FE 70-200mm F4 Macro G OSS II Lens Review

Sony FE 70-200mm F4 Macro G OSS II Lens Review

This lens is a Mark 2 version of the 10 year old FE 70-200 F4 G. The new Macro version of this lens features faster linear XD focus motors and a Magnification ratio of 0.5x at all focal lengths. This lens has a magnification ratio of 0.75x when used in APS-C mode or when using an APS-C camera. It has a 1:1 Full Macro capability if the lens is attached to a 2.0x teleconverter.
When using a 2.0x Teleconverter and APS-C mode the lens has a full-frame equivalent angle-of-view of 600mm
The lens is lighter and shorter than the original FE 70-200 F4 G and may present a viable alternative to the larger and heavier telephoto zoom lenses for this looking to travel light.

Start 00:00
Macro Capabilities 2:24
Size and Weight 14:28
Lens Features 16:35
Competing lenses 18:45
Cropability (crop to zoom beyond 200) 23:07
Reach (is 200mm enough zoom) 26:15
15-07-202329:56
Fast AF 31:38
Is F4 wide enough? 34:10
Higher ISO and Noise 35:21
F4 Background Blur 36:53
The F4 Advantage (conclusion) 39:40

High Resolution Image Gallery :

Mark Galer is a Sony Alpha Ambassador for Australia.

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[jforester]

This was one of the best lens reviews I've ever seen on YouTube. Outstanding job!

[sashinger]

Ok, I'm sold... This lens will be the perfect addition to my 20-70 f4 G for everything around my trips and hikes. What an excellent review! Thx!

[gitithadani]

Excellent review! The 0.5 macro throughout the zoom range along with stability makes it a standout and very versatile lens. On the sony R5 one can crop even more & with the added stability more handheld flexibility becomes possible. For travel it is an ideal lens - from architecture to landscape to semi macro detail. Add to it customization buttons.

[Last_Ember]

This is an incredibly thorough and effective review. It answers all of my questions/ concerns regarding this lens and I thank you.

[stevenwaldstein]

Thank you. An absolutely great coverage of this lens. A year later I finally decided to buy a copy of the 70-200/4 GII even though I already own the excellent 70-200/2.8 GM II for exactly the reasons you stated in your video. It hasn’t arrived yet but really looking to adding it to my bag with my A7CR and A7CII I’ve put together for light travel. Also got the new FE 24-50/2.8 G but yours is the first video having me wonder if I should have gotten the 20-70/4 G. It’s kind of a combo for landscape but also for capturing people so love its small size. Really learn so much from your videos. Take care.

[GregorMima]

Tbh being able to use the 2x converter ... That alone is a big stepup to the old one.

[megamastah]

Hands down the best review on YT. Your videos are world class - concise, precise, technical, with great examples, detailed presentation, not to mention the FAQ/debunking section. Same goes for the ebooks and tutorial/blog.
Subscribed on patreon, hope to suck all of the info from your brain :)

[onkar]

Amazing review Mark. As always you did a wonderful job.

[wxyz]

Interesting that you focused on size and weight so much. That is one of the things that draws me towards this lens. My goto lens pair when walking is the 24-105 and 100-400 with the A7RV. Shifting to the 20-70 and 70-200 would save over 800grams. As I get older this becomes more important. Add the field ability to do macro without taking an extra lens. Sony have got a winner here imo.

[xXTheVision]

Absolutely brilliant review, thank you

[jkb]

Amazing results at 0.5 X macro!! I want this lens.

[wiesel]

Wow so many important things you mentioned, thank you very, very much!

[PhotoTrekr]

Decided to order the 70-200 G II. It will be one of my two travel lenses along with the 20-70 G lens. I already have a 1.4x teleconverter which I'm very pleased with on the 70-200 GM II. I might also try the 2x teleconverter although I haven't shot much macro in the past. Thanks for your excellent review.

[glenntracey]

Brilliant review Mark, and to me looks like a brilliant lens. Couple that lens with the 1.4 Tele converter on a A7CR would be brilliant, and compliment the 35F1.4 and 55 F1.8 (Zeiss) Sony lenses only leaves me short in the 20mm range to have a great kit. So do I do the Sony 20mm F1.8 or the Sony 20-70F4 lens to complete ….so hard to decide.

[fromia]

I bought this exact setup because of your video😊
20-70G + 70-200G with Pilot 7L

I still have room for the ZV-1 ii in case I need something wider indoors.

[paololarocca]

thanks for the review of this very interesting lens, there is only a little typo in the comparison sheet, the tamron 70-180, which I have, has 0.5 times magnification at 70mm and in manual focus, if I remember well, because I don't use it much....

[peterschulte]

Dear Mark, so far so good but I' am not sure which combo to buy - I' am just deciding which combination I do prefer: the 5 years old 70-200 mm f2.8 gm i with the 2.0 Teleconverter or the new bundle f4 II + 2.0 Teleconverter -; both combos have identical prices nowadays in Europe, but more important for me is the sharpness and contrast in shooting cityscapes and architecture in general. At the moment, I use fixed focal length to get best results. But with a zoom i get more compositions with only one lens with me. Thx for answering. The new f2.8 is too expensive for me ... Cheers Peter

[ÄdelVandelVanstyre]

I forgot to tell you that both camera and lens is updated to the latest version of firmware according to the shop where I bought it and also did the update, the versions are : Body: ILCE-7RMA Ver. 1.10 Lens: ver.02

[arafinutube]

Thanks Mark for this excellent review!! Does the 70-200 GM ii fits in the 7L bag same way as this lens? I have similar setup as you and want to carry 35mm GM with a7c and a 70-200 with another camera.

[BenSussmanpro]

Thanks for this comprehensive review. I shoot family portraits & chasing small children running around, for candids. I now use the 1st version of this lens, but I could see where the close-up capabilities would help. Plus it could be more versatile for travel. Is this lens noticeably sharper than the original?