Double trouble: a pair of Samyang 300mm FE prime lenses coming to the CP+ show?

Silhouette of a mirrored photographer using a 300mm lens, with the LK Samyang logo.

Word on the street is that Samyang will display a pair of 300mm prime lenses for the Sony FE system at the CP+ 2026 trade show in Japan next week.

According to a report by Sony Alpha Rumors, the lenses are prototypes as Samyang wants to confirm interest in these models before manufacturing anything.

The 300mm prototypes will line up with the other Samyang lenses for Sony full frame (FE) rigs reportedly on display at the trade show, including a 60-180mm f/2.8 FE, a 28-135mm f/2.8 FE, a 20-50mm f/2.0 FE and a 28-85mm FE – the latter two also prototypes.

The Tamron 28-300mm f/4-7.1 Di III VC VXD boasts 300mm zoom, but the f/4 aperture leaves more to be desired (Image credit: Tamron)

While you can already find the 300mm focal length for Sony full frame models in third-party lenses such as the Tamron 50-300mm f/4.5-6.3 Di III VC VXD and 28-300mm f/4-7.1 Di III VC VXD, the Samyang prototypes will be the first true Sony FE 300mm prime lens from a third-party manufacturer.

Aside from a friendlier price – the native Sony 300mm f/2.8 prime costs around $6,700 in the US and £5,700 in the UK – what will Samayang users be looking for in the prototypes?

Most certainly, they’ll want a competitive aperture that goes beyond the f/4 of Tamron’s 50-300mm and the f/4.5 of Sony’s 70-300mm zoom lenses. Otherwise, unless a Samyang 300mm prime comes in significantly cheaper, I can’t see the appeal of forgoing the convenience of zoom abilities.

The Sony FE 300mm f/2.8 typically costs around $6,700 (Image credit: Sony)

Samyang has previously released a 300mm prime – the 300mm f/6.3 ED UMC CS Reflex – for Canon EF-M, Fujifilm X and Sony APS-C mirrorless cameras. While f/6.3 can produce subject separation at this focal length, sports and wildlife shooters in particular will be after an aperture that can make the subject pop much more.

Sony Alpha Rumors didn’t report, and my wider research hasn’t unearthed, whether the prototype 300mm primes will be exclusively for Sony E-Mount but, thus far, it appears so.

The CP+ show kicks off February 26 in Yokohama and runs until March 01, so expect more news on the Samyang FE 300mm prime prototypes then.

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