Glass Bodies a variant-level encyclopedia of vintage lenses and cameras by iwillpat

MS Optics Apollon 36mm f/1.3

MS Optics · Leica M · 2022 · Gauss type, six elements in four groups

Also known as: MS Optics Apollon 36mm f/1.3 · MS-Optics Apollon 36mm f1.3 · MS-OPTICS APOLLON 36mm F1.3 · MS-OPTICS APOLLON 36mm F1.3 F MC · MS-Optics Apollon 1.3/36 F·MC · MS-Optics Apollon 1.3/36 · MS-Optical Apollon 36mm f1.3 · MS Apollon 36/f1.3 · Miyazaki Apollon 36mm f1.3 · Apollon 36mm f/1.3 · APOLLON 1.3/36 · APOLLON1.3/36 · APOLLON 1,3/36 · 宮崎光学 APOLLON 36mm F1.3 · 宮崎光学 アポロン 36mm F1.3 · MS-OPTICS APOLLON アポロン 1.3/36 · エムエスオプティクス アポロン 36mm

Variants & identification

Variant Mount Years Serial ranges Production
APOLLON 1.3/36 (2022), matte black or matte silver Leica M 2022 — No figure published by the maker; sold out at MK Direct
APOLLON 1.3/36 reissue (2026), black or silver, Full MC Leica M 2026 — —
APOLLON 1.3/36 reissue (2026), black paint Leica M 2026 — —
APOLLON 1.3/36 reissue (2026), uncoated (limited 70) Leica M 2026 — Limited to 70 (maker's reissue post); whether the 70 is for the Apollon alone or shared with the Apoqualia 1.4/35 is not stated
  1. Construction, true focal length (36.2 mm) and true aperture (f/1.38), size, the 80 g figure and the reversed M34 filter are from MK Direct's product page. The announcement gives about 75 g bare and 80 g with hood and cap, varying slightly between examples; the 2026 reissue post gives 80 g with hood. Weight here is the bare figure.
  2. Closest focus 0.3 m, rangefinder-coupled to 0.8 m on most M bodies and to 1 m on the M3 (MK Direct, 21 Nov 2022); the hand-written data sheet in Phillip Reeve's overview also gives ∞–0.3 m, coupled to 0.8 m. Two other sources give 0.6 m: Japan Exposures (0.8 m on Leica M, 0.6 m on mirrorless cameras) and Shige's comparison table on his Apoqualia 35/1.3 page, where both Apoqualia columns beside it also read 0.6 m. The maker's 0.3 m is used here.
  3. Blades: fourteen in Phillip Reeve's overview (rounded), the 2026 reissue post (round) and Shige's table; the hand-written 2022 data sheet reproduced in Reeve's overview says twelve round blades (絞りに12枚の丸形絞). Fourteen, the maker's current figure, is shown. Smallest aperture f/16 from the aperture scale on the lens photographed in Reeve's overview and from Shige's table.
  4. Release: December 2022 per MK Direct's announcement and Phillip Reeve; Leica Rumors reported it on 6 February 2023. Shige's lens list dates it 2022, his Apoqualia comparison table 2023.
  5. Prices: ¥100,000 is MK Direct's 2022 price and ¥125,000 / ¥127,000 / ¥135,000 the maker's 2026 reissue list for black / silver / black paint; neither post says whether Japanese consumption tax is included. ¥119,900 is Japan Exposures' dealer price, also without a tax statement.
How to tell them apart (expand)
  • Sold as APOLLON 1.3/36 (APOLLON 1,3/36 in the 2022 announcement); the maker states a true focal length of 36.2 mm and a true aperture of f/1.38
  • Lens number engraved on the front ring as No.041 B, beside MS-OPTICS and a red MC mark (lens in Phillip Reeve's overview)
  • Very small for an f/1.3: 50 mm across, 22 mm deep, about 75 g
  • Focuses to 0.3 m but couples to the rangefinder only to 0.8 m (1 m on the M3)
  • Reversed M34 filter thread

APOLLON 1.3/36 (2022), matte black or matte silver:

  • Two finishes, both matte: black and silver (MK Direct, 21 Nov 2022)
  • 50 mm across and 22 mm deep; about 75 g bare, 80 g with hood and cap (MK Direct)
  • Reversed M34 filter thread: the filter goes on back to front (MK Direct product page)
  • Front ring engraved with the lens number in the form No.041 B and MS-OPTICS, with a red MC mark; aperture scale 1.3 to 16, distance scale in metres from 0.8 (black lens photographed in Phillip Reeve's overview, ©Juha Kannisto)
  • Hood is always black, even on a silver lens (Japan Exposures)

APOLLON 1.3/36 reissue (2026), black or silver, Full MC:

  • Black or silver; the maker's reissue post gives no engraving or finish change that separates it from a 2022 lens
  • Maker's figures: 6 elements in 4 groups, 80 g with hood, 14 round blades, full multicoating, 0.3 m, M34 reversed filter

APOLLON 1.3/36 reissue (2026), black paint:

  • Black paint finish, offered only on the 2026 reissue; the 2022 lens came in matte black and matte silver only

APOLLON 1.3/36 reissue (2026), uncoated (limited 70):

  • Uncoated (ノンコート) optics; the maker describes no separate engraving, so the coating has to be judged from the reflections in the glass, which on an uncoated lens lack the coloured tints of multicoating

Serial-range notes

All 2022 lenses
MK Direct's product page says serial numbers are shipped at random (シリアルナンバーはランダムに出荷), so a low number is not an early lens. No production total has been published. The lens in Phillip Reeve's overview is engraved No.041 B, and the hand-written data sheet shown with it is headed Check #041B.

Specifications

Formula
Gauss type, six elements in four groups
Designed by
Miyazaki Sadayasu (宮崎貞安) — founder and designer of MS-Optics
Construction
6 elements / 4 groups
Aperture range
f/1.3–f/16
Diaphragm blades
14
Min. focus
0.3 m
Dimensions
50 × 22 mm
Weight
75 g
Filter
34 mm (0.75 mm pitch), M34, screwed in reversed (Japan Exposures gives 34 mm P.75, filters installed in reverse)
Years manufactured
2022
Country
Japan
Coating
Full multicoating (Full MC) on the 2022 lens and the standard 2026 reissue; the 2026 reissue is also offered uncoated, limited to 70
Original price
¥100,000 (MK Direct, the maker's shop, November 2022; tax treatment not stated). Japan Exposures, a dealer, lists ¥119,900. The 2026 reissue lists at ¥125,000 black, ¥127,000 silver and ¥135,000 black paint (maker's list, tax treatment not stated). (today ¥106,000)

What reviewers say

No reviews aggregated yet — this family is still in the research queue. Written one? We'd love to index it.

History

The Apollon 1.3/36 is a small fast Gauss lens for Leica M, announced by MK Direct, the direct-sales shop for Miyazaki Sadayasu’s MS-Optics lenses, on 21 November 2022 for delivery in December at ¥100,000, in matte black or matte silver. It was the first post on the shop’s blog written by Miyazaki’s grandson. The maker gives six elements in four groups, fully multicoated, and states the true figures rather than rounded ones: 36.2 mm and f/1.38. The lens is 50 mm across and 22 mm deep and weighs about 75 g, or 80 g with its hood and cap. It focuses to 0.3 m, but the rangefinder couples only down to 0.8 m, or 1 m on an M3. The filter is an M34 that screws in back to front. Phillip Reeve’s overview of the MS-Optics line adds a 14-blade rounded diaphragm and gives December 2022 as the first release; Leica Rumors carried the news on 6 February 2023. The overview also reproduces the hand-written data sheet that went with lens No.041 B, headed Check #041B and bearing the name MS-OPTICS S.MIYAZAKI. It repeats the maker’s figures, says every element is of nd 1.8 high-index glass, and gives twelve round blades rather than fourteen.

What sets it apart is the way it was tuned. The announcement compares it with MS’s two earlier fast 35s, the Apoqualia 35/1.3 II Slim and the Apoqualia-G 35/1.4. Both of those were designed for their best contrast wide open, at the cost of resolution. The Apollon goes the other way: it resolves well at f/1.3, but contrast is weak and there is flare. Stopped down to f/2, the flare goes and contrast rises sharply. The post says this was the usual character of lenses before the Zeiss Planar and the Leica Summicron arrived. It also says the Slim was a lens for experienced users. Miyazaki set its best focus for f/4 when he assembled it, so it needs a little front-focusing to be sharp wide open. The Apollon was meant to give the same Miyazaki character in a form a beginner can use. The name is that of Apollo, the sun god. The announcement presents it as a 35mm lens for everyday use. MK Direct’s lens list now marks it sold out. No production figure has been published, and MK Direct says serial numbers were shipped at random, so a low number does not mean an early lens. The dealer Japan Exposures lists it at ¥119,900 in black or silver, as an initial lot, and notes that the hood is black whatever the finish of the lens.

In 2026 the maker began selling directly through a new official site, msopticsshop.com, and MK Direct’s pages now point there. On 8 July 2026 the new shop announced a reissue of the Apollon alongside the Apoqualia 1.4/35. The figures it gives match those of 2022: six elements in four groups, 80 g with hood, 14 round blades, full multicoating, 0.3 m and the reversed M34 filter. There are now three finishes on the maker’s list: black at ¥125,000, silver at ¥127,000 and a new black paint at ¥135,000, with reservations taken by email and recommended to be sure of a lens. The post also offers an uncoated model limited to 70, and the reservation form asks buyers to choose a coating as well as a colour. The post does not make clear whether the 70 is for the Apollon alone or shared with the Apoqualia. The post said parts were arriving in small quantities, and a notice of 20 August moved the Apollon’s release from August to October 2026. The maker has not described any engraving that tells a 2026 lens from a 2022 one. A black-paint lens can only be a reissue, and an uncoated one should show reflections without the coloured tints of multicoating.

When buying, check that the hood and cap are present, since the maker’s 80 g includes them, and ask whether a hand-written data sheet like the one numbered for No.041 B came with it. Check that the reversed filter thread is undamaged. Remember that on a rangefinder body nothing closer than 0.8 m is coupled: the maker’s 0.3 m is for use on a digital camera, focusing by the screen. For a 2026 lens, ask which coating it has: the 2022 description of the drawing is for the multicoated lens. Figures in other sources sometimes differ from the maker’s. Japan Exposures gives 0.6 m on mirrorless cameras, and Shige’s comparison table gives 0.6 m and a 2023 release, though his own lens list dates the Apollon to 2022. The 2022 data sheet’s twelve blades disagree with the fourteen given everywhere else. The maker’s published figures are used on this page.

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This history is AI-written, from the sources listed at the foot of the page. Where the record is silent it says so rather than filling the gap — but no human wrote these sentences.

Example photos

More sample photos elsewhere

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Sample photo wanted — shot with a MS Optics Apollon 36mm f/1.3? We'd love to feature it (with credit).

Live listings

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Related: MS Optics Apoqualia 50mm f/3.5 (MS-Mode-AH) · MS Optics Apoqualia-G 35mm f/1.4 MC (and REIROAL M35mm f/1.4) · MS Optics Apoqualia 35mm f/1.3 II Slim · MS Optics Apoqualia-G 28mm f/2 · MS Optics Apoqualia 28mm f/1.7

Sources (12)

Every page here is assembled from public sources, and the gaps are real ones. If you own this lens, know a serial number I'm missing, or can see where I have it wrong, tell me — corrections, serials and sample photos are all worth having.