Before we go on; yes, Sony already had a 24-70mm lens with a G Master branding on it. Yes, it was also rather expensive. Yes, it shoots rather pretty photos. Also yes, it shoots nicer than the standard Sony 24-70 F4 G lens. So why do we need another 24-70 F2.8?
Because it is a better one than before.
More Compact, More Portable
They call the new one the FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM II, or code named SEL2470GM2. It is much lighter than before with about 20% of weight shaved off from the previous lens. It now sits pretty in your bag, or hand, at less than 700 grams.
If you put it beside the first iteration of Sony’s highly acclaimed 24-70mm G Master, you can see how much effort Sony puts into the Mk. II in terms of weight saving too. It is a much smaller lens overall. It is shorter by 16mm and much slimmer than before too, about 18% slimmer than before. With all the weight shavings, Sony can claim that this is the lightest and most compact lens of its kind, at least for the time being.
More Speed, More Performance
Smaller size does not mean that Sony has compromised on its performance though. They have managed to first improve its autofocusing (AF) ability. It is still the same Extreme Dynamic (XD) Linear motors working on the AF mechanism, but iis now much faster than before. It can support up to 30fps in continuous still shooting and up to 4K 120fps in video recording mode. That might not sound like a lot, but it is mighty impressive to work with in this sort of lens. Sony also claims that the AF tracker is about twice as precise than before.
For the videographers, Sony is making the 24-70mm G Master an even better lens to work with. Thanks to a newly developed aperture unit (now with 11 aperture blades instead of 9), AF operations is quieter than before. The improved motors have also reduced focus breathing, focus shift, and axial shift when zooming to ensure that you get a nice, smooth, immersive video footages when it matters. Of course, you still can work with manual zoom if you want.
Better Elements, Better Images
They managed to fit better glasses in this compact form too. Sony first treated the lens with a Nano AR Coating II. This is to reduce reflections on the glass that in turn reduces lens flares. The new glasses within the lens also allows the Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 G Master II to produce photos with beautiful depth effect in all sorts of zoom range. At the same time. The new lens also allows a shorter focusing distance at 0.21 and 0.30 meters at its minimum (@24mm and 70mm respectively) with up to .32x magnification.
All this is achieved through the five aspherical elements found in the lens. There are two high-precision extreme aspherical glass elements paired with two extra-low dispersion glass elements and one floating focus mechanism. The combination of elements also allows the lens to capture photos with high-resolution even at the edges of the photos.
More Precise, More Control
To top it all off, Sony has made improvements on the lens body itself to give users more control over the lens. There is a zoom smoothness switch on the zoom ring to adjust its smoothness now. There are two customisable focus hold buttons in the lens as well. At the same time, some work has been done on the focus ring to make it just a touch more responsive for better manual focus controls. They have also managed to shift the weight balance further back, toward the camera flange end to allow for better ergonomic and camera control in free-handed shooting conditions.
Price and Availability
The Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 G Master II lens will be available in Malaysia from 5th of June 2022 onward. There are no mentions on prices just yet. We are guessing that the price should not be too far off the current FE 24-70mm F2.8 G Master though. There could also be a price drop for the original standard zoom lens, so you might want to look out for a bargain for something that is still quite stellar. More information on the FE 24-70mm F2.8 G Master II can be found on their website.