Using Sony 10-18mm F/4 OSS E-mount lens on Sony a7R

Sony 10-18mm F/4 OSS E-mount lens on Sony a7R

One of the pleasant surprises that’s come out of testing the full-frame coverage of APS E-mount lenses on the Sony a7R occurred when I discovered that the Sony 10-18mm F4 OSS E lens ($898 from Amazon | B&H Photo) covers a lot more real estate than needed for the APS-C chip.

While this lens was not designed for Fullframe, the coverage is much better than I expected at 12mm and above. Sony’s SEL 10-18mm F4 OSS E-mount lens actually does a pretty good job from 13-16mm and is particularly good at 14-15mm.

It’s easy to turn off APS-crop in the camera: Menu > Custom Settings 5 > APS-C Capture > Off

For each focal length between 10-18mm, I’ve included the un-corrected iamges along with a second version that was processed using a modified Lightroom lens profile for the SEL 10-18 F4 OSS.

PLEASE NOTE: the Lightroom SEL 10-18mm lens profile was created for APS-C sensors and needs to be re-done for the Full-frame chip. An updated lens profile should straighten out the lines and help clean up the magenta cast in the corners.

Exposure: 1/80 at F8 ISO 200
Everything was processed from RAW captures using Lightroom version 5.3 RC.
The White Overlays show the original APS-C crop.

Sony A7R with SEL 10-18 F4 OSS at 18mm

Sony A7R with SEL 10-18 F4
Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 18mm – No Lens Corrections

Sony A7R with SEL 10-18 F4
Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 18mm – Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections

CLICK TO VIEW 100% CROP AT 18MM

Sony A7R with SEL 10-18 F4 OSS at 17mm

Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 17mm - No Lens Corrections
Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 17mm – No Lens Corrections

Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 17mm - Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections
Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 17mm – Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections

CLICK TO VIEW 100% CROP AT 17MM

Sony A7R with SEL 10-18 F4 OSS at 16mm

Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 16mm - No Lens Corrections
Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 16mm – No Lens Corrections

Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 16mm - Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections
Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 16mm – Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections

CLICK TO VIEW 100% CROP AT 16MM

Sony A7R with SEL 10-18 F4 OSS at 15mm

Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 15mm - No Lens Corrections
Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 15mm – No Lens Corrections

Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 15mm - Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections
Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 15mm – Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections

CLICK TO VIEW 100% CROP AT 15MM

Sony A7R with SEL 10-18 F4 OSS at 14mm

Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 14mm - No Lens Corrections
Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 14mm – No Lens Corrections

Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 14mm - Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections
Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 14mm – Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections

CLICK TO VIEW 100% CROP AT 14MM

Sony A7R with SEL 10-18 F4 OSS at 13mm

Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 13mm - No Lens Corrections
Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 13mm – No Lens Corrections

Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 13mm - Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections
Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 13mm – Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections

CLICK TO VIEW 100% CROP AT 13MM

Sony A7R with SEL 10-18 F4 OSS at 12mm

Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 12mm - No Lens Corrections
Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 12mm – No Lens Corrections

Sony 10-18 F4 OSS E-mount lens</a data-recalc-dims=
at 12mm – Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections” width=”1600″ height=”1068″ class=”size-full wp-image-50997″ />Sony 10-18 F4 OSS E-mount lens at 12mm – Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections

CLICK TO VIEW 100% CROP AT 12MM

Sony A7R with SEL 10-18 F4 OSS at 11mm

Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 11mm - No Lens Corrections
Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 11mm – No Lens Corrections

Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 11mm - Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections
Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 11mm – Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections

CLICK TO VIEW 100% CROP AT 11MM

Sony A7R with SEL 10-18 F4 OSS at 10mm

Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 10mm - No Lens Corrections
Sony A7R with Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS lens at 10mm – No Lens Corrections

Sony A7R with SEL 10-18mm lens at 10mm - Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections
Sony A7R with SEL 10-18mm lens at 10mm – Modified Lightroom Lens Corrections

CLICK TO VIEW 100% CROP AT 10MM

Bottom line, this lens is not Zeiss glass, but it’s much better than I thought it would be. I’d recommend shooting a bit loose so you can crop so you can crop from the sides. No need to crop top and bottom of the frame unless you’re in love with the 2×3 crop.

from 14-18mm plan to crop 5% off the sides 7360 > 6992 px
from 11-13mm plan to crop 10% off the sides 7360 > 6624 px
Don’t even bother shooting at 10mm

Tests shown were shot at F8. Vignetting is pretty much the same at 4 and 5.6, but extreme corner sharpness improves slightly with each stop down..

Order Sony E 10-18 F4 OSS lens from Amazon | B&H Photo
Order Sony a7S camera from Amazon | B&H Photo
Order Sony a7R camera from Amazon | B&H Photo
Order Sony a7S camera from Amazon | B&H Photo

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80 thoughts on “Using Sony 10-18mm F/4 OSS E-mount lens on Sony a7R”

  1. Pingback: Sony A7 and A7r test roundup… | sonyalpharumors

  2. brian, its really and amazing camera i am also using this, i am a wedding planner and wedding photographer and i have captured so many photographs with this camera….you can see my photographs here.

  3. Brian,

    Great pics showing the lens at various focal planes. Can you mount this lens directly to the a7r or do you need one of the various adaptors?

  4. Hi Brian,

    thanks for posting this kind of test, it’s really helpful for ask who want to keep 10-18mm for A7/A7r :D.

    One question, in the above pictures, when you say 11mm, it’s actually 11mm FOV in FF (35mm)? because 11mm in FF is soooo wide :D. Thanks!

  5. Hi Brian,

    One more question :p, one of my friend said that combination of A7r + 10-18mm isn’t good since the A7r’s sensor outresolve the 10-18mm. Is it true? is the picture quality (e.g sharpness level) is degraded?

    Thanks

    1. Same could be said of many of the Canon lenses people are mounting on the A7/A7R. The best way to look at it is that the sensor won’t be the weak link. It will capture the most detail possible the lens can resolve. There will certainly be a FE super-wide in the future, but until there is, this lens is a surprisingly good option – particularly at 14-15mm.

  6. Brian
    Thanks for all your great reviews on the Sony Alpha7. Did you have a chance to compare the Sony 10-18mm and the Zeiss Touit 2.8/12 lens on this body? Love the two primes made by Zeiss but I need a wide angle lens. Many thanks again for your work.

    1. The Zeiss Touit 12mm F2.8 is a spectacular lens on APS-C. Unfortunately that’s about all it covers. It doesn’t come close to fullframe coverage. The generous coverage of the E 10-18mm F4 OSS was very unexpected.

  7. I got this lens for my NEX-3N. I noticed when i used the zoom lever on my 3N that there is no sound? Is it that quiet? Of course i can zoom in or out with the zoom ring, but just wondering if it is suppose to not make noise when zooming with the zoom lever on the 3N…also, since it is not quite up to par in low light, what other tip do you suggest besides bumping up ISO and exposure compensation. thanks.

    1. I don’t have a NEX-3N to test that on, but I’d assume that most people would consider silent zooming to be a good thing – particularly when shooting video. As far as working in low light, in addition to opening up, shooting at a slower shutter speed and raising the ISO your other option is to add Light – either from strobe or a continuous light source like a light panel or fluorescent lamp.

    2. The 10-18mm lens is not a power zoom so the zoom lever on your 3N is not doing anything… that’s why it is quiet. The zoom lever on the 3N only works with power zoom lenses, e.g., the SEL 16-50mm PZ kit lens.

    3. You are activating the digital zoom in the camera instead of physically zooming the lens. You will lose resolution this way, try not to use digital zoom if possible.

  8. I am looking for a UWA with a filter thread for A7. The results look good to me, do you think I should wait for FE 16-35 or buy this?? 10-18 looks to have a very good 13 mm which is much wider than 16 mm of FE 16-35??

    1. I haven’t heard the official ship date on the FE 16-35, but it’s rumored to me a month or two away. So it depend how immediate your need are. Personally, if I didn’t already own the 10-18mm, I’d wait, but that won’t help you if you need it next week.

  9. Pingback: Ultimate Guide to E-Mount Lenses for Sony A7 A7R A7S A7II

  10. Brian, your review of the Sony E 10-18mm f/4 OSS lens is a breath of fresh air in terms of detail and clarity. As a Nikon photographer for more than 20 years, I plan to retire one of my D800s in favor of the new A7R II. The Sony E 10-18mm lens will replace my Nikon 14-24mm ultra wide. I hold out some hope that Sony will soon release a lens that competes with my Nikon 28-300mm lens which has been the best walking around glass I have ever used.

    1. If you want to match the performance of your Nikon 14-24, I’d suggest the Sony FE 16-35mm f/4 ZA OSS Lens instead. This post was written before that lens came out and while Sony’s E-mount 10-18mm does surprisingly well on a full frame sensor, the FE 16-35mm OSS is better.

      In terms of 28-300, Sony just released the 24-240 F3.5-6.3 OSS. I’m not certain they’ll do another all-in-one-super-zoom lens so quickly but I’m fairly certain longer glass on the way.

  11. Brian, I have a Sony 55-210 e mount lens which fits the A7 series cameras. But the image stabilization doesn’t work. Any remedy for this or Sony firmware update for this issue? I think Sony said that the 55-210 stabilization is supposed to work, but user with the A7 series know and say stabilization doesn’t work?

    As always, thanks for your efforts, the support, and professionalism you show with photography!

    1. If I remember correctly SEL 55-210 is one of four Sony APS E-mount lenses along with SELP1650, SEL1855 and SEL18200LE that in-lens OSS is not compatible with a7/a7R/a7S. While Sony a7II and a7RII would provide in-body 5-Axis Image Stabilization, I don’t think any firmware update can enable the in-lens OSS on a7/a7R/a7S.

  12. Great review and info Brian. I want this 10-18 for my a6000 very badly. Seen many awesome shots taken with it. Until I get a FF Sony body, this will be a great ultra wide option.

  13. Hi Brian, does the A7 offer automatic lens corrections on any of the APS-E mount lenses? Any idea if this will come with future firmware upgrades?

    1. You can turn in-camera Lens Corrections On or Off:

      Menu > Custom Settings > Lens Compensation >

    2. Shading Compensation > Auto/Off
    3. Chromatic Aberration Compensation > Auto/Off
    4. Distortion Compensation > Auto/Off

      These will adjustment will only affect Jpeg unless you are processing in Sony Image Data Converter which reads this for RAWs – but you can apply these settings to RAWs in Lightroom (or Adobe Camera Raw) by Enabling Profile Corrections in the Lens Corrections Tab of the Develop module.

      Bear in mind that APS-C lenses are not designed for full frame sensors. While this particular lens does an OK job at certain focal lengths, you’re get much better results using native FE lenses.

  14. Raymond Paul Freitas

    Brian, Thanks for your review of the 10-18 (which I now own) and its performance on a full frame. Do you think that removing the baffling over the rear element might improve its range on the A7’s ? I’m toying with trying that for my A7Mk2.

    1. I’m told that will reduce vignetting on the “long” end from 16-18mm. I don’t normally recommend lens mods unless you’re confident with your skills to reassemble if needed.

      1. Raymond Paul Freitas

        Understood and thanks for your response Brian, but it looks like any easy on/off mod. Just removal of 3 small screws…..

  15. In light of the other FE options for Sony A7* cameras, would you still recommend this as a good lens to get into ultra wide photography?

      1. wide: 21-28
        ultra-wdie: 10-18

        I’ll be taking my family on a trip, traveling with my A7II, and am looking for a creative option for shooting cathedrals, museums, Disney parks, etc

        Thanks for your reply

  16. Brian, thanks for the great article. I’m upgrading from the A6000 to an A7Rii and have been on the fence when it comes to buying the Sony Zeiss FE 16-35mm f/4 ZA OSS lens. It seems to have good reviews, but it’s not that fast, isn’t the sharpest, and has quite a bit of barrel distortion. Not huge deals but at $1,300 it needs to be a perfect lens for me. Until I can save up for the Batis 12 or 18, I think I’ll keep using my 10-18mm as my wide angle option. Thanks!

  17. Will the size of image reduced when taking shots with this lens?I experienced with my A7ii image size shrinked down to 8MP and can’t increased to 20MP

      1. Hi Brian,

        Thank you for this review. I am debating between the FE 16-35 and FE 12-24. The lack of filter threads on the 12-24 is throwing me. Do you think the 16-35 is a comparable lens to the 12-24?

  18. Hi Brian, great post. It’s highly informative even if you are not using this exact lens.

    I tried a SEL55210 on my full frame a7 to check sensor coverage. It gives about a 10mp image on my 24mp sensor….. unless I use the ClearImageZoom setting. Through most of the zoom range (1.3-2.0X) the image covers the entire sensor (a full 24mp).

    Maybe you could comment with further settings options or other caveats.
    Thanks.

  19. Thank you for this review as well Brian. You have been such a wealth of resource for many people re Sony e mount systems.
    I would like to add one simple comment about the e 10-18. Although full frame lenses on full frame cameras make lot more sense and there are some good wide angles available now, one indisputable attraction of an apsc like the 10-18 is its size! Often the practicality of a having a small size wide lens walk about outweighs the compromises in image quality. Only for this reason I will be adding it to my new a7iii.

  20. Brian, thank you for taking the time to review & answer our questions. I’m a Canon user for years (5D mk iii, Canon 16-35 f2.8 ii, Sigma 35 f1.4 art, Canon 85 f.1.8) and will be going over to Sony & have been thinking of building a kit mainly for traveling (spouse & kid); so my main concern is weight but don’t want to overcompensate on the quality. I’m looking at the Sony A7iii and have 3 lenses in mind: 1) Sony 85 f/1.4 (for portraits) 2) Sony 35 f/2.8 or 28 f/2 for general walk around, indoors & food 3) Sony 12-24 f/4, Sony 16-35 f/4, or Sony 10-28 for wide & landscapes. I’m set with the 1st lens but need your input with 2) & 3). Please help! Thanks so much!

    1. Welcome to the Sony family!!! Now for your questions…unless you always wished your 85 was a 1.4, I’d suggest going with the smaller and lighter Sony FE 85mm F1.8 which is a great choice for travel. Put the money you saved on that into the FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens which is not only the sharpest wide angle zoom DxO ever tested it surprisingly light. As for the FE 28 F2.0 -vs- FE 35mm F2.8 ZA – that one boils down to personal focal length of choice. I’ve always been fond of 35mm but others like something a touch wider. It just depends how you “see”.

      1. Thanks Brian! Yes, I meant the 85 f1.8 actually. If I go with the 16-35 & 35 f/2.8, don’t you think they kind of overlap?

        1. Either wide will overlap the 16-35. It’s more a question of whether you want a small walk-around prime. How bout starting with just 2: 16-35 2.8 GM & 85 1.8. Use em for a while. Then decide if you’re missing anything.

  21. Hi Brian, I am hesitating between the Tamron 17-28 2.8 and the Sony 16-35 4.0 both for Sony A7 iii, What would you recommend me?

    1. I don’t own the Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 Di III RXD Lens for Sony E but Tamron lenses generally offer very good performance for the price. I just wish it went to 35mm as I use that focal length quite often.

      I do own the Sony FE 16-35mm f/4 ZA OSS Lens which I use as a back up for my FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens which has become my absolute favorite lens for street photography. While it costs considerably more than either of the other two options, it’s worth every penny since it’s the sharpest wide angle zoom DxO has ever tested, it’s got a beautiful “look” and AF is extremely fast.

      1. Thank you for your quick reply Brian. I have one more question and I hope you can give your opinion about that. I use my camera for streetphotography, architecture and star sky I like wideangle objectives. Which objective would you advice: Sony FE 12-24 F4.0 G or Sony FE 16-35 F2.8 GM. I do have Tamron 28-75 F2.8. I read the16-35 of Sony is one of your favorites, but in my case I have a an overlap with the Tamron and the wideangle is not as that wide as the 12-24 Sony. On the other hand is the 16-35 a 2.8 instead of 4.0. I hope I made my thoughts and doubts clear for you and hope also you can give me direction in my thinking about which lens to choose. Thank you!

        1. 12mm is really wide for street photography. I would not worry about a slight overlap between 16-35 and 28-75. It’s a good thing not bad. Better to have a lens that covers the range you need than to constantly have to change lenses and you “zoom”.

  22. One more question Brian. Did you compare the 12-24 f4 GSony with 16-35 f4 G Sony? What do you expect of the results when comparing this 2 lenses on for example sharpness and other parameters?

    1. Pretty similar in terms of sharpness. Keep in mind that the FE 12-24 mm has a massive front element that’s anything but discrete for street photography and requires a slip-on lens cap which you do not want to lose.

  23. Now a friend pointed me on the Sigma 14-24 2.8. I thought I was close to a decision, but this is new information for me. Brian, for the purpose I ment earlier, may I ask what you think about the results of the Sigma 14-24 2.8 compare with Sony 12-24 4.0?

        1. First off, 14-24 is a terrible range for street photography. Second, massive glass is less than ideal if you’re trying to be even slightly discrete, so yeah, I’d go with a 16-35

  24. Dear Brian, many thanks for your great review and various advices. I am a amateur photographer and love to take landscape photos with a wide angle lens, but all the good lenses are too expensive for me given that I do not go out for photos very often. Furthermore I like to have light lenses to carry them with me on my trips. Hence I am in favour of the Sony APSC Sony lens 10-18 on my FF A7RII. Would appreciate your advice to set up on this camera. Thanks lot for your further advices. Thanh from Hanoi

  25. hey brian! really epic review! completely breaks down the details. but im having a small dilemma. i recently bought the sony A7R IV, and i was really looking forward to the 10-18mm since the body has a crop mode. A lot of people told me not to do it and go for the sigma 14-24mm 2.8 . But I wasn’t sure if the sigma lens can get a super close focal range like the 10-18mm. if you could please give me you honest opinion on which one i should go for I would really appreciate it very much. thank you so much for hearing me out.

  26. Walter Benesch

    danke für den Test. das 10-18 mm an einer A7R2 ist für die Reise eine gute Kombi ! Grüße

  27. Great article, I wonder how the corner sharpness is compared to a real apsc camera, like how is 15mm in full frame compared to 10mm in a 6000 series.
    I am considering this lens for travel but also for some professional work like weddings, real estate and commercials. I know there are many other wide angles but either they cannot use filters or they are too big and heavy.

    1. These tests were posted before Sony had any fullframe options in this range. If you’re doing professional work such as weddings with a fullframe camera – get a fullframe lens.

  28. Thanks for the nice review. Do you recommend SAMYANG 14MM F/2.8 AF SONY FE it is full-frame lens . I am hybrid shooter on new A74 .
    I like this sony lens but is it SAMYANG better?
    I need a wide lens for photos and also video work.

    thanks.

    Milo

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