Samyang’s New 60-180mm f/2.8 For L-Mount

credits: Samyang

Samyang has been part of the L-Mount Alliance since 2023, but so far the company has not exactly flooded the system with lenses. That is slowly starting to change, though, and the latest addition is the Samyang AF 60-180mm f/2.8 L, a full-frame telephoto zoom developed together with Schneider-Kreuznach. It keeps a constant f/2.8 aperture throughout the entire 60-180mm range, while weighing 727.8g without the caps and hood. That is considerably lighter than the Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 DG DN OS Sports at 1,345g and Panasonic Lumix S Pro 70-200mm f/2.8 OIS at 1,570g, although both of those lenses have internal zooming and optical stabilisation.

Inside, Samyang uses 17 elements in 14 groups, including seven ED, two aspherical and one HR element, along with its UMC coating. There is also a floating focus system that is meant to keep optical performance consistent as the focusing distance changes. Minimum focusing distance is 0.35m at 60mm and 0.79m at 180mm, giving maximum magnification ratios of 0.26x and 0.21x, respectively. The aperture runs from f/2.8 to f/22 with nine diaphragm blades, while autofocus is handled by a Linear STM motor. One thing that is missing, as mentioned, is optical stabilisation, so you will be relying on the camera body’s IBIS instead.

The L-Mount version measures 86.7mm in diameter and 147mm long at 60mm, extending to 172.4mm at 180mm, and takes 77mm filters. On the barrel, you get separate focus and zoom rings, an AF/MF switch, focus-hold button and zoom lock, while weather sealing is used around several parts of the lens. There is also a USB port for firmware updates. This is only Samyang’s third L-Mount lens, following the 35-150mm f/2-2.8 and 14-24mm f/2.8, although the previously announced 24-60mm f/2.8 is also on the way. The AF 60-180mm f/2.8 L is priced at $1,079.