Welll, Well Why did not Sony come out with this as well as the already 10mm from Venus Optics Laowa 10mm f/2.8. I already have the 10mm f/2.8 and it is super sharp at night for AF on the stars for no need to MF, Yea! Also the 10mm has great star when capture of clouds with sun.
For the price nice for my bag I will buy, I am a Astro MW capturer, for years I have used the E 10-18mm (15-27mm in 35mm) f/4 OSS in Full Frame mode where Lrc has the lens correction. I tried to use the Rokinon 14mm f/4 back in the early 2015 nights before I heard about the E 10-18mm used in Full Frame mode for the 14mm and its later 12mm have uncorrectable mustache horizon and non pin point stars but elongated stars in the corners kinda like the Sigma 14mm f/2.8 and when focused on stars the close focus was bad and was real big and heavy just like the Sony 12-24mm f/4 and f/2.8 both needing external filter holders and big filters, extra stuff needed for the amber orange halogen bulbs used by cities where today everyone is using white LED lights. The one thing users will find about the 12-24mm’s is the size and heaviness when on a Panorama rig mounted on your tripod ball head get things tight is very hard to get and keep all level.
Just info from someone who has been there for awhile with all those lenses that everyone telling on the tube how great they are!!!
A little info on a 10mm and 12mm if used for Milky Way’s, first and foremost the Galactic Center and Pegasus will be smaller is doing either a landscape horizonal or the portrait arch for the both capture like a panorama image BUT with no upper and lower cut off just filling the whole sensor area. For the landscape the trail in the stars will be horizonal from right to left. If used for the MW Arch you will capture more stars above the arch for the combined images but again the Milky Way will seem further away but you can crop in and also have more stars above getting an image that almost the same a full image size.
For regular captures you have to have a subject close and another far other wise you have an image like a tourist just getting all things in and the far away things will be small with nothing being a story sorta speaking. Not to say things will not be sharp they will be also they can be great if you are close to something like in a store aisle and a big object you want to capture as well everything around but not a capture of what is behind.
Examples: I was at Horseshoe Canyon and there were photographers standing at the very edge doing multi row panoramas to get Sky and river below, it was 2017 and others camera makers did not have a 10mm just the 16mm’s. I had the A7RM2 and the Voigtlander HELIAR-HYPER WIDE 10mm F5.6 for Sony and just sat down or stood a ways back and got all close to far mountains sharp and clear and with the moving clouds got stop action of them as will as the boat below and to need to go into post and combining all images in rows- time intensive play. Another time I was in a restaurant with a bakery and narrow aisles a big tall toy soldier with lots of color and candy doll like figures below from left to right, I capture one image of all things with just a couple of feet from and with just he F/5.6 all thing were sharp even out the window of buildings was across the next street with cloud cover as well a people in the restaurant area and items on the wall, the only problem was getting the right colors but after color picking areas all was good also 2017.
One thing to remember is Sony has been in the mirrorless camera business since 2013-14 and because of IBIS also a lens does not need IS/OSS.
Just know about near and far and the story you want to show. A note about doing a panorama for the Milky War Arch and that is the degree number you use for 12mm lens do not use 15 or 30 degree setting for you will have more images overlayered with each other so even a 45 degree setting for you have to look at some settings for the old Fisheye lens of old days before the 14mm’s and wider.
I apologize for the long winded writing but I think the info will help but the price is great and small enough for it to be in your bag for that moment of your eye see’s a use and not to make mistakes like I have. I am a on the spot capture photographer not much planning.