Sony launches new 20mm pancake and 18-200mm power zoom lenses

Sony introduced two new lenses, destined for its NEX cameras and camcorders, thus extending the creative possibilities of the photographers.

The Tokyo-based company says its E-mount camera system is very popular, therefore the two new E-mount lenses will be welcomed by the owners of NEX mirrorless cameras and camcorders.

Sony E-mount SEL20F28 20mm f/2.8 pancake lens

Sony’s new 20mm F2.8 pancake wide angle lens

Dubbed as a “pancake” wide angle prime lens, the Sony SEL20F28 20mm f/2.8 lens can be mounted on α E-Mount cameras, in order to deliver “sharp” images, said the press release. The new lens comes in a slim and lightweight package and is suitable for most types of photography, including landscape, macro, portrait, and street.

The focal length stands at 30mm at 35mm equivalence, while the minimum focus distance is set at just 20 centimeters. Sony’s new pancake lens features a metal exterior finish, autofocus support, a low-noise mechanism, and a 0.12x maximum magnification. As stated above, this is a very lightweight lens as it weighs only 69 grams / 2.4 ounces.

Its minimum aperture is f/22, but the more important is the maximum f/2.8 aperture which can produce a greater contrast when taking photos or when filming full HD 1080p videos.

Sony E-mount SELP18200 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 OSS telephoto zoom lens

Sony’s new 18-200mm power zoom telephoto lens

This is not the first time Sony announced the SELP18200 power zoom telephoto lens as it is already available on the semi-professional NEX-VG30 camcorder. The built-in Optical SteadyShot technology reduces shaking, thus cutting down blur when taking photos.

Although it is optimized for shooting videos, Sony confirmed it is suited for landscape, portrait as well as wildlife photography. The aforementioned OSS technology is used in combination with a technique called Active Mode that stabilizes the camera when zooming or when using very slow shutter speeds.

Sony’s new telephoto zoom lens supports 11x magnification that delivers “smooth cinematic transitions.” A zoom lever can be used for selecting between three zoom speed steps, forcing Sony to promise they create impressive crash-zoom effects. The lens weighs only 649 grams / 22.9 ounces and offers 27-300mm focal length at 35mm equivalence.

Availability and pricing of the new Sony lenses

The new pancake and power zoom telephoto lenses take the total number of Sony E-mount lenses to 13. The SEL20F28 20mm f/2.8 prime lens release date has been scheduled for April, while the SELP18200 telephoto power zoom lens launch date has been set for this March. The former will cost $350 and the latter will have a MSRP of $1,200.