Forums > Back > Where did all the long lenses for FE mount go?

stoppingdown · (This post was last modified: 08-18-2015, 03:30 PM by stoppingdown.)

I was just purging some old web links, and ran into the rumours about the SEL70400G2... it was 2013. Then it was announced as coming in 2014. We're heading towards the last third of 2015, and no trace of this lens - and any other long tele for the FE mount. The only option with Sony is still to adapt an A-mount model. Also third parties such as Tamron and Sigma, which are credited of good products in the long zoom lenses, are still producing only A-mount lenses.

Isn't this a bit surprising?

marco · 08-18-2015, 03:44 PM

It was coming for A-Mount and I think the market for long FE lenses is quite limited.

Maybe I buy an A7 but I am waiting for the next iteration and I would only buy the 28 and 85. I think long lenses are not so my taste and people who like them more don't mind about size. The AF of the A7's wasn't so hot too. So maybe people who care about them don't buy in FE mount so much.

PS http://www.nickbrandt.com/category.cfm?nL=0&nS=0

Brightcolours · (This post was last modified: 08-18-2015, 06:23 PM by Brightcolours.)

Quote:I was just purging some old web links, and ran into the rumours about the SEL70400G2... it was 2013. Then it was announced as coming in 2014. We're heading towards the last third of 2015, and no trace of this lens - and any other long tele for the FE mount. The only option with Sony is still to adapt an A-mount model. Also third parties such as Tamron and Sigma, which are credited of good products in the long zoom lenses, are still producing only A-mount lenses.

Isn't this a bit surprising?

No trace of this lens?

https://www.ephotozine.com/article/sony-...view-22817

https://photographylife.com/lenses/sony-...6-g-ssm-ii

http://store.sony.com/70-400mm-f4-5.6-g-...3Dcategory

And the A7 series is a small, compact mirrorless design, clearly not designed with long, heavy lenses in mind.

stoppingdown · (This post was last modified: 08-19-2015, 07:15 AM by stoppingdown.)

Quote:No trace of this lens?

https://www.ephotozine.com/article/sony-...view-22817

https://photographylife.com/lenses/sony-...6-g-ssm-ii

http://store.sony.com/70-400mm-f4-5.6-g-...3Dcategory

Well, that lens is the A-mount version, released since a few time. I'm referring to the FE-mount version, which is missing.

Quote:

And the A7 series is a small, compact mirrorless design, clearly not designed with long, heavy lenses in mind.

Well, I don't think so. All the competitors offer long lenses, both MFT (already) and Fuji (announced); note that I'm not necessarily referring to light and small lenses, since I think it has been reasonably debated that mirrorless/APS-C doesn't give any particular advantage in this area. In fact I'm referring to FE mount, that Sony has declared it wants to develop. FE-mount is aimed to become a complete system (and I don't think how it could be successful if it wasn't a complete system), thus it can't miss any kind of lens. I don't think that requiring an adapter to A-mount (which is legacy, even though supported) makes sense beyond being a temporary workaround.

Brightcolours · (This post was last modified: 08-19-2015, 11:02 AM by Brightcolours.)

Quote:Well, that lens is the A-mount version, released since a few time. I'm referring to the FE-mount version, which is missing.

Well, I don't think so. All the competitors offer long lenses, both MFT (already) and Fuji (announced); note that I'm not necessarily referring to light and small lenses, since I think it has been reasonably debated that mirrorless/APS-C doesn't give any particular advantage in this area. In fact I'm referring to FE mount, that Sony has declared it wants to develop. FE-mount is aimed to become a complete system (and I don't think how it could be successful if it wasn't a complete system), thus it can't miss any kind of lens. I don't think that requiring an adapter to A-mount (which is legacy, even though supported) makes sense beyond being a temporary workaround.

It was the A-mount version 2 that was talked about in 2013. There was never a FE mount 70-400mm in the cards/books/stars.. How could a 70-400mm FE lens be called G2, when there never was a G in the 1st place for it to replace it?

For the FE to be successful in big tele, it needs a bigger beefier body to handle too. By the way, "Sony" said they want to be number one in FF. Not specifically FE. So, who knows what they were actually talking about in those statements.

stoppingdown · 08-19-2015, 07:47 PM

The name "... G2" was used by Sony Alpha Rumors. Anyway I don't think it matters a lot how the lens was to be called, but the fact that the lens never appeared. Of course, after such a long time one can say that the rumor was wrong, anyway I don't want either to discuss the reliability of SAR - the point is that there's lack of long lenses for the FE mount. Frankly I don't understand how Sony could aim at becoming #1 in FF with the A-mount, that has been around for such a long time and never became #1. Usually one aims in changing the market with innovative products, not legacy ones.

stoppingdown · (This post was last modified: 08-19-2015, 07:49 PM by stoppingdown.)

* duplicate removed *

Brightcolours · 08-19-2015, 09:48 PM

Quote:The name "... G2" was used by Sony Alpha Rumors. Anyway I don't think it matters a lot how the lens was to be called, but the fact that the lens never appeared. Of course, after such a long time one can say that the rumor was wrong, anyway I don't want either to discuss the reliability of SAR - the point is that there's lack of long lenses for the FE mount. Frankly I don't understand how Sony could aim at becoming #1 in FF with the A-mount, that has been around for such a long time and never became #1. Usually one aims in changing the market with innovative products, not legacy ones.

SAR was wrong in predicting the rumoured 70-400mm would be a FE lens, it was merely a small non-optical update of the A-mount lens (better AF).

One should aim to become number 1 with products that are actually competitive and somehow have an edge. Thinking that small mirrorless cameras can be competitive in professional work is a bit odd. They have bad ergonomics, bad battery life, EVF's still have major issues in certain situations. Just making the A mount 70-400mm tele zoom an FE mount lens does not make a competitive line-up. Mirrorless is nice for just a certain group of photographers and hobbyists, in the current state of things. I never get the "hate" for mirrors many seem to have anyway.

stoppingdown · (This post was last modified: 08-20-2015, 07:26 AM by stoppingdown.)

This appears to be your opinion (and sure many share it). But there's a number of professionals that have moved to the mirrorless world and are very happy with that (e.g. those at Luminous Landscape).

Anyway, since we're talking about Sony, the relevant point is that they have a good bunch of professionals that have become testimonials of their mirrorless system. Fighting Canikon is a very hard task, and there's no evidence that Sony is going to challenge them with a legacy mount that never created any problem to the two major leaders of the market so far.

stoppingdown · (This post was last modified: 08-20-2015, 07:26 AM by stoppingdown.)

* duplicate deleted * (sorry it seems there's a problem in refreshing the page after posting with a very slow mobile connection)

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