Sony Lens Showdown: Sony FE 12–24mm f4 G vs Sony FE PZ 16–35mm f4 G

Purchasing a brand new mirrorless camera, such as the premium Sony Alpha range means buying into an exciting new system. As an owner, you are spoilt for choice when selecting camera accessories and lenses to enhance your user experience and branch out into various types of photography. 

As a new owner, it can become tricky to decide which camera lens is best for your digital camera, which is where Ted's lens showdowns come in. Today we discuss two Sony wide-angle zoom lenses, the FE 12-24mm f4 G and the FE PZ 16-35mm f4 G, in an attempt to find the perfect option for your camera bag.

As mentioned, these two high-quality optics fall into the wide-angle zoom lens category. This means they are both great for capturing expansive, wide-ranging views. If you are wondering what wide-angle lenses are for, some popular uses include landscape, travel photography and architecture.

Both of these Sony lenses are Sony FE lenses, which means they are full-frame compatible. These lenses can be used to their full potential on the Sony A7 range of cameras, which includes the wonderful Sony A7 Mark IV, as well as the flagship Sony A9 III.

Sony FE lenses can also be mounted on Sony APS-C models, so if you are looking for a Sony lens for the A6400 you are in luck, but keep in mind that these models will provide a more magnified view, resulting from crop factor.

Here are some other similarities of these two Sony lenses:

• Both Lenses have wide-angle fields of view
• Both Lenses are zoom lenses
• Both Lenses have a fast, constant f4 maximum apertures

While the difference is not substantial, the Sony FE 12-24mm f4 G lens offers a wider field of view. This extra width comes in handy when standing before the most expansive views that the world has to offer, or when working in crowded interiors and similar situations. With its constant f4 maximum aperture, this lens is a solid option for low light photography, and it crucially offers the same excellent depth of field control, whether you are using the widest or longest zoom option of the lens.

A highlight of this Sony zoom lens is its brilliant optical design which includes four Aspherical, three ED and one super ED element, which results in good corner-to-corner image sharpness, which is crucial when producing a premium wide-angle lens. The lens also offers Sony’s Nano AR coating, reducing internal reflections and delivering images with eye-catching colour and contrast.

While not as wide as the 12-24mm lens that we were just discussing, the Sony FE PZ 16-35mm lens offers more reach at the telephoto end. What does this mean in real-world terms? You can zoom in a bit more with this lens, achieving a tighter crop if necessary - this can help to produce more interesting compositions with your camera.

This lens too offers a constant aperture of f4, which means you can harness the same level of Bokeh control at all settings.

A key feature of this Sony lens is its fast and accurate AF performance, as a result of XD linear AF motors being used, and a quick and simple power zoom lever is included to make use of this focus performance.

This lens is a portable and lightweight option, so if you need a Sony zoom lens for vlogging or everyday photography, this should be high on your wishlist.

One obvious factor that must be highlighted when comparing these two impressive Sony lenses is their different budget. The 12-24mm f4 G lens offers excellent build quality with aluminium alloy materials used in the design, as well as a range of premium optical elements, which results in its heftier price tag.

The Sony FE PZ 16-35mm f4 lens is a more compact option, which is a good fit for vlogging and everyday photography with enthusiast-level mirrorless cameras, and is just as usable on smaller-format models as it is on full-frame releases.

If you are looking for premium build quality and wide-angle optics for landscape photography, we lean towards the 12-24mm f4 G. If you want a more versatile option and have an emphasis on portability, the 16-35mm f4 G gets our vote.

Putting together your photography kit is an exciting time and it shouldn't be stressful. Ted’s photography blog provides product reviews, gear advice and hints and tips to guide you down your photography path with ease. If you would like to chat with someone our in-store staff are happy to help.