Sony FE 100-400mm GM Lens Review - Lab and Real World Style

In this Sony FE 100-400mm GM OSS Lens Review (BH: bhpho.to/2OrmpYa AMZ: amzn.to/2CJrRAs ), I will go over everything you need to know including Hands-On, quick lab testing, and lots of real world sample photos.
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Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 GM OSS Lens: bhpho.to/2NY3HEf
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Thanks again,
Jay

[@Powerreserve]

Excellent review Jay: many thanks.

[@nj2033]

Excellent review! Answered my questions about the Modes... Thanks!

[@soapman7x7]

Fantastic pro review, thanks to help me decide buy this lens

[@wwiiair]

amazing lens, I even use it with the 2x teleconverter quite regularly and it's excellent

[@winwinwinTaipei]

Very good product review with high-quality photo shooting instructions.

[@javajack-1]

That was a great review. I just purchase this lens and it arrived today. I'm busy working but want to shoot after work as there is a simultaneous sunset and 100% full moon rise I want to try to get. I don't have time to read the manual so thought I'll bet there's a user video or review somewhere and you showed me everything I need to know in a few minutes. I can go out now with confidence. Subscribed and looking forward to more great reviews.

[@ArtofSoundAndVision]

Considering this one for video shooting on A7iii .. thank you

[@chirantha]

Great review with sample shots. Thanks man! I got this lens last week

[@Jason_Hermann]

Great to hear and enjoy that beast of a lens ;)

[@jbravo70]

I bought this beautiful lens last year and it is probably the best lens I have ever purchased. My daughter performed as the lead in a play last year and I filmed the whole play on a tripod. The results were absolutely amazing, the video quality looked like it was taken with a system costing 10’s of thousand of dollars. First day I got it, I unpackaged it and took it outside to take a picture of the moon...I was blown away with the picture, people couldn’t believe the picture came from this lens. One thing though, I wish Sony would put some way to attach something on the zoom ring for real smooth zooms when doing cinematography. Other than that, this lens is pure gold.

[@Jason_Hermann]

Thank you for the comments and sharing your experience with this beast of a lens ;) I agree, it really is that good! The Sony A-Mount 70-400mm G SSM II Lens was just as sharp I would say, but it was a decent amount heavier and much harder to zoom. It had that same magic look though with killer crisp contrast and colors...

[@njrtech]

Totally agree best lense I own for my Sony a7riii. Impeccable image quality

[@njrtech]

I've owned mine since release and absolutely love this lense. So sharp and versatile. I don't think I'll ever go back to 70-200 again. Also picked up 24-105 to compliment it and love the setup! Threw in one 50mm prime for low light and im good

[@chryseass.5143]

Jay , Thanks so much to you ( and Darren) for letting us see what the lens + camera is capable of- I am blown away and mentally calculating how I could justify having that lens. OMG , it is impressive! Hope you can borrow it back again sometime for further review.

[@Jason_Hermann]

Thanks for the comments and I totally agree! It's a ton of cash, but you really get some amazing results and range options otherwise not possible ;) I can see borrowing it again at some point for sure!

[@stephenhookephotography8669]

Thanks Jay. Good review.

[@FACEDELIVRE]

Just rented this lens for the weekend. My son is playing a baseball classic + go-kart on Sunday with its friends. Thanks a lot Jay for the much valuable information, I will enjoy it much more because of you !!!

[@Jason_Hermann]

Have fun and thanks for the comments!!

[@biogons14]

Excellent video test. I´d like to know if the back lens group moves when zooming or focusing the lens. This is a problem in dusty areas because of the bellows vacuum effect sukking dust into the sensor.

[@gcarmichael]

Excellent review! Looking at it for the same camera.

[@kingscourtgordondc]

You can adjust the size of the auto flexible spot by clicking on it and moving your joystick right or left. It usually is set on small but you can expand it to medium or large.

[@Jason_Hermann]

Thank you Gordon!! I knew that sucker adjusted in size and didn't realize I had to use the joystick instead of the control wheel. On most other Sony cameras the control wheel is used for this by pressing left and right. Little arrows show up next to the focus mode usually. I assumed the joystick only moved it around the screen. I wish I had more time with this set-up, because I knew I was missing a few things, but still wanted to get the review done. Thank you again ;)

[@chamodmalalathunga6920]

Great review 👍

[@Jason_Hermann]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@yvonnejohnson3198]

How do I mount the lens on a tripod?

[@sanderw1000]

I have the A7R III and the Canon 5D Mark IV, I am in doubt which is the best zoom lens option I should buy, Sony 10-400mm or Sigma 60-600mm, where can I use the MC-11 adapter for Sony, could you Give me an idea of ​​which one I should buy?

[@Algerie.Football.Officiel]

Do you think that with this lens we can take pictures of correct sports at night ... in a properly lit stadium, I want to associate it with an a7iii or an a7riii.? Thank you

[@Jason_Hermann]

Yes, if the lighting is sufficient, the lens will work awesome. It's really hard to say though for sure, because some stadiums are lit great while others are not. That lighting makes a big difference! If the lighting is not so great you will need to have the ISO pretty high in order to have a fast enough shutter speed for freezing action with that lens due to the slower max aperture... I hope that helps!

[@belezasdanatureza1539]

Olá ,está lente e boa para fazer filmagens de animais em seu habitat? Obrigado

[@tomkrist]

Great review...oh boy, alot of money....but its a question about 14 sweet days in mallorca, or 5 year with taking photos of everything, with that range you get everywhere:) Thanks for the video, it might help to decide if i should buy it or not.

[@CeazeTM]

Nice review, perhaps you could do a comparison with the 70-200 GM with a 2x teleconverter? Did you handhold for those dog shots? Love your reviews!

[@Jason_Hermann]

Thank you for the comments and kind words ;) I was hand holding for the dog shots, yes. Also, I have tried the 2x converter using the FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens, but I was using the A6500. See here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/p5qUd6iwfZWLj8km30s It was not as sharp as the 100-400mm when using the 2x teleconverter I noticed, but it did work pretty darn good overall. It's just not the same as a native lens though... I have not tried the 1.4x, but it should be a little sharper I hear ;)

[@Clemme]

Lovely video man. What breed is the beautiful dog at 13:35?

[@Jason_Hermann]

Thank you and that is Teddy an adopted mutt...

[@Myrrhoej]

I dream of this Lens combined with an a7iii (currently an a7ii owner)

[@bharatshahane5415]

Can you compare image quality of this lens at infinity and close up + IS/OSS efficiency of this lens with the Canon 100-400 f5.6 ver II on the same Sony FF body? Thanks!

[@Jason_Hermann]

I would love to, but I just don't think I'm going to be able to get all that gear at once... I can tell you for sure, the Sony FE 100-400mm will focus faster on the Sony camera body, no question. Image quality however, will be very close otherwise, because both lenses are killer quality in all areas. It would be hard to tell the difference, even when pixel peeping!! Each lens will have a slight advantage here or there, but again, very hard to tell. Jay

[@bharatshahane5415]

@@Jason_Hermann Thanks so much, Jay, for your input. The Canon is better built, cheaper and can also be used on a Canon body. The only advantage of the Sony lens being native is quicker AF.

[@Teeb2023]

_"The only advantage of the Sony lens being native is quicker AF."_ Quicker AF, and more so, more accurate AF is a crucial point for many people. A deal maker or breaker in fact.

[@KingofStreet3]

Would it be a bad idea to youse this on stills?

[@whoeverwhoever400]

I just got his lens. Everything is excellent, except one drawback - the lens extension when zooming. After taking some pictures at a cat house, I notice a lot of tiny fine hair/lints on the lens. Not very visible but quite some stick on the lens. I blow it with an air dust, but doesnt help much. The hairs are like magnet. And it only blow the hair into it. When i zoom in and out, I constantly see new hair/lint come out from the neck. Took me 25 mins to stick them out with tape. I wonder if there's still hair/lint stuck inside.

[@Jason_Hermann]

Well that sucks! I would not recommend using the lens in an environment like that again, unless you cover it up with a lens coat of some sort. Something that you can use in the rain to protect your lens would also work.

[@RokPodaro]

Hi Jay! Great review of the lens.My question is: Is it good for macro photography?

[@Jason_Hermann]

Hi Nikola, and I would say no this lens is not good for macro photography. Macro lenses allow you to get really close to your subject with a very short minimum focus distance. This is a super telephoto lens. Something like the FE 90mm f/2.8 G OSS Macro Lens would be a great option though. See my review here: www.sonyalphalab.com/my-sony-fe-90mm-f-2-8-macro-g-oss-lens-review/

[@RokPodaro]

@@Jason_Hermann Thanks for the reply.I will consider the new Sigma 105 mm 2.8 for macro photography then.I think its cheaper than sony version.But 1st this lens.Step by step or lens by lens 😎😎😎

[@thegame4027]

Really good review, OK.

[@Jason_Hermann]

lol

[@ChrisWunsch]

Fantastic review Jay! Thank you! I just purchased this lens and learned a ton from watching your video! Keep up the great work and thanks for sharing!

[@Jason_Hermann]

Awesome, thank you!

[@RicardoRodriguez-it6uw]

Can this be used for the Sony alpha a6400?

[@Alpa6c]

Ricardo Rodriguez This lens can be used with any any E-Mount body

[@RokPodaro]

Pls make video about new sigma 100 400 mm and gm lens?I really like to know detailed comparison between them.

[@Jason_Hermann]

Will do ;)

[@RokPodaro]

@@Jason_Hermann Great👍

[@PistolPC007]

I love the lens as I have one. Saving up for the 400 GM 2.8! It's funny with the kids playing football. They are like sponges, gloves on his hands? What are they, 8-10 years old?

[@Jason_Hermann]

HEy Peter, yeah about 9 years old or so... Some of the kids have gloves on, because it was pretty chilly out!

[@doniacx]

is it good to use with aps c a6400?

[@Jason_Hermann]

Yes, for sure!

[@maird1]

@ 12:04 that kid looks looks like Ken Rockwell's kid. Is Ken the friend you borrowed the lens from?

[@Jason_Hermann]

No I don't know Ken personally and I borrowed the lens from a local friend I used to work with.

[@nokay_ttv]

Can you explain what “panning” is? Thanks 🙏

[@nokay_ttv]

Or an example where we would want to use that mode? :)

[@Photokiakotos]

When you turn the lens left to right or right to left then you are panning.. Usually when you are focusing and picturing a football match!

[@anthonyc1883]

I wish the lens had internal zoom because when extended to 400mm , it's an ungainly looking beast, especially with the hood. I wouldn't care on the sidelines, but covering a parade, something like that, it's very conspicuous. But if the image quality is great, like the host and many other people are saying....hmm! Got me thinking.

[@johansmolinski]

That's some expensive piece of glass, but it seems pretty decent. I am a little worried over the high f stop though. I have the 70-200 G lens, which has f 4 at 200 mm. This GM lens has 4.5 at 100 mm if I got it right, then increasing while zooming in to 5.6 at 400 mm? Obviously it is a compromize for size and price... Though for me, the G would suite better from 100-200 than the GM, making the GM only useful for 200-400.

[@arthurgphotography6171]

For landscapes we're going to be shooting around F8 anyway most of the time, so I definitely plan on adding this one. Just got the 70-200 F4 myself.

[@kenni411]

that lens is bad ass! ....

[@kenni411]

great review and demo!

[@deeyammy783]

Listened to the half of it, had to pause to say OK :)

[@Jason_Hermann]

lol, sorry Dee. I'm really working hard on trying to fix that annoying habit of mine ;)

[@deeyammy783]

@@Jason_Hermann LOL, it's all cool!

[@briansavage932]

It's like you're standing in front of a real river!

[@sdijnfpo0jaisf]

Great review. Some constructive criticism. You say "ok?" quite frequently. Also, your sound quality is very echo-y. All the best

[@Jason_Hermann]

Thank you Sir ;) I appreciate the feedback and this is an older video, so I have tried to address those issues as best I can. A work in progress of course :)

[@brandonhoffman4712]

What about a 400 f4, or a 200-400 f4. There is better to be had although it also comes at a price and isn't natively available for Sony yet. A 400 f4 runs about 6500 bucks, and a 200-400 f4 lists at almost 11,000. Personally a 400 f4 sounds nice, Not too heavy for a 400 but better light capability. I know its not cheap. But a 2500 dollar lens with a light capability of 5.6 no thanks. (I do tend to shoot early morning though)

[@arthurgphotography6171]

I'd be stopping it down for corner sharpness anyway, so a non-issue for me.

[@tonyjames5444]

2500 for a great lens with poor weather sealing, (plenty of reviews stating this including probably the best one for this lens photographylife.com/reviews/sony-fe-100-400mm-f4-5-5-6-gm-oss ), why can't Sony get this right especially when other brands manage this. This is all the more annoying when you consider it's designed for outdoor use.

[@Jason_Hermann]

Hi Tony and thanks for the comments. I was not aware of this issue and only had the lens for 3 days, so I never had an issue either. I will look at the review you linked and get more information on the matter. That really sucks if using in harsh conditions and this occurs, because as you said it should not. Edit: I just checked out that review, and it was really good! As the reviewer stated the condensation is normal when going from cold to hot like that, but not on the inside of the lens generally. I wonder what Sony has to say about this? I have seen this before in the same situation while down in Florida on vacation, but I was using the aps-c Sony E 55-210mm lens which is not weather sealed.... it took a while for the humidity to dissipate as well. This is surprising for sure!

[@tonyjames5444]

@@Jason_Hermann Thanks for checking this out, I'm hoping it was a one off problem relating to the lens he was using because as you say apart from that it looked excellent. (Also I'm not sure if he had this problem when not using the convertor).

[@billwight8539]

It was great....until the 200-600.

[@FitzMichael]

That setup is awesome. But the tripod knob is so cheap

[@togitom]

Please get a mic!