So, if you’ve ever done lens shopping for an affordable telelphoto to go with the 18-55mm that comes with many DSLRs, you know that there are two standard options: the 55-200mm that continues your range seamlessly, and the 75-300mm that gives you more reach, but skips 20mm in the middle. Well, today Sony has decided that having to decide between the two is a bit silly, and has announced a new 55-300mm f4.5-5.6 zoom for its Alpha line of DSLRs. It’s intended to be the perfect compliment to the kit zoom, and combined they cover an apparent focal range of 27-450mm, or virtually every focal length you’ll ever want, unless you shoot ultra-wide. It’s got the Smooth Action Motor inside, which means it’s an ultrasonic ring-type built-in motor, instead of Sony’s older body-driven screw motors. Minimum focusing distance and magnification are both more or less typical for this class, coming in at 4.5 feet and 0.27x respectively. The lens should be available in September, and will cost a mere $300 to get into your kit bag.
Sony Introduces Versatile, High-Quality Telephoto Zoom Lens for Alpha A-Mount Camera Line
High-Speed, Quiet DT 55-300mm F4.5-5.6 SAM Telephoto Zoom Lens to hit Retail in September
SAN DIEGO, Jul 25, 2012 – From flattering portraits to faraway wildlife and fast-action sports, nearly every subject can be captured beautifully with the new SAL55300 telephoto zoom lens, the latest addition to Sony’s A-mount lens lineup.
Optimized for use with ? A-mount camera models with APS-C sensors, the compact, stylishly-designed interchangeable lens is an ideal addition to the camera bag for any Sony photographer.
“The new SAL55300 lens is a perfect complement to our acclaimed line of Alpha A-mount cameras with Translucent Mirror Technology, allowing consumers to capture distant, faraway subjects with razor-sharp focused images and Full HD videos,” said Mike Kahn, director of the alpha business at Sony Electronics. “With a versatile 55-300mm, 5.5x magnification range, fast, quiet performance and an attractive price tag, it’s a welcome addition to our alpha A-mount system.”
The new SAL55300 lens features a whisper-quiet Smooth Autofocus Motor (SAM) and an advanced optical design to get the best from the high-speed performance and high resolution sensors common to Sony’s A-mount camera lineup. Additionally, it contains an ED (Extra-Low Dispersion) glass element, commonly featured on premium Sony G Lens models, that reduces color aberrations, improves image quality and provides excellent contrast and corner-to-corner sharpness.
Pricing and Availability
The new SAL55300 A-mount interchangeable lens for A-mount cameras will be available in September for about $300 at Sony retail stores (www.store.sony.com) and other authorized dealers nationwide.
About Derek
Our resident web guru, Derek graduated from Ball State with a BFA in Visual Communications. When not in the office slaying CSS dragons, jousting social media windmills, or working on the blog, he's also a fine artist, working in oil paints and photography. Derek Martin+