The Sony E 16mm F2.8 ($249.99) is one of the smallest and lightest lenses you can pair with an E-mount mirrorless camera. It's also the oldest still on sale, having been in the catalog since the system's 2010 debut. It wasn't a world-class lens then, and it looks worse today. Its image quality is middling at best, and it can't take full advantage of the advanced autofocus systems found in modern cameras. If you want a slim pancake, the E 20mm F2.8 is a better lens for $100 more, and the Sigma 16mm F1.4 DC DN Contemporary is an Editors' Choice winner, albeit one that's pricier and larger.

Pancake Prime

The E 16mm F2.8 fits the definition of a pancake lens, one that barely juts out from the camera body when mounted. It measures 0.9 by 2.4 inches (HW), weighs just 2.4 ounces, and has a thread for 49mm filters. The lens is finished in silver, and the barrel is lightweight metal.

Sony doesn't include a hood, and I didn't use one when testing the lens. I did notice some flare in shots that might have been lessened by using one, as you can see in the image above. You can use the ALC-SH112 hood, which is bundled with the E 35mm F1.8 OSS and some others.

The lens is designed for Sony cameras with APS-C image sensors, where it matches the angle of view of a 24mm lens. You can pair it with a full-frame body and use it in a cropped mode, which does cut into image resolution. If you try to capture full-frame images, you'll see a big black border around the frame, as shown below.

In addition to standard filters, the lens can work with the Ultra-Wide Converter ($159.99), which broadens its angle of view to match an 18mm prime, and there is also a VCL-ECF2 Fisheye Converter ($179.99). Both of these converters also work with the E 20mm F2.8.

The only control of note is a manual focus ring, at the front of the barrel. It turns comfortably, with a little bit of resistance. The manual focus is electronic, and its response changes based on how quickly you turn the ring.

Turn slowly and you'll make minute adjustments, while a quick twist is used to move from one extreme to the other quickly. The magnification and focus peaking aids built into Sony cameras make manual focus a pleasant experience for photography, though videographers will miss the ability to recreate focus pulls from take to take—the lens isn't well suited for that specific task.

Autofocus is another matter. The latest cameras offer hybrid focus systems that use phase detection, but the 16mm doesn't support the technology. It's limited to contrast focus, which is quick and accurate when it comes to snapping images with single-shot focus (AF-S). But if you switch to AF-C, the experience isn't the same. The live feed constantly wobbles in and out of focus, which is disconcerting to see in the viewfinder. You'll still get in-focus shots, though.

Focus is available as close as 9.5 inches. When coupled with the wide angle of view, it gives the lens a very paltry 1:12.8 magnification ratio at its closest focus point. This isn't one for close-up shots.

There's no image stabilization in the lens. Sony sells one stabilized APS-C body at this point, the a6500. Pairing the lens with a stabilized body will smooth handheld video and makes it easier to snap handheld shots at longer exposure times. We tested the lens with the a6400, which doesn't offer stabilization.

Problems Resolving Detail

The a6400 is a 24MP camera, a lot more demanding on a lens than the 14.2MP NEX-3 with which the 16mm F2.8 debuted. I tested the 16mm along with Imatest to check its optical performance with a modern camera.

At f/2.8 it scores 1,432 lines on a center-weighted sharpness test. The very center of the frame puts up a good 2,143 lines, but it gives way to blurry results very quickly. We see fewer than 1,000 lines just outside the center, which explains the low average.

The lens gets better at f/4, where the average climbs to a good 2,097 lines. Keep in mind that the sharpest parts of your image will still be at the center, and there is definitely some softness as you move away.

At f/5.6 the lens finally delivers results that are sharp beyond just the center. The average score is a strong 2,867 lines, with outstanding center resolution and good results up to the edges of the shot. Shoot here, at f/8 (2,781 lines), or f/11 (2,610 lines) for landscape images.

See How We Test Digital Cameras

Diffraction is a concern at narrower f-stops. You should skip shooting at f/16 (2,046 lines) and f/22 (1,301 lines).

There is some distortion, about 1.3 percent with a mustache pattern. Mustache distortion isn't what happens when Tom Selleck gets a bad shave at the barber—it's a more complex pattern that shows a bit of barrel distortion at the center of the frame and a pincushion effect toward the edges. Thankfully it's a pretty modest amount.

Likewise, there's a little vignette when shooting wide open, about a -1.6EV drop at the corners of the frame. But it's a modest amount and is gone at narrower apertures.

Time for an Update

Sony has paid a lot of attention to its full-frame system since its 2013 debut, sometimes to the detriment of its more compact APS-C system, which uses the same lens mount. The E 16mm F2.8 is a victim of neglect—a lens designed when mirrorless cameras were in their infancy, and one that has long been available at a price point trending toward budget.

We've seen what Sony's biggest rival in the APS-C space, Fujifilm, has offered its user base with this year's Fujinon XF 16mm F2.8 R WR. But you can't use a Fujifilm lens on a Sony camera, or vice versa.

If you're invested in the E-mount system, Sony instead offers the slightly pricier, and even slimmer, E 20mm F2.8, to photographers looking for a small, but high-quality, wide lens. It's not quite as wide, of course. If you find its angle restrictive, and aren't shopping for a pancake lens specifically, the Sigma 16mm F1.4 DC DN Contemporary is a terrific alternative for the Sony system, and our Editors' Choice.

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