Tamron unveils its first Sony FE mount lens — and an $800 telephoto for DSLRs

By Hillary K. Grigonis February 22, 2018

The Tamron 70-210mm for Canon and Nikon mounts. Tamron

Sony full-frame mirrorless shooters will soon have a new lens option — and one that doesn’t even have Sony in the name. On Thursday, February 22, Tamron announced the development of the company’s first Sony FE mount, a 28-75mm f/2.8 Di III RXD lens, along with a new budget telephoto, a 70-210mm F4 for Canon and Nikon mounts.

Third-party lenses for the Sony FE mount are less plentiful than the off-brand lenses for Canon and Nikon mounts. Tamron says it is now working on its first Sony FE lens and with the lens still under development, full details such as pricing and availability aren’t yet available.

What Tamron is sharing about the upcoming lens is that the 28-75mm will use a brand-new autofocus system. The company says the new focus motor, called the Rapid Extra-silent Stepping Drive or RXD, is precise, fast, and quiet, making the lens available for video use as well as stills. The lens is capable of focusing on objects as close as 7.5 inches. The company also says the lens will be compatible with Sony’s Direct Manual Focus, which allows photographers to quickly switch between auto and manual focus.

Tamron says the FE mount lens will have a “next-generation” design with weather-sealing. And while the exact specifications could change before the lens’ full launch, Tamron expects the lens to weigh in at around 19 ounces and 4.6 inches.

The Sony FE mount lens doesn’t yet have a launch date, but Tamron’s 70-210mm F4 Di VC USD for Canon and Nikon full-frame cameras, also announced today, is expected out in April for $800. The lens boasts the highest magnification ratio among other 70-200mm F/4 lenses, Tamron says, with a maximum magnification of 1:3.1 and the ability to focus on objects as close as 37.4 inches from the front of the lens. An internal zoom design also means the lens length doesn’t change as the focal length adjusts.

The lens, Tamron says, also encompasses a high-speed dual Micro-Processing Unit that controls autofocus performance and an image stabilization system.The company says the autofocus is both fast and quiet while the stabilization is rated at four stops.

The lens, which will also be weather-sealed, weighs 30.3 ounces and is 6.8 inches long.

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Hillary K. Grigonis

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