Several reports indicate that early and pre-production models have zoom creep WHILE a newer version does NOT on both smooth and tight mode. It seems Sony fixed this issue for latter version as several people reported this on Facebook.
I guess it was a lens issue and I was right all along.
Not true. My friend just received his from the latest batch. Creeps.
Another forum member on a different forum had one on release day that doesn't creep on Smooth.
It is a tolerance issue. If you are someone who likes to zoom while shooting (say like a BIF acquiring zoomed out and zooming in as it approaches) then you will actually want to get one that creeps on Smooth.
It is still easy to zoom this lens on the Tight setting if it is a lens that creeps. But it is better on Smooth if you are actively zooming a lot during shooting. I haven't tried a lens that doesn't creep on Smooth but I can only assume it will be tighter on both settings so the Tight may become mostly useless and the Smooth won't really be smooth enough. I don't know for sure until I try one.
I'd also wonder if those that have a lens that doesn't creep out of the box will have creep after a few months of use?? The only worry I would have if a creeping lens on smooth would eventually creep on tight. That would be a flaw IMO. But only time will tell on that one.
I'd also point out that if people who haven't used the new lens are thinking along the lines of the "old" 100-400's tightening ring it is not similar to how this one behaves.
The old 100-400 on tight is almost impossible to zoom. The new 100-400 on Tight is a better lens to zoom than the old 100-400 on Smoothest. The only nice thing on the old one is it is not two fixed settings but a range of tightness along the ring. But I always said that the old one is not smooth enough on the smooth setting. This new lens is smooth enough...although in a perfect world the Smooth setting on the new lens would be even smoother like the 200-600. Of course it would creep even faster if that were the case.
I’m sensing a lot of copium being applied by folks who presume that zoom creep is just fine. If it were intentional on Sony’s part, it would affect all units equally. If the reports that it only affects some are accurate, then we’re looking at something that Sony must fix, one way or the other.
Yes, ideally people who have one that doesn't creep should be sending it in to have it loosened.
That is what I'd do if I had a non creeping lens. I don't want a lens that is any tighter on Smooth than my creeping lens is.
Whether Sony could have designed the lens to turn as smooth or smoother than the creeping ones do AND not creep at all is something we just don't know. If they could have then they should have.
But at this point it is what it is. One could try and contact Sony about it and see how far they get. I'm not sure what one would be requesting though? A totally new design to the zoom mechanism? Lighter elements? A new placement of the elements?
The fact that it reportedly affects some units but not others suggests that this is more likely a design or manufacturing flaw. I cannot imagine that a company like Sony would not intend the lens to work only one of these two ways. If they intended it to be loose enough to creep, then ALL copies should work that way. If they did not intend that it would creep, then no copies should do that.
At some point Sony will have to address this question, and I believe that they will.
To be clear, I think it sounds like a really excellent lens, and at this point I intend to buy one eventually.
Jul 07, 2026 at 12:58 PM
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