Mid Sierra Musings: The Sony 200-600mm G Lens With The A7R3

Dale Matson

Click On Photographs To Enlarge

Sony 200-600mm lens W/1.4X TC On A7R3

(Forgot to close memory card door for photo)

I bought this lens primarily for wildlife photography. My subjects are usually local eagles and the endangered Sierra Nevada Bighorn Sheep. The air in the Central Valley of California and the Sierra is frequently poor. This means that my goal is to get as close as possible and use the lens to get closer. Otherwise distant shots are useless and I am just magnifying bad air.

This article is not intended as a formal lens review. I will leave that to the professionals. I picked up my lens at the local camera shop on Friday and took the photographs on Saturday and Sunday morning. I chose the A7R3 over my A9 because I could crop to get 1260mm when combined with the 1.4X TC. The acid test for me was whether the lens would be sharp with the TC. Only time will tell if this lens is good for BIF. Although I had the animal eye autofocus on, it did not function when photographing the resident eagle at Millerton Lake this morning. The eagle was at the top of a tall tree about 100’ from me and it took the 1260mm photo to fill the frame. I set the lens to 10m to infinity for faster autofocus (there are three possible settings).

I reduced the file sizes for easier publication so pixel peepers will have to look elsewhere. I did not use a tripod for any of these photographs. I think there is a blessing and a curse to a lens that has internal magnification. Sometimes the lens barrel turned to a lesser magnification and I was unaware b/c the barrel does not extend or retract. However, it did make hand holding manageable with about the same length as the extended 100-400 GM.

I waited for Sony to come out with an affordable lens with this reach. I am not disappointed. This is a sharp lens.