Sony Sonnar T* E 24mm F1.8 ZA

Sony

Sonnar T* E 24mm F1.8 ZA

Released December 2011

An APS-C E-mount F1.8 wide-angle prime with ZEISS T* coating, 16 cm minimum focus and an aluminium-alloy exterior.

Mount
Sony E
Focal length
24 mm
Max aperture
f/1.8
Stabilisation
No
Weight
225 g

What reviewers say

Both praise sharpness, build quality and fast autofocus, with the best edges after stopping down. Photography Blog is enthusiastic about value and background blur on the NEX-5N; OpticalLimits is more critical of pricing, busy highlights and uncorrected vignetting. OpticalLimits also reports decentring in its sample, so its best-corner resolution result needs that qualification.

From photographyblog.com, photographyblog.com, photographyblog.com and opticallimits.com

Optics

Lens type
Prime
Focal length
24 mm
Maximum aperture
f/1.8
Minimum aperture
f/22
Optical construction
Eight elements in seven groups
Special elements
Two aspherical elements and one ED glass element
Coatings
ZEISS T* coating
Diaphragm
Seven rounded blades
Angle of view
61° APS-C

Mount and compatibility

Mounts
Sony E
Image circle
APS-C
Image circle detail
APS-C coverage; 36 mm equivalent field of view
Teleconverter support
Not compatible with Sony E-mount teleconverters

Focus and stabilisation

Autofocus
Yes
Minimum focus distance
0.16 m
Maximum magnification
0.25×
Optical stabilisation
No
Autofocus detail
Internal motor; maker does not identify a specific motor technology
Focus distance detail
0.16 m minimum focus; internal focusing and electronically coupled manual-focus ring
Magnification detail
0.25× maximum magnification; not classified as a dedicated macro lens
Stabilisation detail
No optical stabilisation

Design

Filter diameter
49 mm
Maximum diameter
63 mm
Length
65.5 mm
Weight
225 g
Controls
Manual-focus ring; focus mode selected on camera; aluminium-alloy exterior
Dimensions detail
63 mm maximum diameter × 65.5 mm length
Weight detail
Approximately 225 g lens; separate hood and caps excluded
Lens hood
ALC-SH114 petal bayonet hood, supplied
In the box
ALC-SH114 hood, front cap, rear cap and soft case
Release detail
Sony Japan’s 24 August2011 announcement specifies December2011 for this exact lens. Main date retains maker month precision; exact global first day is not established. Full independently authored reviews: Photography Blog MarkGoldstein May2012 on NEX-5N, including sharpness and conclusion pages, and OpticalLimits KlausSchroiff November2019. OpticalLimits discloses sample decentring and reports the best corner; its raw vignetting/bokeh/value criticisms differ from Blog’s practical verdict. Sony Hong Kong’s NEX-5N press release contains erroneous blanket OSS/twoED claims for all three different lenses and a camera/accessory availability table that omits this lens; these are not used for this model. Maker exact numeric specifications and Japan exact-model optical design take precedence. No unpublished weather-resistance claim

Pros and cons

Pros

  • F1.8 maximum aperture
  • 0.25× maximum magnification
  • Internal focusing

Cons

  • No optical stabilisation
  • Camera-only focus-mode control

Closest rivals

Model
MountFocal lengthMax apertureStabilisationWeightReleased
Sony E35 mmf/1.8Yes154 gNov 2012
Sony E20 mmf/2.8No69 gMar 2013
Sony E30 mmf/3.5No138 gSept 2011

Sources

  1. sony.jp/ichigan/products/SEL24F18Z/spec.html
  2. sony.jp/ichigan/products/SEL24F18Z/feature_1.html
  3. sony.jp/CorporateCruise/Press/201108/11-0824D
  4. sony.com.hk/press/pdf/20110825_e_3.pdf
  5. photographyblog.com/reviews/sony_carl_zeiss_sonnar_t_e_24mm_f_1_8_za_review
  6. photographyblog.com/reviews/sony_carl_zeiss_sonnar_t_e_24mm_f_1_8_za_review/sha…
  7. photographyblog.com/reviews/sony_carl_zeiss_sonnar_t_e_24mm_f_1_8_za_review/con…
  8. opticallimits.com/sony/zeiss-sonnar-t-24mm-f-1-8-za-sel24f18z-review

Photo: sony.jp

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