Review of Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

For the provided Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS lens many thanks the store ProFotoSalewhere you can find many new and used lenses for different systems, including similar lenses for Sony mirrorless cameras.

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount). increase.

Navigation

  1. In short
  2. History
  3. Main Specifications
  4. Assembly
  5. Stabilizer
  6. Focusing
  7. Image quality
  8. Sample Photos
  9. My personal experience with the lens
  10. Lens prices
  11. All Sony E APS-C cameras
  12. All Sony E APS-C Lenses
  13. Results
  14. Additional materials on mirrorless systems
  15. User Comments
  16. Add your review or question on the lens

In this review of the Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount), I will abbreviate the Sony E 18-200. This lens should not be confused with its SLR counterpart in the face Sony 18-200 / 3.5-6.3 AF DT .

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

In short

Sony E 18-200 is a universal superzoom for Sony NEX / Sony Alpha mirrorless cameras with APS-C sensor.

The Sony E 18-200 is well built, with a very quiet and fast focusing motor and powerful IS. The lens has a very convenient set of focal lengths.

The obvious disadvantages are the high cost, tight zoom ring, lack of switches and optical disadvantages inherent in superzoom.

At one time, the Sony E 18-200 was supplemented with two similar lenses: Sony E 18-200 / 3.5-6.3 LE OSS и Sony E 18-200mm f / 3.5-6.3 PZ OSS.

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

History

Sony E 18-200 has been announced 1 May 2010 years and is the third lens for the Sony E APS-C system.

17 May 2012 a similar lens was announced: Sony E 18-200/3.5-6.3 OSS LE with a different optical design 17/13. Exactly the same optical design is used in the lens Tamron 18-200 / 3.5-6.3 Di III VC MODEL Bo11. Most likely Sony E 18-200/3.5-6.3 OSS LE is a copy Tamron 18-200 / 3.5-6.3 Di III VC MODEL Bo11.

12 September 2012 year, a similar lens Sony E 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 PZ OSS was announced... The optical design of which completely coincides with the optical design of the Sony E 18-200.

18 September 2012 lens was announced Hasselblad E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS LF, which is a complete copy of the Sony E 18-200, but renamed and designed for use on the Hasselblad Lunar camera, which is based on the Sony NEX-7.

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

Main technical characteristics of Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS:

Review Instance Name Near the front lens: 'E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS 0.3m / 1ft-0.5 / 1.6ft Ø67'

On '3.5-6.3 / 18-200 Optical Steady Shot E-mount' case

Basic properties
  • APS-C E-mount - Lens designed for Sony mirrorless cameras with APS-C
  • SEL - Sony 'E' mount mirrorless lens. This lens has a short name and identifier 'SEL18200'
  • OSS (Optical Steady Shot) - built-in optical image stabilization
  • Internal stepping motor - internal stepper focus motor
  • Internal focus
  • Electronic focus ring
  • DMF (DDirectly Mannual Focus) - direct manual focus
  • LOCK - focal length lock at 18 mm
  • Aspherical elements in the optical circuit
  • Low dispersive elements in the optical scheme
  • Rounded petals aperture
Front Filter Diameter 67 mm, metal thread for filters
Focal length 18-200 mm EGF for Sony cameras with APS-C sensor is 27-300 mm
Zoom ratio 11.11 x
Designed by for Sony NEX mirrorless digital cameras
Number of aperture blades 7 rounded petals
Tags
  • bayonet mount mark
  • hood attachment mark
  • focal lengths for 18 mm, 35 mm, 50 mm, 70 mm, 100 mm and 200 mm
Diaphragm
  • 18 mm: F / 3.5-F / 22
  • 35 mm: F / 4.5-F / 29
  • 50 mm: F / 5-F / 32
  • 70 mm: F / 5.6-F / 36
  • 100 mm: F / 5.6-F / 36
  • 200 mm: F / 6.3-F / 40
MDF (minimum focusing distance)
  • 0.3 meters by 18 mm
  • 0.5 meters by 200 mm

the maximum magnification ratio is reached by 200 mm and is 1: 2.86

The weight 524 grams stated (528 grams measured)
Optical design 17 elements in 12 groups.

The circuit includes 4 aspherical element (shown in pink in the optical diagram). The type of aspheric is unknown. And 1 low-dispersion element (shown in green in the optical diagram).

Optical design Sony E 18-200
The image of the optical circuit is clickable.

Lens hood Bayonet, Sony (ALC-SH109)
Manufacturer country There are no markings on the lens. But most likely the lens was made in China.
Period Since May 1, 2010, in 2012 supplemented with a lens Sony E 18-200 / 3.5-6.3 OSS LE
Price The real cost of this lens can be found at Aliexpress is here.

Unlike many other lenses, the Sony E 18-200 exists only in a silver body color.

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

Assembly

Sony E 18-200 is manufactured in China. The lens is pleasant and reliable to the touch. The retractable body frame ('trunk') consists of 2 sections. There are no backlashes between the parts of the trunk.

The lens has metal bayonet. Most of the lens barrel is made of metal alloy. The metal parts of the body have very small decorative notches. These knots are quite easy to damage, for example, to scratch. Over time, metal scratches begin to significantly spoil the appearance of the lens.

The part of the frame on which the 'LOCK' is located is made of plastic, over time the color of the plastic changes slightly and differs from the metallic silver color of other parts of the case.

Changing the focal length is difficult and jerky. The trunk of the Sony E 18-200 spontaneously changes its size under its own weight, over time, problems with the trunk may worsen. Especially for this, there is a focal length lock on the lens - the LOCK button. It locks the lens at the 18mm focal length position.

There is a bayonet mount mark on the body and a mark for quick installation of the hood. The lens uses a plastic hood that is fixed in special grooves located near the front lens of the lens. The hood can be installed in the opposite direction for transportation. This position makes it difficult to access the zoom ring. When the focal length is changed, the hood moves with the front of the lens. Unfortunately, only a black hood is available for the silver lens.

When changing the focal length, the rear lens moves in the middle of the lens body like a pump - it draws in and pushes out air. This can increase the amount of dust that accumulates in the inside of the camera.

On the back of the lens is a rectangular hood that cuts off excess light and prevents exposure.

The front filter diameter is 67 mm.

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

Stabilizer

Sony E 18-200 uses an integrated image stabilizer Sony OS (Optical Steady Shot). Stated that the stabilizer can compensate 4 stops by shutter speed (by Sony standards). In numerical terms, this means that you can shoot at shutter speeds 16 times longer than what a lens without a stabilizer requires. For example, when shooting without a stabilizer of stationary objects, at a focal length of 200 mm, it is recommended to shoot at shutter speeds of 1/200 s and shorter. With the stabilizer turned on, it can theoretically be removed for 1/15 s.

In practice, I was able to make sharp shots of stationary objects with hands at 200 mm only at shutter speeds no longer than 1/30 of a second.

There is no switch on the lens responsible for stabilizer operation. The stabilization function is turned on in the camera menu.

There is no noise from the stabilizer. When using the lens, it seems that the stabilizer does not work at all. Perhaps it turns on at full power only during shutter release.

In general, the stabilizer confidently holds two or three stops along shutter speed.

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

Focusing

The lens uses a built-in stepping or linear focusing motor... In some sources there is information that the motor is ultrasonic, similar to the Sony SSM.

Auto focus speed medium closer to high. The focusing speed will depend slightly on the camera used. The first Sony NEX cameras for which this lens was developed used automatic focusing by contrast, which is sometimes slower than the hybrid focusing methods of subsequent generations of Sony Alpha. Auto focus is very quiet.

While working with the camera Sony α3500 (Sony ILCE-3500) the focusing accuracy was high. In good lighting conditions, there are practically no problems with accuracy, tenacity and refocusing. But in poor lighting, especially in the tele range, the lens can scour for a long time in search of the correct focusing. It is also very difficult to get the lens to focus at close focusing distances for pseudo-macro photography, especially at 200mm focal lengths. Sony a3500 has a primitive autofocus system, everything should be much better on modern Sony cameras.

To focus manually, select the MF (Manual Focus) or DMF (Direct MF) focus mode in the camera menu, after which the focus ring will respond to rotation. With very smooth rotation, the focusing ring rotates several full revolutions (from MDF to infinity). Electronic focus ring reacts more to the speed of its rotation than to a specific angle of rotation, which sometimes creates a tactile inconvenience. During auto focus focus ring remains stationary.

During focusing, the front lens remains stationary, as the lens uses internal focus. Thus, it is possible to use any filters without problems, for example polarizing or gradient.

The minimum focusing distance is 30 centimeters at 18 mm focal length and 50 centimeters at 200 mm, while you can get the maximum magnification for macro photography of 1: 2.86, which is a very good indicator for such a lens.

Other focusing features:

  • Focusing speed is practically independent of the selected focal length.
  • After the lens has lost accurate focusing, refocusing is fast enough.
  • The lens does not have a depth of field scale, focusing distance, and tags for working in the infrared spectrum.
  • Focus shift (shift-focus) was not noticed during operation and testing.
  • The focusing speed depends heavily on the illumination, the selected focusing mode in the camera menu, and the focusing logic of each individual camera.
  • There is no focus mode switch on the case.
  • During manual focusing, the focus distance bar appears on the display of some cameras.
  • When changing the focal length, focusing is lost.
  • The Sony E 18-200 has a small 'Focus Breathing' effect (changes in the angle of view during focusing).
Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

Image quality

The Sony E 18-200 originally came with cameras with a 14MP sensor, but later it migrated to cameras with a 16-20-24MP sensor, on which he already feels less confident. In general, the Sony E 18-200 does not shine optically, but it can be forgiven for the huge zoom ratio.

Sharpness

  • confident sharpness at an open aperture in the center of the frame in the range of 18-100 mm
  • low sharpness at the edges and corners of the frame by 18 mm at F / 3.5, sharpness at the edges of the frame becomes acceptable after F / 5.6
  • good resolution in the center of the frame on covered apertures (in the F / 8 region) in the range of 18-100 mm
  • there is a general slight drop in sharpness after 100 mm of focal length
  • at 200mm, sharpness is best around f / 8

Distortion

  • strong barrel distortion at only 18mm focal length
  • in the wide-angle range, the nature of the distortion is barrel-shaped, after 50 mm focal length - pincushion
  • the nature of distortion is unified, easily corrected in the editor

Vignetting

  • the overall level of vignetting is at a level typical for such lenses
  • vignetting is most pronounced at the extreme positions
  • vignetting is easily fixable in the editor
  • in some cases, due to auto-correction of vignetting, you can get a vignette in the shape of a circle

Aberration

  • lens suffers from chromatic aberrationsespecially at extreme zoom positions
  • strong milling

Rest

  • the lens behaves well in side and back light
  • getting the effect of a 14-ray star is quite difficult
  • sometimes you can get neutral and even pleasant bokeh (especially in the TV range)
  • Concentric 'onion' circles are present on the discs of confusion

For Sony E 18-200, there is a lens profile in popular RAW converters.

Subscriber photo examples

All photos in the review are shown without processing. Camera used Sony α3500 (Sony ILCE-3500) based on EXMOR APS-C CMOS 20 MP sensor. All photos are on-camera JPEG. Picture Control 'Standard 0/0/0'. Functions' Corr. ob .: Shading ',' Corr. about: Chrome. aberr. ' and 'Corr. Rev .: Distortion 'were set to' Auto '.

RAW source files '.ARW' can be download from this link (34 photos, 600 MB). The shooting took place in the RAW + JPEG mode. Several photos in small processing can be found here here, here и here.

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

My experience

The Sony E 18-200 is too big for some tiny Sony cameras. The lenses do their job efficiently, the stabilizer surprised me, it shows a very high quality result, while the lens was being developed 10 years ago.

With the Sony E 18-200, quite suitable photographs are obtained, the only thing that I did not like is the tight zoom, and sometimes, closer to the 200 mm focal length, the zoom ring starts to move jerky.

Due to the high price tag of the Sony E 18-200, I would still look at a similar Tamron 18-200 / 3.5-6.3 Di III VC MODEL Bo11.

Prices

The real cost of this lens can be seen, for example, here.


All Sony E-mount cameras with APS-C sensor


All Sony E lenses for APS-C

Fix Lenses:

  1. Sony 11 mm f/1.8 (announcement) [2022, black, AliExpress price]
  2. Sony 15 mm f / 1.4 G (announcement) [2022, black, AliExpress price]
  3. Sony 16 mm f/2.8 (overview) [2010, silver, AliExpress price]
  4. Sony 20 mm f/2.8 (announcement) [2013, silver, AliExpress price]
  5. Sony 24 mm f / 1.8 ZEISS ZA (overview) [2011, black]
  6. Sony 30 mm f / 3.5 MACRO (overview) [2011, silver, AliExpress price]
  7. Sony 35 mm f / 1.8 OSS (announcement) [2012, black, AliExpress price]
  8. Sony 50 mm f / 1.8 OSS (announcement) [2011, black/silver, AliExpress price]

Zoom Lenses:

  1. Sony 10-18 mm f / 4 OSS (announcement) [2012, black, AliExpress price]
  2. Sony 10-20 mm f / 4 G PZ (announcement) [2022, black, AliExpress price]
  3. Sony 16-50 mm f / 3.5-5.6 PZ OSS (overview) [2012, black/silver, AliExpress price]
  4. Sony 16-55 mm f / 2.8 G (announcement) [2019, black, AliExpress price]
  5. Sony 16-70 mm f / 4 OSS ZEISS ZA (announcement) [2013, black, AliExpress price]
  6. Sony 18-50 mm f/4-5.6 (overview) [2014, black]
  7. Sony 18-55 mm f / 3.5-5.6 OSS (overview) [2010, black/silver]
  8. Sony 18-105 mm f / 4 G PZ OSS (announcement) [2013, black, AliExpress price]
  9. Sony 18-110 mm f / 4 G PZ OSS (announcement) [2016, black]
  10. Sony 18-135 mm f / 3.5-5.6 OSS (overview) [2018, black, AliExpress price]
  11. Sony 18-200 mm f / 3.5-6.3 OSS (overview) [2010, silver, AliExpress price]
  12. Sony 18-200 mm f / 3.5-6.3 OSS LE (announcement) [2012, black, AliExpress price]
  13. Sony 18-200 mm f / 3.5-6.3 PZ OSS (announcement) [2012, black]
  14. Sony 55-210 mm f / 4.5-6.3 OSS (announcement) [2011, black/silver, AliExpress price]
  15. Sony 70-350 mm f/4.5–6.3 G OSS (announcement) [2019, black, AliExpress price]

Third-party autofocus lenses for Sony E APS-C:

Many interesting manual solutions are provided by Chinese manufacturers and brands. 7Artisans, TTartisan, Meike, Neewer, PerGear, Kamlan, Brightin star, Mitakon Zhongyi, Venus laowaFujian, ARTRALABAstrHori other. Autofocus Speed ​​Boosters are also interesting Viltrox Canon EF -> Sony E 0.71X и Metabones Canon EF -> Sony E 0.71X... List of full-frame cameras and lenses Sony FE (Full Frame E) here

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

Results

The Sony E 18-200 is a classic superzoom. The lens was immediately made for a very long period of time, it has not been radically updated in any way until now, but on its basis it was released Sony E 18-200mm f / 3.5-6.3 PZ OSS with the same optical design. Whether it is worth its $ 900 is an open question. Unfortunately, the addition to the Sony E 18-200 represented Sony E 18-200 / 3.5-6.3 OSS LE also has a high price tag.

10 main advantages:

  1. very convenient set of focal lengths
  2. high-quality assembly, metal bayonet, bayonet-type hood, rubberized focusing ring
  3. internal focus
  4. focus is very quiet and fast enough
  5. built-in image stabilizer, works quietly
  6. stepper focus motor
  7. electronic focus ring
  8. five aspherical elements in the optical scheme and one low-dispersion element
  9. under this lens there are profiles for popular RAW converters that can quickly eliminate some optical flaws
  10. reasonably sharp images in wide and medium range, low vignetting

10 main disadvantages:

  1. very high cost, amounting to about 900 dollars
  2. low aperture at the long end
  3. no switches (for example, Sony E 70-350 / 4.5–6.3 there is an AF / MF switch, and OSS ON / OFF)
  4. zoom ring moves tight, sometimes jerky
  5. plastic focusing ring
  6. quite large sizes, especially considering the tiny sizes of Sony NEX cameras for which it was designed
  7. there are no additional marks, for example, focusing distance, direction of rotation of the focusing ring, depth of field, etc.
  8. high distortion at 18 mm
  9. drop in resolution and contrast in the tele-range
  10. tangible chromatic aberration at the extreme positions of the zoom

For the provided Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS lens many thanks the store ProFotoSalewhere you can find many new and used lenses for different systems, including similar lenses for Sony mirrorless cameras.

Comments on this post do not require registration. Anyone can leave a comment. Many different photographic equipment can be found on AliExpress.


Material prepared Arkady Shapoval. Training/Consultations | Youtube | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Telegram

Add a comment: Jankowsky

 

 

Comments: 4, on the topic: Review of Sony E 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 OSS (Optical Steady Shot, E-mount)

  • Jankowsky

    Thanks for the review, as always interesting. Feels like drawing and texture are better and more expensive than 16-50 PZ. Interestingly, the black version with a different scheme is different than that in the image or not? The price is simply frostbitten, even on the used market, and for the killed copies. Otherwise, I would have bought it for my NEX long ago

    • Arkady Shapoval

      Version LE considered optically worse, and PZ still at the same cost, or even more expensive

  • CESAR MALDONADO

    Gracias, Buen Dia
    Donde puedo encontrar los planos o las partes del lente.
    me interesa ver que lleva el anillo de foco en la parte interna,donde estan las estrias, que lleva para activar el impulso del foco.

    • B. R. P.

      No existe tal información en este sitio, busque foros especializados para reparadores.

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