Assessment: Minolta 40mm 2.0 M-Rokkor

Introduction

Initially designed as Leica Summicron-C 40mm 2.0 to ship with the Leica/Minolta CL, this Minolta 40mm 2.0 M-Rokkor model with similar optical design (however allegedly improved coatings) was one of many three M-mount lenses destined for use with the improved Minolta CLE. That is nonetheless one of the crucial compact M-mount lenses and one in every of few choices in case you are searching for a 40mm, so let’s have a better look.
This lens might be reviewed on the 42mp Sony A7rII and the 24mp Leica M10.

Pattern Pictures

Many of the pattern pictures on this evaluate will be present in full decision right here.

Disclosure

The Minolta 40mm 2.0 M-Rokkor was kindly offered freed from cost by our reader Victor for reviewing functions. Thanks loads!

Specs

The Minolta 40mm 2.0 M-Rokkor has the next specs:

• Diameter: 51 mm
• Size: 25 mm
• Weight: 104g (measured)
• Subject of view: 56° (diagonally)
• Filter Diameter: 40.5 mm
• Variety of Aperture Blades: 10 (straight)
• Components/Teams: 6/4
• Shut Focusing Distance: 0.8 m (measured)
• Most Magnification: 1:16.7 (measured)
• Mount: Leica-M

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Dealing with / Construct High quality

When it comes to casing design and colours the three Minolta M-mount lenses strongly resemble the fashion of authentic Leica M-mount lenses of that period. When evaluating this 40mm 2.0 (and likewise the 28mm 2.8) to e.g. my equally outdated Leica 90mm 2.0 from 1987 (or fashionable Voigtländer and TTArtisan lenses) the construct high quality doesn’t really feel as good although: the main target rings of the Minolta lenses have a fairly low resistance and each their helicoids present a little bit of slack. I don’t know if they’ve at all times been like that or whether it is just because they’ve been used loads over the previous 40 years although.

The main focus ring turns ~110° from its minimal focus distance of 0.8 m to infinity. The aperture ring options equidistantly spaced half-a-stop click-stops between f/2.0 and f/16.

All of the markings are engraved and full of paint and most components of the outer barrel really feel like they’re constructed from steel. I’m not 100% certain concerning the small focus tab although, it appears like that one is constructed from plastic.

Minolta 40mm 2.0 with rubber hood hooked up

As was already the case for the 90mm 4.0, there may be additionally a retractable rubber screw-in hood out there for this 40mm lens.

The Minolta 40mm 2.0 M-Rokkor brings up the right 40mm framelines on the Leica CL and the Minolta CLE whereas it brings up the 50mm framelines on the Leica M10/M6. So long as you don’t use the rubber hood there is no such thing as a rangefinder blockage in any respect.

The one cease sooner Voigtländer VM 40mm 1.4 Nokton is barely greater however virtually double the load of this Minolta.

The lens can in fact be tailored to fashionable mirrorless cameras. When coupled with a Sony E-mount or Nikon Z-mount digicam you’ll be able to e.g. use the TTArtisan 6-bit adapter to present it Exif information or the Techart LM-EA9 to equip it with autofocus.

Vignetting

Mild falloff

I don’t actually like seeing vignetting values north of three.0 EV, however then this isn’t precisely uncommon amongst such compact lenses. The Voigtländer VM 40mm 1.4 Nokton is equally unhealthy at its most aperture and confirmed 3.6 EV vignetting within the corners. However when evaluating the Nokton and this Minolta at f/2.0 and f/2.8 the Voigtländer reveals about 1 EV much less vignetting, a notable distinction. Stopped all the way down to f/5.6 and additional they carry out the identical although.

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

Optical vignetting

Quick lenses normally present a noticeable quantity of optical vignetting, particularly so the compact ones. 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 hold this form within the corners.
So within the following comparability we transfer from the middle (left) to the intense nook (proper) and see how the form of the sunshine circle adjustments.

Leica M10 | Minolta 40mm 2.0 | 0.8 m

Regardless of its average most aperture there’s a entire lot of optical vignetting. Stopping down by one cease additionally solely impacts the central a part of the body.
If we examine this to the Voigtländer VM 40mm 1.4 Nokton, the Nokton reveals noticeably much less optical vignetting at shared apertures, not a giant shock because it wants greater diameter parts to accomodate the f/1.4 aperture.

In fact the Minolta is utilizing an all spherical design, so there are not any onion rings to be discovered right here. The ten straight aperture blades result in factors of sunshine being rendered as decagons already at f/2.8 although.

Sharpness

Focus shift

50% crops, Sony A7rII

Much like the Voigtländer VM 40mm 1.4 Nokton additionally this Minolta lens reveals robust focus shift. When utilizing this lens on 24mp sensors it won’t be that apparent, however with increased decision cameras it actually is. Particularly between f/2.8 and f/4.0 the main target considerably shifts to the again. I might be a bit cautious utilizing the f/4.0 and f/5.6 setting with this lens when counting on the rangefinder to focus. On cameras with Liveview I like to recommend to make use of it on this aperture vary.

This focus shift shouldn’t be solely a problem at nearer distances but additionally at infinity.

Infinity (42mp Sony A7rII/24mp Leica M10)

Ah properly, there are some things to speak about right here. On the Leica M10 I didn’t alter the main target setting for focus shift when stopping down, which is why the f/5.6 heart crop seems to be worse than the f/4.0 one. When trying on the midframe we see a gentle enchancment on stopping down although, as can be anticipated.

Now on the upper decision A7rII the crops with the lens stopped down regarded so unhealthy due to focus shift, I needed to re-run the collection with adjusted focus at each aperture setting. Now right here we see a gentle enchancment within the heart, however the midframe really seems to be worse at f/5.6 than at f/4.0. Why is that?
With some lenses the main target shift doesn’t have an effect on all components of the body the identical approach, this Minolta 40mm 2.0 appears to be a kind of lenses.

With regards to the nook efficiency I might advocate to cease this lens all the way down to f/8.0 or f/11 no matter digicam, if the sunshine ranges permit for that.

Now if we examine the outcomes on this class to these of the Voigtländer VM 40mm 1.4 Nokton, the Minolta does look a bit higher resolution-wise within the corners and much more so within the midframe at wider apertures. Stopped down the Nokton manages to catch up although.

Now lens designs as small as this one at all times spot some compromises, however we also needs to have in mind this lens was designed within the 70s, so it’s half a century outdated now. Nobody was even dreaming of excessive decision digital sensors at the moment. Contemplating all that, this lens holds up fairly properly even in the present day.

Portrait 1.2 m (24mp Sony A7III/Leica M10)

For portraiture it isn’t so necessary how flat the sphere is, it’s extra fascinating to see what the sharpness is like when centered at totally different components of the body to take subject curvature out of the equation.

We might be 100% crops from the 24mp Sony A7III and the Leica M10. Each cameras should not have an anti aliasing filter in entrance of the sensor.

Sony A7III <—> Leica M10

Astigmatism is properly corrected and aside from barely decrease distinction within the outer midframe space there may be hardly something to complain about right here. Each set to f/2.0, off heart the Minolta even has a slight edge over the Voigtländer VM 40mm 1.4 Nokton.

There may be hardly a distinction between the efficiency on the Leica M10 and the Sony A7III seen right here.

Shut 0.8 m, 1:16.7 (42mp Sony A7rII)

100% crops from heart, A7rII, refocused for each shot

No surprises right here: the Minolta 40mm 2.0 is a fairly easy optical design with out floating parts and vastly advantages from stopping down a bit at shut distances.

Flare resistance

It’s mentioned that the later Minolta M-Rokkor model of this lens (the one being reviewed right here) has higher coatings than the sooner Leica 40mm 2.0 Summicron-C. I haven’t seen any comparisons, so I’m not certain how a lot of a distinction this really makes.

At f/2.0 a really massive and distracting ring flare will be simply created with a powerful gentle supply inside or barely outdoors the body. Stopping all the way down to f/2.8 is sufficient to eliminate it.

Leica M10 | Minolta 40mm 2.0 | f/11

Stopped down, relying on the place of the sunshine supply, some ghosts could seem and in some instances the distinction will even be decrease, as will be seen from the collection above.

Good fashionable lenses (just like the Voigtländer VM 40mm 1.4 Nokton) do higher right here, however it’s nonetheless a strong efficiency, particularly for a lens from the early 80s.

Coma

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

I feel I didn’t come throughout a compact but quick lens that did properly on this class and this Minolta lens doesn’t change the development. Coma is well noticeable at f/2.0 and f/2.8 and it takes stopping all the way down to f/4.0 (higher f/5.6) to eliminate this aberration.

Right here the efficiency is similar to the Voigtländer VM 40mm 1.4 Nokton at shared apertures.

This pattern is to point out what a blue hour image seems to be like with the lens set to f/2.0:

Distortion

The Minolta 40mm 2.0 M-Rokkor reveals no subject related distortion.

Bokeh

What will we anticipate from a compact 40mm f/2.0 lens from this period? I anticipate good bokeh within the heart of the body however fairly busy rendering in the direction of the corners at f/2.0. Let’s see.

Already at mid distances you’ll be able to simply see how the bokeh deteoriates in the direction of the corners because of optical vignetting. If there are not any structured parts within the corners (like within the blue hour image above) the bokeh is fairly good although.

At longer focus distances this impact attributable to optical vignetting is much more pronounced – as was to be anticipated. Within the final image the distinction between bokeh within the heart and on the perimeters may be very apparent, but additionally within the different photos you’ll be able to see the nook and border areas being considerably much less blurred than the middle.

If you’re utilizing this lens on a mirrorless digicam with a thicker filter stack (e.g. Sony E or Nikon Z) this impact is much more pronounced.

Sunstars

Leica M10 | Minolta 40mm 2.0 | slight crops

This Minolta 40mm 2.0 makes use of 10 straight aperture blades like most of the Voigtländer VM/E and Zeiss ZM/Loxia lenses, resulting in fairly good sunstars between f/2.8 and f/11. At f/2.0 and f/16 the opening is completely spherical, so no sunstars at these settings.
If you wish to be taught extra about this subject take a look at this text.

Chromatic aberration

Lateral

100% crops from border, Sony A7rII UT

Lateral CA are on a low to medium degree and straightforward to appropriate in put up with only one click on, e.g. in Lightroom.

Longitudinal

There may be some inexperienced outlining within the background and also you additionally see some magenta in entrance of the focal aircraft in addition to near the main target level (purple fringing), however really for such a easy design that is corrected fairly properly.

Leica M10 | Minolta 40mm 2.0 | f/2.0

Conclusion

Many Leica M customers extremely worth compact and light-weight lenses and this Minolta 40mm 2.0 M-Rokkor is as compact and light-weight because it will get for a 40mm f/2.0 lens.

For a few years this was really thought-about a little bit of a hidden gem because of first rate optics whereas being small and inexpensive. In 2024 I don’t actually see it as being that nice of a deal anymore although, as you need to pay a minimum of $350 for one in good situation – greater than for a model new Voigtländer VM 40mm 1.4 Nokton. The Voigtländer lens could also be noticeably heavier, however it’s also equally sized whereas being one cease sooner.

Aside from being lighter, what are the advantages of this Minolta lens by comparability? It has much less distortion and a bit extra even throughout body sharpness at wider apertures. When it comes to distinction it isn’t as punchy because the Voigtländer lens, however a few of you may very well choose that for a barely softer rendering.

On the finish of the day this Minolta 40mm 2.0 M-Rokkor is a cute little lens that gained’t weigh you down and might be helpful for lots of functions.

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Options

There aren’t that many 40mm lenses for M-mount. In case you additionally think about a 35mm or a 50mm an alternate you’ll find pleny of opinions of these right here.

Voigtländer VM 40mm 1.4 Nokton Basic:
As I’ve proven you within the dealing with part this lens is equally sized however virtually double the load. In case you order it new in field from Japan it’s going to additionally almost certainly be cheaper than a 40 years outdated used copy of this Minolta 40mm 2.0 – which is among the primary causes I made a decision to go along with the Voigtländer lens.
The Voigtländer lens additionally reveals very excessive distinction (particularly stopped all the way down to f/2.0) and its flare resistance is healthier.
Go for the Minolta in case you are searching for a much less contrasty and/or the smallest/lightest 40mm M-mount lens.
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Voigtländer VM 40mm 1.2 Nokton:
Voigtländer’s newest 40mm lens. It’s the quickest choice, focuses nearer (0.5 m) and contains a fashionable design with aspherical parts resulting in good efficiency at wider apertures and likewise easy bokeh rendering. Evidently it’s a lot greater, heavier and costlier.
If you’re an M-mount consumer deciding between this newer f/1.2 and the older f/1.4 basic the choice is absolutely easy: get the f/1.4 should you care about having a smaller lens, you actually like that classic rendering otherwise you can not afford the f/1.2 model. If none of that is the case get the f/1.2.
If you’re utilizing an E-mount or Z-mount digicam the E-mount model of this 40mm 1.2 can also be a significantly better selection, as it’s optimized for his or her thick filter stack.
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Voigtländer VM 40mm 2.8 Heliar:
This lens was initially solely out there for E-mount and had for use together with a shut focus adapter as in any other case it can’t be centered. It’s now additionally out there as VM and even M39 lens and 27g heavier than this Minolta 40mm 2.0.
Its efficiency is sweet – it even makes use of an aspherical component – however contemplating it’s equally sized as the 2 stops sooner VM 40mm 1.4 and sometimes costlier I don’t discover it significantly interesting.
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Pattern Pictures

Many of the pattern pictures on this evaluate will be present in full decision right here.

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