New Super-Fast 25mm F1.1 Micro Four Thirds Lens From MS Optical

Miyazaki-san does not get tired of coming up with exciting new lens designs! Only recently we reported on his latest ultra-compact lens for Leica M-mount, the Super Triplet Perar 28mm f4, and now he surprises us with a new super-fast lens for Micro Four Thirds — the Sonnetar 25mm f1.1. Originally introduced for the Pentax Q mount earlier this year, the new Sonnetar 25/1.1 for Micro Four Thirds is still under development. But chances are we can buy it very soon. Read more after the jump.

According to this post on 43rumors.com, MS Optical is currently inquiring with Micro Four Thirds users whether or not to produce the lens in larger quantities. Its introduction to the market depends on whether there would be any demand for the lens. But since the Pentax Q version of the lens is already available on eBay, I reckon that it won’t be long until the Micro Four Thirds version can be bought. The price will be around US-$ 650, just like the Pentax Q version, according to 43rumors.

With its focal lengths and speed, the Sonnetar 25/1.1 will be a direct competitor to the Voigtländer Nokton 25mm f0.95, over which it has one great advantage: size. While the Nokton is very large and heavy, the Sonnetar is almost a pancake lens in size, as you can see from these pictures. The Sonnetar’s advantage in size over the Nokton is due to two facts.

The Nokton has a complex optical formula with 11 elements in 8 groups, whereas the Sonnetar has only five elements in four groups.
The Nokton is highly corrected for maximum image quality. The Sonnetar, on the other hand, uses a classic Sonnar-like optical formula (hence the name) which allows for small and fast lenses that are very sharp in the center, but get gradually less sharp towards the corners.

Due to these technical differences, the Sonnetar’s rendering is much less “perfect” and much more “classic” and “characterful” than that of the Nokton. (Those qualities are entirely subjective and may not meet everyone’s taste). Should it be introduced to the market, it will certainly not be everyone’s cup of tea. But I am sure many will like it for its size, while others will love it for its optical qualities — imperfect though they may be. In any case, it is a good sign for the Micro Four Thirds system that more and more manufacturers are jumping the bandwagon. And the more choice there is, the better for us users!

In the meantime, until we receive word whether or not the lens will be introduced in Micro Four Thirds mount, check out these sample pictures so you can decide if you are going to buy it or not. For my own part, I certainly like the way it draws. Way to go, Miyazaki-san!

Please Support The Phoblographer

We love to bring you guys the latest and greatest news and gear related stuff. However, we can’t keep doing that unless we have your continued support. If you would like to purchase any of the items mentioned, please do so by clicking our links first and then purchasing the items as we then get a small portion of the sale to help run the website.

Tagged as: 25mm, f0.95, f1.1, lens, micro four thirds, ms optical, nokton, sonnetar, Voigtländer

Pingback: MS Optical 25/1.1 (as seen on Phoblographer) - Micro Four Thirds User Forum
Optical

I love the size but it’s not worth the poor image quality that seems to come with it. I’m not comparing to the Nokton but just looking at those examples and some others on the web. The bokeh isn’t all that nice to my eyes and the vignetting and blurred corners on the Sonnetar are really, really bad. Bad enough to make it pretty much useless to me. It’s fine if you want the toy camera look but that’s about it. It’s a shame as an f1.1 small lens would be great on my EP3 but that’s not going to happen here.
- Felix Lájos Esser
  
  Dear Optical, I believe you’re looking at this lens with the wrong assumptions. This is a contender to the 25/0.95 Nokton ONLY in terms of focal length and speed. You have to keep in mind a number of things about this lens: 1) MS Optical is a one man business. The lens designs are all made by one man, Mr Sadoyasu Miyazaki. A big company like Cosina has much more resources to work on a project. Hats off to Miyazaki-san for coming up with this at all! 2) This lens is WAY smaller than the Noktor, and it uses a much less sophisticated optical formula. Of course it is optically “inferior” in terms that its rendering is less modern and less even across the frame. 3) Making this lens any more “perfect” would have made it exponentially more expensive. Again, MSO is a one man business with limited resources.
  
  I agree that it is probably more of a specialty lens than an allround performer. But I wouldn’t call it “not worth”, neither would I call it “really, really bad” or “a shame”. Call it a piece of art, rather: not everyone will like it, but some will love and will gladly support the “artist” Miyazaki-san by buying his product.
Pingback: Sonnetar 25mm f/1.1: El ultimo objetivo micro cuatro tercios que se deja ver