Results 1 to 5 of 5

Thread: "Modern" lens design?

  1. #1
    Mark Sawyer's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2004
    Location
    Stuck inside of Tucson with the Neverland Blues again...
    Posts
    6,268

    "Modern" lens design?

    Plasmats, Tessars, Dialytes, Dagors... all designs that are over a hundred years old. Are there any large format lenses whose basic design is relatively modern? Just wondering...

    (I started thinking about this when it was pointed out to me that one can buy a new "state-of-the-art" apochromatic flourite-glass Petzval lens for astrophotography.)
    "I love my Verito lens, but I always have to sharpen everything in Photoshop..."

  2. #2

    Join Date
    Nov 2004
    Location
    Orange, CA
    Posts
    973

    Re: "Modern" lens design?

    How about the SSXL's?

  3. #3
    All metric sizes to 24x30 Ole Tjugen's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2002
    Location
    Norway
    Posts
    3,383

    Re: "Modern" lens design?

    The thing with LF lenses is that the old designs are just about perfect for just about everything - only a few super-fast super-wides really benefit from radically new designs.

    Mind you - all the "old" designs have been extensively recalculated and "tweaked", and a late Schneider 210mm f:6.1 Xenar is a very different lens from and older Tessar-type - even if it's still basically a Tessar. And I'd swear there is an aspheric surface in my 150mm Germinar-W...

  4. #4
    the Docter is in Arne Croell's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 1997
    Location
    Huntsville, AL
    Posts
    1,210

    Re: "Modern" lens design?

    Ole is right .. but apart from that the last "new" designs were:

    The Zeiss Biogon/Schneider Super-Angulon-type wide angles from the 1950's with the large negative menisci on the outsides (again based on a Russian design by Roosinov from the 1940's named Russar, but only used for aerial cameras and 35 mm by the Russians, not for regular LF))

    The Super-Symmar HM from Schneider in the late 1980's and

    The related Super-Symmar XL from Schneider in the 1990's mentioned by Eric.

  5. #5
    Resident Heretic Bruce Watson's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2003
    Location
    USA, North Carolina
    Posts
    3,362

    Re: "Modern" lens design?

    Quote Originally Posted by Mark Sawyer View Post
    Plasmats, Tessars, Dialytes, Dagors... all designs that are over a hundred years old. Are there any large format lenses whose basic design is relatively modern? Just wondering...
    Most aspherical designs are "new" (like the Schneider Super Symar XL series). There are some designs that you can make now because of some of the new glass types (higher refraction, lower dispersion, all that), and because of the improvements in coating technology (more elements, more glass/air interfaces). There are also some older designs that you can't make anymore (rumored anyway, but I haven't discovered which designs these might be) because some of the glass has been banned (used toxic chemicals to make).

    The biggest improvments have been in manufacturing. Automation has allowed manufacturers to make compex shapes with excellent accuracy and precision.

    Bruce Watson

Similar Threads

  1. Lens design - 127mm Raptar
    By Shen45 in forum Lenses & Lens Accessories
    Replies: 4
    Last Post: 3-Jun-2007, 14:24
  2. Lens Design For Maximum DOF
    By Scott Rosenberg in forum Lenses & Lens Accessories
    Replies: 24
    Last Post: 24-Jun-2006, 06:55
  3. Portrait perspective: Quiz and two questions
    By Jerry Fusselman in forum Lenses & Lens Accessories
    Replies: 88
    Last Post: 5-Jun-2006, 17:57
  4. Depth of Field Equations, Lens Design Assumptions and Soft Focus Lenses
    By Rory_3532 in forum Lenses & Lens Accessories
    Replies: 8
    Last Post: 3-Mar-2004, 18:00
  5. Replies: 11
    Last Post: 2-Jan-2002, 22:22

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •