Assessment: Syoptic 50mm 1.1 – phillipreeve.internet

Introduction

The M-System appears to be extraordinarily standard in China, as we nonetheless see an growing quantity of producers providing new M-mount lenses from this nation. The newest is Syoptic with this 50mm f/1.1, generally known as “Mr. Ding 50mm lens”. A few of the few samples I discovered on-line confirmed very interesting bokeh rendering, so I ordered one as quickly because it was doable in Europe. It took longer than anticipated, however I lastly have it in my fingers, so let’s have a more in-depth look.
This lens will probably be reviewed on the 42mp Sony A7rII and the 24mp Leica M10.
Replace March 2022: exams of E-mount model added

Pattern Photographs

A lot of the pattern photos on this overview will be present in full decision right here.

Specs

The lens appears to be out there for many mirrorless mounts. The M-mount model has a casing just like a Leica M-mount lens, the Z/RF/E lenses look extra just like the E-mount Voigtländer lenses. I purchased the M-mount model and later obtained a overview pattern of the E-mount model, the specs are:

• • Diameter: 62 mm (M/E)
  • Subject of view: 47° (diagonally)
  • Size: 61 mm (M/E)
  • Weight: 405g (M) / 389g (E)
  • Filter Diameter: 52 mm
  • Variety of Aperture Blades: 11 (rounded)
  • Parts/Teams: 8/6
    
  • Shut Focusing Distance: 0.7 m (M) / 0.35 m (E)
  • Most Magnification: 1:11.7 (M) / 1:6.0 (E)
  • Mount: Leica-M / Sony-E

You should buy this lens from ebay.com for about $320 for the M-mount model and $200 for the E-mount model and different mounts (affiliate hyperlinks)

Dealing with / Construct High quality

M-mount

As normal when coping with a lens from a brand new producer we may have a more in-depth look right here – no copy paste this time.

There are a couple of fascinating issues to level out. The lens I purchased encompasses a “Syoptic” branding, however I used to be instructed a couple of samples have additionally been bought as OEM lenses, so that you would possibly discover some below completely different names as effectively.

The design resembles that of the Leica M-mount lenses, it jogs my memory of the Leica 50mm 1.4 Summilux-M Asph, however there is no such thing as a retractable lens hood right here, although it seems to be like there was. Additionally the engravings are white/crimson as an alternative of the extra generally used white/orange.

The mechanical high quality feels excellent, albeit inferior to that of the Leica or among the higher TTArtisan lenses: the aperture ring (90° rotation from f/1.1 to f/16, however no f/11) is of the linear sort with non-equidistant stops (which I’m not a fan of) however fortunately we get click on stops (which I’m an enormous fan of), so it’s doable to alter the aperture to a desired worth with out wanting on the lens. On this pattern the aperture ring will also be moved a bit additional than f/1.1, a characteristic it shares with some Leica lenses I’ve used and discover quite undesirable. It also needs to be famous that the aperture ring turns in the wrong way in comparison with the Leica and Voigtländer M-mount lenses.

The main focus ring affords a pleasant, even resistance and rotates 90° from the minimal focus distance of 0.7 m to infinity. The main focus ring is a bit softer than that of most of my different M-mount lenses.

When utilizing the lens on a rangefinder digital camera just like the Leica M10 there’s noticeable viewfinder blockage which will get worse on focusing nearer, as this lens encompasses a unit focus design.

Fortunately – as has been type of the norm for M-mount lenses from China – it’s once more doable to regulate the rangefinder coupling your self. Oh how I want all my rangefinder lenses from Japan would permit for this.

There isn’t any hood distributed with the lens, however the entrance ingredient is nearly one centimeter recessed. The difficulty right here is, that additionally the 52mm filter thread is recessed and in its present state it is extremely fiddly to connect a filter and much more fiddly to take away it.

I’m not as impressed with the construct high quality right here as I used to be with e.g. the 7Artisans 28mm 1.4 or the TTArtisan 50mm 1.4, however this lens comes shut and the one factor that basically bothers me on the finish of the day is the recessed filter thread.

I shared my findings with the producer and he’s seeking to enhance the design concerning the filter thread in addition to the arduous cease of the aperture ring for additional manufacturing runs.

E-mount

With its hill-and-valley focus ring the E-mount model resembles the look of the Voigtländer E-mount lenses.

The aperture ring (90° rotation from f/1.1 to f/16, however no f/11) is similar to that of the M-mount model, however right here the aperture ring will be moved a bit additional on the f/16 finish, which I tremendously want over it being the f/1.1 finish.

The main focus ring affords a pleasant however not completely even resistance and rotates a little bit greater than 180° from the minimal focus distance of 0.35 m to infinity. The main focus ring is much less mushy in comparison with the M-mount model.

The E-mount model additionally encompasses a 52mm filter thread however right here it’s straightforward to achieve.

Not like its M-mount sibling the E-mount model does ship with a bayonet sort lens hood. It’s constituted of aluminium sits tight and will be mounted reversed to take up much less area. It is usually painted with matte black paint on the within, appropriately.

Vignetting

gentle falloff

The M-mount model reveals vignetting at wider apertures which is according to what I’ve seen with different 50mm lenses. The MS-Optics 50mm lenses, the 7Artisans 50mm 1.1, the TTArtisan 50mm 0.95 and the Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.5 II present even increased vignetting figures at their widest aperture. The Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.2 and the Laowa 45mm 0.95 present very comparable values. The Samyang 50mm 1.2 XP and the Zhong Yi 50mm 0.95 M present half a cease much less vignetting within the corners.

The E-mount model then again is doing noticeably higher at wider apertures, displaying considerably much less pronounced vignetting figures right here. Stopped down each lenses carry out the identical throughout the margin of error and variations in sensor expertise.

It is strongly recommended to take a look at this text first to get an concept how this brightness graph works.

What can be shocking is the very low vignetting stopped down, by f/5.6 it’s hardly noticeable anymore. The one different 50mm lenses I’ve used that present this little vignetting stopped down are the Samyang 50mm 1.2 XP and the Sigma 50mm 1.4 EX.

optical vignetting

Very quick but compact lenses normally present a major quantity of optical vignetting. With out going an excessive amount of into technical particulars optical vignetting results in the truncation of sunshine circles in the direction of the borders of the body.
Within the heart of the body virtually each lens will render an ideal circle, however solely lenses with very low optical vignetting will maintain this form within the corners.
So within the following comparability we transfer from the middle (left) to the acute nook (proper) and see how the form of the sunshine circle adjustments.

I’ve reviewed a whole lot of quick 50mm lenses and I believed this time it could be fascinating so as to add a couple of extra lenses to place issues into perspective. As you may see all of those lenses present sturdy optical vignetting and I’m not positive how area related these variations would truly be. I just like the Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.5 II the least right here, resulting from very sturdy onion rings and a really sharp form within the corners and the MS-Optics 50mm 1.0 ISM has the strongest optical vignetting, already seen not that removed from the middle. The opposite ones are quite comparable.

Sony A7III | Syoptic 50mm 1.1 | f/1.1

The E-mount model of the Syoptic reveals rather less optical vignetting within the excessive corners than the M-mount model, however this isn’t an enormous distinction and can solely be seen in a uncommon variety of instances.

The strains working via the circles are because of the glass I used as a mirror to take these photos and aren’t a characteristic of the lens.

I didn’t shoot the lenses facet by facet, if I did the sunshine circles could be of identical dimension at shared apertures. The lenses had been set to 0.7 m focus distance, outcomes might differ at different distances.

When wanting intently we additionally see the change in diameter between f/1.1 and f/1.4 isn’t as massive appropriately and the change between f/1.4 and f/2.0 is larger than it ought to be. Compared to different lenses it seems to be to me just like the f/1.4 click on cease isn’t the place it’s purported to be, it’s nearer to f/1.2 than f/1.4. I shared my findings with the producer and he’s seeking to enhance this for additional manufacturing runs.

Sharpness

Optical Design

The optical design is impressed by the older Leica Noctilux f/1.0 or the Voigtländer 50mm 1.1 Nokton, which implies: double gauss based mostly design, no aspherical components, comparably low ingredient rely.

This all spherical optical design results in an absence of any onion ring buildings, however I additionally count on some points with off heart sharpness – at the very least at wider apertures, so let’s discover out within the following sections if I’m proper.

infinity (42mp Sony A7rII)

For an f/1.1 lens the efficiency within the heart is surprisingly good at infinity as there’s solely a little bit little bit of softness resulting from spherical aberration seen.

There’s a noticeable midzone dip at wider apertures current, as we’re used from comparable lenses just like the Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.2 Nokton or the TTArtisan 50mm 0.95.

The efficiency within the corners jogs my memory a whole lot of the Voigtländer VM 40mm 1.2, which additionally confirmed a noticeable drop in decision near the acute cornes. That is truly higher seen within the coma part.

A stable efficiency for a compact and reasonably priced f/1.1 lens in case you can stay with the lowered sharpness within the excessive corners.

I examined each, the M-mount and E-mount model on the Sony A7rII and there have been no related variations seen right here, aside from much less vignetting within the corners when utilizing the E-mount model.

infinity (24mp Leica M10)

Now that is one thing I haven’t seen in a quick Leica M lens but: the efficiency on the M10 with its thinner filter stack and the A7rII may be very comparable! So take a look what I wrote above, it applies right here as effectively.

portrait distance 1.4 m distance (24mp Sony A7III vs 24mp Leica M10)

For portraiture it isn’t so vital how flat the sphere is, it’s extra fascinating to see what the sharpness is like when targeted at completely different elements of the body to take area curvature out of the equation.

We will probably be 100% crops from the 24mp Sony A7III and the Leica M10. Each cameras do not need an anti aliasing filter in entrance of the sensor.

Sony A7III <—> Leica M10

This Syoptic 50mm 1.1 is a kind of lenses the place the focal airplane with highest decision isn’t essentially the one with highest distinction, which makes it a bit arduous to focus, particularly when utilizing the M10’s mediocre liveview.
Additionally at this distance we see some spherical aberration and a few astigmatism when transferring in the direction of the corners.
Placing this into perspective with different lenses I checked at this distance: higher than Zhong Yi 50mm 0.95 M and MS-Optics 50mm 1.1 Sonnetar, just like TTArtisan 50mm 0.95 and MS-Optics 50mm 1.0 ISM, worse than TTArtisan 50mm 1.4 and Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.5 Nokton II.

shut M (0.70 m, 1:11.7, 42mp A7rII)

100% crops from heart, A7rII, because of focus shift (see corresponding part) I refocused for each shot.

The efficiency close to the minimal focus distance is typical for a really quick lens with out a floating components design. At wider apertures we see a excessive quantity of spherical aberration (glow) and it takes stopping all the way down to f/2.8 to get actually crisp outcomes at these distances. Efficiency right here is just about precisely the identical as that of e.g. the Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.2 Nokton and plenty of different compact quick lenses.

shut E (0.35 m, 1:6.0, 42mp A7rII)

100% crops from heart, A7rII, because of focus shift (see corresponding part) I refocused for each shot.

Not like the M-mount model the E-mount model focuses all the way down to 0.35 m leading to a most magnification of 1:6. It doesn’t come as a shock that additionally right here stopping all the way down to get crisp outcomes is beneficial.

Flare resistance

As all the time evaluating flare is a posh matter since you may get any lens to look unhealthy in case you push it arduous sufficient and a slight change of state of affairs can have an effect on outcomes quite a bit.

Solar outdoors body

The Syoptic 50mm 1.1 doesn’t ship with a hood and although the entrance ingredient is recessed I believe it will have been helpful, because the lens has fairly some points with stray gentle. If a powerful gentle supply is outdoors the body it’s straightforward to come across important veiling flare working throughout a lot of the body. The flares are extra extreme stopped down, however nonetheless straightforward to come across at most aperture.

Additionally at evening with avenue lamps that is one thing straightforward to come across, right here shading the lens with my hand helped although:

Not like the M-mount model the E-mount one does ship with a lens hood. Utilizing it improves the efficiency with level gentle sources outdoors the body:

Sony A7III | Syoptic 50mm 1.1 E | f/1.1

Solar inside body

With the solar contained in the body the state of affairs is a bit higher, however it’s nonetheless straightforward to catch body filling artefacts and encounter a lack of distinction.

Coma

From f/1.1 to f/2.0 there’s noticeable coma seen. Stopping all the way down to f/2.8 and f/4.0 improves the coma efficiency considerably, however now we are able to see that there’s additionally some astigmatism within the corners current, which you’ll be able to principally eliminate by stopping all the way down to f/5.6.

Efficiency here’s a little bit worse in comparison with the Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.2 Nokton, however nonetheless higher than the TTArtisan 50mm 0.95.

100% crops from excessive nook, targeted on heart, M10

Distortion

The Syoptic 50mm 1.1 reveals a fully minimal quantity of distortion which ought to hardly be area related, even for structure purposes.

Bokeh

What obtained me excited about ordering this lens had been a couple of samples I discovered on-line that confirmed very interesting bokeh rendering – at the very least to my eyes. So let’s discover out if my first impression was appropriate.

Shut distance

As normal with very quick lenses at shut focus distances we are able to encounter very easy and undistracting bokeh. With level gentle sources within the background it is possible for you to to identify the optical vignetting, however the shapes nonetheless look comparably pure to me.

Mid distance

What actually caught my eye at mid distances is the sleek transition from in-focus to out-of-focus and the sleek rendering even when coping with advanced backgrounds.

Lengthy distance

What all the time separates the wheat from the chaff in the case of the bokeh qualities is the efficiency at longer focus distances. When optical vignetting and area curvature overlap in an undesirable method the corners might appear like they’re in focus at longer distances, even when the middle may be very a lot out of focus. Only recently we noticed such behaviour with the Laowa 45mm 0.95.

With the Syoptic 50mm 1.1 the state of affairs seems to be higher and even at longer focus distances the bokeh seems to be very interesting to me: no double edged buildings, no apparent area curvature.

Now with just about all of the quick 50mm (and much more so 35mm) rangefinder lenses I’ve used to this point I noticed worse nook bokeh because of the thicker filter stack in entrance of the sensor when utilizing it on Sony cameras – just like the more serious nook sharpness we normally see when utilizing lenses designed for M-mount cameras on E-mount cameras.
To my shock there have been no variations when it comes to sharpness, however will this be the case for the bokeh, too?

Within the scene I picked right here we might simply see bokeh points brought on by area curvature within the writing within the nook of the body, as was the case with e.g. the Voigtländer VM 35mm 1.2 III.
What caught me by nice shock: there’s hardly a distinction seen between utilizing this 50mm lens on M10 or A7III.

I’ve already used 27 completely different 50mm lenses and reviewed virtually 20 of these right here. On the finish of the day, this Syoptic 50mm 1.1 for 300 bucks is considered one of my favorites in the case of bokeh rendering.

Sunstars

The Syoptic 50mm 1.1 options 11 rounded aperture blades, excellent news for bokeh when the lens is barely stopped down, not notably excellent news for sunstars.
Laborious to get each proper in a single lens (Cosina tried with the Voigtländer 35mm and 50mm 2.0 Apo-Lanthars although) and I believe for a quick lens doubtless for use for portraiture a excessive variety of spherical blades are a good selection.
If you wish to know extra about sunstar rendering of various lenses take a look at this text.

Chromatic aberration

lateral

100% crops from nook, A7rII

There are solely minor lateral CA seen close to the corners which can be simply corrected in a uncooked developer like Lightroom by one click on.

longitudinal

The excessive quantity of spherical aberration at shut distances masks the longitudinal CA a bit, so it is going to be extra revealing to see what the efficiency is like at longer focus distances.

Leica M10 | Syoptic 50mm 1.1 | f/1.1

Right here we are able to clearly see a bit magenta in entrance of and cyan behind the focal airplane. For an f/1.1 lens the efficiency isn’t unhealthy and akin to lenses just like the TTArtisan 50mm 1.4, Sony 55mm 1.8 or the Sony 35mm 1.8, all slower lenses, the place the issue ought to be much less pronounced.

In excessive distinction scenes the longitudinal CA will also be seen in decrease decision photos. You’ll be able to attempt to appropriate this (like I did right here), however this is not going to all the time work completely.

Sony A7III | Syoptic 50mm 1.1 M | f/1.1

Focus shift

50% crops, A7rII

With some lenses when stopping down the airplane of optimum focus shifts to the again or the entrance. The Syoptic 50mm 1.1 is a kind of lenses and the main target shift is noticeable when making the bounce from f/1.4 to f/2.0 and much more noticeable from f/2.0 to f/2.8. For rangefinder customers that is quite unhealthy information and positively one thing to be careful for.

When taking photos at or close to infinity the main target shift is hardly related, for the sharpness charts I didn’t modify the main target setting on stopping down.

Options

I’ll solely cowl the actually apparent alternate options intimately right here, however in case you ended up right here by chance and you might be searching for an AF lens might take a look at our Information to 50mm lenses for Sony E-mount.

E-mount

Voigtlander 50mm 1.2 Nokton E:
The obvious competitor. You achieve digital communications along with your digital camera, higher flare resistance and the minimal focus distance is 0.45 m, which is healthier than the M-mount however worse than the E-mount model of the Syoptic lens.
By way of sharpness they’re quite comparable at portrait distances and each provide very interesting bokeh rendering. However then there’s the worth distinction…
purchase from CameraQuest | B&H | Robert White | amazon.com | amazon.de | ebay.com | ebay.de for $999 (affiliate hyperlinks)

Voigtlander 50mm 2.0 APO-Lanthar:
If you’re searching for the very best correction of optical aberrations as an alternative of a lot of bokeh that is the lens you might be searching for.
purchase from CameraQuest | B&H | Robert White | amazon.com | amazon.de | ebay.com | ebay.de for $1049 (affiliate hyperlinks)

M-mount

Voigtlander VM 50mm 1.2 Nokton:
See E-mount model above, aside from the minimal focus distance, this one has 0.7 m.
purchase from CameraQuest | B&H | amazon.com | ebay.com | ebay.de for $1.059 (affiliate hyperlinks)

7Artisans 50mm 1.1:
This can be a very completely different lens as it’s not optimized to present easy bokeh at most aperture however quite nervous bokeh with a lot of area curvature. Doesn’t match my style, however possibly you want this type of look.
purchase from amazon.com | amazon.de | B&H | ebay.com | ebay.de for $349 (affiliate hyperlinks)

TTArtisan 50mm 0.95 M:
Most likely the at present most bought f/0.95 M-mount lens. Considerably larger and heavier, 3 instances at costly.
Corners at infinity additionally by no means look nice, extra however to my eyes worse bokeh, equally unhealthy flare resistance.
purchase from amazon.com/amazon.de, B&H or ebay.com/ebay.de for about $755/860€ (affiliate hyperlinks)

Zhong Yi 50mm 0.95 M:
By way of look of the photographs I want it over the aforementioned TTArtisan lens, however it additionally comes with fairly a couple of compromieses, particularly flare resistance and off heart sharpness at wider apertures. It is usually considerably larger, heavier and three instances as costly. And the 1.0 m minimal focus distance is an actual burden.
purchase from amazon.com or B&H for $799 (affiliate hyperlinks)

Leica Noctilux-M 50mm 0.95:
I’ve by no means used this lens personally, primarily resulting from it being roughly 12 grand. I count on increased sharpness, higher construct high quality and higher flare resistance. However when it comes to bokeh I’m positively not a fan of this one.
purchase from amazon.com | amazon.de | B&H | ebay.com | ebay.de for $12.500 (affiliate hyperlinks)

Conclusion

We’ve a very vast number of (M-mount) lenses to select from nowadays, so each time there’s a new one it barrens the query: did we want it? Are there any tangible enhancements over already current lenses? To place it easy: is there truly any motive to get this lens?

The craftmanship of this Syoptic 50mm 1.1 feels very stable and what was much more shocking: the rangefinder coupling in addition to the arduous infinity cease had been completely calibrated out of the field – one thing I not often encounter even with far more costly lenses from reknown manufacturers.

This isn’t to say there weren’t any flaws. In the event you don’t intend to make use of this lens on the most aperture more often than not – and you might be utilizing primarily the rangefinder to focus – the main target shift will probably be a problem. The flare resistance isn’t good and definitely one thing to be careful for.
After which there’s the virtually unreachable filter ring, truly my fundamental concern and one thing that can hopefully be fastened in additional manufacturing runs.

However what I care most about in a quick 50mm lens is what the bokeh seems to be like and right here this lens is an actual winner to my eyes. The sharpness can be greater than ok for the portrait purposes I keep in mind for a lens like this.
I just like the Voigtländer VM 50mm 1.2 Nokton, however I by no means purchased it as a result of I believed it was a bit too costly (bear in mind I’m extra of a 35mm man, so I don’t need to spend as a lot on a 50mm). I additionally just like the TTArtisan 50mm 1.4, however I by no means purchased it as a result of I believed it was a bit heavy for a handbook focus f/1.4 lens. I purchased the Samyang 50mm 1.2 XP out of curiosity, however bought it as a result of the optical qualities/weight+dimension ratio wasn’t ok for me on the finish of the day.
Now this Syoptic 50mm 1.1 seems to be like it’s the good 50mm lens for my wants.

E-mount consumer:

The E-mount model of the Syoptic lens options a couple of benefits over the M-mount model: it’s a little bit lighter, focuses nearer, comes with a lens hood and reveals (very barely) much less optical vignetting and (noticeably) much less gentle fall on and off high of that it’s even fairly a bit cheaper.

Nonetheless, aside from these variations the M-mount model does carry out very comparable on the Sony cameras, not solely when it comes to sharpness, but in addition when it comes to bokeh rendering. There may be hardly a distinction between utilizing the M-mount lens on a Sony digital camera versus a Leica digital camera, which may be very uncommon. So in case you are searching for an M-mount 50mm lens since you are utilizing each programs otherwise you wish to apply it to a Techart AF adapter it is best to have a severe have a look at this one as effectively.

You should buy this lens from ebay.com for about $320 for the M-mount model and $200 for the E-mount model and different mounts (affiliate hyperlinks)

Pattern Photographs

A lot of the pattern photos on this overview will be present in full decision right here.

Additional Studying