Sony FE 50-150mm F/2 GM - Hands on Review of This Powerful, Expensive, Amazing Lens
posted Tuesday, April 22, 2025 at 10:01 AM EDT
Light rain fell as thousands of protesters streamed by. For over three hours, people marched shoulder-to-shoulder down Manhattan's Fifth Avenue in an unbroken show of protest from Bryant Park to Madison Square Park. It is rare for New Yorkers to do anything in solidarity, but on a damp, overcast day, they came together to demonstrate a rare unity of purpose.
My first photography job was as a stringer for a local newspaper, and heading out into a crowd to document political rallies is nothing new. Still, the gear I used to capture this march was radically different. For this, at the Indivisible "Hands Off" rally in Manhattan, I was equipped with the Sony FE 50-150mm f/2 GM lens and the Sony a7R V.
This, Sony's eightieth lens, is beautifully unique. As a photojournalist, my constant travel companions were the 24-70mm, 70-200mm, and often a 35mm or 50mm prime, depending on the gig.
The primes came along because even my zooms' f/2.8 apertures lacked the background defocus of a good f/1.4 or f/1.8 wide-aperture lens.
On paper, the FE 50-150mm seems like an odd—or maybe even unnecessary—combination of focal lengths and aperture. A 70-200mm can capture most of the focus distance, while f/2 doesn't seem that different from f/2.8. This lens perfectly exemplifies the aphorism "don't judge a book by its cover."
In the right situations, this is one of the best lenses I've ever used.
Editor's Note: Our content system re-compresses images, reducing their colors and sharpness. For better image quality examples, check out our hands-on review and the slideshow videos below.
Our Hands-On Review Video
Our Sony 50-150mm f/2 GM Image Sample Slideshow
What Makes the Sony FE 50-150mm F/2 GM So Special
The f/2 aperture has much to do with it, but the overall package makes it a standout lens. The 50-150mm GM is one of a series of lenses that breaks convention with unique focal lengths and capabilities. Sigma's recent 300-600mm f/4 DG OS lens is another good example, as are specialty lenses like the Tamron 50-400mm f/4.5-6.3 Di III VC VXD with its half-macro capabilities and super-telephoto length.
Let's start with the eye-catching f/2 aperture, the standout spec of the lens, which, I think, will leave some people scratching their heads. Aperture values are a strange way to describe the amount of light hitting a sensor because they're a mathematical way to describe both the opening of a lens and the focal length. It's the kind of system only a Victorian mathematician could love.
How different could an f/2.8 lens be compared to an f/2 lens? The decimal point is deceiving, as f/2 has just slightly more than a stop of light gathering than f/2.8. To put this another way, f/2 to f/2.8 is the same light-gathering jump as f/2.8 to f/4.
The full stop of light gathering in the Sony 50-150mm GM is critically important to the target customer. Photojournalists, wedding photographers, portrait shooters, and nature/wildlife shooters can shoot in lower light conditions without cranking up the ISO.
The f/2 aperture also provides a level of background defocus that is uncommon in a telephoto lens in this focal length range. Again, the difference in background defocus from f/2 to f/2.8 is the same as from f/2.8 to f/4. Ask any portrait shooter if they'd rather have an f/2.8 or f/4 lens, and you'll see why this is the go-to lens for many photographers and videographers.
It's What's on the Inside That Counts
The wide aperture on the Sony FE 50-100mm f/2 GM wouldn't matter if the image quality and performance weren't superb. Sony is known for its image quality and handling of its pro-level glass; this new GM lens is no exception.
Internally, the lens contains 18 elements in 15 groups, including one XA, two ED, and one Super ED element. This mix reduces chromatic aberrations and maintains edge-to-edge clarity, even at f/2. The 11-blade aperture creates a smooth, buttery background.
But it's not just about image quality. The dual linear motors and focus system enable fast, nearly silent autofocus. Sony's newest focus motors in the 50-150mm range can easily keep up with the 30-plus frames-per-second capture rate of the Alpha 9 III and the subject-detection system.
It's Also What's on the Outside That Counts
The Sony FE 50-150mm f/2 GM is surprisingly small. At 947 grams, it weighs just a hair over two pounds and is only six inches long (152.3mm) without the hood.
While it's stockier than Sony's 70-200mm f/2.8 GM II, it's a tad shorter and lighter. The focal length range of 50-150mm likely keeps this lens from being an oversized monster; the 70-200 has a 130mm range, while the 50-150mm is only 100mm from widest to longest focal length.
Using the Sony FE 50-150mm f/2 GM
The lens is very comfortable. The tripod mount is removable, which is a welcome design for the handheld shooting I did at the rally and when shooting portraits. It has the usual complement of switches and controls, including aperture lock and settings for focal length range and stabilization.
I spent more than three hours walking along the protest route with the camera and never felt the lens was unwieldy. Sony's early zoom rings had a lot of "throw," meaning you had to crank the dial to change focal lengths. The FE 50-150mm has Sony's more recent short-throw design, which makes it easy to compose a shot.
Sony's wide-aperture lenses show how good its cameras' eye-detect AF is. I shot the lens with the Alpha 9 III and the Alpha 7R V; in both cases, the lens focused instantly on my intended subject. This was no trivial feat at the march, where the faces of protesters were often partially obscured by signs and other marchers.
The controls on the lens's body are well placed, though I largely consider them set-and-forget. If I switch to manual focus, I use the camera's focus settings, not the lens switch. Likewise, I rarely change the image stabilization mode, and I like to use the lens with the aperture de-clicked so I can quickly switch between photo and video use.
I haven't seen a switch on other lenses to control Dynamic Manual Focus (DMF). DMF is a hybrid of autofocus and manual focus. It uses a camera's AF system for initial focus and allows that focus to be overridden with a turn of the focus dial.
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DMF is particularly helpful if the AF locks on something other than the desired subject. A good use of DMF is portraits of people wearing glasses with thick lenses. Most AF systems lock on the frame or the surface of the lens, which can leave the eyes out of focus. With DMF, you can let the camera pick out the glasses and then make a slight adjustment to match the magnification of the lenses, leaving the eyes sharp.
DMF is normally a stand-alone setting in the focus menu, and while it can be programmed to activate with a custom button, having the switch on the lens is a huge time saver that will result in more in-focus images in tricky conditions.
After multiple hours of walking in drizzle and rain, I can confidently say the water resistance works. I had forgotten the lens hood at home, so I was able to accidentally test the front element coating Sony claims repels water. For my review of the Sony 400-800mm f/6.3-8 G OSS lens, I took the lens to the tropical aviary at the Central Park Zoo and was impressed that the front of the lens only fogged up a little. The 50-150mm f/2 seems to repel water, and the 400-800mm is kept from fogging.
Thankfully, the tripod leg is removable. I would only mount this lens to a tripod for video, so having a foot on the bottom would drive me insane during handheld shooting. Too many zoom lenses on the market have either no tripod foot or a tripod foot that can't be removed.
While the lens is beefy, it's not awkward in the hand. The 50-150mm f/2 GM is well balanced, and the internal zoom mechanism keeps the lens balanced regardless of the focal length.
The autofocus is blazingly fast. Sony's GM line has always had the fastest focusing systems available at the time of their introduction, but the 50-150mm motors are some of Sony's newest. As a result, newer GM lenses have significantly faster AF than first-generation GM lenses.
Sony has gone back and re-engineered their AF motors, and the recent GM II lenses take advantage of these new linear motors in the first generation of lenses like the 70-200mm GM II. The takeaway is that the GM moniker on this lens is equivalent to the GM II on the previous lenses.
The Proof is in the Looking
Most of my resolution and image quality tests were done with the lens wide open or close to wide open, since sharpness is good on most lenses when stopped down.
With the f/2 aperture, I get pinpoint accuracy on a subject's eye while still having a creamy background defocus. The wide aperture showed off the detail possible with the lens's optical design. This woman in a penguin costume is a good example of the resolving power of this lens. Shot from about 15 yards away on the Sony a7R V, the detail in her face is on par with the prime glass I use when shooting weddings.
The detail is exceptional. The small hairs on their ear are visible in one shot of a protester. I'm not sure I would have been able to see those hairs standing directly in front of them. The lens reminds me of Sony's 85mm f/1.4 GM II, one of the sharpest lenses I've ever used.
These backyard wildlife shots show the razor-thin focus range of the lens when shot at f/2. Combined with the excellent subject-detection systems, it's possible to track fast-moving subjects and still have pinpoint focus, with a fast sharpness that falls off into the smooth background defocus.
Sony FE 50-150mm f/2 GM Purchase Thoughts
The Sony FE 50-150mm f/2 GM is an interesting lens; some will find it perplexing. However, with a 70-200mm GM II already available, this lens won't make sense for many users. On our briefing call about this lens, one reviewer questioned the 50-150mm value when wider aperture primes exist and current zooms are available at f/2.8.
I countered that this lens is designed for the people who need it most. It is similar to the Sony 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 and the new Sigma 300-600mm f/4 Sport. Casual wildlife shooters might not need the Sigma lens's wider fixed aperture, but those who do need it.
For wedding photographers, this is a no-brainer. The 50mm "standard" lens is a mainstay of portrait photography, and the f/2 is only a third stop slower than an f/1.8. The holy grail of wedding photography is a lens that can go from 50mm to 150mm without a variable aperture.
One of my passions is sports photography, and an f/2 lens provides a unique look not available from an f/2.8 or f/4 70-200mm lens. Likewise, wildlife photographers can get a look unmatched by other zooms. Photographing an elk in the distance is not long enough, but birds and other close-up subjects have a unique look.
Even landscape photographers may love this lens. This won't replace a 16-35mm or even a prime 24mm lens, but being able to shoot at f/2 gives these photographers a range of previously unavailable options.
Should you buy the Sony FE 50-150mm f/2 GM?
If you saw the name of this lens and were excited by its potential, this lens is for you. The lens executes on its promises with exceptional image quality, focus, build quality, and use.
Admittedly, this is a niche product. If you scratched your head (and are still scratching your head after reading this review), the Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM II may be a better choice. If that lens feels exorbitant, the Sony 70-200mm f/4 may be the right choice.
Where to buy the Sony FE 50-150mm f/2 GM
The lens's pre-orders are now open and can be pre-ordered at B&H and Adorama.
More Sample Images
Editor's Note: Our content system recompresses images, reducing their colors and sharpness. Check out our hands-on review and the slideshow videos above for better image quality examples.
