With a range of some 70 or so lenses, quite a remarkable achievement in a relatively short time, Sony is now clearly pushing the boundaries to offer significantly new designs. The first standard zoom lenses arrived in the 1970s and were fairly modest affairs, perhaps 35-70mm f/4 being typical. Gradually with improved designs, this has been extended to 28-70mm, then 24-70mm and even 24-90mm and 24-120mm, with quality levels still reaching very high and satisfactory levels. The new Sony 20-70mm f/4 G lens stretches that ultra-wide even further and coincides with our ever-wider tastes in focal length. This is a powerful photographic tool indeed, offering a light and relatively compact lens that could be ideal for most general photography. Does it match up in terms of handling and performance? Let's find out, coupling the new lens up with the also recently reviewed 33MP Sony A7 IV body.

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Sony FE 20-70mm F/4 G Handling and Features

The lens sits well on the A7 IV body, the package being well-balanced and relatively compact. It weighs in at a modest 488g and measures just 78.7mm in diameter and 99.0mm in length. There is a provided petal lens hood that bayonets crisply into position and shows no signs of being easily dislodged in use. Within the bayonet mount for the hood is a standard 72mm filter thread.

First up is the electronic focusing ring. This is ultra-smooth if perhaps a little too smooth for manual focusing as there is little feel or resistance to its operation. It is compatible with all the usual Sony options, such as AF-S, AF-A, AF-C, MF and DMF. These are selected from the camera menus. Just behind the ring are two focus hold buttons plus an AF/MF switch. Focusing is virtually silent and is affected using 2 XD Linear motors. IF (Internal Focusing) means that the length of the lens does not alter as we focus. The XD (Extreme Dynamic) motors are claimed to be 60% faster and 2x better at tracking than the 24-70mm lens. Focusing is virtually silent and certainly very fast and accurate. The closest focus is 0.3m (0.99 feet) to 0.25m (0.82 feet) for a maximum magnification of 0.39x. This is not quite down to macro distances, but is much closer than average for a standard zoom lens and increases the usefulness of the lens significantly.

The zoom ring has more resistance to it as it is physically moving the lens forwards as we zoom. However, it is also smooth in its operation. Focal lengths are clearly inscribed at 20mm, 24mm, 28mm, 35mm, 50mm and 70mm. The settings indicated are accurate. There is no zoom creep when the lens is pointed downwards or upwards. Focus breathing is minimised optically, plus some A series bodies also offer Focus Breathing Compensation.

The aperture ring offers an A setting for when we wish to change the aperture using the camera body plus a conventional ring with click stops in one-third of a stop intervals. There is a small switch that enables us to switch off the click stops, something that videographers may well appreciate. There is also an iris lock switch. If engaged while A is set then it prevents the aperture ring from being accidentally moved from the A position. If engaged when using the aperture ring to change the aperture it prevents A from being accidentally selected.

Optical construction is 16 elements in 13 groups and includes 2 AA (Advanced Aspherical), 1 Aspherical, 3 ED (Extra Low Dispersion) and 1 ED Aspherical. The front element has a Fluorine coating to resist moisture, dirt and dust and the whole lens has dust and moisture resistance. Steady Shot image stabilisation is found within most Sony A series camera bodies and is therefore not a feature of this lens.

General handling of the lens is sweet, being straightforward, predictable and efficient in operation. Lenses should not intrude upon the photographic process, and this one just melds into the working practice that we have become familiar with using Sony cameras and lenses. Extending the wide angle to 20mm is a terrific advantage and this will minimise the need to constantly change lenses when working in cramped environments, or in any situation where both wide angle and longer shots are required. 20mm is significantly wider than 24mm.