Our top choice is the Sony FE 16-35mm f/4.0 G lens due to its up-to-date features and great image quality… all for a great price! Read on to learn more about all the top lenses and find the one that best suits your needs. [Note: ExpertPhotography is supported by readers. Product links on ExpertPhotography are referral links. If you use one of these and buy something, we make a little bit of money. Need more info? See how it all works here].
What is the Best Sony Wide Angle Lens?
Here is a quick roundup table of the best Sony wide-angle lenses today. Make your way down the page for an in-depth look at each option.
Best Sony Wide Angle Lenses
The Sony FE 16-35mm f/4.0 G lens is one of the newest wide-angle, full frame (FE) lenses available from Sony. It was released in mid-2022. And the recent release has new features to make your shooting experience smoother and simpler. The most noticeable new feature is Power Zoom (PZ.) A variable lever controls the zoom without rotating the zoom ring. A feature like this not only makes the zooming function easier. But it also adds a delicate touch that is crucial in certain environments. The Power Zoom function is most helpful for videographers. A constant and consistent zoom makes a world of difference when shooting video. As well as the Power Zoom lever, you will notice three rings on the lens. These are for zoom, focus, and aperture. All rings offer a heightened level of control. The focus ring features Linear Response MF (manual focus). This ensures that even the subtlest of movements are taken into account. And the aperture ring offers both click and click-less options for each stop of the aperture. The main reason this Sony wide-angle lens makes it to the top of this list? It has a great price tag for a high-quality and up-to-date lens. New technology allows for more compact glass elements that make a smaller lens. And the 16-35mm focal range also covers all you need from an all-around wide-angle lens. The Sony FE 24-70mm f/2.8 GM II is a lens you can use daily. It allows you to capture a range of subjects and photographic genres. The build quality of this lens is superb. Its expert construction of elements gives it a superior quality. Sony claim this lens is the next generation of standard zoom lenses. These lenses pack evolved optics and autofocus (AF) performance. And it’s all in a compact, lightweight design. There is excellent contrast at high spatial frequencies. This means sharp resolution even at its widest aperture. The 11-blade aperture unit also gives beautiful bokeh at wide apertures. And the Extra-low Dispersion (ED) glass ensures minimal chromatic aberration. You will also notice a huge advancement in Sony’s AF technology. The precision and speed have dramatically changed. They provide you with worry-free shooting. Sony claims the zoom tracking performance is twice as good as the old model. This is expected from Sony’s great G Master (GM) line of lenses. And this makes the 24-70mm one of the best Sony GM wide-angle lenses. Apart from the great focal range, the customizable focus hold buttons are a favorite. This lens has two of these buttons on either side of the lens. You can adjust the operations these buttons perform in the main camera menu. This is particularly helpful for specialist photographers. Or it’s for any photographer who needs particular settings within easy access. Sigma is high on this list thanks to its range of Art lenses. This 14-24mm lens covers the focal range most wide-angle photographers want. And this lens is particularly suited for astrophotographers. Sigma built this lens to efficiently collect weak light. They label it as the “definitive lens for astrophotography.” This is due to its uniform rendering performance and distinctive edge-to-edge resolution. The Sigma 14-24mm Art DG lens also keeps mirrorless cameras in mind. Sigma looks at particular ways to reduce the lens size and increase its performance at the same time. They have managed to squeeze six different glass elements into the lens. And they have tuned them to suppress chromatic aberration. This improves the sharpness, especially in the corners of the frame. Plus, its NPC coating reduces ghosting and flare. The lens comes with a customizable AFL (AutoFocus Lock) button. You can use this to set your own function. Then you can access it without pulling your eye away from the viewfinder. Another feature I love is the rear filter holder built into the lens. This is great for ND filters or other types of filters. The Sony FE 16-35mm f/2.8 GM lens is arguably the best wide-angle lens that Sony produces. The reason why it is this far down is due to its price. The price tag is worth it if you have the budget. It’s an all-around wide-angle lens that can shoot at a stunning f/2.8 aperture. Before, beautiful wide-angle lenses like this would be double the size and weight. But tech advancements make these lenses sharper, more efficient, and much lighter. This makes it the perfect wide-angle lens for landscapes or other forms of active shooting. Photographers who haul around their gear know the advantages of shaving weight. Another positive for landscape photographers is the lens’s advanced, sharp, edge-to-edge resolution. This is a welcome feature for any photographer. But it is crucial for architecture and other genres of photography. Specialist photographers will also enjoy the Focus Hold button. You can customize this button with your commands. Overall, this lens is beautiful. It will provide you with high-resolution, professional images. We present our first Sony wide-angle prime lens on this list, the Sony FE 24mm f/1.4 GM. The most noticeable feature straight out of the gate is its wide f/1.4 aperture. It has an 11-blade circular aperture. And if you use it to its fullest, you will be rewarded with breathtaking bokeh. And Sony emphasizes its aperture with a minimum focusing distance of 24 cm! These elements and the lens’s wide-angle view give you beautiful shots. As this is a prime lens, the size and weight are dramatically smaller than the zoom lenses. So you are limited to a single focal length. The single focal length may seem limiting. But it is incredibly beneficial if you know the subject matter you want to shoot with this view. I often prefer shooting with prime lenses as it makes me more active in creating the perfect shot. And Sony claims this is the lightest lens available in its class. So it is easy to tote around at a moment’s notice. Overall, this 24mm lens is one of the best high-resolution wide-angle prime lenses. Thanks to Sony’s tech, they have packed many fantastic features into a small lens barrel. I recommend this lens to any photographer. But it may be particularly useful for photojournalism or architecture photography. Tamron makes it onto this list thanks to their 17-28mm f/2.8 Di III zoom lens for Sony E-mount lenses. “Di” means it’s built for full frame cameras. But it also works with APS-C (crop sensor) cameras. The biggest positive about this lens is its price. You can pick up this lens for a fraction of Sony lens prices. This makes it the best Sony wide-angle lens for beginners or amateurs on a budget. One aspect that Tamron has kept up to par with other lenses is its size and weight. This means you get a high-performing wide-angle lens without the shoulder-slumping weight. It also has a minimum focusing distance of 19 cm. This allows you to use this lens for many different close-up photography genres. It also pairs well with the f/2.8 aperture to produce a smooth bokeh. Tamron includes a Rapid eXtra-silent Drive (RXD) motor in the AF system. This ensures speedy and precise autofocus. It is also helpful in any situation you need to be quiet. All these points make me confident in this lens. I recommend it as one of the best Sony wide-angle lenses today. The Sony FE 12-24mm f/2.8 GM is an award-winning full frame lens from Sony. It produces exceptional quality as a zoom lens in the ultra-wide-angle range. The prestige of this lens is enforced by its price tag. It is marketed toward the professionals out there. What is most surprising about this ultra-wide angle lens is how Sony has reduced its size. With Sony’s advanced optical design, this heavy-hitting lens only weighs 847 g. This may seem like a lot. But similar lenses would have weighed over 2 lb (1 kg) not long ago. The focusing system uses four XD (eXtreme Dynamic) Linear Motors. These ensure fast, precise, and quiet autofocus and tracking. This lens is geared toward all the advanced features we see on Sony mirrorless cameras. I suggest this lens for photographers who don’t see budget as an issue. It’s particularly useful for landscape or architectural photography. This ultra-wide 14mm f/1.8 GM prime lens from Sony is another award-winning lens for obvious reasons. If you try to find a prime this wide and this fast with the same capabilities, you will be looking for some time. But quality like this is not super surprising from Sony’s amazing G Master series of lenses. It has superior image quality for an ultra-wide prime lens. This is even noticeable up to the lens’s widest aperture of f/1.8. The AF is as fast and reliable as the others on this list. This provides you with quiet and low-vibration AF, which is favorable for video work. One Super ED and two normal ED glass elements suppress color bleeding. They ensure chromatic aberration is kept to a minimum. And another feature I have mentioned over and over is how Sony has reduced the size and weight of each lens. This is just as surprising in this Sony prime lens. The Sony 35mm f/1.4 is another of the best prime wide-angle lenses for Sony cameras. A 35mm prime lens may suit a wider range of photographers than a 14mm prime or even a 24mm prime lens. A 35mm prime lens is perfect for street photographers who need a wider angle than their 50mm prime lens. This extra step back from a 50mm prime lens can also favor photojournalism or event photography. This small, bright 35mm lens allows you to shoot faster in low-light situations. So the 35mm prime lens could be for you if you need lighter equipment with a faster aperture. The lens even comes with a Focus Hold button that is fully customizable. Features like this lend themselves to tough shooting environments. It can help you quickly switch settings in high-paced situations so you don’t miss out on any action. Samyang makes it onto this list thanks to their amazing 24mm f/1.8 lens. Its top selling point is its price. For a compact, fast and sharp prime lens, you won’t find a lens as good for as cheap. It is perfect for anyone who wants a wide-angle lens for Sony without the hefty price tag. Samyang has managed to produce a compact prime lens. But they didn’t sacrifice quality. You can feel this instantly when handling it. Samyang has ensured the lens is properly weather sealed. So it’s perfect for outdoor photographers who want a good hiking buddy. You may notice that the lens isn’t up to the same standard—quality-wise—as others on this list. This is expected from the price tag that comes with it. Other lenses have meticulously ironed out most issues in modern lenses. So you will notice slight distortion and minor vignetting, especially when shooting wide open. Overall, these issues aren’t detrimental. And Samyang has produced one of the best wide-angle lenses for Sony cameras. Sony APC-C users will be happy with this selection. We love the Sony E 10-18mm f/4 as one of the best wide-angle lenses for Sony E-mount cameras. Its compact size and incredible quality suit Sony’s crop frame cameras perfectly. The focal range is perfect for wide-angle lovers. The ultra-wide 10mm gives a unique perspective that can be hard to find for APS-C cameras. An angle this wide is ideal for grand interiors and other dramatic environments you may come across. Its size and weight also make it a perfect travel companion. My favorite feature is the Optical SteadyShot (OSS) built into the lens. This image stabilizer allows you to shoot in low-light situations without a flash. It allows up to three stops of difference. This works wonders for situations where you can’t or don’t want to use flash. This is the best wide-angle lens for a Sony APS-C camera like the Sony a6600.
Conclusion: The Best Sony Wide Angle Lens
The Sony FE 16-35mm f/4.0 G zoom lens is the best Sony wide-angle lens in 2023. It is an excellent choice for landscape photographers and videographers. It features an advanced optical design and a fast and quiet AF. Plus, it has a dust- and moisture-resistant construction. We highly recommend the FE 16-35mm f/4.0 G for its sharp image quality. It’s a perfect option for those looking for the best wide angle lens for Sony cameras.
