Sony 35mm ƒ/1.4 ZA E-mount Prime Lens

I’ve recently been shooting with the Sony 35mm ƒ/1.4 ZA prime lens (on the Sony a7r iii body). I’m in the process of writing up a more detailed review to post separately, but in the meantime, here are some sample images I’ve taken with it to give a sense of how it performs in real-world shooting. I’ve chosen a range of subjects and conditions and apertures in these examples.

But first, here’s a quick summary of some of the Sony 35mm ƒ/1.4 ZA’s key features. Not that any Sony E-mount lenses are cheap, exactly, but the Sony 35mm f/1.4 ZA lens is on the premium end of their range. Its formal name is the Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens. It’s an E-mount lens designed for Sony full-frame sensors; if you put it on a camera with an APS-C sized sensor you’ll get the equivalent of a 52.5mm focal length. And it’s fast, with a maximum aperture of ƒ/1.4 that makes it especially good for low-light shooting or when you’re after a very shallow depth of field. The 35mm prime focal length gives a slightly wider-than-normal perspective that’s very versatile for travel photography and photojournalism. The lens is constructed in such a way to make it resistant to moisture and dust. And it uses high-quality Zeiss optics.

I’ve also posted some examples with the 50mm lens in the same high-end Sony range, the Sony Planar T* FE 50mm f/1.4 ZA Lens. If you’d like to compare, you can find those sample images here.

Sample Images Taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens

These were all taken on a Sony a7r iii. Most of them have only been minimally processed in Lightroom without any extra sharpening or lens profile corrections such as distortion correction or chromatic aberration. A few of them have been processed in NIK Color Efex Pro as well.

If you’d like a closer look, you can click on each image to open a full-size version.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 2.8.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 10.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 3.2.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 1.4.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 5.6.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 4.0.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 1.8.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 8.0.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 2.0.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 1.4.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 1.6.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 1.4.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 1.8.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 10.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 1.8.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 2.0.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 1.8.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 2.8.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 16.

Photo taken with a Sony Distagon T* FE 35mm f/1.4 ZA Lens at ƒ / 7.1.