Thypoch’s first-ever AF zoom lens is coming – and I used it at The Photography & Video Show

I got lucky at this year’s Photography & Video Show by getting my hands on a few unreleased pieces of kit, and one of the more exciting ones was the Thypoch 24-50mm AF f/2.8 lens for Sony E-mount.

In itself, a versatile nifty fifty doesn’t sound that cool; after all, there are a few of these on the market, but this marks Thypoch’s first foray into zoom and AF lenses. Until now, the Chinese company had made a name for itself as a manufacturer of affordable, retro-style, manual focus-only prime lenses.

The upcoming full-frame 24-50mm AF E-mount features aperture and manual focus rings, which move smoothly with a nice level of resistance, and there’s a handy MF/AF button on the lens barreI too.

Despite the plastic build, the lens felt solid in hand, and Thypoch has gone with a modern, slick aesthetic which looks similar to competitors, notably the Samyang 24-60mm f/2.8.

Using the Thypoch 24-50mm E-mount lens attached to my Sony A7 III, I snapped a few pictures of the also yet-to-be-released Thypoch 35mm ASPH prime lens for Leica M-mount. The f/2.8 was bright and the AF locked on in respectable time.

My observations of Thypoch’s 24-50mm E-mount zoom are based entirely on the short time I had with it at The Photography & Video Show earlier this week.

Despite what I thought was a slick line of questioning, the Thypoch staff “knew nothing” about the lens beyond what was visible, or were at least well-trained actors – I reckon it was the latter.

With this in mind, I don’t know when this lens will be officially announced, let alone released, and we’ll have to wait to get it into our testing lab to properly put it through its paces.

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Read our guide to the best Sony lenses, which include top-tier G Masters. Or, for something friendlier on your wallet, see our review of the Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 DC DN, which the coming Thypoch zoom lens will be competing against.