Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver)

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

This is a lens with average quality in overall. I had Leica D-lux5. I just bought a nex5 with 16mm lens; and also bought the 18-55mm for daily use. Lens and camera together almost $700.
I don't find Sony's picture quality is much better than that from Leica point and shoot under the same focal length. The camera with the 18-55mm lens is still bulky although it's smaller than regular DSLR. The low light performance is average.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

Excellent build quality.Light weight, good for street work, especially given the image stabilization. Will do the job nicely until (I hope)Zeiss produces an e-mount zoom of same size.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

This lens came as part of a 2-lens kit with my NEX-5N, and out-performs the typical entry-level DSLR kit zooms that I have seen from other manufacturers. The build quality is better than any other similar lens, and the optical quality seems to be at least as good. Optical stabilization allows me to use shutter speeds that would normally not be possible.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

The lens is lightweight and the 18-55 focal length is an effective 27-82 range is very functional. I didn't find the lens to be as sharp as I would have liked.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

On the whole, I'm happy with this camera, with the following. The pictures are sharp & show considerable depth. However use is limited largely to evening & indoor times as the sun makes it hard to see the LCD screen, even with the right WB setting. A sun hood would be a huge help. Also the flash gun that comes with the camera doesn't stay put. Happily I'm not all that into flash so when I inevitably lose or damage the flash gun, I won't be all that bummed out either.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

This is a must have for run and gun type work because it is one of four lenses that have auto focus for the Sony FS100

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

I bought this camera because it is so portable and the photo quality is acceptable. Largest aperture is alright, but F7.1 or F8 seems to be sharper.
But I hate its distortion at 18mm.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

I love this lens. As a casual photographer the Nex-5 camera is great and the 55 mm lens is a must. Smooth action, great design, excellent quality.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

... get this one right away !The lens opens up a whole new world. I thought that it wouldn't really matter because the Nex camera is all ready a very good camera to begin with. The zoom quality is great, easy to click on and it makes a very crisp image. One of the best things I ever bought for a camera. The only con I can think of is how far you can zoom with it but that is just a feature and not really a con. [...]

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

I bought this lens as part of a 2 lens kit for the Sony Nex 5 camera. The lens produces excellent photos, has good image stabilization built in, is relatively compact when paired with the tiny next camera body. Quality all metal design. Feels good in the hand.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

For most of the common pictures of my children.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

If you're looking at getting into the Sony NEX camera and you can only choose one lens, go for this 18-55mm over the 16mm. The lens, in my opinion, gives a sharper image & more can be used in more situations than the pancake lens. The quality of this lens seems very solid & like the 16mm, you can set the NEX to 7x or 14x zoom for focusing by turning the lens' focusing ring.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

This is a good all around lens for this small camera. It allows you to carry it while walking through the city or during a run. The quality of the shots is good. No major negatives yet.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

This is my most commonly used lens, because of size and portability. A bit more applicable to diverse shooting situations, and is great with the video capabilities.

I come from a career using a 1D MkII and a bag of L glass. It would have been nice if Sony offered say a 24-70mm f2.8 similar in quality to its beautiful 18-200 f3.5. I would have bought it immediately, as I did with the 18-200 zoom.

It seems like Sony wanted to capture converting point and shoot people first, and the 18-55 is excellent in that regard. For a more sophisticated user, the 18-55 might fall short of expectations, but will still yield good-if not great images.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

This lens is OK but don't expect a top result from it. I still suggest it's worth it's price and I don't regret bying it. Just be aware if you hope to use it combined with the fish eye converter (which I was hoping to do). It just doesn't work, the picture get shaded at the edge of the circle and the quality is just too bad (too blure). You have to buy the flat 16mm lens to be able to use the fisheye. That works fine, with accepable picture quality.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

This is a typical kit lens: light, easy to use, mediocre image quality.

My unit was a bit "rough" when zooming in and out, almost like it wasn't lubricated properly. I've returned it to B&H & am waiting for a replacement.

Sony really needs to get out good lenses for the NEX series.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

I got this lens in a kit with the NEX5. It's a nice lens for the price. I will probably use it more often than the 16mm. Just be careful when taking off the lens cap. This is how I scratched it a bit, so I recommend getting a protective UV filter.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

Sharpness with this lens is good. It does not make the NEX5 excessively large. It fits very nicely in a Lowpro Apex 100AW case like the case was made specifically for the NEX5 and this lens, the little flash unit, a spare battery, a filter or two and an SD card in a very small well padded space.

I see little of the color fringing of bright edges that shows with the 16 mm wide angle pancake lens. The reversing lens hood supplied works very well.

In bright light the LCD is a difficult to use. I use a sun hat with a wide brim that I have painted flat black on the bottom side of the front of the brim with acrylic paint. There have been a few times I have missed the ability to "peek through the hole" on a regular DSLR in strong sunlight.

At actual pixels the images look quite good, which is what I was wanting so I could make 18x24 inch prints from this camera with careful composition. Compared to a Canon 7d with an L series lens it is of course in second place in sharpness, but excellent for the money and fantastic on the size and weight. Overall the images seem a tiny bit "soft"on the NEX5, but in a good way.

Of the three lenses available for the NEX5, this seems like the best buy, though the 16 mm certainly is compact and WIDE, but limited compared to this lens. The zoom is just essential if you are after making every pixel count with tight composition in the camera itself. A few times I have missed the always ready little flash on the Canon G11.

Does seem to outperform the G11 due to larger sensor, but I love the G11 layout. The NEX5 LCD tilts some but not as wide a range as the G11. The retractable lens on the G11 is hard to beat for compact size and "always have with you" camera, but the NEX5 in the LowPro case is very compact and seems to be producing images with improved large print potential vs the G11. (Keep in mind I LOVE my G11 so swapping it out for the NEX5 was a big decision)

I use a small wrist strap on the NEX5 to help ease it out of the case and avoid drops. It is a bit of an adaptation to learn how to hold it with this lens, but not as awkward as it may look.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

Entry level lens. Did what it suppose to do. Results are very good on Nex-5 in daylight shooting. Thanks for the exellent design of low light performance of camera itself.

If money is not issue, get the 18-200 f2.8 lens.

Comments about Sony E-Mount SEL 1855 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens for Alpha NEX Cameras (Silver):

Small and light compared with my bulky DSLR lenses. Excellent for traveling and everyday carry.