Sony has announced the 59th addition to the E-Mount lens setup, the 35mm f / 1.4 GM. Sony is built in the same spirit as the 24mm f / 1.4 GM and claims that this lens can be a do-it-all lens, from portraits to landscapes.
With the 35mm f / 1.4 GM, there are now 39 full-frame and 20 APS-C E-mount lenses in Sony’s range, of which 12 are classified as G-Master.
The 35mm f / 1.4 GM weighs 524 grams (~ 18.4 ounces) and is relatively compact, promising angle-to-angle sharpness, excellent focus focus, fast and quiet autofocus and dust and moisture resistance.
Sony says the lens is designed to be sharp at any aperture, including wide open at f / 1.4, and says the focus level is perfectly reproduced with natural highlights in the foreground and background. The 35mm f / 1.4 uses two XA (extremely aspherical) elements to contribute to the overall image quality and resolution, along with one ED (extra low scatter) element, along with other optical refinements to effectively achieve chromatic aberration and purple edges suppress for clean, natural images that Sony says will contribute to a fast and easy workflow after recording.
Speaking of internal elements, the lens consists of 14 elements in 10 groups and has a diaphragm with 11 blades, which according to Sony is extremely rare in 35mm lenses and the 35mm f / 1.4 GM is probably the first or one of the first to present it.
While not a macro lens, Sony says it is useful for near-field applications. It has a short focal length of about 10.5 inches (27 cm) and a maximum magnification of 0.23 x in autofocus. If you focus manually, it may come a little closer with an accurate focus distance of about 9.8 inches (25 cm) and a maximum magnification of 0.26x. In hand focus, the lens has a linear response mechanism that, although still focused by wire, should provide a quality response thanks to the fine linear focus control.
The 35mm f / 1.4 GM has a 67mm filter wire, a de-clickable diaphragm, focus mode switch, an assignable focus button and Sony’s famous linear XD autofocus system which – combined with Sony’s control algorithms – is fast, quiet and accurate autofocus.
Below are some examples taken with the lens:
The Sony 35mm f / 1.4 GM will be available for $ 1,400 from late February to early March this year.