MS Optics Petz 57mm f/2 F-MC (Histrio-Petzval and Vario-Petz)
MS Optics · Leica M · 2018
Also known as: MS Optics Petz 57mm f/2 · MS-Optics Petz 57mm F2 · MS-Optics Petz 2/57mm F-MC · MS-Optics Petz 2/57 F-MC · MS-Optics 57mm f2 Petz · Petz 57mm f/2 · Petz 2/57 F-MC · Petz 2/57 · Petz Historical Series · Petz Historical Seris · Petz History Series · H-PETZ 57mm F2 · MS-H PETZ 57mm F2 · H PETZ 2/57 · Histrio-Petzval 57/2 F-MC · MS Histrio-Petzval 57/2 · Histrio Petzval 57mm f/2 · Vario-Petz 57mm F2 · Vario Petz 2/57 · VARIO PETZ 2/57 F-MC · MS-H VARIO PETZ 57mm F2 · VARIOPETZ 2/57 · VARIOPETZ2/57 · Variopetz 57mm f2 · Vario-Petzval 57/2 F-MC · MS Vario-Petzval 57/2 · MS-Optics Petzval 58mm f/2 · 宮崎光学 PETZ 57mm F2 · 宮崎光学 VARIO PETZ 57mm F2 · 宮崎光学 ペッツ 57mm F2 · 宮崎光学 ペッツバール 57mm F2 · MS-OPTICS ペッツバール 57mm
Variants & identification
| Variant | Mount | Years | Serial ranges | Production |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Petz 2/57 F-MC, Historical Series, black | Leica M | 2018 | — | — |
| Petz 2/57 F-MC, Historical Series, silver | Leica M | — | — | — |
| Vario-Petz 2/57 F-MC, black (variable spherical aberration) | Leica M | 2018 | — | Part of a limited series of 100 Vario-Petz lenses (Japan Exposures); no split by finish published |
| Vario-Petz 2/57 F-MC, silver (variable spherical aberration) | Leica M | — | — | Part of a limited series of 100 Vario-Petz lenses (Japan Exposures); no split by finish published |
- Leica Rumors' announcement of 14 May 2018, from the maker's press text: improved Petzval, 4 elements in 4 groups, 57.3 mm f/2.05, eight surfaces multicoated, 40.5 mm filter and hood thread, 37 mm diameter, 37 mm long, 110 g, focus to 0.8 m. Japan Exposures repeats those figures except close focus (see ³). shige_yuki gives 50 × 37 mm, 110 g and f/2–16; BastianK's review on phillipreeve.net gives 50 × 37 mm and a measured 114 g without the hood, with a 41.6° diagonal view and 1:11 maximum magnification. This page uses 50 mm for the diameter, the figure both reviewers give; the 37 mm diameter in the press text is the same number as the length.
- Blades: 12 according to shige_yuki, 14 rounded according to Phillip Reeve's review and overview. No figure is set here.
- Close focus: the distance scale is engraved down to 0.8 m, in red, and the maker's Vario-Petz sheet gives rangefinder coupling from infinity to 0.8 m at position 0. shige_yuki says the helicoid reaches 0.7 m, usable on mirrorless bodies, with coupling to 0.8 m. Japan Exposures says 1 m on Leica M and about 0.8 m on mirrorless bodies, and Reeve's overview says 1.0 m, against 0.8 m in his review.
- Dates: announced 14 May 2018 (Leica Rumors); released June 2018 (Reeve's overview); 2018 for both versions (shige_yuki). shige_yuki says the Vario-Petz came after the fixed lens. MK Direct wrote in October 2021 that the Vario-Petz had sold out shortly after its shop opened.
- Production: Japan Exposures gives the Vario-Petz as a limited series of 100. shige_yuki's table on his Vario-Prasma page gives a production number of 100 in a single column headed PETZ and VARIO PETZ, so it does not say whether the figure covers the Vario alone or both versions. No figure has been published for the fixed lens. The box label and notes sheet of Vario-Petz No. 043 B both read '1/50' after the number, which no source explains.
- Brass: Japan Exposures offers the Vario-Petzval in Black, Silver and Brass, the brass at ¥20,000 more. No brass lens has been seen in photographs or sales, so it has no row in the table.
- Names: the 2018 Historical Series plan listed a Petzval 58mm f/2 (Leica Rumors, 17 May 2018, reporting a roadmap Miyazaki published with the Histrio-Prot specifications), and shige_yuki's Vario-Prasma table still gives 58 mm in the Petz column. It shipped as a 57 mm. The lens is engraved PETZ 2/57 or VARIO PETZ 2/57; Japan Exposures sells the two as Histrio-Petzval 57/2 F-MC and Vario-Petzval 57/2 F-MC, shige_yuki writes H-PETZ and MS-H PETZ, and MK Direct writes VARIOPETZ2/57.
- BastianK's review on phillipreeve.net describes the Vario version as adjustable for coma correction. The same site's MS overview, the maker's sheet, Japan Exposures, MK Direct and shige_yuki all say it varies spherical aberration.
How to tell them apart
- A 57 mm f/2 for Leica M about 50 mm across and 37 mm long, engraved PETZ 2/57 with F-MC in red; the Vario-Petz adds VARIO in red and drops the words Historical Seris
- Unit focusing: the whole front of the barrel, aperture ring included, turns as you focus; there is no focus tab (Reeve)
- Clickless aperture ring, f/2 to f/16, turning the opposite way to most M lenses (Reeve)
- Distance scale in metres from infinity to 0.8, the 0.8 in red, with a depth-of-field scale at 4, 8 and 16
- Screw-in cylindrical metal hood on the male 40.5 mm thread; the phillipreeve.net review saw no normal filter thread on the hood itself
Petz 2/57 F-MC, Historical Series, black:
- Black barrel; the black front ring is lettered in white Historical Seris (so spelled on the lens), PETZ 2/57, F-MC in red, No. with a three-digit number and B, and MS-OPTICS
- No rear-lens index marks: shige_yuki describes those as the Vario-Petz's addition, and the fixed lens has no aberration control
- Hand-written box label 'Item Petz' with the number and B or BL, on a box printed MS-OPTICAL-R&D
Petz 2/57 F-MC, Historical Series, silver:
- Silver barrel, hood and rings with black scales; the front ring around the glass stays black, lettered in white with Historical Seris, MS-OPTICS and the number followed by S
- Hand-written box label 'Item Petz 2/57' with the number and S, on a box printed MS-OPTICAL-R&D
Vario-Petz 2/57 F-MC, black (variable spherical aberration):
- Front ring lettered VARIO in red, PETZ 2/57, F-MC in red, No. with the number and B, and MS-OPTICS; no Historical Seris
- Around the rear element, index holes for positions -2, -1, +1 and +2 either side of a red point, which marks 0, the setting the rangefinder couples at (as drawn on the maker's sheet)
- In Japan Exposures' photographs of No. 009 B and No. 043 B the scales are filled in a gold colour, where the fixed black lens has white
- Hand-written box label 'Item Vario P.Z 2/57 Soft focus Portrait Lens' with the number, B and 1/50, on a box printed MS-OPTICS with Miyazaki Sadayasu's Funabashi address
Vario-Petz 2/57 F-MC, silver (variable spherical aberration):
- Silver barrel and silver hood with black scales; black front ring lettered VARIO in red, PETZ 2/57, F-MC in red, No. with the number and S, and MS-OPTICS
- The same rear index marks as the black Vario
- Petz 2/57 F-MC, Historical Series, black: The lens announced in May 2018. Japan Exposures' product photographs show No. 040 B on a Leica M9-P, its box labelled 'Petz 040 BL'. jbv-foto of Nuremberg photographed No. 058 B with its box ('Petz 2/57 058B'), hood and caps, asking €899 including VAT under the margin scheme; the serial field on that dealer page reads 035, which does not match the lens in the photograph.
- Petz 2/57 F-MC, Historical Series, silver: No. 039 S, boxed with its silver hood and cap, was offered by jbv-foto at €899 including VAT under the margin scheme and on eBay at $1,111.23. A second eBay listing with the same title asked $1,003.28; it does not show whether it is a different lens.
- Vario-Petz 2/57 F-MC, black (variable spherical aberration): Same optics as the fixed Petz, with a ring at the rear that moves the rear lens about ±1 mm. Japan Exposures photographed No. 009 B on an M9-P and No. 043 B on an M6, the latter with its box and the maker's hand-written notes sheet. MK Direct restocked the black and silver lenses on 3 October 2021 at ¥75,000, saying they had sold out shortly after the shop opened.
- Vario-Petz 2/57 F-MC, silver (variable spherical aberration): Japan Exposures photographed No. 001 S on an M9-P with its silver hood. MK Direct named silver alongside black in its October 2021 restock at ¥75,000.
Serial-range notes
- Fixed Petz: 039 S, 040 B, 050, 058 B
- Numbers seen on the fixed lens: 039 S (silver, jbv-foto), 040 B (black, Japan Exposures), 058 B (black, jbv-foto) and 050 (in the title of Roberts Camera's eBay listing, finish not stated; the title copies the fixed lens's 'Historical Seris' engraving). The letter after the number is the finish, B for black and S for silver, and is repeated on the box label. No production total has been published for the fixed lens.
- Vario-Petz: 001 S, 009 B, 043 B
- Numbers seen on the Vario-Petz, all in Japan Exposures' photographs: 001 S (silver), 009 B and 043 B (black). Black and silver appear to share one sequence. Japan Exposures gives the series as 100 lenses and will not reserve numbers.
Specifications
- Formula
- Petzval type (the maker's 'improved Petzval'), 4 elements in 4 groups
- Designed by
- Miyazaki Sadayasu (宮崎貞安) — optical design; designed, made and hand-assembled by him in Japan (Japan Exposures)
- Construction
- 4 elements / 4 groups
- Aperture range
- f/2–f/16
- Min. focus
- 0.8 m
- Dimensions
- 50 × 37 mm
- Weight
- 110 g
- Filter
- 40.5 mm, 40.5 mm reverse-cut (male) thread, shared with the screw-in hood
- Years manufactured
- 2018
- Country
- Japan
- Coating
- All eight surfaces multicoated, 97.5% light transmission (maker's press text via Leica Rumors; Japan Exposures); engraved F-MC
- Original price
- ¥75,000 before tax is the list price shige_yuki gives for both versions (his Japanese list and Vario-Petz page: 定価（円・税別）). MK Direct, the maker's own shop, offered the Vario-Petz in black and silver at ¥75,000 when it restocked it on 3 October 2021 (tax not stated). Japan Exposures, the export dealer, lists the fixed Histrio-Petzval and the Vario-Petzval at ¥85,900 each, with a brass Vario at ¥20,000 more (tax treatment not stated). BastianK's review on phillipreeve.net (December 2024) points to eBay copies from about $800. (today ¥82,000)
What reviewers say
- BastianK (phillipreeve.net), fixed version (blog) — Surprisingly good contrast at the point of focus from f/2, but strong field curvature, some focus shift and heavy coma leave the corners weak, still not good at f/11; bokeh is smooth in the centre and double-edged toward the corners, flare can be severe stopped down, and vignetting is the lowest of the M-mount 50/2s he has tested. He agrees with MS that it is easy to use and suggests it for anyone who finds the faster MS lenses too quirky or dear.
- shige_yuki (shige-art.net), fixed version (blog) — The centre is sharp in good light on 24-megapixel bodies, but wide open it flares and ghosts against the light and shows double-line bokeh at the edges; it covers a 44 × 33 mm sensor with almost no vignetting, though the edges distort. Shortened to a near-standard focal length, it loses some of the Petzval's bokeh character and reads as a more ordinary lens. via machine translation — corrections welcome
- shige_yuki (shige-art.net), Vario-Petz (blog) — The same optics with movable rear-lens index marks. Away from the standard position the rangefinder no longer agrees with focus, so a mirrorless body is recommended, and turning the retainer near the rear element is hard to do outdoors. The plus settings change the picture markedly, the minus settings little. He calls it an experimental lens made to add value to the Petz, of doubtful practicality.
History
The Petz is a 57 mm f/2 for Leica M, the third lens of the Historical Series in which Miyazaki Sadayasu of MS Optics reworked old optical designs. It follows the Protar-type Histrio-Prot 40mm f/6.3 of 2017 and the Dagor-type Histrio-Dagonar 40mm f/6.3 Macro, and was announced on 14 May 2018. Its model is Joseph Petzval’s portrait lens of 1840, and shige_yuki notes that it keeps the original’s four elements in four groups. Japan Exposures says it lacks the pronounced swirling bokeh of other Petzval lenses. The series plan Miyazaki had published with the Histrio-Prot’s specifications, which Leica Rumors relayed that month, called it a Petzval 58mm f/2. Petzval designs are normally long-focus lenses, and Miyazaki told shige_yuki that 57 mm was the shortest focal length at which this one still worked. The press text describes the aim as high performance in the centre with smooth bokeh at the edge of the frame, in an easy standard focal length slightly longer than normal, and gives 57.3 mm, f/2.05, eight multicoated surfaces, a 40.5 mm thread and 110 g. It is about 50 mm across and 37 mm long. The whole front of the barrel turns as you focus, and the clickless aperture ring goes from f/2 to f/16.
Two versions share the optics. The fixed lens is engraved Historical Seris, so spelled, then PETZ 2/57 and F-MC. Japan Exposures sells it as the Histrio-Petzval 57/2 F-MC, and shige_yuki calls it the H-PETZ. Users told Miyazaki it was more ordinary than they had expected, and shige_yuki reports that this is why the Vario-Petz followed. The Vario-Petz is engraved VARIO PETZ 2/57. A ring around the rear element moves the rear lens by about a millimetre either way, which changes spherical aberration while leaving the other aberrations largely alone. The maker’s hand-written sheet numbers the settings -2 to +2. At 0 the correction is complete: the picture is sharpest and most contrasty, and the rangefinder couples from infinity to 0.8 m. The minus settings leave the aberration under-corrected, which the sheet likens to the Kino-Plasmat and the Vest Pocket Kodak lens; at -2 it notes heavy flare around a sharp core and attractive bokeh behind the subject. The plus settings over-correct it in the manner of the Leitz Thambar; at +2 it notes heavy flare and attractive bokeh in front of the subject. The sheet says the flare clears by f/4 at ±1 and by f/5.6 at ±2. Away from 0 the focus no longer matches the rangefinder, so those settings are for mirrorless cameras. The settings also change the focusing range. At -1 and -2 the lens no longer reaches infinity, and nothing farther than about 5 m or 2.5 m respectively can be brought into focus. At +1 and +2 the closest focus moves out to 1 m and 1.2 m. You turn the ring with the tip of a ballpoint pen or a toothpick. shige_yuki found this awkward outdoors and saw little change on the minus side. He likens the mechanism to the one built into the larger Aporis 135mm f/2.4 of 2017, and notes that the Vario-Prasma 50mm f/1.5 of 2019 moved the control to the front of the barrel.
Both versions came in black and silver, and the letter after the engraved number (B or S) gives the finish; it is repeated on the hand-written box label. Japan Exposures also lists the Vario in brass at ¥20,000 more, though no brass lens has been seen. Japan Exposures gives the Vario-Petz as a limited series of 100; shige_yuki also gives 100, in a table column that covers both versions, so it is not clear whether that figure is for the Vario alone. No separate total has been published for the fixed lens, and the highest number seen on it is 058. shige_yuki gives ¥75,000 before tax as the list price. MK Direct, the maker’s shop, wrote that the Vario had sold out soon after its web shop opened, and restocked black and silver lenses at ¥75,000 in October 2021. Japan Exposures lists both versions at ¥85,900. Dealer asking prices for the fixed lens run from $688.30 (Roberts Camera on eBay) to €899 at jbv-foto in Germany, which asks $1,003–1,111 for its copies on eBay.
The two reviews of the fixed lens broadly agree on how it draws. BastianK, writing for phillipreeve.net, found good contrast at the point of focus from f/2 and strong field curvature, with some focus shift and heavy coma; the corners still did not look good at f/11. Bokeh is smooth in the centre and double-edged toward the corners, and flare can be severe, but vignetting is unusually low. shige_yuki found a sharp centre and flare and ghosts against the light; the lens covers a 44 × 33 mm sensor with almost no vignetting, but the edges are distorted. He concluded that at a near-standard focal length it loses some of the Petzval’s bokeh character and becomes a more ordinary lens.
When buying, confirm which version it is from the front ring: Historical Seris on the fixed lens, VARIO on the other. At least one seller has copied the misspelling into a listing title. On a Vario, check that the rear ring sits at the red 0 point before trusting the rangefinder, and look for tool marks on the retainer around the rear element. The lens should come with its screw-in metal hood. The hood and filters share the 40.5 mm thread, which is male, so filters screw on the other way round; the phillipreeve.net review warns that this matters for circular polarisers. No M body has a 57 mm frame line. BastianK found that an M6 brings up the 50/75 mm frames and an M10 shows a mix of the 50/75 and 28/90 lines, and shige_yuki says the picture is slightly tighter than the 50 mm frame. BastianK also found that the mount covers the M10’s 6-bit code reader and has no groove for coding it yourself, while Japan Exposures describes the mount as having an area for 6-bit coding.
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
- Japan Exposures: Vario-Petzval product photographs (Nos. 001 S, 009 B and 043 B, box and notes sheet)
- phillipreeve.net: sample photographs and test shots from the fixed Petz on Leica M10 and Sony A7rII
- shige_yuki: sample photographs from the fixed Petz (Leica M10, M-P Typ 240, SL, Sony α7S II, Hasselblad X2D)
- shige_yuki: Vario-Petz sample photographs at different settings (Leica M Typ 240)
These photographers keep all rights to their work — enjoy it at the source.
Sample photo wanted — shot with a MS Optics Petz 57mm f/2 F-MC (Histrio-Petzval and Vario-Petz)? We'd love to feature it (with credit).
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