Best Zoom Lens For Sony A6000

Like me, do you also want the zoomed content to look like freshly baked crispy biscuits? Then, you may have been wandering here and there in search of the perfect zoom lens and struggling a lot to get perfect zoomed stills or videos with them.

I understand! I also tried many cameras and zoom lenses, though I still continue exploring the vast sea of lenses.

best zoom lens for Sony A6000

Well! Worry no more! It’s time to take perfect images, whether you’re zooming in or pulling back.

Today, I’ve prepared a list of the best zoom lenses for Sony A6000 or other APS-C E-mount cameras. I will also add a comprehensive buying guide to help you further.

In a hurry?! Here are my top picks for the best zoom lenses for Sony A6000

REVIEW OF BEST SONY A6000 ZOOM LENSES

1. SONY 18-135MM F3.5-5.6 OSS APS-C E-MOUNT ZOOM LENS

SONY 18-135MM F3.5-5.6 - A6000 zoom lens

PRODUCT DETAILS:

  • E-Mount Lens/APS-C Format
  • f/3.5 to f/36 Aperture Range
  • 7.5X high magnification zoom and 27-202.5mm (35mm Equivalent) focal length
  • Two ED Elements & One Aspherical Element
  • Optical SteadyShot Image Stabilization
  • Linear AF Motor
  • Seven-Blade Circular Diaphragm
  • Weighs less than 1 Lbs

DESIGN:

You may have tried many lenses like me, but this 18-135 mm OSS E-mount zoom lens of Sony is exactly the thing you probably missed. Don’t you?

This lens has exceeded my expectations of everything, from wide-angle zooming capability to clarity or price to portability. I knew that you’d agree with my claims by the end of its review.

First and foremost, you’d fall in love with its lightweight yet ergonomic design. You can comfortably carry around this 0.72 lbs lens without breaking your back or feeling bogged down.

FEATURES AND PERFORMANCE:

Next, it comes to the lens quality and shooting performance. It lets you cover an expansive range of photographic expressions. Meanwhile, the lens construction with 1 aspherical and 2 ED glass elements will amaze you by providing outstanding sharpness and clarity. A petal-shaped hood is there on the lens to offer good protection.

I found this premium quality lens delivers a great depth of force and exposure, even in the largest aperture range or extreme low light conditions. Moreover, the lens is genuinely a reliable option for capturing handheld still or video work while moving. These two things make this lens convenient for photojournalists.

I’ve been using this lens for a long time, as I always want to have creativity and comfort in a single package.

What I liked about this LENS:

  • Great bokeh
  • Fantastic focal length
  • Excellent wide-angle coverage
  • Perfect solution for handheld stills and videos
  • Extremely lightweight and comfortably portable

2. SONY SEL1655G ALPHA 16-55MM F2.8 G STANDARD ZOOM APS-C LENS

SONY SEL1655G ALPHA 16-55MM F2.8 G - Zoom Sony A6000

PRODUCT DETAILS:

  • E-Mount Lens/APS-C Format
  • 52.5mm Focal Length (35mm Equivalent)
  • f/1.8 to f/22 Aperture Range
  • 44 ° Angle of View
  • One ED Element & Two Aspherical Elements
  • Optical SteadyShot Image Stabilization
  • Internal Focus
  • Minimum Focus Distance: 11.8"
  • Seven-Blade Circular Diaphragm
DESIGN:

The lens is pretty lightweight for comfortably carrying around. Moreover, it has a robust and ergonomic design, making it suitable for outdoor usage and easy to handle. For instance, the AF/Mf switch on the side of the lens lets you instantly and quickly switch between auto and manual focus. You could lock the focus on a particular area or object by using the focus hold button.

FEATURES AND PERFORMANCE:

Exposure parameters are crucial to make the zoomed shots perfect every time. I always looked for something with professional-grade exposure options.

Luckily, I got beyond my expectations from this Sony’s standard zoom lens. It offers flexible snapshot capabilities with outstanding picture quality, which helps keep my photography and videography stand out against the competition.

It has a fixed aperture of F2.8 max; that maintains pro-level exposure and depth of field to ensure beautifully crisp shots. This telephoto zoom lens is just ideal for filming smooth macros of flower blossoming and insects with sharp details at different distances.

Another best part of this lens is the rounded 9-blade aperture; that lets me take the storytelling to another level. Be in long distant views of cities miles away or close-ups of such tiny objects; when I add beautiful round-shaped bokeh to hide unwanted background elements the visual appeal will make you fall in love with this lens for sure.

What I liked about this LENS:

  • Greater control over depth of field
  • Works well in difficult lighting conditions
  • Quick, quiet, and precise autofocus performance
  • The best protection from dust, moisture, and fingerprints
  • Compact and durable design with the solid build quality

3. SONY ALPHA 70-350MM F4.5-6.3 G OSS SUPER-TELEPHOTO APS-C LENS

SONY ALPHA 70-350MM F4.5-6.3 G - Sony A6000 power zoom

PRODUCT DETAILS:

  • Dust and moisture resistance design
  • Lightweight, only 22oz
  • 5X super-telephoto zoom
  • 70-350 mm (105-525mm full-frame equivalent) Flexible Focal length
  • F/4.5 to F/6.3 Aperture Range
  • Xd linear motor in AF unit
  • Optical SteadyShot image stabilization

DESIGN:

The best part about this lens is that it’s appropriate for heavy-duty outdoor use and pretty lightweight too. The included hood and lens coating prevents the delicate lens from getting scratched, fingerprinted, and damaged due to dust and moisture.

In addition to that, it also has handy physical control options, like the previous one, making it suitable for capturing fast-paced action shots.

FEATURES AND PERFORMANCE:

Do you want an all-in-all solution to up your photography game? You could try this super-telephoto APS-C lens from Sony’s Alpha series without looking further.

From challenging sports action shots to special moments in close-ups with family and friends, you could blindly trust this large-aperture telephoto lens every time.

This large-aperture lens offers detail and speed to ensure clarity in any situation. The focus hold button and auto and manual focus control options help you do so with ease.

Another best part is that the lens is appropriate for heavy-duty outdoor use and pretty lightweight too.

Once I tried this telephoto lens on my Sony Alpha A6000 during a jungle adventure. I was in a moving boat and constantly watching to see the tigers on the river bank. Luckily, we got to spot tigers.

And the best part was when my friends saw the footage I captured, they found its quality seems to be the professional-looking video; that we generally see on the discovery channel. With this impressive telephoto lens, you can make fast-moving players to animals all come right into the shot.

What I liked about this LENS:

  • Remarkably easy to handle
  • Fast, precise, quiet autofocus
  • 7-blade circular aperture contributes to gorgeous bokeh
  • Prevents blur by compensating for camera shake
  • Impressive corner-to-corner G lens resolution

4. SONY E 55-210MM F4.5-6.3 LENS FOR SONY E-MOUNT CAMERAS (BLACK)

PRODUCT DETAILS:

  • APS-C / DX Format E-mount lens
  • Aspherical lens elements, ED (Extra-low Dispersion) glass, and 7 circular aperture blades for pleasing bokeh
  • Optical Steady Shot image stabilization
  • 0.23X Maximum Magnification ratio
  • 29 °– 7 ° 40' Angle of view (on APS-C)
  • 70-350 mm (82 - 315mm 35mm equivalent) Focal lengthF/4.5 to F/6.3 Aperture Range

DESIGN:

This Sony E 55-210mm F4.5-6.3 lens is specifically designed for the Sony E-Mount cameras. It is a compact, easy-to-handle, and lightweight lens; that carries only 0.74 lbs. But it lacks some advanced physical controls, though I consider it a blessing, as I can fully concentrate on the subject of the photography instead of the components used in this process.

FEATURES AND PERFORMANCE:

I appreciate this E-mount telephoto lens as, unlike most other lenses, it performs well over the entire zoom range. So, it lets me see each and every detail once I take it in my hand.

The aspherical lens elements maintain high sharpness and contrast at the highest magnification and maximum aperture points. Moreover, the lens-based optical image stabilization prevents all sorts of distortions by compensating for camera shake. On the other hand, the 7-blade aperture will give you an effortless blurring effect.

Be it fast action up close shots or far away shots, you can capture whatever kind of shots you’re trying to get with this large-aperture telephoto zoom lens.

In addition to that, the advanced internal focusing unit enables silent, smooth, and accurate focusing capabilities. This responsive AF unit makes this lens much more convenient for sports and nature videography, where you often need to change your focus from one important element or player to another.

What I liked about this LENS:

  • Versatile lens
  • Wide zoom range
  • Excellent image quality
  • Quick and reliable autofocus
  • Solid build quality

5. SONY 18-200MM F3.5-6.3 E-MOUNT LENS SEL18200LE

PRODUCT DETAILS:

  • E-Mount Lens/APS-C Format
  • 27-300mm (35mm Equivalent) Focal length
  • F/3.5-6.3 to F/22-40 Aperture Range
  • Two ED and Four Aspherical Elements
  • Optical SteadyShot Image Stabilization
  • Linear Autofocus Motor; Internal Focus with Zoom Lock Switch
  • Seven-Blade Circular Diaphragm

DESIGN:

When I plan to go out with my Sony A6000, the SEL18200LE is one of my best-beloved companies. I have loved this lens since I just started my photography career. It's lightweight and offers ample physical controls, making it beginner-friendly. The lens has a great combination of portability and performance.

FEATURES AND PERFORMANCE:

The lens provides satisfying clarity over the entire zooming range. The Aspherical lens design and ED glass construction reduce flare and ghosting, as well as ensure impressive color fidelity and high contrast. Such advanced lens construction minimizes every type of aberration from the pictures.

In addition, the internal focusing system provides excellent fast and precise autofocusing performance.

This telephoto lens will work as a blessing for all types of shots. You’ll get impressive shots every time, from faraway subjects to tight close-ups. The range of aperture and focal length is flexible enough to capture great portraits as well as action shots.

What I liked about this LENS:

  • Lightweight & compact
  • Decent bokeh
  • Excellent sharpness
  • Versatile lens
  • Less Inexpensive

6. SONY SELP18105G E PZ 18-105MM F4 G OSS, BLACK

PRODUCT DETAILS:

  • E-Mount Lens/APS-C Format
  • 27-158 mm (35mm Equivalent) Focal length
  • F/4 to F/22 Aperture Range
  • 76° - 15° Angle of view (APS C)
  • Two ED and Four Aspherical Elements
  • Optical SteadyShot Image Stabilization
  • Linear Autofocus Motor; Internal Focus with Zoom Lock Switch
  • Seven-Blade Circular Diaphragm

DESIGN:

The Sony SELP18105G is another compact and lightweight zoom lens A6000; that also has an advanced Aspherical optical design. The design minimizes the total number of elements to reduce the overall size and weight.

The lens is specifically meant for APS-C-format E-mount. The manufacturers include a lens hood and front and rear cap into the package to ensure the best protection for the delicate lens.

FEATURES AND PERFORMANCE:

To be fair, I’m not claiming that this lens can beat every option in terms of aperture or focal range. But I checked this lens at every focal length; trust me, it provides impressive sharpness with every F-stop through the entire zooming range.

Before using this lens, I deal with a dedicated prime lens and a Sony A6000 zoom control lens. But I was surprised when this zoom lens allowed me to zoom 87 and gold on its own against my prime lens. Then, I thought - why would I carry an extra prime lens?

However, you have to spend much time experimenting with every aspect of this lens. Thus, you can explore why I consider it at the top 6 zoom lenses for Sony A6000.

In summary, the fast and reliable internal focusing unit, lens-based optical image stabilization, and circular aperture design for pleasing bokeh quality are the things; that will be worth the price you pay for it. Overall, this lens also deserves a big thumbs-up! What do you think?

What I liked about this LENS:

  • Amazing build quality
  • Great walk-around lens
  • Autofocus speed is just incredible
  • Excellent sharpness
  • High contrast

BUYER’S GUIDE: BEST ZOOM LENS FOR SONY ALPHA A6000

  • Aperture:

You may have noticed that I mentioned two aperture numbers of the lenses. The larger number indicates the amount of light you’ll get at the highest zooming point, and the smaller aperture number defines how much light you’ll get at the widest angle.

The Telephoto lenses often come with larger aperture numbers, and you can expect the best result with an aperture range of between f/2.4 and f/3.2.

  • FOCAL LENGTH:

The focal length usually extends from 35 mm to 105 mm (according to the 135 formats) on regular compact cameras with 3x zoom.

  • IMAGE STABILIZATION:

The telephoto lenses are usually physically larger and more vulnerable to blurriness than others. So, you should always choose an OSS zoom lens. The optical image stabilization will completely eliminate the issue of blurriness and all sorts of distortions if there are any camera shakes or you shoot at the highest magnification point.

  • Build, weight & size:

The zoom lenses are relatively larger and weighty than others. You can still get some impressive telephoto zoom lenses within 0.72lbs, probably the lightest weight for zoom lenses.

We generally carry telephoto lenses separately into our camera bag, so most lenses come with a lens hood and front and rear cap.

Some of them are made of dust and moisture-resistant glass materials with a reliable lens coating to ensure the best protection for the delicate lens.

  • PRICE:

The wide-angle telephoto lenses with hefty price tags of around $2000 tend to be the sharpest lens ever. Their features are worth every single penny. There you’ll also get some affordable zoom lenses under $1000; that offers overall good zooming performance with decent sharpness.

CONCLUSION

Say goodbye to frustrating blurry zoomed pictures seeing the world through these Sony A6000 power zoom lenses. I’m just in love with all the lenses I’ve talked about today in this article. What are your thoughts on them?


By the way, is there any lens that I didn’t mention here, but you find it excellent to pair with the Sony A6000 camera? If yes, please share with us and leave your thoughts below.

Moumita
 

Hey, this is Moumita, a professional writer, blogger, and passionate short-film maker. It all started when I read a subject paper; called Film Studies at my graduation and post-graduation level. Since, then I started to fall for cinematography, photography, and keeping myself updated about this world. So, I'm here to share my thoughts regarding the filmmaking gadgets; hoping you'll find my suggestion and guidance helpful.

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