Lenses
Photographers using Sony’s mirrorless crop sensor cameras now have access to a brighter wide-angle lens than before. On Thursday, April 22, Tamron announced the 11-20mm f/2.8 Di III-A RXD lens, a compact ultra-wide lens made for Sony’s crop sensor cameras. Tamron says the lens is the first f/2.8 ultra-wide angle for Sony’s crop sensor cameras. The lens was announced alongside the new Tamron 150-500mm f/5-6.7 Di III VC VXD, which is designed for full-frame E-Mount cameras.
[Read: Tamron’s Smallest Telephoto Zoom for Sony E-Mount]
The Tamron 11-20mm f/2.8 Di III-A RXD shoots as close as 5.9 inches in front of the lens, which allows for a 1:4 magnification ratio. That in combination with the f/2.8 aperture should help the lens capture softer backgrounds, despite the ultra-wide angle. Tamron says the lens mixes that close-up shooting with the distortion that naturally comes with wide-angle lenses, so photographers should expect a bit of barrel distortion coming from this lens.

The lens is built from 12 elements in 10 groups. That construction includes glass moulded aspherical for sharpness, extra low dispersion and low dispersion for sharpness and aberration correction, and a Broad-Band Anti-Reflection Generation 2 coating to reduce flare and ghosting.
[Read: Sony FE 14mm f/1.8 G Master Lens—A Wide Angle That Fights Distortion]
Despite both the wide angle and wide aperture, the lens measures under 3.5 inches long and weighs 11.8 ounces. Tamron designed the lens to be moisture resistant, with a fluorine coating on the lens front.
The Tamron 150-500mm f/5-6.7 is the company’s first full-frame mirrorless to hit 500mm. Mounted on a crop sensor, it covers the equivalent of 225-750mm.
[Read: Sony’s E-Mount G Lenses Are Tiny and Powerful]

The telephoto lens is equipped with stabilization and a linear focus motor. The lens can focus as close as 23.6 inches from the front of the lens, which is a 1:3.1 magnification ratio. Despite such a long range, the lens is only 8.3 inches long when stored and 11.1 inches at full zoom. Like the 11-20mm, the 150-500mm is also weather-sealed. Both lenses are compatible with Sony’s Fast Hybrid AF and Eye AF.
[Read: Sony A1 50.1MP Powerhouse is Unveiled]
The pair are expected to be available in June, the 150-500mm coming first, on June 10, and the 11-20mm following on June 24. Tamron says that the pandemic could change the release date, however.
11-20mm f/2.8 Di III-A RXD lens: $829
150-500mm f/5-6.7 Di III VC VX lens: $1,399