Sony SAL-28F28 28mm f/2.8 Wide Angle Lens for Sony Alpha Digital SLR Camera

by Sony

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 2.5 x 2.5 x 1.8 inches ; 6.4 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B000G25NI6
• Item model number: SAL28F28
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: June 17, 2003

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Enjoy superb value from the SAL-28f28 wide-angle lens, an excellent choice for sharp, high-contrast shots whether you're working indoors, shooting people in groups, or hoping to take panoramic shots of landscapes and urban scenes. The 28mm lens--which mounts easily on a Sony Alpha DSLR-A100 camera--provides a near-standard 42mm focal length (35mm equivalent), with wide-angle optics and a deep depth of field. The lens's compact size and light weight, meanwhile, make it easy to carry when traveling or performing long shooting sessions. Finally, the lens includes a convenient built-in sliding lens hood that protects your optics and makes it faster to switch lenses.

• Focal length: 28mm (42mm 35mm equivalent)
• Filter diameter: 49mm
• Minimum focus distance: 1 foot
• Magnification: 0.13x
• Lens group elements: 5 groups and 5 elements
• Distance scale: Yes
• Distance encoder: No
• Depth of field: Yes
• Maximum aperture: f/2.8
• Minimum aperture: f/22
• Blades: 7 aperture blades
• Asperhic elements: No
• Lens type: Wide angle and wide-angle zoom
• Dimensions: 2.56 inches in diameter and 1.56 inches long
• Weight: 7 ounces

Product Description

The Sony 28mm f/2.8 Wide-Angle Lens delivers a superb value in a wide-angle lens for interiors, group photos and landscapes. With its precision optics, compact size and wide 75-degree angle of view, this lens is an excellent choice for sharp, high-contrast shots when youre working indoors, with people in groups, or in landscapes and urban scenes when you want a panoramic or inclusive shot with lots of detail. Mounted on the Sony Alpha DSLR-A100 camera, this lightweight wide-angle lens provides a near-standard 42mm focal length (35mm equivalent).

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent lens with an excellent price, January 1, 2009

By 

Diego Raigoza Nuñez (Torreon, Coahuila, Mexico) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Sony SAL-28F28 28mm f/2.8 Wide Angle Lens for Sony Alpha Digital SLR Camera (Electronics)

Disregard all the negative reviews youve read about this lens, the Sony SAL 28F28 its a GREAT lens on its own.

The lens is small, light and discrete, with a hidden hood built in it, may not be a big hood, but its better than nothing.

Most people and websites compare this lens with far more expensive wide angle lenses, making it a toxic mess to stay away from. SO NOT TRUE.

This lens is sharp, even at f/2.8, has a great DOF and bokeh even though its aperture blades arent circular.

On a APS-C sensor, this camera will yield a 42mm focal length, which sort of makes it a portrait lens rather than a wide angle, in APS-C sensors, you require a lens made specifically for that size of sensor if you need a wide angle. This lens its a full frame lens. If you need a wide angle on APS-C, look at the Sony 11-18mm, Sigma 10-20mm or Tamron 10-24mm or 11-18mm.

Despite that fact, this lens is great to work with indoors, its large aperture will help you get shots without a flash and will make portraits look stunning.

The only downside Ive seen to this lens its the filter size, 49mm, not very common if you plan to attach filters to it. I may be wrong though, look for filters this size if you will need them.

A great feature of this lens its that it allows you to shoot from very close to your subjects, its focusing distance allows you to get shots that borderline on macro, even though this isnt a macro lens.

This is a great lens if youre in a budget and you need a fast prime (fixed focal length lens), and even if youre not on a budget, this lens will yield beautiful results.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A not to be dismissed affordable performer for full frame sensors, April 21, 2011

By 

Andrew Siew (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sony SAL-28F28 28mm f/2.8 Wide Angle Lens for Sony Alpha Digital SLR Camera (Electronics)

Prime lenses were popular items with professional photographers for the simple fact that they have incredible optical qualities, wide aperture range, lightweight bodies and generally do not exhibit distortions as much as their zoomable siblings. However, as photography becomes more and more accessible and affordable to everyone else, the advantages of these primes lenses are getting ignored by a substantial number of enthusiasts and hobbyists who would rather have the convenience of a zoom lens over a few prime glasses.

With the exception of true portrait lenses such as the SAL35F18 SAM, SAL35F14G, SAL50F14 and the SAL85F14Z, most prime lenses from the Sony Alpha line-up are probably the least ordered items at any Sony store.

And what a shame it is.

If you were to look at the entire line-up of the current Sony Alpha system, you will notice that Sony has only four full frame lenses below 35mm, the SAL16F28, the SAL20F28, SAL28F28 and the very expensive Distagon SAL24F20Z. Out of these four lenses, the SAL28F28 is priced at around 250 dollars, which places it next to two easy choice lenses, the SAL35F18 and SAL85F28. A fact not be overlooked for the simple fact that the SAL28F28 is a Japanese import with a standard metal-mount and a built-in DOF scale.

The specifications of the lens may not mean much to photographers with cropped sensors and multiple zoom lenses that go from 18mm upwards, but if you examine the Alpha lens line-up carefully, you will notice that in order for you to get anything wider than the 35mm FOV on your full frame a850 or a900, the SAL28F28 is actually the cheapest model with the best built you will find. Sony makes a legion of DT lenses including a Carl-Zeiss model, but non of these DT lenses are fully compatible with the full-frame a850 and the a900. No one with an a850 or a900 would want to shoot at 11 Megapixels with a 24.6 Megapixel sensor.

Most of Sony's full frame wide-angle zoom lenses are of the Carl Zeiss variant (which costs way over 1k), and even though the newly introduced SAL2875F28 matches the FOV and DOF of the SAL28F28 at wide-end, I do not see myself parting easily with 800 dollars to get a zoom lens that only has a 2.6X zoom. The SAL2875F28 is a non Carl-Zeiss, non G-grade lens. The SAL2875F28 does however has its selling point, which is the fixed maximum aperture of F2.8 over its entire zoom range.

The SAL28F28 is also not limited to landscape and group photography as well. With the minumum shooting distance of just 30 centimeters, I was able to frame a portrait of an 8" Angry Bird (see customer's image) with this tiny prime and successfully blur out the background with the help of the larger A850's 35mm sensor. For such a small piece of glass, the SAL28F28 is surprisingly versatile and is able to provide some very impressive exposures.

In conclusion, the SAL28F28 may never quite be the "companion" lens for everyone, but with its incredibly well built body and size, it makes a powerful, easy to carry ally to landscape photographers and casual photgraphers that shoot group portraits using full-frame models. A not to be dismissed, affordable little performer.

5.0 out of 5 stars Compact. Compact. and Compact, August 1, 2011

By 

Sung H. Baik "mr.baikiya" (San Diego, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sony SAL-28F28 28mm f/2.8 Wide Angle Lens for Sony Alpha Digital SLR Camera (Electronics)

I believe this lens has discontinued for now. I just purchased this lens despite of many negative reviews from photozone or dpreview. The reason is this lens is super compact. I need a everyday lens for my A55. Even 28mm on APC-S body is 42mm lens. That is my favorite focal length always. This is not good for wide very good for standard lens(especially on crop bodies)

hidden hood is another interesting idea since minolta. Actually, I am not a big fan of new sony lens looking even 35F18, 30M20, 50F18, 85F28 etc... 50mm 1.4 and 28mm 2.8 has something more traditional looking & feeling. I love that part too.

Anyway, picture quality is not good as Carl Zeiss lenses but it is worth. Compact and A priority works are all good for me. sometimes it makes better picture than 50mm1.4. (Good for portrait indoor)

Sony's CZ lenses are extremely great but for the money. this lens is very good substitution.

5 stars on this lens.

I am an amateur photographer.