Flying Boar Loc: Near where three states meet in the SE

OK, I am new to photography beyond point and shoot. I am a retired guy who just bought a Sony A6xxx, and want a greater zoom lens. That is I would like to replace the lens that came with the camera with one that has more range. I am thinking one of the 18 to 105, 135, or 200mm.
Comments or suggestions please.

R.G. Loc: Scotland

As a very general rule, the more zoom a lens has, the more its design has to be compromised. However, none of those are badly designed lenses and the differences between them aren't great. Since you're at the start of your journey you won't be concerned or impressed by the marginal differences between the lenses, so just choose the range that you'd like most. Be advised that when using lots of zoom, camera shake can become an issue, especially if you don't have steady hands. Your camera should be able to perform well using high shutter speeds in most situations, but using lots of zoom is when you are most likely to come up against the limitations of your system. If having lots of zoom isn't that important you would be better sticking to the shorter focal lengths. Having said that, 105mm on a crop sensor camera is well into the telephoto range. To that I could add that shorter means smaller and lighter.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

You might want to take a look at this review of the 18-105mm and the 18-200mm. They are good but not great lenses.

https://www.opticallimits.com/sony-alpha-aps-c-lens-tests/991-sony18105f4oss

https://www.opticallimits.com/sony-alpha-aps-c-lens-tests/539-sony18200f3563nex

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

I use a Tamron 18-200mm on my Sony a6000. No complaints.

A6000 instructional videos -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYXwCGWb7Yg
https://www.garyfong.com/products/unleash-power-your-sony-a6000
https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=how+to+transfer+photos+from+sony+a6000+to+smart+phone+or+computer+using+wifi&qpvt=how+to+transfer+photos+from+Sony+a6000+to+smart+phone+or+computer+suing+WIFI&FORM=VDRE

Video about updating the software on the camera -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=suDV63eiFYY

a6k Loc: Detroit & Sanibel

May I suggest?: unless you are clearer in your own mind about the focal length(s) that you want, you can't come up with a "best" answer.

Another thing to think about is size and weight. For example, a 150-600 lens is big and heavy. It was so much so that I decided to settle for a much smaller lens on my a6500. Of course, cost is always a factor, too.

Deciding between a maximum reach in the low to mid 100's vs. longer or even much longer is primarily about what you want to accomplish and how much effort you want to put into carrying it around, etc.

For birds, you can never have too much focal length but in some cases you may find that having a really long lens limits what you can do in the near distance. For example, my 70-200 sometimes can't focus on something that's too close but a 150 would have approximately twice the problem (models vary).

As a caution, there are lenses with more range from short to long but the ones which offer the greatest flexibility in that way are usually not as good optically as the more limited ones. Do the research.

I do agree that the kit zoom was crap and I traded up quite soon. I kept the little "pancake" zoom but moved up for longer reach. Your needs are yours so my choices don't matter but IQ does matter and the kit lens I got was not good enough.

For IQ information be sure to look at the sources online especially Imaging Resource's reviews as well as other objective, quantitative ones.

Lastly, if you have internal stabilization you are at an advantage and the original 6000 didn't have it, if I recall. The later models are really a lot better in many ways although more expensive.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

Tamron just out with two full frame zooms for Sony E mount camera's. The 28-200 2.8-5.6 and the 70-180 2.8. The 70-180 would have a field of view of about 105-270 mm 2.8 if your camera is a aps (cropped sensor camera) and I believe it is. You should check them out.
Good luck and keep on shooting until the end.

wireloose

The 18-200 is a great walkabout lens, as others have suggested. Sony owns part of Tamron so either brand is good, I had the Tamron for years. There are lots of other more specialized options which will give better optical results as you can see but starting out this is one that you are likely to be happy with. If you have some specific subjects in mind- birding, family pictures etc then post that and you will get another set of recommendations.

Wingpilot Loc: Wasilla. Ak

I have an A6300 and I put the Sony 18-135 f/3.5-5.6 zoom lens on it and have been very happy with it. It’s fairly small and light, and seems to be sharp. It’s a great walk about lens and stays on my camera. After several years of thinking I needed a long telephoto or zoom lens, I found that I rarely needed anything beyond 200mm, and I rarely needed that much. I do have the kit 55-200 zoom if I need that. Also, your Sony has Clear Image Zoom, a version of digital zoom that effectively doubles your reach, in this case to 270mm equivalent, without perceptible loss of image quality. It’s too bad it only works in JPEG mode. So I have everything I need in a lens for what I do. If you feel you need more reach, the 18-200 is also a good choice, and CIZ will run it out to the equivalent of 400mm. I think you would be happy with either lens.

lhardister Loc: Brownsville, TN

Though I am basically a Canon person, several years ago I bought a Sony a6000 and at one time or another have used (with an adapter) Canon ef-s 15-85, Canon ef 24-105, and Canon ef-s 18-135. All were perfectly acceptable (to me) in terms of image quality and suitability for an everyday/walk-around lens. I did not use a 200mm lens other than the Sony 55-210 kit lens, but I feel that 200mm is a bit long for a walk-around lens. To be brief, among the three focal lengths mentioned, I like the greater reach at the long end of the zoom range, and would recommend the 18-135. The Sony SEL 18-135 would give you faster AF performance than the adapted Canon arrangement that I use, and should be very nice and relatively compact. Also, if you should find that you are really in need of more reach, you can switch your Sony to Clear Image Zoom and capture images at 200mm range or greater with little or no image degradation, though such images (on my older a6000, at least) can only be captured in JPEG format.

Addendum: I see that while I was typing my reply, Wingpilot beat me to the punch regarding the Clear Image Zoom option. I didn't really intend to be heedlessly redundant.

Wingpilot Loc: Wasilla. Ak

Goes to show that CIZ is a great feature.

While the Sony 55-210 is a decent lens, it’s not as sharp as the 18-135, and it’s widest, at 55mm is a bit long for a lot of landscape type photos. That’s one reason I chose the 18-135 lens. It offers a reasonable wide angle ability as well as a decent telephoto reach, making it a very useful all-around lens, without the need to carry and switch out lenses. Is it as good as a prime lens for any focal length? Probably not, but it is more convenient and practical, along with producing nice sharp images.

JDefebaugh

If an effective focal length of 200mm is long enough for you (it is for most), then go with the 18-135mm, which gives you an effective 27-200mm. It is a bit sharper than the other lenses discussed and, as previously pointed out, it is native to Sony which is helpful.

guardineer

I too am an old guy, though active and healthy. I am surprised that most commentors are satisfied with 200mm as I wasn't content with an 18-300 and purchased both a 200-500 & 10-20. (×1.5) The quest for decent bird, night astronomy, distance and quality being my motivation. While I know there are many greater photographers and lense choices, I found that it takes something more than 200mm to satisfy my own sense of telephoto quality.

Wingpilot Loc: Wasilla. Ak

I think it all depends on what you do with photography. I also think that most landscape photographers are content with shorter lenses than those who like to shoot birds and wildlife, and want longer lenses.

R.G. Loc: Scotland

Indeed. I think the general assumption was that the OP was looking for a general purpose walkabout lens, but that's not necessarily true (we won't know one way or the other until we get some kind of a response from him.....).

PHRubin Loc: Nashville TN USA

For my purposes, the zooms with great range are more than adequate. I use a Sigma 18-300 which I don't think is available for Sony without an adapter. However, while many mention the inferior image quality, especially at full zoom, I find it more than adequate. Below is a shot I took at 300mm at a concert and blow-ups of it to see clarity.

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