reasonable price petzval lenses

[goamules]

It looks like a Petzval to me. On older brass barrels, the knob usually means it's a petzval. For newer black lacquered barrels, they are sometimes triplets and still have a knob. Remember, most of these are projector or magic lantern lenses. They had to have a way to focus the projected image, so they almost all have knobs.

For shuttering, I use a darkslide in front of the lens and just approximate the timing (after metering). I've even been shooting ISO 400 speed that way, but I shoot in lower light settings so I can get about 1 second exposures.

[Steven Tribe]

Could be a P - it certainly looks like a magic lantern objective! Did you ask for estimate of the back focal length? The "two thick lens" doesn't mean anything as sellers only discover two lenses at the back if there is a lot of dust between them. They kept making petzvals for projectors quite late because they didn't trust their balsamed pairs would stand up to the considerable heat at that area and later they went over to triplets! Another good quality fast projection/petzval is item 380184203036 with B&L's standard nickel plating - unusually long though.

[Frank_E]

It looks like a Petzval to me. On older brass barrels, the knob usually means it's a petzval. For newer black lacquered barrels, they are sometimes triplets and still have a knob. Remember, most of these are projector or magic lantern lenses. They had to have a way to focus the projected image, so they almost all have knobs.

For shuttering, I use a darkslide in front of the lens and just approximate the timing (after metering). I've even been shooting ISO 400 speed that way, but I shoot in lower light settings so I can get about 1 second exposures.

thanks for the feedback. I can understand how you can estimate the shutter speed manually (ie practice counting with a stopwatch). What I don't understand is how you know what the aperture of the lens is. Are these old brass lenses typically a certain aperture or do you do a light meter reading on the ground glass and compare it to a know aperture in order to know what the speed of the lens is and then do all of your other settings accordingly (I think I just answered my own question Yes?)

thanks again

[Frank_E]

Could be a P - it certainly looks like a magic lantern objective! Did you ask for estimate of the back focal length? The "two thick lens" doesn't mean anything as sellers only discover two lenses at the back if there is a lot of dust between them. They kept making petzvals for projectors quite late because they didn't trust their balsamed pairs would stand up to the considerable heat at that area and later they went over to triplets! Another good quality fast projection/petzval is item 380184203036 with B&L's standard nickel plating - unusually long though.

Steven,
thank you also for your feedback. considering their other listings and apparent lack of "photographic knowledge". I didn't ask any questions. Just figured I would take my chances and see what happens. Have been tracking a number of these lenses and most seem to go in the $100-200 range. So I thought this was a reasonable bargain. Especially considering the fact that most of the lantern lenses don't appear to come with a mounting flange, which makes life more difficult (but not impossible).

[Dan Dozer]

Frank,

Here's a simple and fairly accurate method to figure out the aperature on your lenses. Put the lens on the camera and focus at infinity. Measure the distance from the center of the lens to film plane - let's say it's 10" for example. Measure the diameter of the aperature or if no aperature, the dimeter of the inside of the lens - let's say 2" for example. Divide the focal distance by the aperature diameter and you get the F stop - in this example the F stop is F5.

I took apart a Petzval projection lens that wouldn't work on my 8 x 10 - it was much too small and I mounted only the front half of the lens to a lens board. This half lens now had no iris - using this method my F stop turned out to be about F4.5, and it works very well for figuring exposure.

Hope this helps,

Dan

[Steven Tribe]

Well, I was the only bidder on the possible Petzval I mentioned about a week ago. So it is possible to be alone on a bid for an early projection lens. It is a very small one with a back focus of only 4 1/2" so I doubt it will cover 4x5". Made by none other than Emil Busch who produced a number of kino objectives early in the 20th C. Not known as a big petzval firm, though! The company that supplied this was well known in Bristol and the " & Sons" means it was sold between 1895 and about 1920. No. 260516444154if anyone is interested.

[Cesare Berti]

Luis,

I recently picked up a Darlot very similar to yours. I see you have it mounted on a Tech board. How did you mount it? From the photo it does not look like you used a ring or flange. Thanks

[Emil Schildt]

Well, I was the only bidder on the possible Petzval I mentioned about a week ago. So it is possible to be alone on a bid for an early projection lens. It is a very small one with a back focus of only 4 1/2" so I doubt it will cover 4x5". Made by none other than Emil Busch who produced a number of kino objectives early in the 20th C. Not known as a big petzval firm, though! The company that supplied this was well known in Bristol and the " & Sons" means it was sold between 1895 and about 1920. No. 260516444154if anyone is interested.

Steven - I have a "Ki" lens and it covers but swirls a lot on 6x6.... Fun to attach on my Rolleiflex SL 66...

see image taken with that combo (I am sure I have posted that picture somewhere in this LF forum, bu tI don't remember where, and I can't find it... so bear with me.)

Have fun with the lens.

[Steven Tribe]

Yes, I have seen this image before in one of your postings- but forgot about the Ki name associated with it. So it is a petzval then?

[Emil Schildt]

Yes, I have seen this image before in one of your postings- but forgot about the Ki name associated with it. So it is a petzval then?

I havn't put it apart, but I'd say yes...

I'll go try to unscrew it now..

EDIT: I just checked, and it definitively a Petzval.