Samyang Shares Future Lens Plans

credits: Samyang (3D-printed mock up of 200mm)

Samyang seems to have some fairly ambitious lens ideas lined up for the coming years. In a new interview with the French photography publication ‘Phototrend’, Samyang’s head of product planning, Kim Dubin, talked about several concepts the company is currently exploring. Samyang is already working with Schneider-Kreuznach on projects like the upcoming 60–180mm f/2.8 full-frame zoom, but it is also developing a number of lenses internally. Among those are two long telephoto primes for full-frame mirrorless cameras, the AF 200mm f/1.8 FE OIS and the AF 300mm f/4 FE OIS.

The 200mm f/1.8 concept is especially notable because that focal length has seen renewed attention recently. Over the past year, Venus Optics released the Laowa 200mm f/2 C-Dreamer, and Sigma introduced the 200mm f/2 DG OS Sports. If Samyang eventually brings its 200mm f/1.8 to market with autofocus, it could end up being the fastest lens of its kind available for mirrorless systems. The idea also inevitably brings up comparisons to Canon’s well-known EF 200mm f/1.8L USM, often nicknamed the “Eye of Sauron” because of its enormous front element. Samyang’s prototype does not look quite as extreme, but it is still clearly a large piece of glass.

Right now, though, both the 200mm f/1.8 and the 300mm f/4 are still very early concepts. The versions shown at CP+ were reportedly 3D-printed mockups rather than finished working prototypes. One interesting detail is that both lenses are planned to include optical image stabilisation, something Samyang has not implemented in its lenses before. At the same time, the company is also exploring other designs, including a possible AF 20–50mm f/2 zoom and a 28–85mm f/2–2.8 FE. Those lenses are still a few years out, but they show the direction Samyang seems to be thinking about for the future.