Ms-Optics H-DAGONAR 40mm

Miyazaki History Series No. 2: Homage to Dagor

A review and Photo example of the H-DAGONAR 40mm f/6.3 (MS-Optics / Miyazaki Optical).

Gallery

Leica M-P typ240

HASSELBLAD X2D

Review

Usage
Overview
Differences

1．Usage

The Dagonar 40mm is an overwhelmingly compact lens with a lens length of 22mm compared to manufacturer-made lenses.

When used with the HASSELBLAD X2D via an X-M mount adapter, the focal length is equivalent to 32mm in 35mm format. For the 44 x 33mm sensor used in medium-format digital cameras, the shooting results showed only slightly noticeable vignetting, the peripheral resolution was also fully within the practical range, and it was confirmed that the image circle of the lens is wide.

The X2D does not have a mechanical shutter and shoots with a sensor shutter. However, with a sensor shutter, rolling distortion can occur when shooting moving objects, so the Fujifilm GFX series, which has a mechanical shutter, is more practical to use.

2．Overview

The Dagonar 40mm is the second in the MS-Optics (Miyazaki Optical) history series, and is a lens that pays homage to the DAGOR. The DAGOR was a lens used in cameras manufactured by the German camera manufacturer Goertz.

The main specifications are listed in the table below, but it has a symmetrical lens configuration of six elements in two groups, a lens length of 22mm, a maximum lens diameter of 50mm, the same as the outer diameter of the M mount, and a weight of 50g.

The minimum shooting distance is 0.3m, and the helicoid rotates about 120 degrees. It is compatible with the M-type Leica rangefinder up to 0.85m.

The aperture range is F6.3 to F16 with no clip stops.

3．Differences

The Dagonal 40mm is a sibling lens to the Proto 40mm, the first in the History series. Compared to the two, the Dagonal uses two more lenses, is about 6mm longer in overall length, and weighs about 3g more.

The Dagonal and Proto 40mm were both unpopular at the time of release due to their subtle focal length of 40mm and dark maximum aperture, and were left unsold. However, due to the small number of units produced, the number of lenses available on the second-hand market has decreased, and they have returned to a reasonable price.

When comparing the two, there was almost no difference when shooting the exact same subject at the same distance, but the Dagonal 40mm seems to have a slightly higher resolution. Also, when the camera was fixed to a tripod and only the lens was replaced, the shooting range of the Dagonal 40mm was slightly narrower. The difference was slight, so it may be due to manufacturing tolerances of the lens.

If you were to impose conditions when taking out both, the Proto 40mm would be the better choice if you wanted a more compact shooting system, and the Dagonal 40mm if you wanted slightly higher performance.

Specification and Competitor

Item	PROT	DAGONAR
focal length(mm)	40	←
Maximum aperture	6.3	←
Minimum aperture	16	←
Lens configuration	2groups 4elements	2groups 6elements
Minimum distance(m)	0.3 Rangefinder link is 0.85m to infinity.	←
Lens length(mm)	16.2	22.2
Lens max diameter(mm)	50	←
Filter diameter(mm)	22.5 Lens tip is 28mm	←
Weight(g)	47	50