Fitting bright apertures in a zoom lens is tough to do, but Panasonic just crammed an f/1.7 aperture into a 25-50mm zoom lens. The Panasonic Leica DG Vario-Summilux 25-50mm f/1.7 ASPH is a Micro Four Thirds lens that keeps a consistently bright aperture across the entire zoom range.

Panasonic says that the lens is made to excel at both still photos and video. Constructed from 16 elements in 11 groups, the lens uses an aspherical element and three Extra-Low Dispersion pieces to fight chromatic aberration. The company says the lens design is also made for fighting spherical aberration and distortion.

Panasonic claims that the lens has “the same or an even higher level of descriptiveness than a fixed focal length lens.” If that claim is more than marketing speak, the lens could be very enticing for photographers that don’t have the time—or budget—to continuously swap primes. The 25-50mm should pair well with the similar Leica DG Vario-Summilux 10-25mm f/1.7 ASPH (20-25mm equivalent) to cover a wide range of focal lengths.

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Close-ups aren’t out of the question, with a .28m minimum focusing distance at the wide-angle end, which delivers a 25mm equivalent magnification of .42x. The lens is compatible with autofocus sensor drive systems up to 240 fps, Panasonic says, with a quiet autofocus motor. For video, the stepless aperture ring and focus ring helps make smoother adjustments.

That technology is wrapped up in a body that’s dust and splash sealed. The added durability and longer (on a Micro Four Thirds Scale) focal lengths creates a lens that tips the scale at 1.4 pounds.

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While the bright, f/1.7 aperture in a zoom is exciting, the Micro Four Thirds format means the lens is equivalent to about a 50-100mm f/3.4, applying the equivalency factor to both the focal length and aperture. But, it’s among the brighter zooms available for Micro Four Thirds and holds promise as a high-end pro zoom.

That bright aperture and high-end features will come at a cost, however. The lens is on pre-order now and slated to start shipping towards the end of August for $1,797.99.