Sony AF DT 55-200mm F4-5.6 A-mount lens review by Shootist
 Shootist#5475 date: May-31-2009 | |
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| sharpness: 4 color: 4 build: 4 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | Beercan 70-210 Little Beercan 100-200 Big Beercan 75-300 75-300 “New” Sony 55-200 DT |
| price paid: | 211 |
| positive: | Pretty sharp Can't get in too much trouble with flare, fringe, CA's, or ghosting |
| negative: | Images are technically sound but alas boring - flare sometimes adds...well - flare! |
| comment: | I did a somewhat formal shootout of these 5 lenses; prices are with shipping/tax/all costs included: Beercan 70-210 paid $140 Little Beercan 100-200 paid $85 Big Beercan 75-300 Paid $180 75-300 “New” Paid $120 Sony 55-200 DT Bundle lens (The Tamron re-labeled) included with my A350 I went through a bit of trouble in doing this but am not sure there is really enough differences to report or if those differences are just due to my copies. That said, here are my results shooting on a tripod at f5.6 and 250 shutter on a new Alpha 350: 1. Big Beercan won for Bokeh and took 2nd place in sharpness 2. The “New” 75-300” surprised as noted around here a few times…1st in sharpness and 2nd in Bokeh. Nice and light, the sensible choice but…you got to admit the beercans have that beercan “thing” about them…Also – I paid $120 for this lens so…they’re not the big bargain they once were. 3. The Beercan came in 3rd in sharpness, but it must be said that the top 3 lenses were nearly identical in sharpness. This lens took best photo “feel” and color though – and strangely – it may be the one I keep, go figure. I know, not very scientific : ( This lens really does live up to its hype. Mine is all beat up and looks like hell but WOW – those dings did NOT touch the IQ! 4. Little Beer Can…after reading here I guess this lens is soft at f5.6 so….take what you want from this. Still, I did plenty of shooting and this lens marked the only consistent and true drop off from the pack. You could almost take your pick of the top 3 and maybe never know the difference. This is the only one I’m sure to sell. It’s small size doesn’t do me much good – if I’ve busted out the camera bag and the a350 then I’m committed to being encumbered – and I certainly, certainly wouldn’t pick THIS lens as my walk-around shooter…hah. 5. Well, the SONY DT is obviously outmatched here but…it’s sharp really. My main issue with this lens is how cold it’s photos are. Yeah modern lenses kill flare and fringe and tweak the light around but…unless you’re a soccer Mom (I’m a classically trained armature photographer) the best results from this lens are just ho-hum. That’s tantamount to preaching to the choir on a site like this, I know ; ) That’s it….take what you want from this and feel free to contact me. I’m selling off a few of these because it’s kind of expensive owning them all (and a bit greedy since they overlap) so I won’t be able to do this again probably. -Shootist |
; 16MPrating summary
- total reviews: 35
- sharpness: 4.33
- color: 4.40
- build: 3.71
- distortion: 4.43
- flare control: 4.40
- overall: 4.25