Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM II: more compact, lighter, faster, sharper… and more expensive

Sony finally announces the third Mark II pillar of its “f/2.8 trinity”: after upgrading its 24-70 and 70-200 mm, the Japanese manufacturer today announces its FE 16-35 mm F2.8 GM II. The Japanese firm thus completes the trio of “fundamental” professional zooms with an f/2.8 aperture that all brands of 24×36 mm cameras must include in their range.

Succeeding the Mark I version launched in 2016, this ultra-wide-angle zoom offers four areas of improvement: a notable improvement in terms of image quality to meet the needs of modern 61 Mpx sensors (and more in the future ?), an improvement in the video score in the face of the growing weight of creators among hybrid users, an acceleration of AF to stick to performance gains (thanks to the IA chip in particular) and the continuation of the race for miniaturization.

The first fundamental aspect of this kind of high-end optics (G Master at Sony) comes from the optical formula. And therefore of the nature and quality of the glasses as well as the evolution of surface treatments. Compared to the previous generation, the FE 16-35 mm F2.8 GM II benefits from a third aspherical lens called extreme (XA) as well as a Super ED lens (with very low dispersion). Sony promises improvements across the board, whether in terms of corner resolving power, or reduction of chromatic aberrations and ghosting effects. flare and of ghosting. Thanks to in-depth work on the optical formula, Sony opticians have also reduced the minimum focusing distance from 28 to 22 cm, increasing the magnification power from x0.19 to x0.32. Not true macro, but a marked improvement in close-up effects.

An often overlooked element of camera focusing speed, optics have a major impact on acquiring and tracking subjects. Instead of the ultrasonic motors of the previous version (DDSSM for Direct Drive Super Sonic Wave Motor), this new wide-angle zoom features four (!) XD linear motors capable of following subjects up to a rate of 30 frames per second in photo and 120 fps in video mode (4K, 120p). Indeed, it is not enough to integrate powerful processors as well as AI chips dedicated to the recognition and tracking of subjects: the optics must keep pace! In addition to faster AF, these linear motors provide video with focus breathing (frame variation when changing focus area) less and contribute to weight reduction.

And it is perhaps here that Sony’s DNA is felt the most: miniaturization. While being faster and featuring higher quality lenses, the FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM II is also more compact and lighter than its predecessor. Count one centimeter less in length and no less than 133 grams less on the scale (547 g instead of 680 g). It should be noted here that this significant reduction in weight coincides with today’s launch of the A7C II and A7C R, two much more compact and lightweight bodies than the regular A7s, which underlines Sony’s need to produce lightweight optics.

Far from some past ergonomic mistakes in other areas and divisions (computing, audio, etc.), Sony’s obsession with miniaturization does not materialize in a hurry here. This reduction in size only has advantages, and even the balance of the whole has been thought out. So despite these changes in size and weight, the center of gravity of the optics is the same. This allows production teams to avoid having to recalibrate gimbals already calibrated with the old 16-35mm GM. As for the videographers, they will be delighted to be able to activate or deactivate the clicks of change of aperture value at will thanks to the button integrated on the barrel of the optics.

Always protected against bad weather and dust, the FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM II is Sony’s new high-end ultra-wide-angle zoom lens. And he claims nothing less than the title of “World’s smallest and lightest 16-35mm f/2.8 lens with AF“. A title accompanied, as we have seen, by a deluge of improvements which quite logically have a high price.

Available during the month of September, the FE 16-35 mm F2.8 GM II from Sony is indeed displayed at 2700 €, that is to say 400 € more than its ancestor when it was released.