Ms-Optics SONNETAR 50mm F1.1

The pinnacle of Miyazaki Sonnar

A reviews and photo examples of SONNETAR 50mm F1.1 (MS-Optics / Miyazaki Optical).

Gallery

Photo example by LEICA M-P and M10

Review

The Sonnetar 50mm F1.1 is a large-diameter standard lens from MS-Optics (Miyazaki Optical), and uses the Sonnar type lens format. It’s not a modern Sonnar, but a traditional Sonnar with 5 elements in 4 groups and 3 rear elements glued together.
This lens is one of the Ms-Optics products of the 2010s with high quality in terms of appearance and image quality, and it comes in three color variations: black, silver, and black paint.

A lens with the same specs as this Sonnetar 50mm F1.1 is Cosina Voigtlander’s Nokton 50mm F1.1 (weight: 428g / lens length: 57.2mm). The Sonnetar is overwhelmingly compact, weighing half as much as the Nocton and having 2/3 the lens length.

Due to this compact design, the depiction of peripheral areas is a little difficult, and depending on the shooting scene, there may be noticeable vignetting or image distortion, but this should be resolved with some ingenuity in how it is used.
Designer Mr. Miyazaki says, “A tool lives only when it is carried to the site,” and this means that it is more meaningful to pursue a lens that is light and has good performance, rather than a large, heavy lens that makes people hesitant to take it with them. This clearly expresses his lens design policy.

As you can see from the sample images, this lens produces smooth images with little flare even at maximum aperture.
I really like it, and I think it’s the best-balanced lens among Miyazaki Optical’s 50mm lenses.

Specification

Item	Value	note
focal length(mm)	51.7
Maximum aperture	1.16
Minimum aperture	16
Lens configuration	4groups 5elements
Minimum distance(m)	0.85
Lens length(mm)	35.7
Lens max diameter(mm)	55
Filter diameter(mm)	55
Weight(g)	190