Sony FE 28mm f/2 (SEL28F20) - Review / Test Report - Sample Images & Verdict
Lens Reviews - Sony Alpha (Full Format)

Sample Images

Click on an image for downloading the full-size variant.

MakeSONY
ModelILCE-7RM2
ISO Speed1000
Focal Length28.0mm
Aperture:f/2.0
Exposure1/60s

MakeSONY
ModelILCE-7RM2
ISO Speed1600
Focal Length28.0mm
Aperture:f/2.8
Exposure1/60s

MakeSONY
ModelILCE-7RM2
ISO Speed1000
Focal Length28.0mm
Aperture:f/2.0
Exposure1/60s

MakeSONY
ModelILCE-7RM2
ISO Speed2500
Focal Length28.0mm
Aperture:f/2.0
Exposure1/60s

MakeSONY
ModelILCE-7RM2
ISO Speed1250
Focal Length28.0mm
Aperture:f/2.0
Exposure1/60s

MakeSONY
ModelILCE-7RM2
ISO Speed100
Focal Length28.0mm
Aperture:f/2.0
Exposure1/5000s

MakeSONY
ModelILCE-7RM2
ISO Speed100
Focal Length28.0mm
Aperture:f/11.0
Exposure1/200s

MakeSONY
ModelILCE-7RM2
ISO Speed100
Focal Length28.0mm
Aperture:f/2.0
Exposure1/6400s

MakeSONY
ModelILCE-7RM2
ISO Speed100
Focal Length28.0mm
Aperture:f/4.0
Exposure1/2000s

MakeSONY
ModelILCE-7RM2
ISO Speed100
Focal Length28.0mm
Aperture:f/9.0
Exposure1/400s

MakeSONY
ModelILCE-7RM2
ISO Speed100
Focal Length28.0mm
Aperture:f/9.0
Exposure1/160s

MakeSONY
ModelILCE-7RM2
ISO Speed100
Focal Length28.0mm
Aperture:f/9.0
Exposure1/400s

Competition

As already hinted in the introduction, direct competitors to the Sony FE 28mm f/2 (shown to the left below) don't exist. If you can live with something a little wider, there are some alternatives though. A pricey option is the Zeiss Batis 25mm f/2 (center) ... which is certainly superior to the Sony lens but at the triple price tag, it better should be. A little bit more affordable but also slower is the Samyang AF 24mm f/2.8 FE (to the right). Thanks to the slower max aperture it is also substantially more compact and roughly in the same performance league, it seems. There's also the new Tamron 24mm f/2.8 Di III OSD (not shown) which received quite some praise out there.

Visual comparison courtesy of camerasize.com.

Verdict

The Sony FE 28mm f/2 may be a prime lens but it's quite obvious that Sony had (or wanted) to cut a couple of corners in order to save costs. The resolution characteristic isn't overly harmonious to say the least. The lens may be sharp at medium aperture settings but has a substantial border/corner weakness at f/2 and f/2.8. Of course, you may argue that this isn't really overly important for shallow depth-of-field photography but it's hardly impressive for a prime lens in any case. If you operate the camera with activated image auto-correction, you won't notice drastic weaknesses beyond this. However, both the original image distortions as well as vignetting are on the high side. Lateral CAs aren't all that hot either for a contemporary lens. The quality of the bokeh is one of the better aspects. The rendition of out-of-focus highlights is a little rough but the general blur is very smooth.
The lens may not feel like much due to its low weight but objectively there isn't anything to complain about the build quality. An all-metal body and a smooth focusing ring are good base ingredients and adding a constant length as well as the dust- and moisture-sealing makes it a very decent package. The AF is also reasonably fast and, typical for most Sony lenses, noiseless. Sony skipped the implementation of an optical image stabilizer but this would have been unusual in this lens class anyway.
The reason for the existence of a prime lens should be that it offers something "more" over a zoom lens its focal length class. In the case of the Sony FE 28mm f/2, it's about an extra stop or two of speed. The question is whether this alone can be a reason for buying the lens ...

Optical Quality:    
★★★★★
Mechanical Quality:
★★★★★
Price/Performance:
★★★★★

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