9 Best Sony Lenses for Night Photography in 2024

Choosing the right Sony lenses for night photography can make a big difference in the quality of your photos. With the right lens, capturing the beauty of the night sky or the vibrant lights of a city becomes much easier. Our top pick, the Sony FE 24mm f/1.4 GM, demonstrates exceptional light-gathering ability and sharpness, making it ideal for this type of photography. However, there are also eight other lenses that offer a variety of focal lengths and features to suit different shooting needs.

What Is the Best Sony Lens for Night Photography?

Selecting the best Sony lens for night photography means looking for wide apertures and sharp optics. Our list features lenses like the Sony FE 24mm f/1.4 GM and Sigma 35mm f/1.2 DG DN | A, chosen for their ability to capture vibrant, detailed images in low light. These lenses offer exceptional light-gathering capabilities, ensuring minimal noise and maximum detail in every shot.

Our Favorite Sony Lenses for Night Photography

Let’s take a closer look at our favorite Sony lenses for night photography. From ultra-wide angles to a “nifty fifty”, there’s a lens here for every night scene you might want to capture. Whether you’re shooting star-filled skies or vibrant cityscapes, these selections promise to enhance your low-light photography game.

The Sony FE 24mm f/1.4 GM is a wonderful all around performer. Its fast f/1.4 aperture allows a lot of light to hit the sensor. This means you can capture detailed images in low light without having to ramp up the ISO too much. Its lightweight design, at just under 1 lb (445 g), makes it easy to carry on long night shoots or hikes to remote locations.

Optically, this lens boasts exceptional edge-to-edge sharpness. This is crucial for capturing the fine details of the night sky or the intricate lights of a cityscape. The lens incorporates two XA (extreme aspherical) elements and three ED (extra-low dispersion) elements. These reduce aberrations and ensure colors and details are crisp and clear, even in challenging light.

However, the Sony FE 24mm f/1.4 GM does not have built-in image stabilization. This isn’t a major drawback for night photography, as a tripod is commonly used to stabilize the camera for long exposures. Compared to the Sony FE 12-24mm f/2.8 GM, which offers a wider angle but at a slower aperture, the 24mm f/1.4 is a better option for those prioritizing light gathering and sharpness over the versatility of a zoom.

The Sony E 50mm f/1.8 OSS is a great example of the “nifty fifty”, the old-fashioned but still popular “standard” lens. It’s fast, with an f/1.8 maximum aperture. This feature is key for night photography, helping to keep ISOs low and reduce noise. Its Optical SteadyShot (OSS) is a big advantage, offering up to 4 stops of stabilization. This is helpful for handheld shots in dim conditions, where even the slightest movement can blur a photo.

Weighing about 7 ounces (202 g), this lens is light and easy to carry, making it a good choice for photographers on the move. Its sharpness is impressive, particularly when slightly stopped down from its widest aperture. This ensures that details in night scenes are captured clearly.

However, the lens does show some chromatic aberration and vignetting at wide apertures, but these issues are manageable in editing software. Its autofocus is reliable in well-lit conditions but may struggle in very low light, where manual focusing is often preferred anyway. Overall, the Sony E 50mm f/1.8 OSS combines portability, image quality, and stabilization, making it a solid option for night photography enthusiasts using Sony’s APS-C cameras.

The Sony FE 12-24mm f/2.8 GM is a standout choice for night photography, offering a wide f/2.8 aperture across its zoom range. Although it’s not as fast as the prime lenses, it will still help to keep ISO settings low, and thus keep noise out of the shadows. The lens’s versatility, from ultra-wide 12mm to a wide 24mm, allows photographers to experiment with compositions without changing lenses, making it ideal for dynamic night scenes.

Weighing 1.87 lbs (847g), this lens is relatively light for its class, making it manageable for long night shoots, especially for those trekking to remote locations. Its construction includes elements that reduce chromatic aberration and distortion, ensuring that stars and architectural lines are crisp and true to form.

There’s no image stabilization, so you’ll probably find yourself relying on a tripod more often. But, given its wide field of view, camera shake is naturally less noticeable. Overall, the Sony FE 12-24mm f/2.8 GM’s sharpness, build quality, and wide aperture make it a very useful tool for night photographers seeking to capture expansive landscapes or cityscapes under the stars.

The Sigma 14mm f/1.4 DG DN | A features an ultra-wide focal length, and a wide maximum f/1.4 aperture. It’s a given that the faster the lens, the lower the ISO you need. And this really helps in rendering noise-free shadows. The lens’s fixed 14mm focal length offers an ultra-wide perspective, perfect for expansive landscapes or capturing the vastness of the night sky.

Weighing 2.56 lbs (1.2 kg), this lens is on the heavier side, but its build quality and optical performance justify the heft. It’s designed with elements that reduce chromatic aberration and distortion, ensuring that stars and architectural lines are crisp and true to form.

However, the absence of built-in image stabilization means relying on a tripod is more crucial, especially in low-light conditions. Of course, this is less of an issue with ultra-wide lenses. The Sigma 14mm f/1.4 DG DN | A’s combines high-quality construction and impressive performance. These make it a sound choice for night photography.

The Sony FE 16-35mm f/2.8 GM II is a versatile zoom with a constant f/2.8 aperture. This is fast for a zoom lens, and a real benefit at night and in other low-light settings. Its range from ultra-wide to standard wide-angle is one of my personal favorite zoom ranges. It’s perfect for expansive night skies or illuminated cityscapes, providing flexibility without the need to switch lenses.

Weighing 1.2 lb (547 g), this lens is relatively lightweight, making it a good companion for photographers who venture into the night. Its construction includes elements that minimize chromatic aberration and distortion, ensuring that stars and city lights are captured with precision.

However, the absence of built-in image stabilization emphasizes the importance of using a tripod for long exposures. But, given its wide field of view and fast aperture, camera shake is less of a concern. The combination of excellent sharpness, speed, and build quality make the Sony FE 16-35mm f/2.8 GM II a good choice for night photography enthusiasts.

The Samyang 14mm f/2.8 MK2 for Sony E is a great value ultra-wide lens with a fast maximum aperture. If you’ve never used an ultra-wide angle lens, you’re in for a treat. The ultra-wide perspective of a 14mm lens is perfect for capturing expansive night skies or broad cityscapes. You get so much more in the frame, without having to think about stitching multiple images together.

Weighing 1.41 lbs (641 g), this lens is relatively easy to carry, making it a good choice for photographers who venture into the night, possibly hiking to remote locations to capture the stars. This lens is one of the cheapest ultra-wides you can buy. And part of the reason for that is that it is manual focus only. Given that ultra-wides have an enormous depth of field, this might not put you off. Especially as night photography is often taken slowly. The manual focus encourages precise control over focusing, which is often preferred in low-light conditions where autofocus may struggle.

There’s no IS, but again with a tripod at night, this is no disadvantage. If you’re looking for a budget ultra-wide lens, and you’re mainly going to be shooting at night, then the quality and price combination of the Samyang 14mm f/2.8 MK2’s can be very attractive.

The Samyang 10mm f/2.8 ED AS NCS CS for Sony E is another ultra-wide angle lens with a fast f/2.8 aperture. It’s designed for Sony’s APS-C cameras, so it offers a similar view to the full frame 14mm lens. This allows for significant light to reach the sensor, crucial for reducing ISO and minimizing noise in low-light conditions. Its ultra-wide perspective is perfect for capturing expansive landscapes or the night sky, providing photographers with the ability to include more in their frame without needing to stitch multiple images together.

Weighing 1.41 lbs (639 g), it’s light enough to carry in your bag, even if you’re trekking out away from light pollution to capture the stars. Manual focus can take some getting used to. But for slow-paced night photography, especially of the sky, you’ll probably use manual focus even on an AF lens. So it’s money well saved!

Likewise, the lack of image stabilization isn’t really an issue. No one is likely to handhold a picture of the Milky Way, and on a tripod, you don’t need IS. This makes the Samyang 10mm f/2.8 ED AS NCS CS’s combination of accessible pricing and image quality very attractive.

The Sony E 35mm f/1.8 OSS is a wide standard lens, with an  f/1.8 aperture that is essential for capturing detailed images in low light. It delivers impressively crisp images, that are perfect for stars and city light alike.

Weighing only 5.5 ounces (154 g), this lens is notably lightweight, making it an excellent choice for photographers on the move. It’s the sort of lens you might choose to keep on your lens all day. Perfect for nighttime street photography, there are many famous photographers who have relied on a 35mm lens for their work. Its Optical SteadyShot (OSS) image stabilization is a significant advantage, allowing for handheld shooting in dim conditions by effectively minimizing camera shake.

The Sony E 35mm f/1.8 OSS is super sharp across the whole frame at all apertures, and it has very fast autofocus. It’s a perfect choice for roaming the urban landscape at night. And with the fast aperture and IS, you’ll probably even manage some impressive handheld night scenes.

The Sigma 35mm f/1.2 DG DN | A for Sony E is a very fast prime lens with an f/1.2 maximum aperture. This is great for night photography, allowing you to keep ISOs low. Old-time press photographers used 35mm lenses all the time, and they still have a big fan base. And this is a great example of that kind of lens.

Weighing around 2.4 lbs (1090 g), this lens is notably heavier than many other prime lenses, making it a consideration for those who prioritize portability. That’s partly because this is part of Sigma’s Art Series lenses, built to withstand the demands of daily professional use. It is also demonstrated by its optical performance, including edge-to-edge sharpness and minimal distortion.

Art lenses also feature weather sealing, so a rainy night on the streets should cause you no anxieties. Overall, the Sigma 35mm f/1.2 DG DN | A performs superbly, at a mid-range price that makes it a very attractive proposition.

Conclusion: The Best Sony Lenses for Night Photography

We think we’ve found a great selection of the best Sony lenses for night photography. They all feature fast apertures and excellent optical performance. We think you’ll find something here that meets your specific needs for night photography.

Our top choice, the Sony FE 24mm f/1.4 GM, stands out for its wide aperture and exceptional sharpness, making it ideal for night photography. It’s the best blend of light gathering and image quality. If it’s not quite right for you, then there are eight other lenses, each offering a variety of options for photographers with different needs and preferences.