MS Optics Hipolion 19mm F/2.8 Soft
Ultra-wide angle prime lens • Digital era • Discontinued • Collectible
- Announced:
- · December 2020
- Production type:
- · Small-batch production
- Availability:
- ● Sold out
- Country of design:
- · Japan
- Original name:
- · MS-OPTICS JAPAN HIPOLION 2.8/19 SOFT 2.8-5.6
- Class:
- · Fast full-frame ultra-wide angle prime lens
- · Professional model
- · Soft Focus lens
- · Pancake lens
Abbreviations
| SOFT | The lens features soft focus effect control. |
Model history (1)
| ■MS Optics Hipolion 19mm F/2.8 Soft • Pancake lens | M | 2 - 2 | 0.50m | -- | 2020 ● | |
| —MS Optics Hipolion 19mm F/2.8 Soft Brass • Pancake lens | 2021 ● | |||||
Specification
| Optical design: | |
| 35mm full frame | |
| 19mm | |
| F/2.8 | |
| 2 elements in 2 groups (Doublet) | |
| Leica M | |
| 97.4° (35mm full frame) | |
| On Leica M8/M8.2 APS-H [1.33x] cameras: | |
35mm equivalent focal length: | 25.3mm (in terms of field of view) |
35mm equivalent speed: | F/3.7 (in terms of depth of field) |
Diagonal angle of view: | 81.1° |
| Diaphragm mechanism: | |
Diaphragm type: | Manual |
Aperture control: | Dial-set aperture ring |
| 10 (ten) | |
| Focusing: | |
Coupled to the rangefinder: | Yes (from 0.70m) |
| 0.50m | |
| <No data> | |
Focusing modes: | Manual focus only |
Manual focus control: | Focusing lever |
| Physical characteristics: | |
| 27g | |
| ⌀50×2.6mm | |
| - | |
| - | |
| Accessories: | |
| Removable front filters are not accepted | |
| Not available |
Source of data
- Manufacturer's technical data.
From the editor
Possibly the smallest lens in the world, and certainly the smallest lens developed and produced by MS Optics. An ultra-wide-angle lens consisting of only two symmetrically arranged elements. Essentially, it is a remake of the large-format Hypergon lens, released by Goerts in 1900 and consisting of two meniscus lenses. The Hypergon had completely corrected field curvature, distortion and chromatic aberrations. According to the manufacturer, the Hipolion has fully corrected chromatic aberrations at F/8-F/16, insignificant distortion (only 0.12%), and can be used as a soft-focus lens at F/2.8-F/5.6. There is no special viewfinder for this lens, and it can be used for a wide range of subjects, including casual photography, architecture, landscapes.
Frequently asked questions
What is a Soft Focus effect and what are its benefits?
Spherical aberration has been purposely introduced into this lens to produce photographic images that are sharp yet which have an alluring softness.
Because of the ethereal glow that can be achieved by using Soft Focus, the lens is ideal for creating scenes with a dreamy feel. It is also good for masking blemishes in portrait photography, leaving the model's skin looking flawless.
The effect of Soft Focus is a complex phenomenon that depends on focusing distance, distance to background, relative aperture etc. It is not the same as an out-of-focus image, and cannot be achieved simply by defocusing a common lens.
The effect can be approximated in post-processing but it is not as trivial as just applying a blur filter over the image.
MS Optics Hipolion 19mm F/2.8 Soft special editions (1)
- MS Optics Hipolion 19mm F/2.8 Soft Brass - January 2021