Samyang and Schneider-Kreuznach Announce Samyang 14-24mm f/2.8 FE

Mar 05, 2025

Jeremy Gray

Close-up of a camera with a Samyang lens held by a hand. The lens has textured grips and markings, and the camera body appears black. Green foliage is slightly visible in the background.

German optics company Schneider-Kreuznach, best known by photographers for its large-format lenses for Phase One cameras and its work with Samsung’s long-gone digital cameras, partnered with South Korean lens company Samyang.

The unlikely teammates announced their first new lens at CP+ last week, the Samyang AF 14-24mm f/2.8 FE ultra-wide-angle zoom lens for full-frame mirrorless cameras. The lens combines Schneider-Kreuznach’s celebrated optical technology with Samyang’s modern technology. As Schneider-Kreuznach describes, the new 14-24mm f/2.8 is “a perfect blend of German optical expertise and [Samyang’s] advanced manufacturing technology.” It is worth noting that the Schneider Group, which oversees the Schneider-Kreuznach brand, also makes high-end photographic filters under the B+W name.

The companies promise that the new 14-24mm f/2.8 lens will be the “first of many” innovative products resulting from the strategic partnership.

“We are pleased to extend our presence in the still photography market with our expertise in optics,” says Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich, CEO of Schneider-Kreuznach. “This initiative is an important step for our company, and we are proud to collaborate with LK Samyang. Together, we are developing our first mirrorless lenses designed specifically for photography enthusiasts.”

For its part, LK Samyang’s CEO, Bonwook Koo, adds, “We will continue our collaboration with Schneider-Kreuznach to develop and release zoom lenses that meet customer needs, while ensuring sustained momentum for our growth in the interchangeable lens market.”

A camera lens labeled "Schneider - Kreuznach x LK Samyang AF 14-24mm F2.8 FE" is displayed on a clear stand. Next to it is a sign with the same details and the note, "Coming in 2025," beneath a green "NEW" sign.

So far, Samyang has said little of the new zoom lens, so few specifications are available. However, Schneider-Kreuznach says the lens will be available for Sony E-mount cameras, and it will be the first 14-24mm lens for full-frame E-mount cameras that accepts front filters. The lens accepts 77mm filters.

It is also a compact lens, especially given its focal length range. The lens is just 84 millimeters (3.3 inches) long and weighs 445 grams (0.98 pounds).

Compare this to the Nikon Nikkor Z 14-24mm f/2.8 S lens, which accepts massive 112mm front filers with a special hood attached. That lens is 124.5 millimeters (4.9 inches) long and weighs 650 grams (1.4 pounds).

The new Samyang AF 14-24mm f/2.8 FE lens also has a direct E-mount competitor, the Sigma 14-24mm f/2.8 DG DN Art lens. This lens, which does not accept front filters, is 131 millimeters (5.2 inches) long and weighs 795 grams (1.75 pounds).

Schneider-Kreuznach says the new Samyang lens can focus as close as 0.18 meters (7.1 inches), slightly closer than the Nikon 14-24mm’s minimum focusing distance of 0.28 meters (11 inches).

Other details are sparse. Schneider-Kreuznach does not say what the new Samyang 14-24mm f/2.8 will cost, but the companies say it will be available in April.

It is a bit surprising that the lens will only be available in E-mount, as Samyang joined the L-Mount Alliance in July 2023 and has released numerous full-frame lenses for L-Mount. While the Sigma 14-24mm f/2.8 is available for L-Mount, as expected, it would be nice to see L-Mount users have an option in the space that accepts front filters.

Image credits: Samyang / Schneider-Kreuznach