, But too pricey domestically...

The legendary Zeiss optics in this Sony / Zeiss 16-70 f4 lens renders consistently fabulous images over and over. I bought it through my friends at Geraspace who provided a great price and rapid shipping from Japan. Sure it is gray market but it is priced where it should be rather than the lofty price that it sells for here in the US.Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: new | Sold by: suizan_japan

Perfect travel lens for the Sony A6500

I love the size and performance and weight of this lens for photography. Not so much for video only because the zoom feature is hard to do smoothly. Great for video if you are not zooming. The Sony 18-105 PZ is better for video, and has a longer zoom range, but is a lot bigger!Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: new | Sold by: societyhillloan

Great lens for your Sony camera

Great lens. Wide angle is perfect for small spaces.

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: ericcccccai